The outer layer of the Earth is not one solid shell — it is broken into about a dozen huge pieces called tectonic plates . These plates float very slowly on hot, soft rock beneath them, moving just a few centimetres each year . Although it feels as though the ground beneath your feet is perfectly still , you are in fact riding on a gigantic , slow-moving raft of rock .
✨ The theory that the continents were once joined and have drifted apart over millions of years is called continental drift . It was first proposed by Alfred Wegener in 1912.
To picture how the Earth is built , imagine a peach . The thin skin is like the crust we live on. The thick , juicy part is the mantle , made of hot rock that can flow very slowly like thick treacle . Right in the middle is the stone , which is like the Earth's super-hot core . The tectonic plates are pieces of that thin crust , floating on the mantle below .
📷 Rajneesh kumar Thakur · CC BY-SA 4.0🧩 Order the Earth's layers from the outside in.
Inner core — solid metal at the centre ? ⤒ ↑ ↓ ⤓
Outer core — liquid metal ? ⤒ ↑ ↓ ⤓
Mantle — thick, slowly flowing hot rock ? ⤒ ↑ ↓ ⤓
Crust — the thin surface we live on ? ⤒ ↑ ↓ ⤓
Where plates meet , extraordinary things happen . When two plates push together , mountains form . When they pull apart , hot rock rises and volcanoes can erupt . When they slide past each other, the rough edges catch and then suddenly slip , and the ground shakes — that is an earthquake .
📷 translation w:sk:user:Adrian · Public domain🔗 Match each plate movement to what it can create.
Tsunamis Earthquakes Volcanoes and new ocean floor Mountains
Tsunamis Earthquakes Volcanoes and new ocean floor Mountains
Plates slide past each other
? Tsunamis Earthquakes Volcanoes and new ocean floor Mountains
Plates collide under water
? Tsunamis Earthquakes Volcanoes and new ocean floor Mountains
⚠️ Earthquakes can be very dangerous . The most powerful ones can topple buildings and trigger giant ocean waves called tsunamis . Scientists study earthquakes to help communities prepare and stay safer .
The point underground where an earthquake starts is called the focus . Directly above it on the surface is the epicentre — the place that usually feels the shaking most strongly . Scientists measure the strength of earthquakes using instruments called seismometers , which record the trembling and turn it into a number on a scale . The bigger the number , the more powerful the earthquake .
📷 Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0✍️ Fill in the earthquake words.
The point underground where an earthquake starts is the _____ . Directly above it on the surface is the _____ . The shaking is recorded by an instrument called a _____ .
focus epicentre seismometer crater barometer
In countries that have many earthquakes , people prepare carefully to stay safe . Engineers design buildings that can sway gently instead of snapping , and children practise 'drop , cover , and hold on' drills at school , ducking under sturdy tables . Being ready means far fewer people are hurt when the ground does shake .
🗂️ Sort each idea into a safe or unsafe thing to do during an earthquake.
Get under a sturdy table
? Safe Unsafe
Stand near a tall, wobbly shelf
? Safe Unsafe
Cover your head and hold on
? Safe Unsafe
Safe Unsafe
✨ Most earthquakes happen along the edges of tectonic plates . Japan , Chile , and the west coast of the USA all sit on active plate boundaries and experience many earthquakes every year .
