Science // Volcanoes & Earthquakes

What Is an Earthquake

Know what an earthquake is: a sudden shaking of the ground that can be strong or weak

Ages
5 to 7
Type
Concept
Builds on
0 topics
Leads to
5 topics

Quick check

Can the learner explain that an earthquake is when the ground suddenly shakes, and that some earthquakes shake harder than others?

Ask this to see whether the topic is secure.

Topic // Mastery

What mastery looks like

What a learner can do once this topic is secure.
  • Describe an earthquake as the ground shaking suddenly
  • Explain that earthquakes vary in strength from barely noticeable to very strong
  • Describe what it might feel like during an earthquake

Topic // Map

Where this fits

What to learn first and what this topic opens up, with the reason for each link. Required links come first.
  • RequiredMust come first
  • HelpfulHelps, but not essential

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What Is an Earthquake

Ages 5 to 7 // Concept

Leads to

5 topics
  • Ring of FireRequired

    Volcanoes & Earthquakes // Ages 7 to 9

    Mapping earthquake patterns requires knowing what earthquakes are

  • Why Earthquakes HappenRequired

    Volcanoes & Earthquakes // Ages 7 to 9

    Understanding earthquake causes builds on knowing what an earthquake is

  • TsunamisRequired

    Volcanoes & Earthquakes // Ages 7 to 9

    Tsunamis are caused by undersea earthquakes

  • Fast & Slow Earth ChangesHelpful

    Volcanoes & Earthquakes // Ages 5 to 7

    Quick/slow changes concept benefits from earthquake as example of quick change

  • Earthquake SafetyHelpful

    Volcanoes & Earthquakes // Ages 5 to 7

    Earthquake safety benefits from knowing what an earthquake is

Topic // Research-informed

Teaching notes

From the Marble Skill Taxonomy. These notes have not been validated in classrooms, so treat them as a starting point for your own judgement.

The approach

For ages 5–7, teach that an earthquake is a sudden shaking of the ground that can be strong or weak. Secure two core ideas: (1) it is the GROUND ITSELF that shakes, not just the objects on it, and (2) earthquakes range in strength from barely felt to very strong. Keep the underground cause (rocks breaking and releasing energy) for the later 7–9 topic; here focus on WHAT an earthquake is and what it feels like. Directly confront the film myth that the ground 'opens up and swallows' people, reassuring that the shaking settles. The central activity lets children control a shaking scene so the felt, variable-intensity idea becomes experiential; supporting activities add naming, a recall check, and a reassuring personal account.

Common misconceptions

  • 'The ground opens up and swallows people/cars' — the ground shakes and settles; wide swallowing fissures are a movie myth
  • 'Only the objects shake, not the ground' — it is the ground itself moving, which is why everything on it shakes
  • 'An earthquake is an explosion/bomb underground' — it is shaking caused by rock movement (cause taught later), not a blast
  • 'All earthquakes are huge and destructive' — most are weak; strength ranges from barely noticeable to very strong
  • 'Earthquakes only happen far away / to other people' — they occur in many places, some regions much more than others

Useful representations

  • A shaking room scene with a strength dial (gentle → strong)
  • An intensity scale in words/faces ('barely felt' to 'very strong')
  • Everyday objects as shake-indicators (swinging lamp, rattling cup, sliding books)
  • A whole-scene wobble (including the floor/ground) to show the ground itself moves

Teaching practices

  • Simulate the felt experience (a scene that shakes) because a real earthquake can't be shown live — the concept is sensory
  • Make the WHOLE scene shake, floor included, so children grasp it is the ground moving, not just objects on it
  • Teach the strong–weak range explicitly with a simple intensity label ('barely felt' → 'very strong')
  • Tie to the body ('the floor wobbles like jelly') to make 'what it feels like' concrete and meet the evidence
  • Confront the 'ground opens and swallows people' myth directly with reassurance that shaking settles
  • Defer the underground cause (rocks breaking, energy released) to the 7–9 'Why Earthquakes Happen' topic

Activities to try

  1. 1

    Shake the room: feel strong and weak

    Why it works: An earthquake is a sudden shaking of the ground that can span from barely felt to very strong; because the ground itself moves, everything resting on it moves with it.

    1. Slide a strength dial from 'gentle' to 'strong' and watch the whole room respond
    2. At the gentle end, notice a teacup and a hanging lamp just tremble
    3. Nudge the dial higher and watch books slide, pictures tilt, and the shelf rattle
    4. Notice that the FLOOR shakes too, along with everything else, so you can see it is the ground itself moving
    5. Read the intensity label as it changes ('barely felt' → 'very strong') and say aloud what you would feel in your body at each setting
  2. 2

    Name what is happening in the shaking scene

    Why it works: The signs of an earthquake (rattling, tilting, sliding) all happen because the ground is shaking.

    1. Look at a scene of a shaking room and tap points such as the rattling shelf or swinging lamp
    2. Read the one-line fact each tap reveals about what is happening
    3. Say in your own words what an earthquake is doing to the room and to the ground
  3. 3

    How strong, and what is an earthquake?

    Why it works: An earthquake is ground shaking (not an explosion), and earthquakes can be ordered from weak to strong.

    1. Read a described scene and set a strength slider to show how strong that earthquake was
    2. Say what an earthquake is and choose the best description, rejecting an 'explosion underground' description
    3. Put three earthquakes in order from weakest to strongest

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