Department of Education

National Capital Region

Schools Division of Parañaque City
Self-Learning Modules
Science 10 Quarter 1 Week 1
PLATE TECTONICS

Learning Competency

Describe and relate the distribution of active volcanoes, earthquake epicenters, and
major mountain belts to Plate Tectonic Theory (S10ES – Ia-j-36.1)

Objectives

At the end of this module, the learner should be able to:

✔ describe the Earth's lithosphere and differentiate oceanic and continental crust;
✔ infer that the Earth’s lithosphere is divided into plates;
✔ identify the major lithospheric plates; and
✔ determine the scientific basis for dividing the lithospheric plates

Let’s Understand (Study the Concept)

The lithosphere is the coolest and most rigid part of the Earth. The word lithosphere
comes from Greek words “lithos” meaning “rocky” or “stone” and “sphaeros” meaning
“sphere”. It is the solid, outer part of the Earth. The lithosphere includes the brittle upper
portion of the mantle and the crust, the outermost layers of Earth’s structure. It is bounded by
the atmosphere above and the asthenosphere (another part of the upper mantle) below.

There are two types of crust: continental crust and oceanic crust.

1. Oceanic crust is composed mostly of dark-colored mafic rocks. The density of oceanic
crust ranges from 2.9 to 3.1 g/cm3. The dark color and relatively high density can be
attributed to the elevated iron, magnesium, and calcium content of mafic rocks. The
oceanic crust is thin with thickness varying from 5 to 18 km. Oceanic crust hosts
features such as volcanoes and canyons. (see Figure 1)

2. The second type of crust, the continental crust, is composed of many rock types. It’s
a major component is granodiorite, a light-colored igneous rock. The thickness of the
continental crust reaches up to 80 km in mountainous areas and has an average
thickness of 30 km. The density of continental crust is lower compared to oceanic crust
and may range from 2.6 to 2.9 g/cm3. It is relatively older than oceanic crust as the
rocks along trenches in oceans are continually recycled through the process of
subduction. (see Figure 1)
 Source: http://www.differencebetween.net/science/differences-between-the-earths-
lithosphere-and-asthenosphere/
Figure 1. Oceanic and Continental Crusts

Plate tectonics is the theory that Earth's outer shell is divided into several plates that
glide over the mantle, the rocky inner layer above the core. The plates act like a hard and
rigid shell compared to Earth's mantle.
A tectonic plate (also called a lithospheric plate) is a massive, irregularly shaped
slab of solid rock, generally composed of both continental and oceanic lithospheres. Plate size
can vary greatly, from a few hundred
to thousands of kilometers across;
the Pacific and Antarctic Plates are
among the largest. Plate thickness
also varies greatly, ranging from less
than 15 km for the young oceanic
lithosphere to about 200 km or more
for the ancient continental lithosphere
(for example, the interior parts of
North and South America).
These plates are pieces of the
planet's lithosphere, which is the
outermost shell of the earth made up
of the earth's crust and upper part of
the mantle, and for this reason, Source: https://www.pri.org/stories/2017-03-
tectonic plates are sometimes called 27/plate-tectonics-earth-may-have-been-
'lithospheric plates.' These plates covered-one-giant-shell
float on top of the hotter and more
fluid asthenosphere, which is the Figure 2. Lithospheric Plates
layer below the lithosphere. There are
seven major tectonic plates that very slowly move around on the surface of our planet along
with several minor plates. (see Figure 2)

The outer shell of the earth, the lithosphere, is broken up into tectonic plates. The
seven major plates are the African plate, Antarctic plate, Eurasian plate, Indo-Australian
plate, North American plate, Pacific plate, and South American plate. (see Figure 3)
✔ The North American plate is one of the major plates of the lithosphere and
extends from the middle of the Atlantic Ocean to the West Coast of North America.
The same can be said for the South American plate, which is another of the
seven major plates and extends from the middle of the Atlantic Ocean to the west
coast of South America.
✔ Pacific Plate lies beneath the Pacific Ocean. Not only is this the only major plate
that is mainly underwater, but it is also the largest, spanning over 100 million
square kilometers.

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 ✔ In the southern Atlantic Ocean, the South American plate meets the African plate
which is the major plate that includes Africa and surrounding oceanic crust. They
meet at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, which is a large underwater mountain range on
the floor of the Atlantic Ocean caused by diverging tectonic plates.
✔ The Eurasian plate is the third largest major plate. It consists of most of Europe,
Russia, and parts of Asia. This plate is sandwiched between the North American
and African Plate on the north and west sides.
✔ The Antarctic plate holds the entire continent of Antarctica including its
surrounding oceanic crust. This plate shares boundaries with the African,
Australian, Pacific, and South American Plate.
✔ The Indo-Australian plate is a major plate combining the Australian and Indian
Plate. The Indo-Australian plate stretches from Australia to India. It also includes
the oceanic crust from the Indian Ocean. The north-east side of the Australian
plate converges with the Pacific Plate.

Source: https://earthhow.com/7-major-tectonic-plates/
Figure 3. Tectonic Plate Map

Earthquake epicenters were used as the basis for identifying plate tectonics. For want
of a better term, these are called ‘plates’. And because earthquakes are a form of tectonic
activity, the plates are called ‘tectonic plates’. This deals with observations made from the
surface.

As you get further from the margins of the plates, the depth of the earthquakes
increases on only one side of the margin. This implies that the layer generating the
earthquakes sinks into the mantle. By examining the seismic waves, it became apparent that
the layer going down into the mantle involved more than just crust.

The map below displays the location of earthquake epicenters around the world. The
dots represent the different earthquake epicenters which were recorded by the seismograph.
These records were used by the geologists as a basis to understand the division of different
tectonic plates. (see Figure 4)

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 Source: http://pages.geo.wvu.edu/~wilson/Geol1/lec39/lec399.htm
Figure 4. Location of Earthquake Epicenters
Let’s Apply

A. DIRECTIONS: Using the Venn diagram, compare and contrast continental and
oceanic crust by providing three (3) differences and similarities. Write your answers on
a separate sheet of paper.

Continental Crust Oceanic Crust

B. DIRECTIONS: Read each statement carefully. Write TRUE if the statement is correct.
If it is false CHANGE the underlined word/s to make the statement correct. Write your
answers on a separate sheet of paper.

1. North American Plate shares boundaries with the African, Australian, Pacific, and
South American Plate.
2. The tectonic plate is also known as the lithospheric plate.
3. Oceanic crust is denser than continental crust.
4. The scientists used fossils as a basis for identifying the major tectonic plates.
5. One of the major plates that combine two (2) plates is the Australian plate.

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 Let’s Analyze

DIRECTIONS: Read the questions carefully. Answer the questions in 2-3 sentences. Write
your answers on a separate sheet of paper.
1. Why is it important to identify the two types of crust?
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
2. If the Earth is represented using a boiled egg, which part of the boiled egg represents
the tectonic plates? Why?
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________

Let’s Try

A. DIRECTIONS: Read the statements carefully. Identify what is being asked on each
statement. Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.

______ 1. It is the largest tectonic plate.

______ 2. It is a lower density type of crust.
______ 3. It is a theory that the Earth’s crust is divided into different tectonic plates.
______ 4. It is one of the major tectonic plates that include Africa and the surrounding
oceanic crust.
______ 5. It is where the lithospheric plates float.

B. DIRECTIONS: Read the questions carefully. Choose the letter of your answer. Write
your answers on a separate sheet of paper.

1. What is a theory that the Earth’s crust is divided into plates?

A. Asthenosphere B. Lithosphere C. Plate Tectonics D. Tectonic Plates
2. Which of the following is the outermost shell of the earth that is made up of the earth’s
crust and upper part of the mantle?
A. Asthenosphere B. Lithosphere C. Plate Tectonics D. Tectonic Plates
3. What is the massive, irregularly shaped slab of solid rock, generally composed of both
continental and oceanic lithospheres?
A. Asthenosphere B. Lithosphere C. Plate Tectonics D. Tectonic Plates
4. In which layer of the earth do the lithospheric plates float?
A. Asthenosphere B. Core C. Crust D. Mantle
5. What is the other term for tectonic plates?
A. Asthenosphere C. Lithospheric Plate
B. Atmospheric Plate D. Volcanic Plate

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 Let’s Create

DIRECTIONS: Using the words in the box, create a concept map that connects each word
correctly. Be guided with the rubrics below. Write your answers on a separate sheet of
paper.

South American
Tectonic Plate Oceanic Crust Pacific Plate
Plate
Indo-Australian
African Plate Eurasian Plate Sphaeros
Plate
North American
Antarctic Plate Asthenosphere Continental Crust
Plate
Earthquake
Lithosphere Lithos Plate Tectonics
Epicenter

STANDARDS:
CRITERIA 16-20 points 11-15 points 6-10 points 1-5 points
Organization All key words Most keywords Many Many
and concepts and concepts keywords and keywords and
necessary to from the units concepts from concepts from
promote an are covered in the unit are the unit are
overview of the a meaningful covered and missing.
unit are used way and are are somewhat
and well- thoughtfully organized.
organized to organized.
give added
meaning.
Content Shows an Makes some Makes many Shows no
understanding mistakes in mistakes in understanding
of the topic’s terminology or terminology of the topic’s
concepts and shows a few and shows a concepts and
principles and misunderstandi lack of principles
uses ngs of understanding
appropriate concepts
terminology
Connections Connections Connections Connections Connections
among indicate are clear and are somewhat aren't clear,
concepts superior logical. They clear and they convey
organization/ connect convey some little meaning
understanding concepts to meaning. and do not
and enhance promote clarity promote clarity.
meaning. Arro and convey
ws easily meaning.
connect
concepts in an
informative
manner.