Lonely Lava Landforms WebQuest

People get excited about active volcanoes and red, hot lava. However, they often forget about the beauty and mystery found in ancient lava flows. From adventures in lava caves to wildflowers blooming in volcanic soil, lava landforms are interesting places.

Everyone wants to visit active volcanoes such as Mount St. Helens in Washington and Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii. What about all the other interesting volcanic areas that are now quiet? Let's convince people to visit these lesser known places like Newberry National Monument (photo on right).

The Mission

Learn about volcanic landforms. Find out about a specific volcanic area. Create an advertisement to encourage people to visit this area.

The Process

Activity 1:

Find a reading buddy. Talk about what you already know about volcanoes. Then, read about them. Talk about the new things you learned.

Choose an option that fits your information need:

Activity 2:

Create a map of the world showing the most active volcanoes. What do these places have in common? Use the 42explore: Volcanoes links for ideas.

Activity 3:

Add the following volcanoes to your map. Then, choose one of the following National Volcano Monuments or Parks:

How is your park alike and different from the other volcanoes in the world? Use the following questions to help in your exploration:

  • Is the volcano still active? What's the history of this area? Make a timeline for your volcano.
  • What type of volcano, lava, and rock forms will you find there? Are there lava fields or lava tubes?
  • What plants and animals live in the area?

Activity 4:

If you're going to write about a specific volcano, you need to know how to describe it. Choose one of the following ways to show and tell about the most important volcano words such as lava, magma, crater, caldera, spatter cone, plug dome, shield volcano, composite volcano, igneous rock, obsidian, aa, pahoehoe, lava fields, lava tube, tree mold, and pressure ridge.

  • Create a pictionary book with the word and defintion.
  • Make a pictionary game that includes cards with the word on one side and a picture and definition on the other.
  • Draw a mural or poster that shows the words in a big picture.
  • Create a photo collage of the words and matching photos.

Activity 5:

Create an advertisement for your National Volcanic Monument or Park. What will you tell people about your volcano? Why should people be interested in volcanoes?

Mt Hood

The Conclusion

Learn more about the landforms where you live. Were there ever volcanoes nearby? Why or why not? Would you like to live near a volcano? Why or why not?

 

Note: All photographs taken with a digital camera in Arizona, California, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.
Developed by Annette Lamb and Larry Johnson, 05/02.