Page 2: Carbon Pathways Activity

This page covers Activity A, which has students explore carbon pathways between Earth's major systems.

Key points:

• Students create a carbon path starting and ending in the atmosphere
• Each step is labeled with the corresponding Earth system (atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, biosphere)
• The activity demonstrates how carbon moves between different reservoirs

Definition: Hydrosphere - All of Earth's water, including oceans, lakes, rivers, groundwater, and ice

Definition: Geosphere - The rocky, non-living part of Earth including the crust and mantle

Example: A sample carbon path: Atmospheric CO2 → Oceanic CO2 → Shells/Coral → Limestone → Lithosphere → Volcano → Atmospheric CO2

Highlight: This activity reinforces the cyclical nature of the carbon cycle, showing how carbon atoms can return to their starting point through various processes

Page 3: Creating Carbon Paths

This page continues Activity A, having students create additional carbon paths and analyze transitions.

Key points:

• Students create a path where carbon moves through all four major Earth systems
• Three more carbon paths are created, each starting and ending in the atmosphere
• Students explain how carbon transitions between specific reservoirs

Example: A sample carbon path through all systems: Atmosphere → Oceanic CO2 (hydrosphere) → Marine Animals/Plants (biosphere) → Sediments (geosphere)

Highlight: The activity emphasizes the interconnectedness of Earth's systems in the carbon cycle

Vocabulary: Anthroposphere - Everything made or modified by humans, sometimes considered a separate sphere in Earth system science

Page 3: Carbon Pathways Exploration

This page focuses on practical exploration of carbon movement through different Earth systems using the Carbon pathways exploration in Gizmo.

Example: Multiple carbon pathways are illustrated, including:

• Atmospheric CO₂ movement
• Volcanic carbon release
• Ocean carbon absorption

Page 4: Ocean-Lithosphere Carbon Transfer

This page details the specific pathways of carbon movement between oceans and Earth's crust.

Highlight: Explains how carbon transfers from ocean to lithosphere through processes like shell formation and limestone creation

Page 5: Natural Gas Formation

This page explores the formation of natural gas through different carbon pathways.

Definition: Natural gas is defined as a mixture of methane (CH4), ethane (C₂H), and other gases

Example: Two distinct pathways for natural gas formation are presented, involving marine and land plants

Page 6: Animal Impact on Carbon Cycle

This page examines how animals, particularly livestock, affect the carbon cycle through methane production.

Quote: "Bacteria break down undigested materials in an animal's gut, and then they produce methane gas"

Page 7: Human Impact and Atmospheric Carbon

This page addresses human influence on the carbon cycle, particularly through fossil fuel use.

Highlight: CO₂ levels have increased 40% since 1800 due to human activity

Page 8: Carbon Cycle Modeling

This page focuses on modeling carbon cycle changes and exploring solutions.

Example: Demonstrates how changes in plant biomass and oceanic CO₂ intake affect atmospheric carbon levels

Page 1: Introduction to the Carbon Cycle Gizmo

This page introduces the Carbon Cycle Gizmo simulation and provides some background on photosynthesis and carbon dioxide.

Key points:

• The simulation allows students to follow carbon atom pathways through Earth's systems
• Students start by observing a carbon atom in the atmospheric CO2 reservoir
• Prior knowledge questions cover how plants and animals affect atmospheric carbon levels
• The Gizmo warm-up has students identify initial carbon pathways from the atmosphere

Vocabulary: Photosynthesis - The process by which plants use sunlight, water and carbon dioxide to produce oxygen and energy in the form of sugar

Highlight: The Carbon Cycle Gizmo visualizes possible carbon atom pathways using glowing blue areas to show potential next locations

Example: From the atmosphere, the carbon atom can move to oceanic CO2 or land plants