Page 233 - Big Ideas Year 10 sciPAD 2025

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SCIPAD - BIG IDEAS - BOOK 2
EARTH SYSTEMS
1. The red lines on the diagram above show the major tectonic plate boundaries comprising
the Earth’s crust. Use coloured pencils to highlight the different plates.
2. Define the term ‘plate boundary’. 

3. List three pieces of evidence that suggest that South America was once joined to Africa.
(a) 
(b) 
(c) 
4. The Earth’s tectonic plates are moving. Outline two consequences of this movement.
(a) (b)
5. Name the two tectonic plates New Zealand sits on the boundary of.
(a) (b)
Pacific Plate
Indo-Australian
Plate
Antarctic Plate
Eurasian Plate
South
American
Plate
North
American
Plate
Nazca
Plate
African Plate
Scotia Plate
Indian
Plate
Philippine
Plate
Arabian
Plate
J.D.F
Plate
Caribbean
Plate
Processes in the Lithosphere - Plate Tectonics
Plate tectonics (‘tectonics’ means “building”) is the name given to the
scientific theory that states that the Earth’s crust is broken into various
sized plates, and that these plates are moving at different speeds and
directions. Their movement causes earthquakes and volcanism.
The places where two plates meet is called a plate boundary.
Earthquakes and volcanoes are most likely to occur either on or
near plate boundaries.
A scientist called Alfred Wegener was the first to propose the
theory of plate tectonics. He published a scientific paper
suggesting that some continents had once been joined but have
since drifted apart. Almost everyone thought this was impossible.
However, Wegener put forward scientific evidence to support his
theory. He suggested that the shape of some continents seem to
match up like a giant jigsaw puzzle (especially South America and
Africa) and where they do seem to fit together you can find matching fossils and rocks.
Map of the Earth’s Major Tectonic Plates
Cocos
Plate