Resource Distribution From Earth Processes gives Grade 6 science students focused practice explaining how Earth processes shape where natural resources are found. Students examine how plate tectonics, sedimentation, weathering, and hydrologic flow influence the distribution of mineral, energy, and groundwater resources, while considering how human demand and technology affect long-term availability.

What students investigate

• Explain how plate tectonics, sedimentation, and weathering influence mineral, energy, and groundwater distribution.
• Describe how hydrologic flow patterns affect where aquifers store and where groundwater can be found.
• Analyze how demand, extraction impacts, and technology influence long-term resource availability.
• Use evidence from a reading passage and diagrams to reason about regional and global resource distribution.

Student practice included

The worksheet uses multiple-choice questions, true-or-false statements, short-answer responses, a dialogue, matching, a cloze passage, a labeled diagram, a reading passage, and an essay. This varied practice asks students to move between factual understanding, evidence-based reasoning, diagram interpretation, and written explanation.

Teacher-ready support

• Student worksheet: Provides structured practice around Earth processes, resource distribution, groundwater, aquifers, extraction, demand, and technology.
• Separate Teacher Guide PDF: Includes learning objectives, teaching tips, discussion questions, and common mistakes to support lesson preparation and classroom discussion.

Ways to use it in a Grade 6 science lesson

Use the worksheet for independent work, guided classroom practice, lesson reinforcement, or evidence-based discussion. The reading and diagram components give students opportunities to apply information rather than relying only on recall, while the written-response tasks provide practice explaining how physical Earth processes and human activity affect resource availability.

NGSS classroom connection

Designed within an NGSS framework, this resource centers on the relationship between Earth processes, natural resource distribution, and human activity. It provides a practical way to bring these connected concepts into Grade 6 science instruction through reading, diagrams, selected-response questions, and constructed responses.