Changing Face of The Earth, Charts, School Education

Quick Answer: Changing Face of the Earth charts are geography wall charts showing how the earth’s surface is shaped and reshaped by internal forces, such as earthquakes and volcanoes, and external agents, such as rivers, waves, wind and glaciers. They support lessons on landforms and how they form.

Internal and External Forces on One Wall

The idea running through this series is that landscapes are not fixed. Internal (endogenic) forces build relief: folding and faulting raise mountains, while volcanoes and earthquakes change the surface suddenly. External (exogenic) forces wear it down: weathering breaks rock in place, and erosion by running water, waves, wind and ice carries the material away and deposits it elsewhere.

Typical diagrams follow each agent through its landforms. A river panel runs from a V-shaped valley and waterfall in the upper course to meanders, ox-bow lakes, floodplains and a delta near the mouth. Coastal panels show sea cliffs, caves, arches, stacks and beaches; wind produces mushroom rocks and sand dunes; glaciers carve U-shaped valleys and leave moraines.

A student who can sequence an erosional landform, explaining how a cave becomes an arch and then a stack, has understood the process. The Changing Face of the Earth charts give that sequence a picture to hang on.

Care & Handling

• Group the charts by agent (river, sea, wind, ice) and display the set that matches the week’s lesson.
• Hang them away from windows and damp walls; paper that keeps absorbing moisture warps and no longer lies flat.
• Use rails or clips and keep pins out of the diagrams themselves.

Applications

• Teaching river, coastal, wind and glacial landforms one agent at a time
• Sequencing exercises such as cave to arch to stack, or meander to ox-bow lake
• Linking landforms to local examples on a field visit
• Revision of labelled landform diagrams for examinations

Specifications

Why Choose LabEquip

Geography teachers commonly combine these charts with the Advanced Geo Charts on the earth’s interior and atmosphere. More titles are under Educational Charts, and orders can be placed through the LabEquip contact page.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between weathering and erosion?

Weathering breaks rock down where it lies, through temperature changes, frost, plant roots or chemical reactions. Erosion removes and transports the broken material by water, wind, ice or waves. The charts show both, since erosion depends on weathering first.

How does an ox-bow lake form?

On a flat floodplain a river swings in loops called meanders, eroding the outer bank and depositing on the inner bank. The neck of a loop narrows until the river cuts through it, often in a flood, leaving the old loop cut off as an ox-bow lake.

How do sea arches and stacks form?

Waves attack weaknesses in a headland, forming caves on both sides. When the caves meet, an arch forms. The roof of the arch eventually collapses, leaving an isolated pillar of rock called a stack.

What landforms do glaciers create?

Glaciers deepen and widen valleys into a U shape, carve bowl-shaped hollows called cirques and leave ridges of rock debris called moraines when they melt back.

Are earthquakes and volcanoes part of the changing face of the earth?

Yes. They are sudden internal forces that can raise land, create volcanic landforms or trigger landslides, while external agents act slowly over long periods. Showing both explains why landscapes change at very different speeds.

How can students use the charts on a field visit?

Photograph a local river bank, hill slope or beach and compare the pictures with the chart diagrams back in class. Matching a real feature to a labelled drawing turns chart vocabulary into something students have actually seen.

Last Updated: September 2026