What you'll learn
How the Earth's plates move and cause earthquakes and volcanoes.
Plate boundaries
- Plates move due to convection currents in the mantle.
- Constructive (divergent): plates move apart — new crust, volcanoes.
- Destructive (convergent): plates collide — subduction, volcanoes, earthquakes.
- Conservative (transform): plates slide past — earthquakes.
Hazards
- Earthquakes: focus, epicentre, measured on the Richter scale.
- Volcanoes: composite vs shield; features of an eruption.
- Effects (primary/secondary) and responses (short- and long-term).
Living with hazards
- Why people live near plate boundaries (fertile soil, geothermal energy, minerals) and how risk is reduced (monitoring, building design).
Exam tips
- Learn a named earthquake and volcano case study with effects and responses.
- Distinguish primary from secondary effects.
Common mistakes
- Mixing up constructive and destructive boundaries.
- Forgetting the reasons people live in hazardous areas.