How can a wildfire survive winter and start burning again in spring?
Get students thinking about this puzzling phenomenon with an interactive drag-and-drop card sort that encourages observation, discussion, and scientific questioning.
Students revisit the sequence of events associated with zombie fires, organize visual evidence, and identify what they know and still wonder about fires that continue burning beneath snow.
Designed as a warm-up or review activity, this resource helps teachers make student thinking visible before moving into deeper investigations.
Interactive PowerPoint card sort
Visual cards showing the progression of zombie fires
Summer, winter, and spring sequencing activity
Know-and-Wonder sorting activity
Teacher answer key/reference slide
Students work independently, with partners, or in small groups to arrange cards, discuss their choices, and explain their reasoning.
The activity encourages students to ask questions about peat, underground burning, and carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere.
Phenomenon-based science instruction
Biology and environmental science lessons
Warm-ups and review activities
Small-group discussion
Formative assessment
Scientific sensemaking
This activity goes beyond matching vocabulary. Students organize information, share observations, and develop questions that can guide future investigations.
Created by MosesSTEMinc L3C | The Baseline Inquiry & Design Lab
An independently created supplemental resource. Not affiliated with or endorsed by OpenSciEd.
Digital Download: No physical product will be shipped.
License: For use by one purchasing teacher in their own classroom. Redistribution, resale, or public posting of the editable file is not permitted.
How can a wildfire survive winter and start burning again in spring?
Get students thinking about this puzzling phenomenon with an interactive drag-and-drop card sort that encourages observation, discussion, and scientific questioning.
Students revisit the sequence of events associated with zombie fires, organize visual evidence, and identify what they know and still wonder about fires that continue burning beneath snow.
Designed as a warm-up or review activity, this resource helps teachers make student thinking visible before moving into deeper investigations.
Interactive PowerPoint card sort
Visual cards showing the progression of zombie fires
Summer, winter, and spring sequencing activity
Know-and-Wonder sorting activity
Teacher answer key/reference slide
Students work independently, with partners, or in small groups to arrange cards, discuss their choices, and explain their reasoning.
The activity encourages students to ask questions about peat, underground burning, and carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere.
Phenomenon-based science instruction
Biology and environmental science lessons
Warm-ups and review activities
Small-group discussion
Formative assessment
Scientific sensemaking
This activity goes beyond matching vocabulary. Students organize information, share observations, and develop questions that can guide future investigations.
Created by MosesSTEMinc L3C | The Baseline Inquiry & Design Lab
An independently created supplemental resource. Not affiliated with or endorsed by OpenSciEd.
Digital Download: No physical product will be shipped.
License: For use by one purchasing teacher in their own classroom. Redistribution, resale, or public posting of the editable file is not permitted.
