What is Cycle of plate creation and destruction?

The Earth’s crust is like a giant puzzle that gets put together and taken apart again, this back-and-forth is called the cycle of plate creation and destruction.

Imagine you have a big cookie sheet, and it's covered with chocolate chips. These chocolate chips are like the plates on Earth’s surface. Now, when you put that cookie sheet in the oven, some parts get hot and start to move, just like how the Earth's plates move.

Sometimes, new chocolate chips (or new plates) pop up near the edges of the cookie sheet, like when you add more dough. This is plate creation, it’s like when your mom adds a new cookie to the tray while others are baking.

But other times, some chocolate chips get pushed together and melt, this is plate destruction, just like when two cookies stick together and become one big cookie (or one big plate).

The Earth is always doing this: making new plates here and destroying old ones there. It’s like a never-ending baking party, where the cookie sheet keeps getting updated with new flavors, and sometimes, it even gets a little messy!