Astronomy Teacher Resources

Students learn the basic concepts about airplane flight. They learn the reason jetliner wings are swept back and why jet engines have replaced propellers in high-speed flight.

Students explore orbital velocities and how they vary along each orbit, according to Kepler's Second Law.

Students visit a site which provides images to be analyzed. Notes are taken and planets are named based on observed features and observations. Using peer review, they try to determine the identity of the planets. They are free to browse...

Students using experiments try to demonstrate how observations can be affected by the cycles of night and day.

Learners, in groups, explore how astronomical spacecraft and computers create images of objects in space.

Learners research the legend of Tanabata in order to explain some of the astronomical findings in the night sky. The Japanese tell the story in order to explain the origin of celestial bodies.

In this space worksheet, learners identify and locate vocabulary terms related to the stars and space. There are 15 words located in the puzzle.

In this astronomy worksheet, students use a Hertzsprung-Russell diagram to examine the relationship between the average temperatures of stars and their absolute magnitude. After viewing the diagram, they complete 10 short answer questions.

For this astronomy worksheet, students draw the shape of the moon as it appears in the sky each night for three weeks. With their drawings they include the moon phase and any unusual characteristics they observe.

Learners discover their place in the universe.  In this astronomy lesson, students identify their location on various maps that have increasingly larger scales.  In the end, the learners write their address in terms of their...

Students measure shadows to learn about the Sun-Earth relationship. In this astronomy lesson, students create a shadow stick of a Pokemon character and record measurements of its shadow in a data chart. Follow-up discussions guide...

Students discover constellations. In this astronomy lesson plan, students discuss stars in the sky and that a group of stars is called a constellation. Students then create their own constellations by dropping stars onto a black paper,...

Students analyze satellite images.  For this astronomy lesson, students examine 3 satellite images in order to understand how satellite images are taken and what they can teach scientists.

Students simulate the formation of chondrites and asteroids. In this astronomy lesson plan, students demonstrate accretion using balloons and static electricity. They compare and contrast their models to the actual process of chondrites...

Learners can keep track of the phases of a moon with this lab sheet. They put the date, a sketch of the moon, and write down what phase it's in over the course of one complete phase of the moon. A great addition to an astronomy unit or a...

Five multiple choice questions are provided in the handout about the phases of the moon. A digaram is included to help astronomy learners answer the questions. The diagram is meant to represent the appearance of the moon from the...

When astronauts get hungry in outer space, they can't just call and have a pizza delivered. In order to gain an appreciation for the challenges associated with space travel, young learners are given the task of selecting,...

Don't push that button! Margaret Hamilton wrote the computer codes that saved Apollo 8 and Apollo 11 from various glitches, including an astronaut pushing the wrong button at the wrong time. The video describes her groundbreaking work...

Amaze your class with the fact that more than 1,000 confirmed planets exist. The video explains the formation and development of planets, especially the earth. It covers the solar nebula, birth of the sun, and the development of the...

NASA tracks around 20,000 pieces of debris orbiting Earth. The garbage humans leave in space cause problems for space exploration, satellites, and communication. One group of scientists hopes to clean up the junk and make this planet...

Students explain the functions of a telescope. They name the parts of the telescope. After previously learning the planets and constellations, students identify and view them during a star party.

Eighth graders conduct internet research on a specific website to collect information about Lunar Cycles.

Students explore the history, science, and journey through flight. They use the Internet to access information in order to participate in active writing assignments. They conduct other activities and build their own virtual plane.

Learners explore Jupiter's Moons. They calculate and predict the location of Jupiter's 4 large moons. In addition, they draw Jupiter with its moons correctly shown for the time of the observation.