Give your pupils a front row seat at the biggest light show in the sky this year! In addition to admiring the total solar eclipse, young astronomers can explain the phenomenon with a little help from an inquiry-based lesson. The focus of...

Students explore, experiment and study how the Earth orbits the Sun once a year and how the moon takes approximately 29 days to orbit the Earth. They access an online activity to examine the process of how the Sun is at the center of the...

NASA has crafted an imaginative and memorable series of lessons, "NASA and Jamestown Education Module." This lesson is one of the five components. In it, middle schoolers connect history and science by comparing the settlement of...

Young scholars predict and determine the distance between the Earth and the moon.  In this investigative lesson students participate in an activity that helps them to determine the distance from the earth to the moon. 

Students participate in a demonstration and complete an online activity that illustrates the earth orbits the sun once a year, and that the moon takes approximately 28 days to orbit the earth.

What does math have to do with the behavior of the earth and sun? Learn how the movement of celestial bodies has influenced the development of trigonometry. Scholars connects the details in mathematics to their...

Students investigate the different phases of the moon.  In this lunar cycle lesson, students create models of the sun, earth and moon and investigate why we observe the moon the way we do.  Students observe a PowerPoint...

In this moon worksheet, students observe the moon on three consecutive nights and draw their observations. They answer questions about the phases of the moon and its position in the night sky. They identify the position of the sun, earth...

Students research measurements of the moon and Earth as well as the distance between the two in order to create scale models of the Earth-moon system. With a marble to be used as the moon, they must determine how large to make Earth...

Students become familiar with different times around the world through the reading of 9 O'clock Lullaby.  In this Earth, sun, moon activity, students recognize the movement of the Earth and the relationship to the sun and the...

Students understand basic concepts about Earth, the Sun and the Moon, such as relative movement and the phases of the moon. Through discussion, looking at pictures, listening to Native American stories, observing, and building models,...

Third graders draw what they believe is in space on a dry erase board. In groups, they are given a beaker half filled with water and they add a teaspoon of oil, observing the different layers that form. To end the lesson, they identify...

Sixth graders learn that the moon orbits the Earth in a predictable cycle. Each learner engages in a two-week observation of the moon. They sketch its appearance, and take note of its position in relation to objects in their yard. Some...

Third graders discuss how Aristotle concluded that the Earth was round. As a class, they review theories about the Earth's shape and describe how life on Earth would be different if it were flat. Individually, they make a moon book in...

Beyond the phases of the moon, this comprehensive lesson plan covers geologic history and geology. Amateur astronauts examine photos of the lunar landscape, experiment with the creation of craters, and delve into information about the...

Students consider the shape of the Earth's orbit around the Sun. They view the first segment of Science Court video and use Timeliner software to construct a scale of the distance between the Earth and the Sun.

Students develop a timeline of all the major events involved in the formation of the Earth and the emergence of humans. In groups, they focus on a specific topic by watching a PBS program and taking notes. After the video, they list...

Students explore the possibility of an asteroid hitting planet earth. For this planetary lesson students complete a lab activity to see the effects of an asteroid hitting earth and compare different craters.

Students explore the possibility of being on Mars and being able to identify the Earth.  In this space instructional activity students complete a set of calculations to see if this is possible. 

Laws of motion apply both in space and on Earth. Young experimenters model object impact on the Earth and moon. They use data to determine the effect mass and velocity have on the resulting craters and how that relates to the energy of...

Students study the physical properties of the Moon.  In this life on the moon lesson students describe the ways life on the Moon would be different than on Earth. 

Students investigate the Earth and the Moon. They select activities from a menu of options including viewing videos, drawing magnetic fields and plate tectonics, creating vocabulary flashcards, observing the phases of the moon over a...

Students explore day and night and the relationships between the Earth, the sun and the moon. They discuss the ways in which the sun and moon help us. They watch a short video that helps illustrate these concepts.

Ever made solar s'mores? Or recreated the solar system using peanuts? Astronomers young and old investigate all things solar using a variety of activities. Explore how the sun works, types of light it emits, and methods of charting the...