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Lesson Plan
Benjamin Banneker Association

Celebrate Benjamin Banneker

For Teachers K - 12th Standards
Inventor, astronomer, surveyor, mathematician, clock maker. Learners celebrate the life of Benjamin Banneker by building creative analog clocks, making scale models, and solving problems related to surveying. The activities model the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Star Gazing

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders investigate what an astronomer is and what he studies in the solar system.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Please Ex-Planet

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders create a model of an earth centered solar system and a model of the sun centered solar system. As a class, they discuss why the earlier astronomers believed their model and why it changed when evidence arose that this...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Universe

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders identify and discuss responsibilities of careers related to the study of the universe, such as an astronomer or an astronaut. They compare what the world looks like now to what it might look like in the year 3000.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

History of Saturn Discoveries

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students interpret how scientists have explored Saturn. In this NASA based astronomy lesson plan, students create a timeline depicting the study of Saturn from 1610 until 2010. Each student will write a letter to Galileo discussing how...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mars: Off the Charts--Until You Put It There

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students explore the night sky and make illustrations which are shared in class the next day. Distinctions are made between the stars and the planets and views of the constellations for the season are made available. The work of early...
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Lesson Plan
NASA

Seasonal Science: Building Claims from Evidence

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
A lot can change in a year! Investigators observe a video of Earth over the course of a year and complete a KWL chart. Astronomers view a second video, participate in a guided discussion, and discuss the rubric for successfully...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Get the Picture!

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Astronomers practice downloading data from a high-energy satellite and translate the data into colored or shaded pixels. As a hands-on activity, they use pennies to simulate high-energy satellite data and they convert their penny...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Good Vibrations Remote Sensing data Collection: Thermal Emission Spectrometer

For Teachers 4th - 8th
The Mars Global Surveyor spent two years creating a mineral map of the planet Mars using thermal emission spectrometry. To help young astronomers understand this remote sensing instrument, have them simulate how data is collected and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Voyage: A Journey Through Our Solar System

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Thoroughly written, this plan walks you through every detail of having your high school astronomers design scale models of the solar system. Complete instructions on building to scale, lesson procedures, and associated worksheets are all...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Pocket Solar System

For Teachers 3rd - 8th Standards
The scale of the solar system is difficult to grasp without some sort of concrete visual; with some register tape and different-sized stickers, teach astronomers of any age just how spread out our solar system really is. Try to use...
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Lesson Plan
NASA

Moon Phases and Eclipses

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Starry-eyed astronomers draw different views of the Moon in order to introduce its phases. Then they experiment with a ball and a lamp to recreate the phases. A demonstration ensures every pupil understands the process, and the...
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Lesson Plan
Virginia Department of Education

Modeling the Big Bang Theory

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Young astronomers learn about the Big Bang Theory and redshift through a hands-on activity in the last installment of a three-part series. Participants draw dots on balloons and then inflate them to model how galaxies moved farther apart...
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Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Sun, Earth and Moon Model

For Students 3rd - 5th
The moon orbits Earth while the Earth is rotating, and the Earth revolves around the sun. This can be a tricky concept for young astronomers. Implement an activity that helps distinguish between the movements of Earth's systems around...
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Interactive
PBS

Analyzing Light Curves of Transiting Exoplanets

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Scientists detected exoplanets by measuring how the brightness of stars changed over time. Young astronomers interpret and analyze the same data that led to exoplanet discoveries. They learn to apply light curve graphs and connect the...
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Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

Meet Our Neighbors: Moon

For Students 1st - 6th
Since a field trip to the moon isn't possible, bring the moon to young astronomers! Participants use everyday materials to create models of the moon and represent the features on its surface. The materials serve as a tactile as well as a...
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Lesson Plan
University of Colorado

Using Spectral Data to Explore Saturn and Titan

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Saturn is really far away, but knowledge of its composition is within reach. Future astronomers learn how scientists use spectra to remotely determine the chemical composition of a planet or moon. They try out this concept by analyzing...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Learning from Light: The Big Bang

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers explore what astronomers are able to examine our galaxy and universe by examining light. They explore in this sub-unit the formation of the universe, commonly called "The Big Bang," and it follows studying from the Light:...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The 'Solar' System Past and Present

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students identify cardinal and intermediate directions, recognize that models changes due to new or improved observations and technology, identify the major characteristics of the planets including their positions in the solar system,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Tools of Modern Astronomy

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students describe the electromagnetic spectrum and astronomy.  In this astronomy lesson plan students complete an activity, predict what will happen and complete a worksheet. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Distances to Stars

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students explore the idea of parallax. For this astronomy lesson, students study the distances of stars. They investigate how parallax can be used to determine these distances.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Next Logical Step in Astronomy

For Teachers 5th - 10th
Students research future astronomy endeavors and how the exploration with contribute to astronomy and humanity. In this astronomy lesson plan, students research, present, and debate the topics as a class.
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Lesson Plan
Illinois State Board of Education

Solar System

For Teachers 6th - 9th Standards
Aspiring astronomers solve problems involving mixed units of the same attribute, including time, money, length, and area. They convert large numbers into scientific notation, then compute and compare ratios to explain why drawing...
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Lesson Plan
National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science

A Rose By Any Other Name

For Teachers 9th - 12th
In part one, your astronomers read an interview dialogue between a reporter and Dr. Maria Ocasio, the chair of the group that assigns names to celestial objects. The topic in question is Pluto's status. Learners research Plutinos and...

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