Curated OER
Spaced Out
Students explore the transit of Venus and the information that this minieclipse provides about the distance between the Earth and the sun. They create their own astronomical units.
Mr. E. Science
Stars, Galaxies and the Universe
It takes 225 million years for our sun to travel around the galaxy. The presentation covers astronomical units, light years, telescopes, types of stars, the life cycle of a star, and types of galaxies. This is the last lesson in a...
Curated OER
The Sun: Earth's External Heat Engine Part 1 of the Astronomy Model
Students become familiar with the variables that control Earth's solar energy supply. They explore the source and nature of solar energy, the genesis of radiation, and the structrue of the Sun, gas spectra are observed and sample...
Curated OER
WebQuest Solar System Colonization Project 2000
Sixth graders complete a WebQuest to study the names and locations of the planets in the solar system. They investigate the causes of the seasons and the distance between the planets using astronomical units. They use technology to...
Curated OER
How Far... How Powerfu
Students work with a real optical spectrum of a gamma ray burst afterglow taken at the Keck Observatory. They measure the shifts of spectral lines, deduce the velocity of the astronomical object, and then use Hubble's Law to get its...
Curated OER
Solar System and Planets
Students identify the main components of the solar system. In this earth science lesson, students order the planets according to their distances from the Sun. They differentiate planets from dwarf planets.
Curated OER
The Solar System
Students construct a sketch of the planets in our solar system using concentric circles and angles. In this solar system lesson plan, students plot the position of each planet on concentric circles using graph paper. The sun is included...
Curated OER
Seeing Solar Storms in STEREO-I
In this geometric calculations of solar storms worksheet, students use a diagram indicating the location of 2 STEREO satellites, the earth and the sun to calculate the distance between a Coronal Mass Ejection and the Earth. They use...
Curated OER
The Dawn Mission: Ion Rockets and Spiral Orbits
In this ion rocket and orbits worksheet, students read about the spiral orbit the Dawn spacecraft took due to its ion rocket motor. Students solve 3 problems including finding the path taken by the spacecraft, determining the total path...
NASA
Eclipse Activity Guide
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...
Curated OER
Heliocentric and Geocentric Models
For this worksheet, students read an informational article and view drawings of the two models. In this comprehension worksheet, students answer twelve questions.
Curated OER
Application of Scientific Notation
For this scientific notation worksheet, students solve eight problems about the sun, the planets and the universe using very large numbers expressed in scientific notation.
Curated OER
A CEENic Galaxy Quest!
Students research the distances between objects in the Milky Way. In this astronomy activity, students calculate the time it would take for a robot to travel from Milky Way object to another. They create a travel package for customers...
Curated OER
20th-Century Astronomy
Pupils examine and explain how the distance to nearby stars can be measured by the parallax method, discuss the role of women in the history of American astronomy, form their own opinions of the importance of Harlow Shapley and Edwin...
Curated OER
How Far...How Powerful
Students explore the concept of gamma ray bursts. They examine basic physics concepts about light, measure the shifts of spectral lines, and utilize Hubble's Law to deduce the velocity of an astronomical object.
Curated OER
Our View of the Sun
Students are introduced to safety rules for observing the Sun, how the distance of the Sun is measured using Kepler's Laws and identify the visible layers of the Sun. They discuss solar eclipses and view images of eclipses using the...
Curated OER
Seasonal CEENBoT
Students simulate the Earth's revolution around the sun using CEENBoT. In this earth science lesson students calculate the Earth's distance in AU and it's speed of revolution. They explain how the Earth's movement cause seasonal variation.
Curated OER
Kepler and his Laws
Students examine Kepler's Laws. They confirm Kepler's 3rd law by comparing orbital periods and mean distances for all major planets and study conic sections, qualitatively.
Curated OER
The Inner Planets
In this planets worksheet, students review the characteristics of the inner planets: Mars, Venus, Earth, and Mercury. This worksheet has 15 multiple choice questions.
Curated OER
Paint By The Numbers
Students, in groups, explore how astronomical spacecraft and computers create images of objects in space.
Curated OER
Charting The Progress of New Horizons
Students explore the long distances and timescales involved in space travel. They track the progress of the New Horizons spacecraft and access the New Horizons website to discover the distance of the spacecraft from the Sun, and then...
Curated OER
Last Year on Pluto
Students examine the astronomical concept of a year. They relate the passage of time on planets to historical events in the USA.
Curated OER
Science Crossword Puzzle
Class members read 25 clues about all areas of science, including biology, chemistry, weather, physical science, and insert their answers into a crossword puzzle. There is no word bank and the students would need experience with tough...
Curated OER
The Space Cadet's Laboratory: Using Electromagnetic Energy to Study Astronomy
Students build their own spectrophotometer to study light. In this physics lesson, students explain the dual nature of light. They calculate the angle of incidence and refraction using Snell's law equation.