Curated OER
Lunar Cycle
Students recognize that the eight phases of the moon repeat. In this lunar cycle activity, students experiment to understand the phases of the moon. Students make observations and complete a "the Moon I See" worksheet. Students...
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Spinning into Space
Students, through hands-on activities, teacher demonstrations, pictures, and informational books, complete a unit on the Earth and its place in the Universe. They make mobiles of the Milky Way and watch demonstrations of lunar and solar...
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Lunar Lollipops
Demonstrate the lunar cycle to youngsters using flashlights and lollipops. The procedure is somewhat vague, so it will need to be modeled for them before turning them loose to try it. The questions that follow the activity are not...
Curated OER
Solar and Lunar Eclipses
Students complete a WebQuest in order to better explain solar and lunar eclipses. They observe images and videos of eclipses from around the world.
American Museum of Natural History
What is Astronomy?
Go study the universe. Pupils learn seven aspects about astronomy and astronomers. They begin to learn about constellations; distance and motion between objects; gravity; the electromagnetic spectrum; dark matter and energy; and teams of...
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The Tides-Ups and Downs
Students investigate tidal patters and the forces that cause the tides. In this tidal lesson plan, students explore and research the tides and complete 43 questions about the causes of the tides, how they are monitored and measured and...
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Moon Watch
Third graders read books about the moon and discuss its perceived changes as it moves across the sky. They observe the moon over the course of a month and chart their observations. They discuss their observations and conduct further...
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Moon Journal
Middle schoolers review the planets and major moons in the Solar System. In groups, they research and describe the various phases of the moon. They record their observations of the moon phases over a specific period of time and use the...
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Measuring the Sun's Diameter
Students project and measure the suns image using a refracting telescope. For this sun's diameter lesson students calculate the magnification of the telescope and determine the diameter if the Sun.
Curated OER
Moon WebQuest
Third graders research basic information about the moon and identify the phases and order of the phases of the moon. They conduct Internet research, complete a moon WebQuest, and write a magazine article about the moon using their...
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Once In a Blue Moon
Learners review the characteristics of the planets and their moons. Using the internet, they research the relationship between the Earth and its moons. They take a template of the moon and draw craters of different colors to present to...
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Look At Those Leaves!
Students observe, measure and sort leaves. In this leaf lesson students divide into groups and observe the different kinds of leaves.
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How Distant Is The Moon?
Students discover how Aristarchus, a Greek astronomer around 230 BC, used a simple observation of the eclipse of the Moon, plus clever reasoning, to deduce the distance of the Moon. They practice the same calculation technique.
Curated OER
The Phases of the Moon
Learners view an applet to study the phases of the Moon in relation to the orientation of the sun, moon, and Earth.
Curated OER
Phases of the Moon
Sixth graders observe the changes in the moon's appearance over a two week period of time from their homes. They record and illustrate their observations and also complete daytime moon viewings as a class.
NASA
Star Brightness
In this brightness of stars learning exercise, high schoolers answer 7 questions about the apparent magnitudes of stars, the sun, and the moon. They compare the brightness of stars, galaxies, astronomical objects and the sun.
Curated OER
Tides
Young scholars discover how the position of the Sun, Moon and Earth affect tides. In this science lesson, students view a presentation about the tides. Young scholars discuss the different types of tides.
Curated OER
Bouncing Sunlight
Third graders use flashlights and balls to demonstrate how the light bounces off of the sun and reflects onto the moon. They record their observations in a journal.
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Tides and How Creatures Survive
Students discover tidal pools. In this oceanographic lesson, students observe the tides of the earth and the creatures that inhabit the intertidal zones. Students role-play the tidal zones by portraying themselves as animals...
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Your Weight on Other Planets
Students explore their weight on other planets. In this science lesson, students view a presentation about the other planets and complete a worksheet in which they make predictions about their weight on the moon and other planets.
Curated OER
Light and Shadows
Young scholars observe and record the apperacne of shadows and how their position and shpae changes during the course of the day. Students measure and record the length oof a partner's shadow at different intervals during the day. In...
Curated OER
Plants And Animals in the Local Environment
Students observe the various living things they can find outside their playground making sure to look both on the ground and in the air. They develop a large poster Venn digram, as a class, of plants and animals that live in the air, on...
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Moving and Growing
Students learn to understand the role of both skeletons and exoskeletons. In this activity on exoskeletons, students locate and label bones on diagram of a human skeleton, and observe and discuss bones of chicken and fish. Students then...
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May The Earth Be Revolving Around The Sun?
Learners trace the beginning of the heliocentric theory of the solar system--the idea that the solar system revolves around the Sun--to an observation by the Greek astronomer Aristarchus, which convinced him that the Sun was much bigger...