Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shadows

For Teachers 1st
First graders measure how a shadow changes over the course of a day. They write about what they would do if they lost their shadow, and make silhouettes of themselves. Students make up a shadow dance and read stories about shadows.
Worksheet
Curated OER

Moon Shadows

For Students 3rd
In this moon shadows worksheet, 3rd graders follow the directions to set up a demonstration about the sun, the earth and the moon.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sundials

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Learners investigate the different types of sundials and their history.  In this shadows and time of day lesson students build their own sundials. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Individual Sundial (Cloud/Rain Activity)

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students make a simple sundial to examine the changes in shadows over time. In this sundial and shadow lesson, students make a simple sundial out of a manila folder and pencil. They observe how shadows change over time, and relate it to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Tracking and Tracing Sunspots

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students examine sunspots. In this sunspot lesson, students use applets to investigate the movement of sunspots. Students research sunspots and evaluate the rotation of the sun. Lesson references outside resources not available in this...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cubes-IV

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students examine the relationship between three dimensions and two dimensions by working with shadows of cubes and other models. Students work in groups and use Zome System Creator Kits to try and build a shape other than a cube that...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Moon Phases, Day/Night

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders observe a demonstration that shows how the alignment of the sun, moon, earth relate to the phases of the moon that occur each month. They describe the moon's phases after experimenting in a small group setting and recording...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Reasons for Seasons

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Learners investigate a model of the tilt of the Earth in its relationship to the Sun during the different seasons of the year. They study the solstices and equinoxes, while determining how sunlight hits the Earth with different angles in...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Hello, Sunshine!

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students investigate how the sun travels across the sky at different latitudes using Solar Motion Demonstrator. In this earth science lesson, students explain why seasons change. They study how the tilt of the Earth's axis affects...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sun Shadow Cycles

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners use diagrams to review how the Earth rotates around the sun. In groups, they use the same diagrams to explain how the sun shadows are produced and how they differ between seasons. They describe the Earth's rotation and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Eclipse: Using a Classroom Model to Explore the Moon's Shadow

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Students manipulate and observe a 3-D model which simulates the activity of the Sun, Earth and Moon during a solar eclipse.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sun Path: Interactive On-line Mac or PC

For Teachers Higher Ed
Students use SunPath in the yearly mode to investigate seasonal changes in sunrise, sunset, length of day and sun altitude at their own latitude. Sun Path JAVA applet uses equations for a spherical Earth to calculate the sunrise and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shadow Matching

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
Students pair up with a partner and find a good self space. They choose who "match" who first (i.e., be the "leader"). Standing next to their partner, and only looking at their shadow, each student tries to match their partner
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shadow Trackers

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Pupils use online websites to inquire about the cycle of day and night. In this web based instructional activity, students are able to see the movement of the sun and Earth. Pupils can look at different parts of the Earth as if they were...
Organizer
Curated OER

Earth, Moon, and Sun

For Students 3rd
In this earth, moon, and sun orbits worksheets, students will read the cause of four different events that focus on the earth's rotation around the sun and the moon's rotation around the earth. Then students will write in the effect of...
Worksheet
Curated OER

LRO Sees Apollo 11 on the Moon!

For Students 9th - 11th
In this moon image worksheet, students determine the scale of an image taken by the LRO satellite of the Apollo 11 landing site. Students calculate the sun's angle at the time of the photograph using the shadow of the Lunar Lading...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sundials and Shadows - What Can They Teach Us About Seasons?

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students collect and analyze data relating to seasonal changes. They view a video, research web sites and build a sundial to collect their data.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Time

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students make a sundial. In this time lesson, students determine the time of the day by creating a sundial. They check the time on the sundial, hourly, for one week. Afterward, they explore what happened to the shadows in reference to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Earth is Round?

For Teachers 3rd
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...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Tides, Eclipses, Day and Night, and Seasons

For Students 6th - 8th
In this earth science instructional activity, students use the clues given at the bottom of the sheet to complete the crossword puzzle on tides, eclipses, day and night, and the seasons of the year. There are 17 clues to solve in the...
PPT
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Curated OER

Solar/Lunar Eclipses and the Seasons

For Teachers 5th - 7th
How do the moon, sun, and Earth line up to create eclipses? Why do the seasons change throughout a year? The answers to these questions are explained through this series of slides. This apt presentation outlines information using bullet...
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

How Far Away Is the Moon?

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Does the space shuttle have an odometer? Maybe, but all that is needed to determine the distance to the moon is a little geometry! The lesson asks scholars to sketch the relationship of the Earth and moon using shadows of an eclipse....
Assessment
Concord Consortium

Going Up

For Students 11th - 12th
Going on up—and up and up! An open-ended task asks learners to model the movement of an amusement ride with parametric equations. They then analyze their equations to determine how the shadow of the ride's car moves as it rises at a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Astronomy With a Stick

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students find the altitude of the Sun at 10 A.M., at solar noon, and at 2 P.M. by measuring the height of the gnomon and the length of the shadow at each time. They record the measurements in their notebooks for later conversion.

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