Space Exploration Two Weeks

Space Exploration Two Weeks

/ Science
Lesson Plan
Teacher:
6th Grade Science / Grade:
6th Grade Science
Lesson Title:
Space Exploration
STRANDS
The Universe
LESSON OVERVIEW / Summary of the task, challenge, investigation, career-related scenario, problem, or community link.
During this unit students will learn how size and distance affect the appearance of celestial objects, why the moon exhibits phases, how to distinguish between sidereal and synodic measurements of time, predict tides based on the relative positions of the earth, moon and sun, explain why the earth experiences seasons and explain the differences between solar and lunar eclipses. Cross-curricular connections to math include scientific notation and indirect measurement. Connections to social studies include considerations of the types of people needed to populate a moon colony, the possible unintended consequences of governmental decisions concerning science and the lunar build and the basis of our modern calendar. Connections to ELA use of the engineering design process to create a protocol for robots to assemble the parts of the lunar habitat and inferring factual information from a text. Career connections include careers in aeronautical engineering, mechanical engineering, astronomy and earth science.
MOTIVATOR / Hook for the week unit or supplemental resources used throughout the week. (PBL scenarios, video clips, websites, literature)
The hook for this unit is a video of a solar eclipse as seen from the Ganges River: Solar Eclipse in Varanasi. It shows the eclipse unfold in steps and shows the reactions of onlookers. The video is from YouTube and precautions should be taken to ensure only intended content is displayed.
DAY /

Objectives

(I can….) /

Materials & Resources

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Instructional Procedures

/ Differentiated
Instruction /

Assessment

1 / -  I can compare the distance to the moon and sun from the earth.
-  I can construct a model of the earth-moon- sun system.
-  I can define the words orbit, revolve, rotate, and period. / Bell Work, Set and Classwork:
iPads, Apple TV
Lab:
clay
Exit Ticket:
iPad / Essential Question:
What is the relationship between earth, moon, and sun? / Remediation:
-  Provide written definitions.
-  Provide additional explanation of vocabulary and minilab.
Enrichment:
- Find a resource and read about the orbit of the moon online to discover how the moon stabilizes the tilt of the earth. / Formative Assessment:
Bell Work
Set
MiniLab
Exit
Homework
Bell Work
In iPad journals students will sketch what the inner solar system looks like and estimate distances between celestial objects. They will also describe the orbits or the earth around the sun and the moon around the earth.
Link to Project
Understanding the relationship between the earth, moon and sun will allow students to assess the feasibility of moon colonization.
Set
Play this video from YouTube What If the Moon were Closer, which presents what the moon would look like if its orbit were closer to the earth.
Direct Instruction
Vocabulary Review
Lunar – pertaining to the moon
Phase – part of a cycle
Orbit – the path one object takes around another
Revolve – to move in a circle or ellipse around another object (to move around an axis external to the object moving)
Rotate – to move around an axis within an object (to spin)
Plane of the Ecliptic – the imaginary plane in space containing the earth and the sun. Explain by having students imagine a string stretching from the earth to the sun (150,000,000 km long!) and as the earth moves around the sun, it sweeps out the plane of the ecliptic.
Period – the time for one orbit
Deliver the most basic facts:
The earth orbits the sun
The moon orbits the earth
Ask students to diagram the situation of the earth, sun and moon. The diagrams will reveal fundamental misconceptions. Examine diagrams and then discuss the actual relationship between earth, moon, and sun. The discussion should show that:
1.  The moon is much closer to the earth than the sun.
2.  The earth-moon system orbits the sun.
3.  The moon orbits the earth.
4.  The moon orbits the earth much faster than the earth orbits the sun.
5.  The moon orbits the earth so that it rises above and sinks below the plane of the ecliptic.
Mini-Lab
Have students construct 3D clay models of the earth, moon and sun to show how the relative orbits of the moon around the earth and earth-moon system around the sun compare. Check that the two orbital planes are not congruent. The earth-moon plane should be tilted about 5 degrees relative to the earth-sun plane (plane of the ecliptic).
Show the first part of the earth-moon-sun video, which shows the earth-moon-sun relationship.
SET ASIDE the models for use in future classes.
Close
Review and model the earth-moon-sun relationship.
Exit Ticket
Have students draw and label the earth-sun-moon orbits and show that the moon’s orbital plane is tilted relative to the plane of the ecliptic. Students should submit drawings to Gaggle.
Homework
Have students look up and record distances to the moon and sun and calculate the ratio (sun distance/moon distance from earth). Students should also answer the question: which changes most, the sun or moon? Students should submit answers to Gaggle.
2 / -  I can define a solar eclipse
-  I can explain why solar eclipses happen
-  I can explain why solar eclipses don’t happen every month / Bell Work:
iPad
Set:
iPads
Apple TV
MiniLab:
40 W Bulbs
Lamps
White Paper
Golf balls / Essential Question:
What is a solar eclipse? / Remediation:
-  Provide written definitions
-  Prompt during minilab
Enrichment:
- Explore how the idea of eclipsing can be used to discover planets orbiting distant stars. / Formative Assessment:
Bell Work
Application
Homework
Bell Work
Students will draw and describe lunar and solar eclipses. Have them submit their work to Gaggle.
Link to Project
Eclipses reveal the relative positions and sizes of the sun and moon.
Set
Show the first 45 seconds of the eclipse video. Take precautions to ensure only the intended content is displayed.
Direct Instruction
Vocabulary
Solar Eclipse – when the moon moves between the sun and earth
Lunar Eclipse – when the earth moves between the sun and moon
Umbra – darkest shadow
Penumbra – partial shadow
Node – point where orbit of the moon crosses the ecliptic
Discussion
Replay video in segments and discuss points:
1.  A solar eclipse takes place when the moon moves between the earth and sun.
2.  The orbit of the moon is tilted 5 degrees relative to the ecliptic, so a solar eclipse does not happen monthly. A solar eclipse only happens when the node falls between the earth and sun.
3.  During solar eclipses, the moon casts a small shadow on the earth and this shadow moves across the surface of the earth. The center part of the shadow is the umbra. The outer part of the shadow is the penumbra.
4.  It is dangerous to look at a solar eclipse. You should always wear protective glasses.
MiniLab
Set up 40 W lamps at each table. Students will hold white sheets of paper as screens and cast the shadow of a golf ball on the screen. Have students move the ball close to the screen, then close to the bulb (without touching bulb) and note the change in the ball’s shadow.
Ask: Which shadow approximates the shadow of the moon cast on the surface of the earth? (Answer: the shadow of the ball relatively close to the sheet and far from the light source. An umbra and penumbra can be seen.)
Conclusion
Based on the observed behavior of the shadows in the experiment, the moon must be much smaller than the earth and the sun must be very far away.
Exit Ticket
Students will explain a solar eclipse: why it happens, why it doesn’t happen every month, what we see from earth and what the moon’s shadow on earth looks like.
Homework
Assign reading: Solar Eclipse, which discusses and gives diagrams of eclipses. Students should especially look at the link How Solar Eclipses Work.
3 / -  I can define umbra and penumbra
- 
-  I can demonstrate how a lunar eclipse works
- 
-  I can explain why a lunar eclipse does not happen every month / Bell Work:
iPad
Set:
iPads
Apple TV
MiniLab:
40 W Bulbs
Lamps
White Paper
Golf balls / Essential Question:
What is a lunar eclipse? / Remediation:
-  Provide written definitions
-  Prompt during discussion and minilab
Enrichment:
-  Describe what an eclipse might look like for Io, which orbits Jupiter. How often would an eclipse of this moon occur? / Formative Assessment:
Bell Work
Minilab
Homework
Bell Work
Have students describe a lunar eclipse using drawings and/or prose. Description should be submitted to Gaggle for review.
Link to Project
Lunar eclipses reveal the approximate relative sizes of the earth and moon.
Set
Show Lunar Eclipse Essentials from NASA via YouTube. Take precautions to ensure only the intended content is displayed.
Direct Instruction
Vocabulary
Lunar Eclipse – when the moon passes through the shadow of the earth
Umbra – darkest part of earth’s shadow
Penumbra – partial shadow
Partial Lunar Eclipse – an eclipse in which the moon passes through the penumbra of the earth part of the umbra (the whole of the moon does not pass through the umbra)
Discussion
Compare a solar eclipse (previous learning) to a lunar eclipse. Note that the sun, which is far away, doesn’t change position. The positions of the earth and moon relative to the sun determine whether a lunar or solar eclipse occurs at a node.
MiniLab
Using the 40 W lamps and earth/moon models from previous lessons, have students model lunar eclipses. Check that the model of the earth is sufficiently large to cast a complete shadow over the model of the moon when the moon is directly behind the earth.
Students should model the following:
1.  Total lunar eclipse. Note that the moon is completely in earth’s shadow.
2.  Partial lunar eclipse. Part of the moon passes through the umbra.
3.  Penumbral Eclipse. The moon passes in part or whole through the penumbral shadow of the earth.
4.  Solar Eclipse.
5.  Partial Solar Eclipse.
Application
Assign research questions to table groups:
1.  How long does a total lunar eclipse last?
2.  How long does a total solar eclipse last?
3.  What determines the duration any eclipse?
4.  Do man-made satellites experience eclipses? If so, what determines the duration of these eclipses?
5.  Can the sun ever pass between the earth and moon?
6.  Do eclipses occur anywhere else in the solar system?
Table groups will submit one set of answers to Gaggle.
Close
Review the elements of a lunar eclipse using one of the table models and lamps.
Make sure you tilt the orbit of the moon relative to the ecliptic. Point out the umbra and penumbra cast by the earth model.
Homework
Have students read the lunar eclipse section at Hyper Physics to reinforce this lesson.
4 / -  I can identify the phases of the moon
- I can explain why the appearance of the moon changes. / Bell Work:
iPads
Set:
iPad, Apple TV
Application:
40 W lamps
Earth model
Moon model / Essential Question:
Why does the moon’s appearance change? / Remediation:
-  Provide sketches with labels.
-  Provide diagrams of lunar phases.
Enrichment:
- Compare the phases of Venus to the phases of the moon. Explain what Galileo concluded from discovering that Venus undergoes phases. / Formative Assessment:
Bell Work
Application
Homework
Bell Work
Students will sketch the moon’s appearance as they observed it in the past. The sketches will be used later in the class.
Link to Project
Understanding the changing nature of the moon’s appearance will lead to an understanding of day and night on the moon, which will affect the design of lunar structures
Set
Show one minute of the video Moon Phases in Fast Forward from NASA via YouTube. Take precautions to ensure only the intended content is displayed.
Direct Instruction
Vocabulary
Phase – part of a cycle
Lunar Month – time it takes the moon to orbit the earth one time
Revolve – to move in a circle or ellipse around another object (to move around an axis external to the object moving)
Rotate – to move around an axis within an object (to spin)
Waxing – growing brighter or stronger
Waning – growing dimmer or weaker
Crescent – slender curved shape
Gibbous – more than half full
Full Moon – the visible surface of the moon is completely lighted by the sun
New Moon – the surface of the moon facing earth is not lit at all
Discussion
Ask students to show sketches via airplay or pen/paper. Assemble sketches into the phases of the moon. Ask if a phase is not represented – provide the missing phases.
Summarize:
The moon’s appearance as seen from earth goes through regular phases.
Ask why. Wait for at least one explanation (which could be based on the previously shown video).
Discuss answer and make the following points:
1.  The moon orbits the earth.