Earth, Sun, and Moon Collection
Mon, Apr 06, 2015 11:15 PM
Earth, Sun, and Moon Collection Review
The Earth, Sun, and Moon Collection, shared by Deondra Seamon, provides teachers with a wealth of information for teaching topics about the Earth, Sun, and Moon. The Earth, Sun, and Moon SciPack, co-developed between NASA and NSTA, is a great resource for teachers. It is a self-directed online learning experience for teachers to enhance their understanding of the Earth, Sun, and Moon, and its related pedagogical implications for student learning. The article, Ask the Experts – February 2006, addresses the following questions: “Why does the Moon show phases when viewed from Earth, but Earth always looks the same from the Moon, with only the top half illuminated?” and “Why are there two tides per day; i.e., why is there a side of the Earth facing away from the Moon?” The article, How Far Are the Stars, explores how astronomers measure the distances to stars. The article, Inquiry, Argumentation, and the Phases of the Moon: Helping Students Learn Important Concepts and Practices, describes a multiple-day, inquiry-based lesson about the phases of the Moon. The article, Moon Phase as a Context for Teaching Scale Factor, describes an integrated mathematics and science lesson designed to help students communicate their ideas of the relative sizes and distances of the Earth, Sun, and Moon. The article, Scope on the Skies: Eclipse Cycles, explores why we have lunar eclipses. The article also explores why we do not have them every month. The article, Scope on the Skies: The Real Shape of the Moon’s Orbit, explores that the Moon’s orbit is actually around the Sun, and not around the Earth. The article, Teaching through Trade Books: Sunrise, Sunset, describes a book-inspired kindergarten to second grade lesson where students observe the pattern the Sun follows as it appears to move across the sky. It also describes another book-inspired third grade to sixth grade lesson where students model day and night and explore the need for different time zones on Earth. The book, Visual Literacy in Earth Science: Phases of the Moon, addresses Earth science, focusing on the phases of the Moon.