Need flashlight app on phone. This will be used in the blank slide that says experiment time. Shine the light and have students model rotation with their.

Notes for teacher:

Need flashlight app on phone. This will be used in the blank slide that says experiment time. Shine the light and have students model rotation with their bodies by spinning. They are to use this experiment to try to infer when day and night happen during that rotation for their first group question.

Provide students with 6 index cards each for vocabulary terms which are in red.

Each student needs science journal out for notes Each group needs one paper out with everyone

in group’s name for group responses

EQ 1: How does the Earth move?

Group Lesson! :DTake out one sheet of

paper and write everyone in your group’s name on it! You also need your science journal out to take notes.

The Earth is always moving. It moves in two ways: rotating

and revolving.

Day and Night: Earth’s Rotation

The cycle of day and night happens on Earth because Earth rotates.

Rotate: to spin about the center

Earth’s center is called its axis.

Axis: an imaginary line that passes through the center of the Earth from the North Pole to the South pole.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Rotating_earth_axial_tiles_to_orbit.gif

Show me!

Without talking, stand next to your desk and

show me a rotation with your body.

Experiment Time!

Listen for teacher

instruction!

24 hours = one day

One rotation of the Earth takes 24 hours, one day.

The Earth’s rotation makes the sun look like it is rising and setting, but it is really the Earth turning towards and away from the sun. Thus, we have night and

day.

Time to report results! Write what you think!

Talk about the experiment with your group! If you are the

Earth rotating on your axis, will it be day or night on your side that is facing towards the sun?

Why do you think so?

Write your response on your group paper!

Time Zones

Because Earth is rotating, night and day occur at different times in different places. People decided to divide Earth into sections to set

up standard time zones. There are 24 times zones around the world, but only 7

are in the United States.

If you travel east from one time zone to the next, the time becomes one hour later. If you travel to the west the same way, it

becomes one hour earlier each time zone.

Earth is going places: Earth Revolves

We have learned that the Earth is rotating, it is always spinning in place. The Earth is also

traveling around the sun all year long! After 365 days, the Earth travels in its path around the sun one full time. Earth revolves around

the sun one time per year. The path Earth travels in is called its orbit.

Revolve: To travel in a path around

Orbit: The path one object travels around another object in space

Show me!

Without talking, pretend you are the Earth and

your desks are the sun. Show me how the Earth revolves in its orbit

around the sun!

Earth’s Axis is Tilted

The axis of the Earth is NOT straight up and down, it is

TILTED.

This TILT is what causes Earth’s seasons: Spring,

Summer, Fall, and Winter.

Earth is divided

Earth is divided by an imaginary line called the

equator into two hemispheres (half spheres).

The top is the Northern Hemisphere and the bottom

is the Southern Hemisphere.

Because of the tilted axis

The sun’s rays shine more directly on one hemisphere than the other. So when it is

summer in the Northern Hemisphere, it will be winter in the Southern Hemisphere.

4 Important Dates – Northern Hemisphere

Solstices- longest hours of light and dark1. Summer Solstice, June 21: the day of the

year with the most hours of daylight2. Winter Solstice, December 21: the day with

the most hours of darkness

Equinoxes- daylight and darkness same amount3. Autumn Equinox, September 21: first day of

autumn4. Spring Equinox, March 21: first day of spring

Discuss!

If it is the Summer Solstice, is the Southern Hemisphere tilted towards or away from the sun’s direct rays? Write

your response on your group response paper and

be prepared to explain.

EQ 2: How does Earth’s moon move?

What is the moon?

The moon is a small planet-like body that revolves around the Earth.

Earth revolves around the sun and the moon revolves around the Earth.

The moon also rotates on its axis, but it takes about 27 days instead of 24

hours like the Earth.

Show me!

In your groups, act out the moon revolving around the Earth and the Earth revolving around the sun at

the same time.

HINT: This will take three people: moon, Earth, and sun. The fourth person in the group will explain to

the class what is happening.

Does the moon produce light like the sun?

Discuss with your group. Thumbs up if you think the moon does produce light. Thumbs down if you think

the moon does not produce light.

So does it?

If you had your thumb down, you were correct!

The moon does NOT produce light; it reflects light from the sun!

Half of the moon is always being lit up by the sun, but since it is revolving around the Earth we can only see part of the lit up half each night.

The moon looks different every night: Phases

Each time the moon seems to grow or shrink,

it seems to change shape.

We call these shape changes of the moon

phases.

Waxing = Increasing

The first half of the moon phase cycle, the side of the

moon seen from earth seems to increase in size. This is

called waxing.

This occurs after the new moon.

Waning = Decreasing

The second half of the moon phase cycle, the side of the moon seen from earth seems to decrease in

size. This is called waning.

This occurs after a full moon.

The whole cycle repeats about every 29 and a half days.

Moon Phases Cycle: What we see

Moon Phases: Moon’s Revolution

When the moon is between the Earth and the sun, we cannot see any of the reflected rays. The moon appears to be completely dark. This is called a New Moon. The moon appears to wax after this phase.

When the Earth is between the moon and the sun, the moon is able to reflect the most light towards Earth. We see the moon as a fully lit circle. This is called a Full Moon. The moon appears to wane after this phase.

Group Work

With your group members, quietly come up with a way to remember

the difference between waxing and waning. Write this on your group

paper and wait quietly to share with class. If you finish before time is up, practice index card vocabulary with

one partner in your group.

Vocabulary Practice!

Use your index cards with your vocabulary words to practice with one partner from your group. We will have a quick vocabulary

quiz to finish up our lesson!