Danisile Ntuli

Who ruled over the earth? Why did the moon feel sorry for the people of the earth? Who did moon trust? Why? Who did the Hare meet on his way? What did the Hare say to tortoise? What happen to hare when he met people? Why was moon angry with hare? What the Moon do to Hare? Did moon do the right thing, when he beat up hare? What happen to hare’s lip? How did tortoise feel, when he saw hare? Which character would you like to be? Hare or tortoise? Why?

The Moon is like a desert with plains, mountains, and valleys. It also has many craters, which are holes created when space objects hit the Moon's surface at a high speed. There is no air to breathe on the Moon. Recently water ice was discovered at the poles (or top and bottom) of the Moon. The ice is buried beneath some of the dust of the Moon's surface. Scientists think the ice may be left over from a comet that once collided with the Moon. The Moon travels around the Earth in an oval shaped orbit. Scientists think the Moon was formed long ago when Earth collided with another space object. The collision may have caused a big chunk of rocky material to be thrown out into space to form the Moon. The Moon is a little lopsided. Its crust is thicker on one side than the other. The Moon is much smaller than the Earth. However, the pull of its gravity can still affect the Earth's ocean tides. We always see the same side of the Moon from Earth. You have to go into space to see the other side.

New Moon The side of the moon facing the Earth is not illuminated. Additionally, the moon is up through out the day, and down through out the night. For these reasons we can not see the moon during this phase. Waxing Crescent During this phase, part of the Moon is beginning to show. This lunar sliver can be seen each evening for a few minutes just after sunset. We say that the Moon is "waxing" because each night a little bit more is visible for a little bit longer. First Quarter During first quarter, 1/2 of the moon is visible for the first half of the evening, and then goes down, leaving the sky very dark. Waxing Gibbous When most of the Moon is visible we say it is a Gibbous Moon. Observers can see all but a little sliver of the moon. During this phase, the Moon remains in the sky most of the night. Full Moon When we can observe the entire face of the moon, we call it a Full Moon. A full moon will rise just as the evening begins, and will set about the time morning is ushered in. Waning Gibbous Like the Waxing Gibbous Moon, during this phase, we can see all but a sliver of the Moon. The difference is that instead of seeing more of the Moon each night, we begin to see less and less of the Moon each night. This is what the word "waning" means. Last Quarter During a Last Quarter Moon we can see exactly 1/2 of the Moon's lighted surface. Waning Crescent Finally, during a Waning Crescent Moon, observers on Earth can only see a small sliver of the Moon, and only just before morning. Each night less of the Moon is visible for less time.

In the diagram you can see the Moon always has a lit side (facing the Sun) and a dark side (facing away from the Sun). From the Earth, we can only see the part of the Moon that is facing toward us at any time (which is often called the near side of the Moon) and we cannot see the part of the Moon facing away from Earth The phase of the Moon, or the shape of the lit part of it, that we see at any time is then determined by the combination of these two factors - which part of the Moon is lit by the Sun and visible to Earth at the same time!

Learner Activities Organize the phases of the Moon Draw out all the Moon phases on pieces of paper and mix them all up. Let your children arrange them into the proper order, starting with the new moon going to the full moon, and then back again. Moon Jigsaw Puzzle Cut a picture of the moon into 8 to 12 pieces. Allow the learners to reconstruct the picture. Moon Characters Learners trace images of persons, animals and objects they see on the moon. Place tracing paper over a large image of the moon and allow the learners to traces the images they see with a marker. Paper Plate Moon Phases Draw moon phases on a paper plate Moon Poster Learners draw a poster based on their knowledge of the moon. It could include mythical knowledge as well. Learners can use recyclable materials to create the poster. Colour In the Moon Using different images learners colour in the moon.

Learner Activities Make craters Drop marbles into a material that shows how craters can form. To make your lunar surface, put a layer of a white material, like flour in a pan to a depth of a few cm. Then cover it with a thin layer of something dark, like cocoa powder. When you drop the marbles into the material, it will create very familiar looking craters. Moon Flip Book Learners create a flip book of moon phases. Cut along the dotted lines of each Moon phase. Put them in order according to the picture. Align the right side of the book and staple the cover page and the phases together to create a flip book. Flip through the images to view the changing phases! Feel Your Weight On The Moon Calculate the learner’s weight on the moon by multiplying their current weight by Let the learner stand on a bathroom scale to determine their real weight. If they 30kg they will only be 5kg on the moon. Sun, Earth and Moon Model Paper plate ( yellow or white) Paint yellow (optional) Scissors Metal fastens Cardboard (Cereal boxes) Crayons/ Markers Instructions Cut out three circles according to the Earth, Moon and Sun ratio. Paste the circles on cardboard and colour them in to represent the sun moon and earth. The educator needs to assist learners with the correct celestial bodies. Cut out 2 strips of cardboard which is 3cm wide. Strip one should be 12cm and strip two should be 20cm. Connect the short strip to the earth and moon. Connect the long strip to the earth and sun. You now have a model of the sun, earth and moon.

Sun, Earth, Moon ratio.

I wish to thank the following people for their contributions: Muneerah Jacobs – Cape Town Science Centre Francois Taljaard – Graphics SAASTA – Stories of the Southern Skies The following websites were used: NASA Lunar Planetary Institute Gryphon House