6 th Grade Mark Hartje THE WORK OF SCIENCE

THE EARTH AND MOON

CONTENT Earth’s yearly orbit……………………………………………………………………..Slide 4 Heat and Angle…………………………………………………………………………Slide 5 Position…………………………………………………………………………… Slide 6 Daylight………………………………………………………………………………….Slide 7 Northern and Southern Hemisphere……………………………… Slide 9 Student Assignment………………………………………………………………….Slide 10 Core Standards……………………………………………………………………….Slide 13 Citation Page………………………………………………………………………….Slide 14 Websites……………………………………………………………………………….Slide 15 Videos………………………………………………………………………………….Slide 16 3

THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE EARTH’S AXIS AND ITS YEARLY ORBIT AROUND THE SUN In 1 years time, on earth, it will have completed 1 complete revolution around the sun! The contains 365 days, or 52 weeks, or 8760 hours, or minutes! The earth itself can be measured. The earth’s axis is tilted relative to its yearly orbit around the sun. The Earth is on a 23.5° tilt. With this the earth experiences the seasons, Autumn, Winter, Spring, and Summer. Autumn is known as Autumnal Equinox Winter is known as Winter Solstice Spring is known as Vernal Equinox Summer is known as Summer Solstice 4

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HEAT AND ANGLE Autumn The first day of Autumn in the northern Hemisphere where the sun will begin to lessen and begin cooling the northern hemisphere Winter The first day of winter in the northern hemisphere gives the least amount of heat causing colder temperature and even snow fall Spring The first day of Autumn in the northern hemisphere begins to warm to earth allowing snow to melt and new life to begin Summer The first day of summer in the northern hemisphere is when the sun is highest in the sky and heating the earth at it’s greatest temperature 5

POSITION IN RELATION TO THE SUN 6

DAYLIGHT DURING THE SEASONS Autumn Between September 21 and 24 the length of day is about 12 hours and 6 minutes Winter Between December 20 and 23 is the shortest length of day with about 8 hours or less of daylight Spring Between March 20 and 23 the time of daylight is about 12 hours and 9 minutes Summer Between June 20 and 22 and is the longest time of year with 14 hours or more of daylight 7

AND WHAT OF THE OTHER SIDE!? 8

NORTHERN VS SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE The main idea is that north and south are on the other side of the each other The earth revolves around the sun but it's tilted. The angle of the tilt doesn't change just the position of the planet. The summer is when that part of the globe is tilted towards the sun. If the northern hemisphere is tilted toward the sun the southern hemisphere would be tilted away. The part tilted towards the sun gets more sunlight and is warmer. The part tilted away wouldn't get as much light and would be colder. 9

STUDENT ASSIGNMENT In this activity students plot the movement of the sun across the sky. As they make their own records over a period of time, they learn first hand the actual movement of the sun for their location. Materials needed: clear round bowl or dome sectioned into quarters erasable overhead transparency markers or wax pencils for each team card stock with an outline of the dome and a large X dividing the dome into four equal sections, one per team. compass tape, chalk 10

STUDENT ASSIGNMENT CONT. Have students place their dome on a flat, horizontal surface in direct sunlight. Plot the sun 's position on the top of the dome. Carefully move the tip of the marker close to the plastic hemisphere, but do not let the marker touch the sphere. You will need to decide when and how often the students record the sun's position. Either at the end of the day or the following class period have students connect the dots with a line. Have students make predictions for future observations. Have students predict where the sun will be in two weeks? Students should have opportunities to track the sun throughout the school year. Occasionally, perhaps once a month, discuss findings with students. Full lesson plan in more detail Author: Utah Lesson Plans 11

EXAMPLE OF PLOTTING THE MOVEMENT OF THE SUN 12

CORE STANDARDS Main Standard: Students will understand how Earth's tilt on its axis changes the length of daylight and creates the seasons. 1 st Objective: Describe the relationship between the tilt of Earth's axis and its yearly orbit around the sun. Describe the yearly revolution (orbit) of Earth around the sun. Explain that Earth's axis is tilted relative to its yearly orbit around the sun. Investigate the relationship between the amount of heat absorbed and the angle to the light source. 2 nd Objective: Explain how the relationship between the tilt of Earth's axis and its yearly orbit around the sun produces the seasons. Compare Earth's position in relationship to the sun during each season. Compare the hours of daylight and illustrate the angle that the sun's rays strikes the surface of Earth during summer, fall, winter, and spring in the Northern Hemisphere. Use collected data to compare patterns relating to seasonal daylight changes. Use a drawing and/or model to explain that changes in the angle at which light from the sun strikes Earth, and the length of daylight, determine seasonal differences in the amount of energy received. Use a model to explain why the seasons are reversed in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. 13

CITATION/REFERENCE SLIDE Core standards of the course: Lesson plan part 1: B ?courseNumber=3060&standardId=1244&objectiveId= B ?courseNumber=3060&standardId=1244&objectiveId=1245 Lesson plan part 2 : B ?courseNumber=3060&standardId=1244&objectiveId=1246http:// B ?courseNumber=3060&standardId=1244&objectiveId=1246 Assignment: Author Utah Lesson Plan, Oct 3, 2002http:// 14

WEBSITES SUPPORTING LESSON The UEN Teacher Resource Book

VIDEOS The Seasons, angles, axis, tile and more 6 min min min 16

FIN 17