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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sun

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students study how the sun is at the center of the solar system.  In this solar lesson students measure the altitude of the sun and its size.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cooler in the Shadows

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students explore how the amount of sunlight and heat change in areas that are shaded.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Let the Sun Shine!

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young scholars investigate how the sun can be used for energy. They read a handout, discuss the pros and cons of passive solar building design, develop flashcard questions, and identify jobs that can be helped by solar energy.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Earth, Sun, and Moon

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Young scholars participate in a demonstration and complete an online activity that illustrates the earth orbits the sun once a year, and that the moon takes approximately 28 days to orbit the earth.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shadows All Around Us

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Students create shadows. In this shadow casting lesson, students read books about shadows, view a demonstration on shadow casting and then practice shadow casting on their own. Students cast a shadow using the position of the sun.
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Worksheet
Curated OER

My Shadow is following me

For Students 3rd - 5th
In this outer space worksheet, students read "My Shadow is following me" and learn about the Solar System and how shadows are created. They then complete the 2 students tasks and answer the 5 questions in the packet. The answers are on...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sundials: Observing and Using Shadows

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Young scholars build sundials and observe changes in shadows over the course of one or more days. They identify patterns in the shadows and discuss how shadows may be used to tell time.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shadows

For Teachers 3rd - 12th
Students measure shadows at different times of the day to determine when a shadow casts its longest and shortest shadows.
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Worksheet
Curated OER

"Bear Shadow" Activity Card

For Students 1st - 2nd
In this literature and science worksheet, students listen to a family member as they read "Bear Shadow." They conduct experiments that with light, shadows, and measuring tools before recording the date they did the experiment. They...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sun's Path

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed
Students explore the movement of the sun across the sky. In this science instructional activity, students use clear plastic hemispheres and markers to record how the sun moves across the sky. Students write directions so the activity...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Light and Shadows

For Students 3rd - 4th
In this earth science worksheet, students examine 6 pictures that show the sun in relation to a tree. They also see a clock and the time. They look at the position of the sun and draw the shadow of the tree in the proper position.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sun, Shadows, Surface Structure...and the Face on Mars

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students use light and shadow information to make inferences regarding the three dimensional shapes of specific objects photographed on the surface of Mars. Limitations of the of the data provided are discussed and entries made into the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Light and Shadows

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
Students observe and record the apperacne of shadows and how their position and shpae changes during the course of the day. Students measure and record the length oof a partner's shadow at different intervals during the day. In pairs,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Make a Shadow Clock

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Learners create a shadow clock. In this time lesson plan, students make their own shadow clock or sundial from tag board. They place it on the ground and check it every hour to mark where the shadow lies.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Light and Shadows

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Students participate in an online lesson to determine how light travels from a source, and to explain that shadows form when light travelling from a source is blocked.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Tracking the Sun with a Solar Dome

For Teachers 7th - 11th
Pupils study the sun and how it moves throughout the day.  In this tracking the sun lesson students create a model of the celestial sphere. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Earth, Sun and Moon

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students investigate that the sun is at the center of the solar system through role play. One student is the sun and one student is the Earth. The students then show how the Earth orbits around the sun. Students view a flashlight and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Shadows and Skyscrapers

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders explain the relationship between the position of the sun, a city's latitude and shadow length. Ratio's, geometry, and algebra are used to determine the shadow lengths and building heights. A sun angle (altitude) charts to...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Orbits Worksheet #1

For Students 4th - 8th
A diagram of Earth's path around the sun, including the position of the moon, is displayed at the top of the worksheet. Five multiple questions get astronomers to analyze the diagram considering what is going on in the solar system. Use...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

May Earth be Revolving around the Sun?

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders explore how Aristarchus used the position of the half-full Moon to estimate the distance to the Sun, and how he made a great error, but still figured out that the Sun is much larger than Earth.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Studying Shadows

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Students measure shadows and explore the altitude of the sun.  In this sun lesson students will graph the length of shadows and solar altitude against time. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Measuring the Sun's Diameter

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Young scholars project and measure the suns image using a refracting telescope.  In this sun's diameter lesson students calculate the magnification of the telescope and determine the diameter if the Sun. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Around the Sun We Go

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders complete a short survey on the relationship between the Earth and the Sun. In groups, they participate in an experiment in which they test the angle of the Earth and compare it to the sun. To end the lesson plan, they...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Tides, Eclipses, Day and Night, and Seasons

For Students 6th - 8th
In this earth science instructional activity, students use the clues given at the bottom of the sheet to complete the crossword puzzle on tides, eclipses, day and night, and the seasons of the year. There are 17 clues to solve in the...