Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: What on Earth Is Spin?

For Students 9th - 10th
Why is the spinning motion so special? Brian Jones details the dizzyingly wide array of ways that spinning affects our lives. [3:57]
Unit Plan
CK-12 Foundation

Ck 12: Earth Science: Uranus

For Students 9th - 10th
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] Describes the features of Uranus.
Unit Plan
CK-12 Foundation

Ck 12: Earth Science: Venus

For Students 6th - 8th
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] Learn about the distinctive features of the planet Venus.
Unit Plan
CK-12 Foundation

Ck 12: Earth Science: Uranus

For Students 6th - 8th
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] Describes the features of Uranus.
Unit Plan
CK-12 Foundation

Ck 12: Earth Science: Planets of the Solar System

For Students 9th - 10th
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] Examines the eight planets of our solar system and their orbits and rotation.
Website
Geography 4 kids

Geography4 kids.com: Coriolis Spinning Around the Earth

For Students 3rd - 8th
An overview of the Coriolis Force, an effect on wind due to the rotation of Earth.
Lesson Plan
Utah Education Network

Uen: A Moon With a View

For Teachers 3rd
Understand the rotation of the earth and the appearance of movement of other bodies in the sky.
Lesson Plan
Utah Education Network

Uen: The Night Sky

For Teachers 3rd
Learn about the rotation of the earth, the movement of the moon, and the position of the sun.
Website
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Meteor Showers

For Students 3rd - 8th
This video segment adapted from NASA uses animation to illustrate the properties of meteor showers and comets. Included is are visualizations of a comet's tail and of Earth passing through a debris stream left behind by meteoroids.
Website
Geography 4 kids

Geography4 kids.com: Earth Around the Sun

For Students 3rd - 8th
Find out what all results from Earth revolving around the sun every 365 days as well as the rotation of the Earth every 24 hours.
Unit Plan
University of Illinois

University of Illinois Extension: Tree House Weather Kids: What Causes the Season?

For Students 5th - 8th
Explore what causes the change of seasons on the Earth.
Handout
NASA

Planetary Geodynamics Laboratory: Ocean Tides and the Earth's Rotation

For Students 9th - 10th
An explanation of the effect that the tides have on the Earth's rotation.
Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Modeling Earth's Seasons by Rotation and Revolution

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
In this lesson plan, students will discuss, define, and demonstrate the Earth's rotation and revolution around the sun in a counterclockwise position. They will be able to predict seasons based on the amount of light that hits the Earth.
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: What if the Earth Stopped Spinning?

For Students 9th - 10th
Michael Stevens of Vsauce looks at what would happen if the Earth stopped spinning. He also explores how we construct time as a function of the Earth's rotation and why atomic clocks are so precise. [9:44]
Article
Other

Astro Methods: Earth's Nutation Visualized

For Students 9th - 10th
Nutation is a small cyclical motion superimposed upon the steady 26,000-year precession of the Earth's axis of rotation. It is mainly caused by the gravitational effect of the 18.6-year rotation period of the Moon's orbit. The main...
Activity
PBS

Nova: Make the Earth's Weather

For Students 9th - 10th
The earth has some unusual properties that make its' weather suitable for life. This activity allows you to change four properties (earth's size, rotation speed, angle of the sun, and ocean size) to see what effects they would have on...
Unit Plan
E-learning for Kids

E Learning for Kids: Science: Center of the Ocean: The Sun, the Earth, and the Moon

For Students 2nd - 5th
Nita lives on Coco Island in the Indian Ocean, and is learning more about the Sun, the Earth, and the Moon. Join her and learn about day and night.
Article
University of Texas at Austin

The University of Texas Mc Donald Observatory: Earth's Moon

For Students 9th - 10th
Discover interesting facts about Earth's partner, the moon, which is more like a double planet than a planet and a moon.
Activity
University of Chicago

University of Chicago: What's Your Slant? Sun and Shadows

For Students 9th - 10th
This fun activity helps you to understand the movement of the sun by studying shadows.
Activity
Exploratorium

Exploratorium: Science Snacks: Reflections of a Star

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This simple lesson allows students to work cooperatively in determining the angular diameter of the Sun.
Interactive
NASA

Nasa: Sea Wi Fs Biosphere Globes

For Students 9th - 10th
This interactive globe allows you to get any view of the earth by entering latitude, longitude and season criteria.
Website
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Virtual Pendulum

For Students 3rd - 8th
This interactive activity from ZOOM offers a chance to experiment with a virtual pendulum and to see how it can be influenced by a variety of factors.
Website
NASA

National Aeronautics and Space Administration: Scijinks: Seasons

For Students 3rd - 9th
An explanation about the rotation of the Earth and why the Earth has seasons.
Unit Plan
Texas Education Agency

Texas Gateway: The Sun Is the Center of the Solar System

For Students 9th - 10th
See what you know about the solar system by taking this brief interactive quiz and learning module.