Curated OER
Sunrise/Sunset
Third graders discovver what causes the dramatic colors of a sunset by seeing the changing color of light as it passes through a clear container of water to which milk is gradually added. They measure the liquids and observe what happens...
Curated OER
Arctic Days Record Sheet
In this sunlight worksheet, learners record the amount of daylight, sunrise time, sunset time, and average temperatures for the 21st day of each month. Students fill out 60 boxes total.
Curated OER
What Goes Up Must Come Down!!
Fifth graders look at actual sunrise and sunset times for their hometown to determine a pattern in the amount of daylight. They collect their data in Excel and create a chart to help them identify the pattern, then write an explanation...
Curated OER
Sunrise-Sunset
Pupils gather data, make and share predictions about the time of sunrise ans sunset in their area. Patterns are analyzed and shared with students from other areas.
Curated OER
Sunrise, Sunset: Apparent Motion of the Sun
Students discuss the meaning of a day and what happens to the sun as it turns to night. Then they go outside and draw the view in front of them, paying close attention to the location of the sun. Every hour they return and chart the...
Curated OER
Sunrise and Sunset - Graph of Daily Solar Radiation
Students use a graph of daily solar radiation to determine the times of sunrise and sunset. They also compare how sunrise, sunset, and the length of the day changes with latitude and longitude.
Curated OER
Tracking Sunrise and Sunset
Students collect, record, and graph the sunrise and sunset times. They explain how the relationship between the tilt of Earth's axis and its yearly orbit around the sun produces the seasons.
PHET
AM Radio Ionosphere Station
Tune in! Young scientists use an AM radio at home to monitor solar output. The long-term project would be ideal in a flipped classroom or as an out-of-class project.
Curated OER
DASH Sunrise and Sunset/ Seasons Chart
Second graders rotate as the person to enter the information of sunrise and sunset into a spreadsheet. The teacher also demonstrates how to convert the spreadsheet into a chart.
Space Awareness
Day and Night in the World
How do different parts of the world experience day and night? Introduce scholars to the concept of global citizenship while teaching about animal behavior with discussion of nocturnal and diurnal animals. Then, learners complete...
Curated OER
The Earth's Rotation
Students see a model of a globe to watch the Earth rotate. In this Earth lesson, students rotate the globe and shine a flashlight to see where the sun shines and how it rises and sets. They create a diagram and explain day and night in...
National Wildlife Federation
Summer Midnight Sun
Sunlight hours and climate have a clear connection. Young researchers collect data about the sunrise and sunset times in an Arctic climate as well as the average temperatures. They then graph their data to make connections between the...
California Academy of Science
Kinesthetic Astronomy: Earth's Rotation
After completing the activity, "Kinesthetic Astronomy: The Meaning of a Year," zoom in on Earth's rotation using the same simulation setup and this outline. Each class member dons a map of the Western Hemisphere and plays the part of...
Curated OER
Sun Path: Interactive On-line Mac or PC
Students use SunPath in the yearly mode to investigate seasonal changes in sunrise, sunset, length of day and sun altitude at their own latitude. Sun Path JAVA applet uses equations for a spherical Earth to calculate the sunrise and...
Curated OER
It's Time to Make Time!
Students explore the evolution of time measurement, and explain the relationship of sunrise/sunset to length of daylight. They collect data and calculations to determine length of daylight during a given day.
Curated OER
Sunrise, Sunset: Quickly Go the Days
Students explore the concept of daylight. In this daylight instructional activity, students compare the amount of daylight on a particular day in Anchorage compared with daylight where they live. Students color maps of the US according...
Curated OER
The Reasons for the Seasons
Sixth graders conduct a controlled investigation to determine the length of the sun's shadow on a fixed object (i.e., flagpole, telephone pole, etc.) over a three-day period (one day in the fall, one in the winter, and one in the...
Curated OER
Sunrise and Sunset
Students utilize a Mesonet daily solar radiation to determine the times of sunrise and sunset and the length of the day. They describe how sunrise and sunset change with latitude and longitude and how the length of the day changes with...
Curated OER
Science: Daily and Seasonal Cycles
First graders use their observations to describe daily and seasonal cycles. through a demonstration using a suspended ball and flashlight, they determine the time of day in various locations. Next, 1st graders participate in a...
Curated OER
Sky Show
Students participate in a discussion of the sky and colors. They watch a demonstration of how colors can change. They examine the issue of if weather should be a part of their coursework.
Curated OER
Hello, Sunshine!
Students investigate how the sun travels across the sky at different latitudes using Solar Motion Demonstrator. In this earth science instructional activity, students explain why seasons change. They study how the tilt of the Earth's...
Curated OER
The Case of the Mysterious Red Light
Students investigate why some sunrises and sunsets are unusually bright red.
Curated OER
Why is the Sky Blue?
Students explore diffusion or scattering of light. In this physics instructional activity, students explain why the sky is blue and sunsets/sunrises are red.
Curated OER
Measure the Earth's Circumference
Students explore geometry by conducting a science experiment. In this circumference measurement lesson plan, students review the Greek geographer Eratosthenes who first discovered the circumference of our planet. Students utilize...