This activity enables students to better understand the motion of the Sun and how we use it to measure time. Students create a "horizon calendar" at their school by carefully observing and recording the horizon and the Sun at sunset (or sunrise, for... (View More) early risers) over a period of weeks or months. Part 1 of this activity can be done as a whole group and involves selecting and drawing a detailed map of the site. Part 2 of this activity can be done as a whole group and involves determining the direction west and drawing the horizon line. Part 3 should be done by the teacher since it involves making weekly observations at sunset (or sunrise), which is outside of regular school hours. Part 4 can be done with the whole class and involves using the data from the observations to calculate the average rate of change in sunset time and respond to discussion questions. The activity is not time-consuming, but must be conducted over a period of at least a few weeks. It is best as a semester unit, or even a project for the entire school year. Also, the best time of year to run this activity is around the equinoxes: March and September. The lesson plan includes discussion questions, background information about desert horizons, and a math extension activity in which students calculate how the time of sunrise or sunset changes from day to day. This activity is the sixth lesson in the Ancient Eyes Look to the Skies curriculum guide. (View Less)

This activity explores how ancient Sun observers made use of natural and built structures to mark solar alignments observed at different times of the year, particularly around the solstices and equinoxes. In Part 1, the teacher prepares a horizon... (View More) table that represents the Earth’s horizon. In Part 2, students create functioning models of an existing ancient solar observatory or design their own observatory. In Part 3, students test their model using the horizon table and a flashlight as the Sun. The lesson includes discussion questions, background information about Maya astronomy, a checklist for science notebook write-ups, and a math extension activity that measures shadows. This activity is the seventh lesson in the Ancient Eyes Look to the Skies curriculum. (View Less)

This is a lesson plan for an activity illustrating the reasons for the seasons. Learners predict sunrise, noon, and sunset positions on the dates of the equinoxes and solstices, observe these positions in a planetarium, plot their data on graphs,... (View More) and make further observations and predictions using a light to represent the Sun and the positions of pins on a styrofoam ball to represent various locations on the Earth. The first part of this activity requires facilitation inside a planetarium. This is activity B-7 of Universe at Your Fingertips 2.0: A Collection of Activities and Resources for Teaching Astronomy DVD-ROM, which is available for purchase. (View Less)

This is a lesson plan for an activity about the changing horizon positions of sunrise. Learners will predict horizon positions of sunrise on several dates throughout the year and plot monthly azimuth data on a graph using data from Stonehenge. In a... (View More) further enhancement of this activity, learners explore the changing azimuth of sunrise using Stonehenge data from two or more successive days for each month of the year. (View Less)

In this activity, learners will discuss possible reasons for the seasons, create a list of suggested factors, test these factors in research groups, and report their findings in a symposium format. This is Actividad 2.7 as part of El Universo a Sus... (View More) Pies, a Spanish-language curriculum, available for purchase. (View Less)

This is a lesson plan for an activity illustrating the reasons for the seasons. Learners predict sunrise, noon, and sunset positions on the dates of the equinoxes and solstices, observe these positions in a planetarium, plot their data on graphs,... (View More) and make further observations and predictions using a light to represent the Sun and the positions of pins on a styrofoam ball to represent various locations on the Earth. The first part of this activity requires facilitation inside a planetarium. This is Actividad 2.4 of the Spanish-language El Universo a sus Pies, which is available for purchase. (View Less)

In this activity, learners will discuss possible reasons for the seasons, create a list of suggested factors, test these factors in research groups, and report their findings in a symposium format. This is Activity B-9 of Universe at Your Fingertips... (View More) 2.0: A Collection of Activities and Resources for Teaching Astronomy DVD-ROM, which is available for purchase. (View Less)

This is an activity about the size and scale of the Sun-Earth system. Learners will take an imaginary trip to the Sun by comparing images of the Sun and Earth at different points in altitude above the Earth. This is to ultimately conceptualize the... (View More) spherical shape of the Earth, which is key to understanding the cause of the seasons. They will then produce a scale model of the Sun and Earth to reinforce the idea that the distance to the Sun is enormous compared with the size of the Earth. Finally, learners reflect on Question 3 of the Sun-Earth Survey, which is the prior activity in this set. This is Activity 3 in the Great Explorations in Math and Science (GEMS) guide titled Real Reasons for Seasons: Sun-Earth Connections. An additional related activity, entitled Scale Models of the Earth-Moon System and the Solar System, is included in the CD-ROM enclosed with the resource guide. The resource guide is available for purchase from the Lawrence Hall of Science. This activity recommends use of an overhead projector, and requires use of a small scale model toy, such as a car or any other toy made to scale, and a rigid globe or large ball like a soccer ball or basketball. (View Less)