Today's study was all about comets, asteroids, and meteoroids/meteors/meteorites. We watched videos, examined diagrams, and created our own visuals to represent each of these objects. The youngest class even did some space yoga to pose as the different objects. Each of the classes defined and drew/created a picture of a comet, an asteroid, and the three different phases of meteoroids. They were all challenged to pick one or more activities to try this week that will take this topic just a little farther. Additional ActivitiesVideos:
Asteroids, Comets, and Meteors--The Documentary A 10 minute documentary about what we can learn from studying these objects and how they differ. Bill Nye: Comets and Meteors Asteroids, Comets, Meteors Song Full of facts for all our auditory learners! Magic School Bus: Out of this World If you have Netflix, or another way to view these, this one is all about rocks in space. Activities: Build a Dry-Ice Comet! This lesson walks you through what happens to comets as they near the sun, which can be demonstrated after building a comet from dry ice. Challenge: Asteroids From National Geographic's website: "Challenge: Asteroids! engages youth in completing three missions—designed to help them learn the differences between near-Earth objects like asteroids, comets, and meteoroids and some of the tools used by aerospace engineers to study objects in space." Asteroids & Lunar Landscape This activity, using some basic kitchen supplies, lets students explore how meteorites create craters, and experiment with the various factors that will affect the resulting crater. Articles: Martian Meteorites A short National Geographic article that looks at meteorites that have been traced to the planet Mars, one of our closest neighbors in the solar system. NASA Science: Asteroids, Comets, and Meteors Do you know how many comets have currently been identified? Or how we learn about these and other space objects? You can read a bried overview, or dig in a little deeper to learn more!
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One of the coolest natural events is a total solar eclipse. Today, we talked about the different types of solar and lunar eclipses. We looked at the difference between partial, total and annular eclipses. We discussed the different stages and phenomena that occur in a total solar eclipse and watched video footage from the 2017 eclipse that went across Oregon. Diamond ring effect, and Baily's Beads-both super cool events that happen just before totality. We looked at the geometry of both lunar and solar eclipses. We finished up with a simple chalk pastel art project of the diamond ring effect. Chalks are the perfect medium to capture the rays of light. Additional ActivitiesVideos:
What's the Difference Between a Solar and Lunar Eclipse A simple explanation with demonstrations you can do at home. Lunar Eclipses From SciShow Kids, this is a simple explanation of lunar eclipses. Why Solar Eclipses Create Those Crescent Shaped Lights The science behind the lights that you can see on the ground during an eclipse. We looked at a picture of these during class, but this explains it in much more detail. Activities: Check out this calendar to see the path of all the eclipses in the next 10 years, and start planning a trip to see one! Being in the path of totality is totally worth it (and until you've seen a total eclipse, you just can't imagine the difference between that, and being at 99%.) There's an annular eclipse in a couple years that will pass through southern Oregon, and a total solar eclipse in 2024 in Texas. Time for a road trip! Make a coffee filter solar eclipse craft, or check out one of these eclipse activities (glow in the dark t-shirts, or make a lunar eclipse model, and more!) As we continue to learn about space and our solar system, we talked about the earth's tilt, orbit, and rotation today and how those affect the seasons. Each class watched a video, and then created their own diagram of the earth's orbit around the sun. We discussed how the angle that the sunlight hits the earth is what causes the different temperatures and seasonal changes. We cleared up some common misconceptions about the seasons--any difference in the distance from the sun to the earth is not significant enough to cause seasonal changes and the earth's tilt doesn't change, just the earth's position in relation to the sun. The oldest class learned how to measure the angle of the sun's rays by measuring their shadow on a sunny day and then drawing a model of their height, shadow length, and the line to finish the triangle. Additional ActivitiesVideos:
Bill Nye the Science Guy: Seasons Bill explains the reason for the seasons. How Earth Moves This is probably a little in depth for the younger kids, but this is a cool look at time, the earth's orbit and rotation, and how it's not as simple as we think. What Physics Teachers Get Wrong about Tides! We didn't discuss tides, but this is another aspect of the earth's rotation. Pretty heavy on physics--might appeal to some of the middle schoolers. Activities: Measure the angle of the sun's rays using your shadow. Check out this activity on PBS Learning (Part II of the lesson.) Recording the Earth's Rotation with Shadows Similar activity that will work for any age. Compare seasons on Earth and Mars Interactive comparison between two planets' seasons. Today, we narrowed our study of the solar system down to our own moon, and to start it off, we did a chalk pastel drawing with Nana from You Are an Artist. The drawings of the moon were so fun to make. She talked a little about the dark side of the moon and just how excited the first astronauts who landed there must have been (and you can see the little rocket approaching in the corner of the paintings.) The older class shared their artwork with everyone. Then, we watched a video about the phases of the moon and talked about some of the terminology: waxing and waning, crescent and gibbous. Then we created our own out of cookies or paper, depending on what supplies everyone had on hand. I'm missing being able to do these activities in person and to share with one another, but so glad that we can still keep talking about science and having a little bit of fun with it while in quarantine. Finally, the older class filled out a worksheet that diagramed the moon in relationship to the sun and earth as it completes its orbit, and showed the phases of the moon. Hopefully they can see the relationship between the two. Definitely check out the first activity below which will let them play around with that at home. Additional ActivitiesVideos:
Phases of the Moon Rap For my students who learn best through songs, here's one for you :) Outer Space: Story Bots And another song about the phases of the moon. Moon 101: National Geographic A short video about our moon--its origin, a few facts about it, its orbit, and the first mission to the moon. This shows a visual of why there is a dark side of the moon that we never see. Activities: Phases of the Moon Demonstration (NASA) It always seems easier to understand a concept that you can actually see, so try creating your own demonstration of the moon phases with only a lamp or flashlight, a light colored sphere, a pencil, and yourself. Stargazing Events in April This article outlines what to look for in the sky this month. Take note of the full moon on April 8, which is the second supermoon of the year. And the Lyrid meteor shower on the morning of April 22. You Are an Artist Nana's lessons are the place to begin your love of chalk pastels.I love her peaceful manner and if your kids had fun today, I strongly recommend taking a look at her website. She has quite a few free lessons to try it out, and the offers both membership subscriptions and lesson packages to purchase. |
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May 2020
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