Understanding the Moon's Phases and the Universe: A Teacher Packet, Schemes and Mind Maps of Theatre

Download Understanding the Moon's Phases and the Universe: A Teacher Packet and more Schemes and Mind Maps Theatre in PDF only on Docsity! Tour of the Universe: Teacher Packet Compiled by: Morehead State University Star Theatre with help from Bethany DeMoss Table of Contents Table of Contents 1 Corresponding Standards 2 Vocabulary 3 Sizing up the Stars (Primary) 5 Oreo Moon Phases (Middle Grades) 11 The Universe: Big Bang Balloon (High School) 25 Reference 28 1 rotation on its axis every 24 hours. Moon A celestial body in orbit around a planet. Galaxy A large assemblage of stars, nebulae, interstellar gas and dust Milky Way The galaxy to which the Sun belongs. Seen from Earth, the galaxy is a pale, milky band in the night sky. The Milky Way is a barred spiral type galaxy. Galactic Halo The approximate spherical region surrounding spiral galaxies. The halo contains mainly old stars, as are found, for example, in globular clusters. The halo also appears to contain large amounts of dark matter. 4 Sizing up the Stars From: Stanford Solar Center 5 Overview Materials List Science Exploration Sizing Up the Stars Per small group, partner, or small team Long, flat surface (table, counter top, sidewalk} Two identically sized round objects (tennis ball, rubber racquetball, golf ball, ping pong ball, balled up sheets of paper, marble, bubblegum ball, etc. (These round objects are listed according to size.) 1 round object of a slightly smaller size than the other two round objects (For example, if a group has two tennis balls, then the smaller round object should be a rubber racquetball or golf ball.) Measuring tape or meter stick (The students will need to be able to mark and measure distances.) ruler Student Guidesheet: Sizing Up the Stars  Sizing Up the Stars Directions: Follow each step below and answer the questions. 1. Take both round ebjects your teacher gives you and place them on a flat surface 30 cm apart and | meter from the observation point. See diagram below. Please, note that the observer must be able to place his/her eyes at eye level with the round objects for this activity. 2. Placing your eyes at eye level to the two round objects, observe the apparent size of each object to the other, Do they appear to be the same size? 3. Leaving the round object on the left in the same position, move the round object on the right so that it appears smaller than the round object on the left. Measure the placement of both round objects and record it below on the diagram. 4, Leaving the round object on the left in the same position, move the round object on the right so that it appears larger than the round object on the left. Measure the placement of both round objects and record it below on the diagram. 5. Using what you have learned from steps 3 and 4, replace one of the round objects with a smaller round object. In order for the smaller round object to appear the same size as the larger round object, predict what the placement of both round objects would be by drawing a picture of it below. 36  Sizing Up the Stars (continued) 6. Place both round objects in such a way that the smaller round object appears the same size as the larger round object. Measure the placement of both round objects and record it below on the diagram. Was your prediction correct? 7. Use what you have learned from steps 3 and 4 and the same two different sized round objects for this next step. In order for the smaller round object to appear larger than the larger round object, predict what the placement of both round objects would be by drawing a picture of it below. 8. Place both round objects in such a way that the smaller round object appears larger than the larger round object. Measure the placement of both round objects and record it below on the diagram. Was your prediction correct? 9. Explain how it is possible that the sun in our solar system can actually be smaller than some of the stars visible in the night sky. 37  Oreo Moon Phases From: Bethany DeMoss 11 Created By: Bethany DeMoss 2 Teacher Instruction Your role in this activity is to guide and assist your students. This activity is to be completed individually but can also completed in groups as long as students have their own physical model and answers on to the questions in their packet. As the teacher decide what will be best suited for your students. Also take note that, a student with an intellectual and developmental disability might need special accommodations with this activity. Students with disabilities might not enjoy the sticky feeling the Oreos might leave on their fingers. One solution would for you to make the phase on the Oreo after they draw the phases on their paper. The student and teacher packet include the same step by step activity directions, teacher packet includes answers for teacher to go by. Materials  Oreos (each student will need 8 each)  Paper Plate or napkin, to keep Oreos off the desks  Spoons  Copies of Student Packet  Markers, Colored Pencils, Crayons, etc. 14 Created By: Bethany DeMoss 3 Name: __________________________________________ Date: ___________________________ Oreo Moon Phases You are going to be creating the phases of the moons lunar cycle by using Oreos, but first let’s discuss how we see the moon’s phases. The moon’s phases are created because of not only the moon, but the sun and the Earth as well. Without the sun and the Earth we wouldn’t be able to see the different phases, because there wouldn’t be any! The moon orbits the Earth. As the moon orbits the Earth it has the same amount of light from the sun at all times but it changes position in the sky which is why we see different phases. The sun in the middle of the picture is giving off light to the Earth and the Moon constantly as they orbit. As the moon orbits around the Earth we see the moon in a different position than the night before. In the picture the moon is a Full Moon. The Moon orbits out of the Earth’s shadow, so it is getting direct light from the Sun. 15 Created By: Bethany DeMoss 4 The Moon has a lunar cycle of 28 days. Every day the moon has a new position around the Earth because it is constantly orbiting. Picture A shows the lunar cycle of the Moon. Picture B shows the main phases of the Moon. If we drew a picture of the moon, every night for a month we would see a pattern like Picture A. If we looked at the moon every two days we would begin to see a pattern like Picture B. Picture A Picture B 16 Created By: Bethany DeMoss 7 7. Describe what effect the Sun has on the Moon’s phases. _____________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ 8. Why does the Earth get placed in the center of your drawing of the Moon’s phases? ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ 19 Created By: Bethany DeMoss 8 Name: __TEACHER KEY PACKET _______________________ Date:_______________ Oreo Moon Phases Have your students read the information on the first two pages first, while they read work on getting materials ready for #1 of their activity! You are going to be creating the phases of the moons lunar cycle by using Oreos, but first let’s discuss how we see the moon’s phases. The moon’s phases are created because of not only the moon, but the sun and the Earth as well. Without the sun and the Earth we wouldn’t be able to see the different phases, because there wouldn’t be any! The moon orbits the Earth. As the moon orbits the Earth it has the same amount of light from the sun at all times but it changes position in the sky which is why we see different phases. The sun in the middle of the picture is giving off light to the Earth and the Moon constantly as they orbit. As the moon orbits around the Earth we see the moon in a different position than the night before. In the picture the moon is a Full Moon. The Moon orbits out of the Earth’s shadow, so it is getting direct light from the Sun. 20 Created By: Bethany DeMoss 9 The Moon has a lunar cycle of 28 days. Every day the moon has a new position around the Earth because it is constantly orbiting. Picture A shows the lunar cycle of the Moon. Picture B shows the main phases of the Moon. If we drew a picture of the moon, every night for a month we would see a pattern like Picture A. If we looked at the moon every two days we would begin to see a pattern like Picture B. Picture A Picture B 21 Created By: Bethany DeMoss 12 8. Why does the Earth get placed in the center of your drawing of the Moon’s phases? The Earth is in the center because the Moon is orbiting the Earth. 24 The Universe: Big Bang Balloon From: Discovery Channel School’s Curriculum Center 25 hands-on activities The Universe Big Bang Balloon Background Information In the 1920s astronomer Edwin Hubble used the red shift of the spectra of stars to determine that the universe was expanding. By carefully observing the light from galaxies at different distances from Earth, he determined that the farther something was from Earth, the faster it seemed to be moving away. This relationship has become known as Hubbleís Law, and itís just one piece of a bigger puzzle known as the Big Bang theory. Developed over many years and by many people, the theory states that about 15 billion years ago the universe was compressed into an infinitely small space, known as the primordial atom. It exploded in a sudden burst of energy and created a small, superdense, extremely hot universe that began to expand in all directions. Over time things cooled, and tiny bits of matter clumped together to form stars and galaxies. As a result of this explosion, all of these objects are still moving away from each other. In this experiment, you'll create a simple model to learn how the universe expands over time. What You Need ï 12-inch (30-cm) round latex balloon ï a permanent felt-tip marking pen ï 24-inch (60-cm) piece of string ï metric ruler What to Do 1. Inflate your balloon until it is about 4 inches (10 cm) in diameter, but do not tie the end. 2. Using the felt-tip marker, make six dots on the balloon in widely scattered locations. Label one dot "home" and the others A-E. The home dot represents the Milky Way galaxy, and the others represent galaxies formed in the early universe. 3. Without letting air out of the balloon, use the string and ruler to measure the distance from home to each dot. Record the distances in the worksheet table under the heading "Time 1." 4. Inflate the balloon so that its diameter is about 2 inches (5 cm) bigger. Again measure the distances to each of the dots, and record the distances under "Time 2" on the worksheet. 5. Inflate the balloon in 2-inch (5-cm) increments three more times. After each inflation, measure and record the distances on the worksheet. 6. Answer the follow-up questions on the worksheet. http://www.discoveryschool.com/curriculumcenter/universe 26