Lesson 3: Celestial Bodies – The Earth

 Preparation

Equipment

• paper plates
• Plastic straws
• Thumb tacks

 Lesson Plan

Tuning In

• Using Google Earth, project an image of planet Earth on the board. Explore the external features of the planet by using the mouse to spin and zoom in on the image. Ask guiding questions, such as:
  • What do you notice about the shape of Earth?
  • What features can you see on Earth’s surface?
  • What might be beneath the surface?
• Conduct a ‘Think, Pair, Share’ activity for the students to activate and share their prior knowledge about Earth.

Teacher Instruction

• Watch The Planet Earth video on YouTube. After watching, ask the students:
  • What is Earth?
  • How does Earth move?
  • What layers does Earth have?
• Display and discuss slides 5-12 of the Celestial Bodies – The Earth PowerPoint. Due to the complex nature of the information, encourage the students to ask questions about key concepts and vocabulary throughout the discussion.
• Display slide 13. As a class, or in small groups, encourage the students to discuss and answer the true and false questions about Earth. Display and discuss the answers on slide 14, correcting any misconceptions the students may have.

Guided/Independent Learning

• Display slide 11. Explain to the students that, before clocks were invented, people used the position of the sun in the sky to tell the time. Remind the students that the sun itself does not move – it is Earth’s rotation on its axis that creates this illusion.
• Project the first page of the How to Make a Sundial teaching resource on the board. Read through the instructions as a class and answer any questions the students may have.
• Provide the students with the materials and equipment required to construct their sundials. Students could create their own sundials (if resources allow) or these could be created in pairs or small groups.
• Provide the students with a copy of the recording worksheet. At the appropriate times (12 pm and 1 pm), take the students outside into a sunny area to record the shadows created by their sundials. Afterwards, support the students to complete the follow-up questions on the worksheet.

Wrapping Up

• Gather the class together and invite the students to share their findings. Encourage the students to use their results to fill in the other numbers (2-11) on their sundials.

 Differentiation

Extending Students

• Encourage more capable students to support less confident peers during group work.

Supporting Students

• Allow less confident students to be supported by a more capable peer during group work.

 Assessment Strategies

Suggested Assessment Strategies

• used strategic whole class or individual questioning
• observed student participation during learning activities
• recorded student progress on a checklist
• annotated student work samples
• collected and reviewed student work samples
• facilitated whole class or peer feedback sessions
• encouraged student self-reflection
• administered formal assessment tasks.

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