Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Sample-return mission wikipedia , lookup
Geomagnetic storm wikipedia , lookup
Earth's rotation wikipedia , lookup
Late Heavy Bombardment wikipedia , lookup
Heliosphere wikipedia , lookup
History of Solar System formation and evolution hypotheses wikipedia , lookup
1.31 Planetary calculator Leonor Cabral. - NUCLEO Short Description: The planets of our Solar System are all very different in sizes and they orbit the Sun at different speeds and at different distances from the Sun. This activity makes students realize how big these differences are and how important it is to choose an adequate scale for sizes, distances and revolution periods, to represent the Solar System. With ”Eyes on the Solar System” software and a hands-on model, students can simulate the position of the planets on the Solar System and understand why, as seen from earth, the planets change the place in the sky throughout the night and throughout the year. Aims: Understand the relation between the movements of the planets as they orbit the sun and the actual observation of the planets in the sky as seen from earth. Fostered Skills: Students develop: - spatial skills, so they can put themselves not only as an observer on Earth, but also as an observer of the Solar System; - observational skills, being more observant ob ervant towards everyday phenomena, specially when related with the sky; - investigation, communication and presentation skills. Connection to the curriculum: Universe - Solar System: know and understand the movements of the planets. Implementation of the Demonstrator: 1st learning activity - Orienting and Asking Questions Show the following sequence of slides: http://portal.discoverthecosmos.eu/en/node/195732 and discuss how important the use of scales is when working with models, to avoid misconceptions. Discussion should focus on scales to use when representing the solar system. Students should be asked to compare the relative sizes of the planets and relative distances of their orbits around the sun. 2nd learning activity - Hypothesis generation and design The students will come forward with scales they want to use to make a model of the Solar System. Example of scales they might think of: • The earth is 5 cm diameter and everything is scaled accordingly. • The size of the Earth as unit to make a Solar System hands-on model. • The distance of the Earth to the Sun as unit to make a Solar System hands-on model. • The earth year as unit to make a moving Solar System hands-on model. Note: Probably, students will not be aware that the same scale for distances and sizes is not adequate - but you can let them come to that conclusion with their own investigation! 3rd learning activity - Planning & Investigation “Eyes on the Solar System” is an application that explores the solar system with many useful features. It can show a view of the solar system at any chosen date and place, and It has basic information and links to more data on the constituents of the solar system. After showing “Eyes on the Solar System” to the students, they can, in groups of 3, plan how to aquire the data they need to solve the scaling they proposed and come up with a plan of their model of the solar system. Optional: Give a protocol to make the hands-on model “Planetary calculator” (Educational contents on Discover the Cosmos portal) http://portal.discoverthecosmos.eu/en/node/195733 4th learning activity - Analysis and Interpretation Each group will analyse the data they obtained for their model of the solar system and try to interpret how good it is. They should conclude that, when modeling the Solar System, it is not appropriate to use the same scale for distances and sizes. 5th learning activity - Orienting and Asking Questions Show the following video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJXsNmbTPSc the following picture http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100818.html Discussion should now focus on: • Planetary movements (orbital and rotational); • Observation of planets from earth - which planets can be seen with the naked eyes? Which is brightest?etc.; • Do we always see the same planets each night? At any hour of the night? • Planetary alignments (are these really special? Are there any consequences?) 6th learning activity - Hypothesis generation and design Students should make hypotheses on which planets can be seen from earth, at what time of the year and at which time of the night. For example: • Venus can only be seen at sunset and sunrise . • • • • Jupiter can never be seen transit in front of the Sun. Mars can always be seen at night. Mars orbital period is greater than Earth’s orbital period. Mercury’s orbital velocity is smaller than Saturn orbital velocity. 7th learning activity - Investigation and Planning With Eyes on the Solar System, the students, in groups of 3, can simulate an observer of the Solar System and try to find the hypothesis answers. They can start by positioning the solar system on the current date and see what happens throughout one year, or several years. Optional: Use the activities from planetary calculator: Planetary Calculator Phase3 http://portal.discoverthecosmos.eu/en/node/195730 Planetary Calculator Constellations http://portal.discoverthecosmos.eu/en/node/195731 8th learning activity - Conclusions and Evaluation Each group presents to the class their investigation and the conclusions to their hypothesis. They should be able to show the rest of the classs their model of Solar System, the movement of the planets and what can be seen on the sky on a given day. The teacher might want to resume the discussion in order to achieve the correct representation of the Solar System. An appropriate scaling would be: for sizes, the unit is Earth size and the Sun is not represented, or is only parcially represented; for orbital distances from the Sun, the unit is the Earth distance to the Sun (1 astronomical unit); the scale for the revolution period can be 1 Earth’s month. Domain: Big Idea of Science: Age group: Physics, Chemistry 6 12-15 Time needed: 6 didactic hours Languages available: English Equipment needed Involved actors Used eTool and link: Computers (1 for 3 person) Teacher, students Eyes on the solar system, http://eyes.nasa.gov Quality Characteristics of the Demonstrator Characteristic I how Demonstrator follows an inquiry based approach The demonstrator follows the steps of a basic inquiry process. Characteristic II how Demonstrator integrates eLearning element “Eyes on the Solar System” is a software that allows the user to explore the solar system and real NASA mission data. It shows a realistic view of the solar system, static or moving (at the chosen speed), at any date and from any planet, and motion This demonstrator uses Eyes on the Solar System for the students to explore sizes, distances and orbital movements in the Solar System. Characteristic III how Demonstrator follows a Big Idea of Science The Universe is very vast – the Solar System is only a very small part of one of millions of galaxies in the Universe. To understand the Universe, we start by studying what is near us, the solar system. This is what can be studied more directly, but it is the beginning to understand other planetary systems, which we now know exist all over our galaxy and most probably in other galaxies too. Characteristic IV how Demonstrator is connected to a real world problem The demonstrator allows students to understand our place In the Solar System, which is our neighbourhood in the Universe. Students will follow a research procedure. Students will manipulate a model, which can encourage the students to interiorize concepts that are more abstract and difficult to visualize. Experiences with the Demonstrator? Yes • classroom • 5 years • 150 No quantitative results, but, in general, on answering questions about the Solar System, students showed a better understanding of the relative sizes and movements, and not only memorization; most students also acquired a more observant attitude towards natural phenomena.