Download Lesson 2_Going Solar - UCAR Center for Science Education

Going Solar
Lesson Design
Grade Level: 5-6 (can be modified for grades 7-8)
Subject Area: Earth Science
Lesson Topic (What is the “big idea?”): What standard(s) will it address?
Students will gain a thorough understanding of Earth’s relationship with the sun in regards to energy,
distance, volume, and the food chain.
Climate Literacy Principles:
1A: Sunlight reaching the Earth can heat the land, ocean, and atmosphere. Some of that sunlight is
reflected back to space.
ESS 3.3: The solar system is comprised of various objects that orbit the Sun and are classified based on
their characteristics
Supporting Colorado Math Standards for related activities: 5.4.2, 6.4.2, 7.4.1, 8.4.2
Main Objective of Instruction (What do you want the student(s) to learn?):
Students will explain that the sun is the primary source of earth’s energy, and the greatest factor that
contributes to weather and climate.
Supporting Objectives:
Students will understand that the sun is a star, what stars are composed of, and how stars vary
Students will review and practice using units in multiplication and division problems
Students will begin to understand that the earth’s atmosphere traps heat and that this is essential for life
Specific Strategies to be taught/modeled:
Answering word problems using multiplication and division
Note-taking using teacher-created notes.
Planning for individual differences (mediated scaffolding): What are the
accommodations/modifications you need to prepare?
Students background knowledge will vary greatly. For group activities, levels will be mixed ability.
Students will receive academic and behavioral support from para-educators.
What background knowledge do the students have/need?
- basic numeracy skills to understand relative values of distance and volume measurements.
- knowledge of multiplication and division computation skills
- a basic understanding of the solar system
How will you assess students’ learning – pre, during and post?
Pre- Students will brainstorm what contributes to us being able to live on earth (we already touched on
water and temperature back in the first lesson)
During- monitor in-class activities
Post- Students will individually create an illustration (themselves, using given shapes, or on the
computer?) showing how earth receives energy
Materials and Resources:
Internet access: nasa spaceweather
NSLD: http://www.teachersdomain.org/resource/ess05.sci.ess.eiu.sunbasics/
Materials for smore cooker: http://familyfun.go.com/crafts/solar-smores-673886/
Scaled down walking instructions for solar system walk:
http://www.noao.edu/education/peppercorn/pcmain.html
Lesson Plan: Going Solar
Main Objective of this lesson: Students will explain that the sun is the primary source of earth’s energy,
and the greatest factor that contributes to weather and climate.
Session 1
Anticipatory Set – How will you get the student(s)’ attention?)
In groups of three, students will have a competition to see who can think of the most things that are
necessary for us to live on earth. (outside.. 10 min) I will use a chart to divide needs and wants when
students suggest them. I will give each student a small prize, and the winning group a slightly bigger
prize. In looking over the list of needs, we will make connections as to where each of those things comes
from, or is connected to, until someone comes up with the sun (if they have not already) (10 min)
I will put up some detailed images of the sun to see if any students can identify it, then show the sun in
many different ways, to introduce our unit. I may answer or table any questions that come up. (10 min)
Teaching:
I will hand out teacher-made notes with a blank box for additional information and questions. During the
lecture, I will pause for students to fill in the blanks.
I will present a powerpoint with video links that is organized around the same topics in the notes:
What is the sun?
How hot is the sun?
How far away is the sun?
How big is the sun?
Why is the sun important to us?
Heat
Rays from the sun come to earth
Light
Rays carry both heat and light
Gravity
The sun holds Earth in orbit around us
Climate
The atmosphere on earth helps us keep the heat from the sun. Without it, the rays would
just bounce of like some of the other planets
Could we live on other planets? They all have access to the sun too. Give a brief explanation of condition
on other planets.
(30 min)
Session 2
Check for Understanding: Pair up and in partners answer these four questions: get feedback from
multiple groups, and fill in any gaps.
Why is the sun important for the earth?
Why is the atmosphere important?
What is one interesting fact about the sun?
10 min.
I’ll mention that after math, we’ll be cooking using the sun.
Guided Practice or Discovery:
I will discuss how units of measurement are important, and review what those units are
I will say that I am sure that students will be able to use units accurately to be able to answer some
questions about the earth and sun.
I will model answering one word problem, then have students answer another collectively. (in the process,
we will review multiplication and division procedures) 15 min.
Independent Practice:
Students will answer additional multiplication and division word problems and will be able to use
calculators to check their work after showing evidence of attempting it. (they may work individually or in
pairs as long as each student can show and explain their work) 15 min.
Guided Practice or Discovery:
I will show students the pizza boxes I’ve prepared, and have them complete the rest of the prep work for
solar ovens. I’ll ask them if they think they’ll work. After polling students, I’ll tell them that I think they
will, and show them what I’ve brought to cook. (smores) After they are able to explain how they think the
ovens might work (and what part of the oven acts like the atmosphere) we’ll prepare the smores to eat
later.
(20 min)
Session 3
Guided Practice or Discovery:
As a warm-up, we will go on a solar system walk where we start at the sun, and then walk the distance of
each planet. (15 min.)
Independent Practice: Students will use available materials to demonstrate that they understand how the
sun warms the earth, and what role the atmosphere plays. (30 min)
Closure: Students will present their illustrations of how the sun warms the earth. (15 min)
Question
What is the sun?
How hot is the
sun?
How far away is
the sun?
How big is the
sun?
Answer
The sun is a star
named “Sol.” It is
made of very hot
gases that move
around. Stars have
many different
sizes and
temperatures. Sol is
bigger than many
of the stars close to
it, but is about a
medium size star
overall
The sun has
different
temperatures at
different parts. The
center, or “core” of
the Sun is about 15
Million degrees
Celsius. The
coolest part of the
Sun is about 6,000
degrees Celsius.
The sun is 93
million
miles away from
earth. Traveling at
the speed of light, it
takes light from the
sun eight minutes
to reach earth
The sun’s radius,
(the distance from
the middle of the
sun to the side of it)
is 432,470 miles,
which is equal to
109 Earth radii. It
would take about 1
million Earths to
fill the Sun if it
were a hollow ball.
More Information
My Question
My Answer
Question
Answer
Why is the sun
The sun keeps
important to Earth? earth in orbit
around it through
gravity. It provides
heat and light
making it possible
for plants to grow,
which makes
animal life
possible.
What does the
Earth’s atmosphere
do?
Earth’s atmosphere
is the area right
about the earth that
looks blue. It is
made of many
small particles,
including water
vapor and carbon
dioxide, and acts
like a blanket to
keep some of the
sun’s energy from
escaping.
Could we live on
other planets?
Other planets are
either too close or
too far away from
the sun, making
them too hot or
cold for us. They
either have no
atmosphere, the
wrong kind of
atmosphere for us,
and some have no
land to stand on
(the gas giants).
More Information
My Question
My Answer
Sun Fun Facts (from http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sunearth/overview/Helio-facts.html)

Our Sun has lots of company: it is one of more than 200 billion stars in the Milky Way
Galaxy alone. Every individual star that you can see with the naked eye is in the Milky
WayStars are factories for new elements. As they live and die, they convert their hydrogen
gas into all the rest of the elements on the periodic table. These elements make up Earth and
you.

A star’s mass—how much matter it contains— determines its temperature, luminosity,
color, and how it will live and die.

Our Sun is more massive than the average star in its neighborhood. Nearly 90% of stars are
less massive, making them cooler and dimmer.

The hottest and most massive stars are bright and blue, while the coolest and least massive
stars are dim and red. Yellow stars, like our Sun, are in-between.

It takes light 200,000 years to escape from the Sun but only 8 minutes to reach the Earth.

The iron in your blood was made in the cores of stars that exploded billions of years ago.

The Sun contains 99.9% of all matter in our solar system.

During a single second, the sun converts 4 million tons of matter into pure energy.

The Sun rotates on its axis approximately once every 27 days.
Name____________________
Date______________
Solar Multiplication and Division
1. The sun’s radius is 432,470 miles. What is its diameter?
2. About one million Earths could fit inside the sun if it was a hollow sphere. How many
Earths would fit in one of the sun’s hemispheres?
3. The Sun is about 6,000 degrees Celsius in its coldest areas. The average temperature on
Earth is 15 degrees Celsius. How many times hotter are the coldest parts of the sun than
the average temperature on Earth?
4. In one second the sun converts 4 million tons of matter (stuff) into pure energy. How
much matter does the sun convert into energy in one hour?
5. The sun rotates on its axis once every 27 days. How many times does it rotate in three
years?
6. It takes light eight minutes to travel 93,000,000 miles from the sun to earth. How far
does light travel in one second?
Step by Step:
Read the question.
Read the question again.
Underline the question and the information you need to answer it.
***Figure out how many steps you have to do, and what operation you need to use for them.
Do all the steps.
Check your work.
Make sure your answer is legible and uses the correct units of measurement.