Day 4: Simple Phases of the Moon
Objectives
Students will:
Students will:
- define the terms moon, rotate, revolve, orbit, crescent, gibbous, waxing, waning, phases of the moon, new moon, first quarter, full moon, and last quarter.
- describe the changing pattern of the moon’s appearance as it revolves around Earth.
Materials
- Phases of the Moon PowerPoint
- student’s science notebooks
- anticipation guide handout – “Phases of the Moon”
- key terms handout
- homework handout – “Moon Journal”
- Phases of the Moon model (poster)
- white styrofoam ball
- bright flashlight
- stick (pencil, chopstick, etc.)
- black construction paper
- white crayons
- scissors
- star stickers
Instruction Sequence
- Guide anticipation guide activity (“Before Learning" column)
- Lead discussion about the phases of the moon by asking questions such as: Does the moon look the same every night? Why do you think the moon looks different some nights? Any ideas?
- PowerPoint presentation - Introduction to the phases of the moon
- Define key terms during PowerPoint presentation
- Hand out key terms and have students glue them into their science notebook
- Facilitate “Let’s Model the Moon’s Phases!” activity
- One student will hold the flashlight to represent the sun
- One student will hold the sytrofoam ball to represent the moon
- Several students will represent Earth
- The sun will remain stationary shining its light on the moon
- The moon will revolve around the Earth
- The students will see the phases of the moon occurring as it travels around Earth
- Foldable activity - Students will create a foldable using a piece of black construction paper and a white crayon to draw the eight phases of the moon
- Implement summative assessment (“After Learning” column on anticipation guide)
- Explain homework assignment (Moon Journal)
Assessments
Formative:
Formative:
- Students will answer questions such as: Does the moon look the same every night? Why do you think the moon looks different some nights? Any ideas?
- Students will sketch pictures describing each key term in their science notebooks.
- The students will create an accurate model of the phases of the moon in the form of a foldable.
- The students will physically demonstrate the phases of the moon using a styrofoam ball and a flashlight.
- The students will revisit the anticipation guide and check answers. The students will complete the “After Learning” column.
- The teacher will ask questions to the students about the phases of the moon to check for understanding such as: What makes the moon shine? Is the moon out only during the night? Why do we not see the moon during the new moon phase?
Resources
PowerPoint created by Kristen Haley
Anticipation Guide created by Kristen Haley
PowerPoint created by Kristen Haley
Anticipation Guide created by Kristen Haley
References
Discovery Science Center. (2012). Third grade lesson plan: moon phase flip book. Retrieved from http://www.discoverycube.org/wp-content/uploads/3-Moon- Phase-Flipbook.pd
All PowerPoint images retrieved from Google Images
Discovery Science Center. (2012). Third grade lesson plan: moon phase flip book. Retrieved from http://www.discoverycube.org/wp-content/uploads/3-Moon- Phase-Flipbook.pd
All PowerPoint images retrieved from Google Images