Lesson Plan: The Movement of the Sun
This lesson plan includes the objectives, prerequisites, and exclusions of the lesson teaching students how to describe and investigate how shadows change throughout the day as the Sun appears to move across the sky.
Objectives
Students will be able to
- identify that the Sun provides light and warmth,
- describe how shadows demonstrate the apparent movement of the Sun through the sky,
- investigate how the length of shadows changes as the Sun moves across the sky,
- identify that the Sun rises in the east and sets in the west.
Prerequisites
Students should already be familiar with
- the Sun as a star and a light source,
- how Earth’s spin creates day and night,
- how Earth’s spin causes the apparent movement of the Sun across the sky,
- defining sunset and sunrise,
- the directions on a compass rose,
- using a compass rose.
Exclusions
Students will not cover
- the difference in the width of shadows formed at different times of the day,
- the fact that light travels in straight lines and cannot bend around an object,
- the different shapes of shadows formed by different objects,
- the seasons.
