Model Lesson

For my lesson, students explored day and night.  The objective was for students to have an understanding of the position of the Sun and Earth when there was daylight or nighttime in a specific location.  Students looked at a location by a satellite image.  Next, students created a model of the Sun and Earth with daylight or nighttime on a specific location.  In addition, they provided a written description of the Sun and the Earth.

The lesson engaged the students and we actually ran out of time because they were very interested in working with the model.  The model used a balloon representing the Earth and a flash light representing the sun.   The students labeled the balloon to mark the location they were focusing on.  When writing the description, I was surprised to see that students immediately referred to the model instead of the satellite image to help them explain their idea. 

One student did not have a clear understanding of how the Earth rotates and orbits around the sun.  By the end of the lesson, the student was much more confident with the concept of how the Earth moves around the sun while rotating on its axis.  In addition, the student could show how the Earth is positioned to have sunlight on a specific location. 

One improvement I would like to make is to be more prepared to include the time zones in the lesson.  A student made a connection with the time zones and I was not prepared to included it in the lesson. 

I feel that the students enjoyed the lesson and will remember the model for future learning experiences.  

Student viewing Google Earth

Student labeling location on his balloon that represents Earth.

Modeling the position of the Sun and Earth when Brazil just had a sunset.

Labeling Peru on his model of the Earth.

Using the model and Google Earth to help him explain the position of the Sun and Earth.

Written explanation of the position of the Sun and Earth when Peru just had a sunset.