Math and science come together in this cross-curricular astronomy lesson plan on planetary motion. Starting off with a hands-on activity that engages the class in exploring the geometry of circles and ellipses, this lesson...

Unlock the mystery behind seasonal change with a collection of worksheets and activities. Whether they are drawing pictures of Earth's orbit around the sun or graphing the temperature and daylight hours of different locations...

Examine the proper uses of punctuation with this easy PowerPoint. Simple, bold, and straightforward, each slide introduces a different symbol. Difficult or confusing instances are indicated as well.

This is a practical sheet with the instructions to draw a set of ellipses. After following the diagrams, there are ten questions to complete, with calculations expected for alternate orbits and comparisons related to actual planets in...

What do Newton's Laws have to do with getting from Earth to Mars?The activities in this resource show how Newton's Laws work with rockets to get them into space. Background information includes facts about orbits and how orbits...

“Use ellipses to show omitted material from a quoted passage . . . and to maintain good grammar . . . .” Everything learners need to know about ellipses and how to uses them is included in colorful presentation that is rich with...

Students identify polygons.  In this polygon people lesson, students draw required shapes and construct a polygon person.  They identify each shape and its characteristics.  The lesson may be extended by allowing students...

In this circles and ellipses worksheet, students solve and complete 12 different types of problems. First, they find the distance between the given pair of points. Then, students find the center and radius of each circle and sketch. They...

In this circles and ellipses worksheet, students solve and complete 5 different types of problems. First, they write each equation in standard form. Then, students graph and label Write the equation of the ellipse whose center is the...

In this conic sections worksheet, learners solve and complete 17 various types of problems. First, they write the conics in standard form and graph. Then, students determine the equation that best represents each description that...

Students study orbits and ellipses and see the differences between orbits and comets.  In this investigative lesson students do an activity that shows them what objects are more like comets and fill out a worksheet. 

In this conic sections learning exercise, students solve and complete 8 different problems identifying various types of conic sections. First, they write each equation given in standard form. Then, students determine whether the graph of...

Students compare and contrast ellipses of various eccentricities that represent the shape of planetary orbits. They make a circle with the string by trying the two ends togther. Students calculate the eccentricity of their ellipses by...

Students compare and contrast the orbits of Earth and Mars, locate the planet Mars, and diagram its retrograde motion.

Students explain that planets actually orbit the center of gravity of the solar system, and that distant planets may be detected by motions of their central star around the centers of gravity of their planetary systems.

Students become acquainted with linear graphs, the parabola and the rectangular hyperbola. Also prepare tables of paired values as preparation for plotting a line. They study the cartesian equation of an ellipse, with a worked example.

A lengthy example on how to formulate the equation of an ellipse.

This resource offers a quick explanation of how to use the ellipsis correctly.

Basic definitions are given for foci, focus, and other terms related to the focus (foci).