In this earthquake exploration instructional activity, students complete 2 prior knowledge questions, then use "2D Eclipse Gizmo" to conduct several activities, completing short answer questions when finished.

Survey the solar system by viewing this PowerPoint. Amateur astronomers discover that gravity is responsible for Earth's orbit around the sun and the moon's orbit around Earth. They explore the moon's phases and Earth's seasons. This...

Students examine history and importance of Apollo Program, explore how Cold War helped create and sustain Apollo Program, and investigate how and why archaeologists and historians are attempting to preserve Apollo landing sites on moon.

Students, in groups, participate in a simulated lunar mission. They roll a Lunar Cube to determine the type of information they will collect during their mission and strategize as to which "lunar location" they need to visit and,...

Students explore crater impacts. In this moon crater instructional activity students evaluate and interpret the physical characteristics of a crater. 

Third graders investigate the phases of the moon. Using handheld computers, they describe the four phases of the waxing and waning moon, record their moon observations for a one month time period, create an illustration using Sketchy,...

In this eclipses worksheet, students read about solar and lunar eclipses to complete 8 short answer questions comparing the two types of eclipses.

Students investigate one or more of the following topics and develop a plan for the future regarding it: global warming, lunar exploration, space travel, Mars exploration, or terraforming. They disucss the audio files and the video that...

Learners design and build models of nine life support systems which are crucial to our successful settlement of the Moon. Each team must define the requirements of their system, exploring how these requirements are currently being met on...

Students explore the relationship between the earth, sun, and moon in our solar system. They create a moonrise/moonset chart, perform a dance that models the moon phases, and create a Styrofoam model of the moon's surface.

Looking for a terrific instructional activity on the phases of the moon that has lots of good worksheets? With two excellent websites are embedded in the plan, the activity is sure to spark some interest in your astronomy unit. Some...

Students take a virtual tour on Google Moon of what human life would be like on the moon. In this moon lesson plan, students also compose web diagrams, make charts, make a time line, investigate problems, and more.

Now this is a clever approach to familiarizing aspiring astronomers with the phases of the moon! They first record the specific dates for ten special events in their lives. Then they use an online moon phase calendar to find out which...

Students explore the significance of the Apollo 11 lunar landing by interviewing an adult for memories of the mission. They incorporate their interviews into news articles as 'journalists' in July 1969 to document this historic 'step for...

Students discover soil characteristics and how it is formed on Earth and the Moon by examining local samples to a lunar simulant. They replicate the effects of wind erosion by scraping dry bread with sandpaper. Students use rocks and...

Students identify the Earth-Moon relationship and the phases of the Moon. They participate in an activity that illustrates why the Moon has so many different looks within a lunar cycle. They discuss solar and lunar eclipses.

Students explore a portion of the Chinese Zodiac with projects centered around the year of the rabbit. Students research types of rabbits, actual and fictional. Working in groups, they create a written or multimedia presentation.

Middle schoolers explore the major constellations. After reviewing the Earth's basic motions and their significance, students discuss the moon's orbit and revolutions. Using a Digitarium Alpha portable planetarium projector, they...

Students explore the history of Halloween and what people do at Halloween. Also, the compare Halloween with Lantern Festival and Ghosts' Day in Taiwan.

Students examine images of Moon craters and speculate about what caused them. They create craters using sand weighted balls. Students measure crater sizes and draw ejection patterns to see what effect size, weight, and velocity have on...

Students investigate the uses and purpose of the Hubble telescope. They create a model of the telescope and conduct research about the history behind the invention of it. Students use the information in order to create a context for the...

Students compare and contrast the process of regolith formations. In groups, students define regolith and discover how regolith is formed on the Earth and on the Moon. They participate in experimental activities to simulate regolith.

Students research the Earth's patterns of rotation and revolution, create a chart and graph of these patterns and use them to explain the causes of night and day and summer and winter.

Features a collection of hands-on activities, investigations, and explorations designed to engage students in learning about ice, both in the solar system and on planet Earth.