Curated OER
Solar
Learners study solar energy. For this renewable energy lesson students complete several lab activities using different controls and variables.
Curated OER
Using Solar Energy
Students experiment to determine the effect of solar energy on the temperature of water. For this renewable resources lesson, students measure the temperature of water in a flask that is exposed to sunlight. They relate their results to...
Curated OER
It's Hot
Third graders examine the effect of sunlight on the earth. Individually, they pick an article of clothing out of a bag and sort themselves based on the color of the shirt and whether it should be worn on a cold or a hot day. To end the...
Curated OER
Is It Hot in the Light?
Third graders make observations about the temperature of items in direct sunlight. In groups, they discuss why asphalt, brick and cement are warmer than items surrounding them. To end the lesson, they examine how heat transfers energy...
Curated OER
Sunlight Necklaces
Third graders review the placement and role of the sun in the solar system. Using beads, they create a necklace which they can use to identify the amount of sunlight is being illuminated. In groups, they record observations on the...
Curated OER
WorldWatcher Activity: What Happens to Sunlight?
Middle schoolers examine a set of data to try to determine the amount of cloud cover. In groups, they make a list of items that reflect light in the atmosphere and how different amounts of it can change the temperature. Using...
Curated OER
Plants of the Tropical Rainforest
Learners experiment with the growth of philodendron plants in different amounts of sunlight. They complete a gardening notebook including plant sketches and growth data.
Curated OER
Science: How Tall Are Plants
First graders investigate plant growth and examine what factors contribute to plant growth. They keep a class chart of plant growth and write about and illustrate their conclusions.
Curated OER
Cooler in the Shadows
Students explore how the amount of sunlight and heat change in areas that are shaded.
Curated OER
Exploring the Sun's Role in Living Systems
Learners create graphic organizer webs that illustrate their thinking about seasonal physical and biological changes caused by changes in sunlight. They identify the central role of sunlight in living systems.
Curated OER
Investigation 3 - What is Moonlight?
Third graders observe a demonstration explaining that the moon reflects sunlight in ordr to shine.
Georgia State University
Georgia State University: Hyper Physics: Scattering Concepts
A collection of several pages explaining the principles which underlie Rayleigh scattering of light.
Harvard University
Harvard Smithsonian: Everyday Classroom Tools
The focus of this series of lessons is to engage students in an exploration of the world around them. The emphasis is on inquiry as students learn about the earth, sun, light, shapes and more.
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Model Greenhouses
Students learn about the advantages and disadvantages of the greenhouse effect. They construct their own miniature greenhouses and explore how their designs take advantage of heat transfer processes to create controlled environments....
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Organic Solar Energy and Berries
Students learn about how a device made with dye from a plant, specifically cherries, blackberries, raspberries and/or black currents, can be used to convert light energy into electrical energy. They do this by building their own organic...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Do Plants Eat?
Through a teacher-led discussion, students realize that the food energy plants obtain comes from sunlight via the plant process of photosynthesis. They learn what photosynthesis is, at an age-appropriate level of detail and vocabulary,...
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Science Education Center: Photosynthesis: Blinded by the Light
Delve into myths your students might hold about photosynthesis in this video. Help your students gain a better understanding of photosynthesis reactions and how plants use light energy for nutrition and growth.
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Daylighting Design
Students explore the many different ways that engineers provide natural lighting to interior spaces. They analyze various methods of daylighting by constructing model houses from foam core board and simulating the sun with a desk lamp....
National Gallery of Art
National Gallery of Art: American Impressionists
This site provides many examples of American Impressionistic work. Also, under the section titled "Overview", it gives information into the origins of American Impressionism (click the "continued" link after the paragraph).
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: Cosmology and Astronomy: Season Simulator
This season simulator takes Earth through an entire year cycle allowing the viewer to observe the tilt of the Earth and the intensity of the sunlight.
Other
Massachusetts Department of Education: Sunlight Warms Earth's Surface
This unit contains a series of lessons that allow learners to explore the effect of sunlight on Earth's natural surfaces of sand, soil, rock, and water. In addition, students explore how the color and material of a surface affects how...
Utah Education Network
Uen: Here Comes the Sun
In this activity, 3rd graders predict, measure, and record temperatures.
Utah Education Network
Uen: Trb 3:1 Investigation 3 What Is Moonlight?
Understand that the moon shines by reflecting sunlight.
Utah Education Network
Uen: Bouncing Sunlight
The light we see from the moon at night is light that the moon reflects from the sun.