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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sky Watchers: Ancient Astronomers

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students close their eyes and picture the sky. They are asked to brainstorm things they may see in the course of a night and day, such as the movement of the sun, moon, and stars. Students work in groups to coduct their research. They...
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Interactive
American Museum of Natural History

What is Astronomy?

For Students 6th - 12th
Go study the universe. Pupils learn seven aspects about astronomy and astronomers. They begin to learn about constellations; distance and motion between objects; gravity; the electromagnetic spectrum; dark matter and energy; and teams of...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Illustrate the Constellations

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Students research ancient Greek heroes immortalized in constellations. They choose three constellations in either the summer or winter sky to illustrate and reinforce their understanding of the northern constellations.
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Lesson Planet Article
Curated OER

Lasting Legacies of Ancient Greece

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Ancient Greece lesson plans can open up a world of information for students.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Illustrate the Constellations

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Students explore space science by participating in a star identification activity. In this astronomy lesson plan, students identify different star patterns and discuss the movement of stars across the sky as the seasons change. Students...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

History of Mythology, Astronomy and Astrology

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders examine the relationships of science and technology and how it influences people's perceptions of places.  In this mythology and astronomy lesson students view a PowerPoint presentation and complete a worksheet. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sundials

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Students investigate the different types of sundials and their history.  In this shadows and time of day lesson students build their own sundials. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Flying with Pythagoras

For Teachers 7th - 10th
A lengthy narrative about Pythagoras and his students precedes an activity in which your young mathematicians practice using the Pythagorean theorem to solve three problems about flight and distance. Answers are provided. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Asteroids

For Teachers K - 12th
Students examine the different types of asteroids and how they enter the atmosphere.  In this space lesson plan students use mashed potatoes to create an asteroid they can eat.
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PPT
Curated OER

Pilgrims and Puritans

For Teachers 11th - 12th
With graphic organizers galore, learners will follow the changes of church and state in early colonial America. They look at the differences between the pilgrims and the puritans in terms of beliefs and life ways. Myths and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How Distant is the Moon?--2

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine total eclipses of the Sun and their limited regions of totality. They explain that this limited view occurs because the Moon is close enough to us for different points on Earth to view it differently.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Multiculturalism Through African Folk Tales And Mayan Myths

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students study the myths of various African cultures and of the Mayan people. They identify unique characteristics of African myths and Mayan myths. They define and recognize the style and tone of the Mayan myths and create their own...
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Article
University of St. Andrews (UK)

University of St. Andrews: Greek Astronomy

For Students 9th - 10th
Provides an overview of ancient Greek astronomy and the major figures who played a role in developing ideas about the Universe.
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Article
Other

Explorable: Ancient Astronomy, Science and the Ancient Greeks

For Students 9th - 10th
Discusses the influences of other cultures on ancient Greek astronomers, and the advances made by the Greeks. It highlights major astronomers and those who contributed important ideas from the 6th to the 2nd centuries BC, including...
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Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Air and Space Museum: Exploring the Planets: Ancient Times & the Greeks

For Students 9th - 10th
In ancient times only five planets were known: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. Learn about Greek astronomer Ptolemy's theory for the solar system that was to survive for fourteen centuries.
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Handout
World History Encyclopedia

World History Encyclopedia: Greek Astronomy

For Students 9th - 10th
Looks at the history of Greek astronomy from the 4th century BC on, and the major figures who contributed ideas. Includes a timeline of Greek science.
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Music and Creativity in Ancient Greece

For Students 9th - 10th
You think you love music? You have nothing on the Ancient Greek obsession. Every aspect of Greek life was punctuated by song: history, poetry, theater, sports and even astronomy. In fact, music was so important to Greek philosopher Plato...
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Handout
Other

Ellinogermaniki Agogi: Eratosthenes Experiment

For Students 9th - 10th
A profile of the ancient Greek mathematician, geographer, and astronomer, Eratosthenes. Looks at his many accomplishments, including measuring the circumference of the Earth and the distance to the Moon and the Sun. Includes links to...
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Article
University of Oregon

University of Oregon: Greek Science: Early Cosmology

For Students 9th - 10th
Discusses the evolution of ideas about the cosmos, from the Magic Cosmology of the Neolithic age to the stage of Mythical Cosmology, to the Geometric Cosmology of the ancient Greeks. The third stage advocated a rational approach to...
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eBook
Other

Ancient Greek Philosophy: Thales of Miletus

For Students 9th - 10th
Includes a short summary of the life and work of the Greek philosopher Thales of Miletus. Discusses his life, work in Astronomy and Mathematics, and view of water and pantheism. Also includes a couple of quotations that make reference to...
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Handout
University of Virginia

University of Virginia: How the Greeks Used Geometry to Understand the Stars

For Students 9th - 10th
An article explaining how the Greeks were able to use their science and mathematics to predict where astronomical objects such as the Planets could be found in the nighttime sky even though their underlying premise was that the earth did...
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Website
University of St. Andrews (UK)

University of St. Andrews: Mac Tutor History of Mathematics Archive

For Students 9th - 10th
The University of St. Andrews, Scotland, presents hundreds of biographies of famous mathematicians, histories of math in various cultures, and interesting facts on the development of important math concepts. This is a huge reference....
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Handout
ibiblio

Ibiblio: Greek Mathematics and Its Modern Heirs

For Students 9th - 10th
This ibiblio.org site discusses the "Classical roots of the scientific revolution," with concentration on the Greek mathematicians from the 5th century BC to the 5th century AD who "Maintained a splendid tradition of work in the exact...
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Website
Smithsonian Institution

National Air and Space Museum: Exploring the Planets: Early Discovery

For Students 9th - 10th
This section of the exhibition gives the history of the discovery and study of space starting with the Greeks and Romans through to the early 1900's.