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Lesson Plan
University of Texas at Austin

The University of Texas Mc Donald Observatory: Stars and Galaxies

For Students 9th - 10th
Do galaxies collide? Apply concepts of scale to grasp the distances between stars and galaxies.
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Website
NASA

Nasa Star Child: Galaxies

For Students 3rd - 8th
This resource has two levels: one for younger viewers and one for older viewers. It surveys the basic galaxy types and provides details.
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Website
NASA

Nasa Star Child: Galaxies (Level 1)

For Students 3rd - 8th
This site provides an introduction to galaxies for the younger student, that is divided into 2 levels of understanding. Find out what type of galaxy looks like a giant pinwheel. Audio content included. Good glossary, and a printable...
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Website
Other

University of Leicester: Spiral Galaxies

For Students 9th - 10th
Provides a general overview of spiral galaxies, including descriptions of the different classes of spiral galaxy.
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Dark Matter: How Does It Explain a Star's Speed?

For Students 9th - 10th
Video describes how stars move in a spiral galaxy and how their speeds can be explained by accounting for dark matter. [3:17] Includes a brief quiz and a list of additional resources to explore.
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Handout
Globio

Glossopedia: Stars

For Students 3rd - 8th
Many of the objects you can see in the night sky are stars, large objects in space that produce light. Our galaxy, the Milky Way, contains more than 100 billion stars. Stars are so far away that their light does not reach us for years....
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Unit Plan
CPALMS

Florida State University Cpalms: Florida Students: What's the Matter in the Galaxy?

For Students 4th - 5th
A tutorial that looks at the components within a galaxy such as gas, dust, stars and objects that orbit stars. A PDF file of the tutorial is available.
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Website
University of Wisconsin

University of Wisconsin: The Constellations and Their Stars

For Students 9th - 10th
An excellent site dedicated to the constellations and information about the objects which make them up. Contains a great deal of information about various stars, galaxies and other objects, as well as details on how best to observe them.
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Activity
Science Buddies

Science Buddies: Find Center of Milky Way Galaxy Using Globular Star Clusters

For Students 9th - 10th
The Milky Way is the edgewise view of our home galaxy, a disk made up of billions of stars. The Sun resides on one of the spiral arms of the disk, 30,000 light-years from the thick hub of the galaxy. The actual center, with a black hole...
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Handout
Other

University of Leicester: Irregular Galaxies

For Students 9th - 10th
Provides a general overview of irregular galaxies, including a specific look at type I and type II irregulars.
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Interactive
Other

Chrome Experiments: 100,000 Stars

For Students 9th - 10th
Zoom in and out to explore our galaxy in this interactive 3D visualization of the stellar neighborhood, including over 100,000 nearby stars.
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Graphic
Other

Astrophotography: Galaxies

For Students Pre-K - 1st
Numerous high quality images of galaxies can be found in this site. Names, exposure times, and various magnifications are provided.
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Graphic
Other

Astrophotography: Galaxies

For Students Pre-K - 1st
Numerous high quality images of galaxies can be found in this site. Names, exposure times, and various magnifications are provided.
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Handout
NASA

Nasa Space Place: What Is a Galaxy?

For Students 3rd - 8th
This resource explores the different types of galaxies through text and images.
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Handout
NASA

Nasa: Space Place: What Is a Satellite Galaxy?

For Students 3rd - 7th
Find out about the behavior and characteristics of the many satellite galaxies that orbit other galaxies.
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Activity
Science Buddies

Science Buddies: The Moon and the Stars

For Students 3rd - 5th
When you are in the city, only a few of the brightest stars are visible. But when you are in the country, you can see many more stars than you can count. Sometimes you can even see the bright belt of our galaxy, the Milky Way. In this...
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Website
Other

Physics.org: A Grain of Sand Covers 10,000 Galaxies

For Students 9th - 10th
A fascinating look at how big our solar system really is. Shows how we can only see a tiny bit of our vast universe.
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Website
Other

University of Leicester: Elliptical Galaxies

For Students 9th - 10th
Provides a general overview of elliptical galaxies, including a look at what defines an elliptical galaxy, what determines its shape, and it's physical nature.
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Article
Space.com

Space: Astronomers Surprised: Stars Born Near Black Hole

For Students 9th - 10th
Black holes seem to be a constant point of debate for astronomers. This article confirms the theory that black holes can help form massive stars and gives more support to the idea that black holes play a big role in galaxy formation....
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Article
Space.com

Space: Astronomers Surprised: Stars Born Near Black Hole

For Students 9th - 10th
Black holes seem to be a constant point of debate for astronomers. This article confirms the theory that black holes can help form massive stars and gives more support to the idea that black holes play a big role in galaxy formation....
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Website
NASA

Nasa Star Child: Stars

For Students 3rd - 8th
This page details the life cycle of a star, and includes information on medium-sized and massive stars, plus a glossary and a question.
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Could Human Civilization Spread Across the Whole Galaxy?

For Students 9th - 10th
Could human civilization eventually spread across the whole Milky Way galaxy? Could we move beyond our small, blue planet to establish colonies in the multitude of star systems out there? These questions are pretty daunting, but their...
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Interactive
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Spin a Spiral Galaxy

For Students 9th - 10th
This interactive activity from NOVA Online lets you spin a spiral galaxy, including our own Milky Way. It demonstrates that what you can learn from visible light observations of a galaxy is largely determined by the angle from which you...
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Article
Mocomi & Anibrain Digital Technologies

Mocomi: What Is a Galaxy?

For Students 2nd - 8th
Explains what galaxies are and their different shapes. Includes details on the Milky Way.

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