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Seasons and Shadows: Investigate How Shadows Shift Throughout the Year
Students examine their shadows and why they are different in the summer and winter. In this seasons lesson plan students complete an activity to see how the earth's tilt on its axis changes the length of shadows.
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Make a Shadow Clock
Students make shadow clocks. In this earth science lesson, students follow the provided steps to make shadow clocks out of the provided pattern and tagboard. A game, a song, a craft, and a recipe are all included with the lesson.
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Measuring Shadows
Students determine the pattern (length and direction) of shadows cast by sunlight during several month period, and develop interpretation of daily and seasonal patterns and variations observed.
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Summer Safety Activity: Sun Safety
Students learn about preventing sunburns. In this sun safety lesson plan, students explore the effects of the sun and find different types of protection from the sun. When finished students create a beach scene using real sand.
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Sun
Learners study how the sun is at the center of the solar system. In this solar lesson students measure the altitude of the sun and its size.
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Me and My Shadow
Students apply the process of scientific inquiries or technological design to explore the explanations of the daily patterns of the Earth's rotation. They record different shadow lengths showing the apparent movement of the sun through...
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Cooler in the Shadows
Students explore how the amount of sunlight and heat change in areas that are shaded.
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Tell Time With Your Feet
Students discover what the latitude and longitude of their location is. They start walking and measure their shadow. They fill in a chart to discover the approximate time.
Space Awareness
Making A Sundial
Can people really measure time just by using the sun? Scholars venture outside on a nice, sunny day to build sundials and learn how people measured time 600 years ago. The class builds two different sundials while gaining practice with...
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Shadows All Around Us
Students create shadows. In this shadow casting lesson plan, students read books about shadows, view a demonstration on shadow casting and then practice shadow casting on their own. Students cast a shadow using the position of the sun.
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Knowing North: Understanding the Relationship Between Time and The Sun
Students determine how to find North using a watch and their shadow. For this finding North lesson, students go outside on a sunny day and work with their shadow and a wrist watch to find out which direction that North is. They examine...
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Shadows
Learners measure shadows at different times of the day to determine when a shadow casts its longest and shortest shadows.
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"Bear Shadow" Activity Card
In this literature and science worksheet, students listen to a family member as they read "Bear Shadow." They conduct experiments that with light, shadows, and measuring tools before recording the date they did the experiment. They...
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Make a Shadow Clock
Students create a shadow clock. In this time lesson, students make their own shadow clock or sundial from tag board. They place it on the ground and check it every hour to mark where the shadow lies.
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The Tilt of the Earth And the Seasons
Fourth graders measure the change in the size of their shadow over time. They visit a fixed structure and record the date, the time, and the measurement of the length of their shadow. They do this over the course of the school year. They...
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Just Me and My Shadow
Young scholars take measurements throughout the day using a simple sundial called a gnomon. They record the results on a Data Log and convert from English units to metric (S.I.) units. Data points are plotted on the same graph and analyzed.
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Sky 2: Shadows
Students explore space science by participating in a shadow experiment. In this sky observation lesson, students identify how the sun creates different sized shadows by moving across the horizon. Students utilize yard sticks, markers,...
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Sundials
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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Sunny Day Shadow Pictures
Students explore shadows. In this art lesson, students put black construction paper on the ground and place objects on the paper. Students leave and when they come back at the end of the afternoon the sun has faded the black paper with...
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A Shadow of Yourself
Students measure the length of their shadows three times during the day, Students determine the differences in shadow lengths after each measurement. They discuss why the length changed from one time of day to another.
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This Is a Stick Up
Learners create a sundial and track the movement of the sun throughout the day. Modifications to the lesson are provided for both lower and upper elementary students.
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Astronomy with a Stick
Students describe the movement of the Earth as it relates to the sun and
formulate a hypothesis for the movement and the changing length of the shadow. They express the relationship between the sun and the Earth and how that causes the...
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Compass Rose
Students describe the movement of the Earth as it relates to the sun. They construct a permanent compass rose and use it to find directions.
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Using a Sundial
Students examine the use of a sundial to tell apparent time. In this sundial instructional activity, students watch a teacher demonstration using a flashlight to create shadows. They discuss what happens to shadows of different objects...