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Interactive
NASA

Nasa: Sea Wi Fs Biosphere Globes

For Students 9th - 10th
This interactive globe allows you to get any view of the earth by entering latitude, longitude and season criteria.
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Website
NASA

Nasa: Sci Jinks: What's a Solstice?

For Students 9th - 10th
Find out how the Earth's tilted axis affects the seasons on the Earth.
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Handout
Nine Planets

The Nine Planets: The Moon

For Students 9th - 10th
Explore the mythology, structure, observational history, gravitational force, and orbit of Earth's Moon.
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Lesson Plan
Annenberg Foundation

Annenberg Learner: Moon Journal Activity

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st
Students use the process of journaling to make discoveries about the moon. This activity involves having students write observations about the moon in a journal. Using their observations they go to an online resource and choose...
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Website
NASA

Nasa: The Sun

For Students 9th - 10th
An introduction to the Sun including its size and distance from the Earth, sunspots, flares and coronal mass ejections.
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Unit Plan
Texas Education Agency

Texas Gateway: Gyroscopic Effects: Vector Aspects of Angular Momentum

For Students 11th - 12th
By the end of this section, you will be able to describe the right-hand rule to find the direction of angular velocity, momentum, and torque; explain the gyroscopic effect; and study how Earth acts like a gigantic gyroscope.
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Unit Plan
Georgia Department of Education

Ga Virtual Learning: The Moon

For Students 9th - 10th
In this interactive tutorial students will explore what it is like on the Moon. Learn why the shape of the Moon seem to change and also about lunar eclipses. Discover why the tide changes twice a day and explore how the cycle of the Moon...
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Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Lunar Learning

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Why does the Moon not always look the same to us? Sometimes it is a big, bright, circle, but, other times, it is only a tiny sliver, if we can see it at all. The different shapes and sizes of the slivers of the Moon are referred to as...
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Website
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Meteor Showers

For Students 3rd - 8th
This video segment adapted from NASA uses animation to illustrate the properties of meteor showers and comets. Included is are visualizations of a comet's tail and of Earth passing through a debris stream left behind by meteoroids.
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Lesson Plan
Utah Education Network

Uen: Trb 3:1: Investigation 4: Day and Night

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
A activity for third graders in which they learn about the rotation of the Earth on its axis and how this movement creates day and night. They also examine the orbit of the moon about the Earth and the Earth's orbit around the sun.
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Activity
Other

Center for Science Education: Eye on the Sky: What Makes Day and Night?

For Students Pre-K - 1st
This activity will allow you to model day and night cycles. A rotating student holding a map (provided) models the earth. A lamp is used to model the sun. Numerous worksheets (pdf) and additional website resources are also provided.
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Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Seasons

For Teachers 9th - 10th
For this activity, students create a small model of the Earth using a styrofoam ball and a skewer. They then explore the relationship between the Earth and the Sun (a flashlight) to understand why it is hottest at the Equator, and why we...
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Lesson Plan
BioEd Online

Bio Ed Online: Sleep and Circadian Rhythms

For Teachers 6th - 8th
The following lessons help students from grades 6-8 understand sleep and circadian rhythms. Lesson topics iinclude: day and night, seasons, sundails, clocks, sleep and sleep patterns and sleeping in space.
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Handout
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Global Weather Machine

For Students 9th - 10th
In this illustrated essay from NOVA Online, explore the cyclical process of weather creation and the effects of El Nino on the global weather system.
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Website
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Virtual Pendulum

For Students 3rd - 8th
This interactive activity from ZOOM offers a chance to experiment with a virtual pendulum and to see how it can be influenced by a variety of factors.
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Lesson Plan
Utah Education Network

Uen: Measuring Wind Speed

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders measure wind speed over the course of a week and graph the results.
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Lesson Plan
Utah Education Network

Uen: Trb 3:1 Investigation 5 Making a Sundial

For Teachers 3rd
Make a sundial and learn how to use it.
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Website
Geography 4 kids

Geography4 kids.com: Coriolis Spinning Around the Earth

For Students 3rd - 8th
An overview of the Coriolis Force, an effect on wind due to the rotation of Earth.
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Lesson Plan
Alabama Learning Exchange

Alex: Our Restless Planet

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
This unit will use demonstrations and student examples to help students gain an understanding of rotation, revolution, and orbit. Through hands-on activities students will explore the concepts of day and night. Technology will be...
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Handout
NASA

Nasa: Space Place: How Long Is One Day on Other Planets?

For Students 3rd - 7th
Here on Earth a day takes 24 hours. How long are days on other planets in our solar system? Find out here in three different ways, whichever meets your learning style the best.
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Activity
CK-12 Foundation

Ck 12: Plix: Seasons

For Students 7th - 9th
[Free Registration/Login Required] View how the axis of rotation causes Earth to have seasons on this site. Also test your knowledge on how the position of Earth and seasons relate with a short quiz.
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Activity
Read Works

Read Works: Morning Sunshine

For Students 5th
[Free Registration/Login Required] Students read about how the tilt of the Earth on its axis affects sunrises and sunstes. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
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Activity
Ministerio de Educación (Spain)

Ministerio De Educacion: Astronomia Visible

For Students 9th - 10th
This site has maps of the nearest stars and constellations. Earth and star daily rotation, proper motion of the stars and many other topics about the solar system are also shown.Read phonetically
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Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Lunar Lollipops

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
The students work in teams of two to discover the relative positions of the Earth, Sun and Moon that produce the different phases of the Moon. The students will be given a Styrofoam ball that they will attach to a pencil so that it looks...