OpenSciEd Unit 8.4 · Lesson 05 · 5.A
Look for: Ideas about how the fixed tilt of Earth’s axi…
From Teacher Edition
Facilitation guidance from the lesson plan — what to notice in student thinking and how to respond while teaching.
Building towards
5.A Develop and use a model of the Earth-Sun system to explain why Earth’s fixed tilt and orbit would cause a repeating pattern in the location of the Sun at sunset.
What to look / listen for
Student explanations should include the following:
- Ideas about how the fixed tilt of Earth’s axis and its orbit around the Sun causes the location of sunrise and sunset to change in one direction during one half of the year and change back (reverse) in the other direction during the second half of the year.
- Identifying that an important point in the symmetry in when the patterns in the path of the Sun reverse is the summer (or winter) solstice and that this corresponds to when the tilt in the Northern Hemisphere of the Earth is most facing toward the Sun (or most facing away from it).
- Students may also mention how these changes in where the sunset (and sunrise) occur correspond to changes in the path of the Sun and angle of the Sun in the sky (solar elevation) during the year.
What to do
If students do not identify that there is symmetry in the patterns of the day length or solar elevation as a result of fixed tilt and orbit of the Earth, have them add details to their their Progress Trackers or Modeling Sunlight Angles from Lesson 4 to practice working with these ideas. If students do not identify changes in the location of sunrise or sunset as a result of these patterns, refer them to look again at Modeling the Earth–Sun System from Lesson 3, perhaps even recreating and manipulating that model again. You might also have them use their models to explain patterns in a series of local sunrise, sunset, and/or sun path images or video from the same location over the course of a year.
Discussion Self-Assessment. If time permits, distribute Self-Assessment for Classroom Discussions to students and have them fill it out on their own. After students complete Self-Assessment for Classroom Discussions, have them pick one thing they would like to work on in upcoming discussions and share that with a partner.✱
Universal Design for Learning
This is a great opportunity for students to self-assess their engagement in classroom discussions using Self-Assessment for Classroom Discussions. This discussion rubric can be used anytime after a discussion to help students reflect on their participation in the class that day.