Week 1 Notes: Sun, Earth, & Moon - Science Methods II (Addy Junge)

Addy Junge

Sun, Earth, & Moon

Lab Questions:

1. How the phases of the moon occur?

To the best of my knowledge, the phases of the moon occur due to the rotation and lighting of the Earth and the moon when aligned with the Sun. When aligned a certain way, I believe the Earth blocks the light from the Sun that reflects on the moon. Therefore, we only see the lit part of the moon on certain nights. 

Over the course of 28 days, the Moon goes through eight phases, where the Sun reflects on the Moon. As the days go by, the Moon moves slightly, reflecting different parts of the Moon's surface.

2. What causes the seasons?

When discussing seasons, I believe it is when the Northern Hemisphere is either further or closer to the Sun. Throughout the year, we experience four distinct seasons that change gradually. 

Throughout the year, seasons are caused by the amount of direct sunlight hitting the Earth's surface. Due to the Earth's tilt, the direct sunlight hits differently at different times, creating a gradual temperature change. The common misconception is that during the summertime, the Earth is closer to the sun, when in fact that is not the case.

3. What causes a lunar eclipse?

During a lunar eclipse, the rotation between the Sun, the Earth, and the Moon must be perfectly aligned to cast a shadow. This creates a ring light around the moon.

I was thinking of a solar eclipse in my previous answer. A lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth blocks the Moon's direct sunlight from the Sun. 

Blog Questions:

1. What did you do in lab today?​

During the lab, we introduced ourselves after we took a formative assessment on what we know about science, specifically the Earth-Moon System. We talked about the history behind who believed what regarding the rotation and revolution of the solar system. We discussed the plane of the ecliptic, which is the plane in which the Earth revolves around the Sun. We also demonstrated how seasons and moon phases work. Another significant topic we discussed was the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn.

2. What was the big question?​

What occurs when the Earth orbits the Sun and when the Moon orbits the Earth?

3. What did you learn in Thursday’s discussion?​

My Thursday Lecture Notes:

Who Thought What? 

• Heliocentric – sun = center (Copernicus) 

• Copernicus wanted to print this, but the Pope did not print it 

• Geocentric – earth = center (Galileo – invented the telescope) 

• Galileo was the Pope’s top dawg 

• Ended up changing his beliefs and shared them with the Pope. He was then tried and convicted because he went against the Catholic church. 

Question:  

• How does the Earth go around the sun? How does the moon go around the sun? 

Plane of the Ecliptic 

• Think about the Earth staying on the green laser 

• Pluto was not on the plane of the ecliptic 

Seasons 

• Equator – how much sunlight is hitting the Earth (does not matter about the distance) 

• Tropic of Cancer = top of equator 

• When the tropic of Cancer is getting hit by the sun, it is summer 

• Tropic of Capricorn = bottom of equator 

• When the tropic of Capricorn is getting hit by the sun, it is winter 

• Spring and Fall – somewhere in the middle 

Shadows 

• North or South 

• NEVER East or West 

Question: 

• Which of the following four diagrams most accurately depicts the shape of Earth’s orbit around the Sun?  

• Double foci ellipse 

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The correct following order: 

• Clouds, Moon, Sun, Pluto, Stars 

Earth’s Orbit 

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“Lines” on the Earth 

• Antarctic – no bear, Arctic – bear 

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4. Read the online textbook, chapter 1: https://pressbooks.uiowa.edu/methodsii/chapter/earth/Links to an external site.​

    a. What did you learn?​

Along with what we learned in lecture, I learned a little bit more about solstices and equinoxes. It was also nice to touch on shadows and how they work. The quote, "as we approach the Spring Equinox, shadows become shorter," helped me understand that shadows will be of different lengths around the world. In the Pressbook, it mentions which of the NGSS align with the lesson mentioned. 

    b. What was most helpful?​

The most helpful thing for me was seeing the visuals in the Pressbook, especially with the lunar and solar eclipses. At first, it was difficult to think about which one was which and how each of them aligned, but the visuals helped me understand how everything worked. 

    c. What do you need more information on?​

I think I would need more information on how to teach kids the essentials without overwhelming them with so much information. I would also like to learn a little bit more about shadows and how to teach young students that.

5. What questions, concerns, and/or comments do you have?

As a teacher, at what point do we determine what kids know at such a young age?