I. Sequence of Activities (Instructional Strategies)

Focus Plan Texarkana Independent School District

GRADING PLAN CODE: PERIOD: WRITER: L. Petty COURSE/SUBJECT: 5th grade science

GRADE(S): 5th TIME ALLOTTED 1 day for Lunar Pattern FOR INSTRUCTION: 1 day for The Sun’s Path 30 days (5-10 min. each) for The Moon and Tides

TITLE: What’s the Pattern LESSON TOPIC: Patterns in nature. TAKS OBJECTIVE: Objective 4: The student will demonstrate an understanding of the earth sciences. FOCUS TEKS AND STUDENT 5.6 The student knows that some change occurs in cycles. The EXPECTATION: student is expected to: (A) identify events and describe changes that occur on a regular basis such as in daily, weekly, lunar, and seasonal cycles. SUPPORTING TEKS AND 5.2 The student uses scientific methods during field and STUDENT EXPECTATIONS: laboratory investigations. The student is expected to: (A) plan and implement descriptive and simple experimental investigations including asking well-defined questions, formulating testable hypotheses, and selecting and using equipment and technology. (B) collect information by observing and measuring. (C) analyze and interpret information to construct reasonable explanations from direct and indirect evidence. (D) communicate valid conclusions. (E) construct simple graphs, tables, maps and charts using tools (including computers) to organize, examine, and evaluate information.

CONCEPTS ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS/GENERALIZATIONS/PRINCIPLES The student will understand that Change Changes occur in nature.

Cycles Many changes in nature occur in cycles.

Lunar changes The lunar cycle is approximately 28 days.

Tides The Lunar cycle affects the tides

Solar cycle The Solar cycle can be observed daily and also seasonally.

Earth The Earth also revolves and rotates in cycles.

I. SEQUENCE OF ACTIVITIES (INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES) A. Focus/connections/anticipatory set

Tell students that they are going to be studying cycles or patterns. Ask for 3 volunteers and either go to an open area or push all desks to the sides of the room. Have one student stand in the center of the room and hold a sign labeled “Sun”. The second volunteer will be the Earth. Ask students what the Earth does with the Sun and wait for someone to say that it goes around the Sun. Ask students what this is called and prompt until they say revolution. Ask which way the Earth revolves around the Sun and prompt until students say counterclockwise. Have the “Earth” start walking in a counterclockwise direction around the Sun. Ask students how long this takes and prompt until they say 1 year or 365 days. It is optional to bring up the fact that it actually takes 365 and ¼ days (that’s why we add one day to our calendar every four years during a leap year). Ask what else the Earth does and prompt until students say that the Earth turns. Ask what this is called and prompt until students give the answer “1 day” or “24 hours”. Ask which direction the Earth spins and prompt until students say counterclockwise. Have the “Earth student” walk very slowly around in a counterclockwise circle and spin counterclockwise with each step. It is optional to remind students that the Earth tilts on its axis and try to have the student rotate and revolve while tilting. This is really hard to do, but it does get a good laugh and will make it stick in the students’ minds. Only have them do this to demonstrate for a short while. Tell the third volunteer that he/she will be the moon. Ask the students what the moon does and prompt until they say it revolves around the Earth. Don’t ask how long this takes if you are going to do the Moon Cycle activity since the Lunar revolution cycle is part of the lesson objective. Now comes the tricky part. Have the Earth revolve around the Sun and rotate on its axis while the moon revolves slowly around the Earth. Sooner or later, one will either crash into the other or will get out of orbit. This is a good time to discuss how amazing it is that we don’t have accidents like this in nature.

B. Instructional activities (demonstrations, lectures, examples, hands-on experiences, role play, active learning experience, art, music, modeling, discussion, reading, listening, viewing, etc.)

1. Lecture

Pass out the vocabulary matching worksheet and allow students time to work in groups to match up the terms and definitions. Go over the answers with them.

C. Guided activity or strategy

Lunar Pattern The Sun’s Path The Moon and Tides

D. Accommodations/modifications

Students requiring accommodations may be given a copy of the Instructor’s Copy of Vocabulary Match. They should also have a peer tutor for all activities.

E. Enrichment

Students requiring enrichment should serve as peer tutors. They may also be assigned the Vocabulary Match as homework before the lab activities. Students can be assigned to show the alignment of the Sun, moon and Earth (with each body properly labeled) to get a spring tide and a neap tide and also which type of moon each occurs with. These can be found a http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/astronomy/moon/Tides.shtml . II. STUDENT PERFORMANCE

A. Description

Complete Lunar Patterns, The Sun’s Path and The Moon and Tides activities.

B. Accommodations/modifications

Students requiring accommodations should only need a peer tutor. These activities are either hands-on or easy to do.

C. Enrichment

Students requiring enrichment should serve as peer tutors.

III. ASSESSMENT OF ACTIVITIES

A. Description

The Lunar Pattern worksheet can be graded. Students should label full moon, new moon, waning and waxing crescents, waning and waxing gibbous and first and last quarters.

The Sun’s Path can be graded.

The Moon and Tides can be graded.

A quiz can be made with the sample discussion questions.

B. Rubrics/grading criteria

Lunar Pattern – each picture is worth 2 points (one for the picture and one for the label) for a total of 16 points. Calculate percentage.

The Sun’s Path – each picture is worth 7 points (1 for time, one each for drawing shadow, student and sun and 1 each for labeling shadow, student and sun. Question 1 is worth 2 points (one for each time) and questions 2 and 3 are worth 1 point each. This is a total of 25, calculate percentage.

The Moon and Tides – If 30 days of data are completed, each box should be worth 1 point for a total of 120. Calculate percentage.

C. Accommodations/modifications

Students requiring accommodations should not need any since all activities, unless a quiz is given, will be done with their peer tutor.

D. Enrichment

If students requiring enrichment have been assigned the vocabulary terms before the activity, this can be graded as a percentage correct out of 14.

If students requiring enrichment have been given the assignment about spring and neap tides, this activity can be graded as follows: 1 point each for drawing the picture of spring and neap tides and 1 point each for labeling the Sun, moon and Earth on each picture. They should also receive 1 point for labeling the types of moon that cause these tides (2 for the spring tide since they occur at the full and new moon and 1 for the neap tide since they occur at the quarter moons).

E. Sample discussion questions

1. How long does it take the Earth to revolve around the Sun? 365 (or 365¼ days) 2. How long does it take the Earth to complete one rotation? 24 hours 3. In which direction does the Earth revolve? Counterclockwise 4. In which direction does the Earth rotate? Counterclockwise 5. How often to tides occur? 2 times a day 6. How long is a lunar cycle? Approximately 28 days 7. During the waxing phase of the moon, does the part of the moon that is light (visible) get bigger or smaller? Bigger 8. When is your shadow the longest? Early morning or late afternoon 9. When is your shadow the shortest? Around noon 10. What type of substances make a shadow? Opaque IV. TAKS PREPARATION A. Transition to TAKS context

Planet Moons Average Distance from Sun Length of Year (km) (Earth days) Mercury 0 58,000,000 87 Venus 0 108,000,000 224 Earth 1 150,000,000 365 Mars 2 228,000,000 686 Jupiter 16 778,000,000 4,328 Saturn 18 1,427,000,000 10,775

1. Which planet has a year with a length closest to the length of a year on Earth? A Mercury B Venus C Mars D Jupiter

2. A revolution of the Earth takes ___. A One day B One week C One season D One year

B. Sample TAKS questions

1. About how long does it take Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis? A One day B One week C One month D One year

2. Tides on the Texas coast usually occur twice ____. A daily B weekly C monthly D yearly

3. Which of these causes day and night on Earth? A Earth orbiting the sun B The moon orbiting Earth C Earth rotating on its axis D The moon blocking sunlight

4. This model can be used to show how the moon moves around Earth. This model also shows all of the following EXCEPT ___ A the amount of light Earth reflects B the land areas of Earth and the moon C how the moon makes a revolution D how Earth and the moon compare in size

V. KEY VOCABULARY crescent moon neap tide season full moon new moon shadow gibbous moon quarter moon spring tide high tide revolution tide low tide rotation

VI. RESOURCES

A. Textbook – None needed

B. Supplementary materials/equipment

Vocabulary Match Instructor’s Copy – Vocabulary Match Lunar Pattern Instructor’s Copy - Lunar Pattern The Sun’s Path Instructor’s Copy – The Sun’s Path The Moon and Tides

C. Technology

Sci-tech Labs: ES 1-2: Day and Night (Level 2) ES 1-6: The Moon (Level 3) ES 2-6: The Sun (Level 5)

VII. FOLLOW UP ACTIVITIES (reteaching, cross-curricular support, technology activities, next lesson in sequence, etc.)

Have students repeat The Sun’s Path and Tides activities during another season and compare whether there are any differences in path or pattern. For example, do this during Objective 1 to show students how to set up a data table and record information and then do these activities when Earth Science is being taught.

VIII. TEACHER NOTES

Before lab: 1) Collect black construction paper and white crayons, chalk, etc. 2) Make labels for the moon activity. 3) Run copies of the Tides so that each student or group can have their own copy or make one big data table for the class. (Have the students help design the data table but lead them into the idea of columns labeled “Date”, “Moon”, “High tide time”, and “Low tide time”). They would want to record this information for 1 month to see the whole Lunar cycle. The data table should look something like “The Moon and Tides” worksheet provided with the unit. 4) To look up tidal information, you can use the following website that will give a 7-day graph of high and low tides for Galveston. Don’t let the students click on any of the other options or they will see predictions for the next couple of months. http://www.freetidetables.com/tides/?tti=3590 5) Either cut long pieces of different colors of bulletin board paper for the times you will be draw ing student shadows for The Sun’s Path activity or get different colors of sidewalk chalk. The paper can be taken into the classroom for later study and used later on. It also won’t be washed away if it rains.