Earth and Sky Curriculum Map/Course Outline

Timpview High School - Science Credit 1.0 (Full Year)

Teacher Jonathan Montgomery
Unit
History of
Astronomy

State Core Standards

Standard 5
Students will understand how Earth
science interacts with society.

Learning Targets
Identify contributions from
important astronomers,
scientists, and philosophers.
Describe early work in
astronomy.

Standard 1
Objective 1c:
Explain how technological advances
Describe advances in
lead to increased human knowledge
technology.
(e.g., satellite imaging, deep sea ocean
probes, seismic sensors, weather radar
systems) and ability to predict how
changes affect Earth's systems.

Cosmology

Objective 1e:
Investigate and report how science has
changed the accepted ideas regarding
the nature of the universe throughout
history.
Standard 01
Students will understand the scientific
evidence that supports theories that
explain how the universe and the solar
system developed. They will compare
Earth to other objects in the solar
system.

Star Observation Standard 01

and Measurement Students will understand the scientific
evidence that supports theories that
explain how the universe and the solar
system developed. They will compare
Earth to other objects in the solar
system.
Objective 1f:
Provide an example of how technology
has helped scientists investigate the

Content/Key Vocabulary
Socrates, Ptolemy, Copernicus, Galileo,
Einstein, Newton, Hubble.
Early discoveries: circumference of the earth,
ratio of earth-to-moon, distance to moon,
predicting eclipses.

Activities and
Assessment
Research and report on
important figures and
their contributions to
cosmology and
astronomy.

Original purpose of constellations. Using stars Match important figures

as a calendar and for navigation.
to their contributions.
Planets, retrograde motion, geocentrism and
heliocentrism.
Astrology vs. astronomy.
Telescopes, electromagnetic spectrum,
satellites, probes, CERN.

Provide evidence supporting Big Bang Theory, dark matter, dark energy,
the Big Bang Theory.
expansion and inflation, cosmic scale and
structures, galaxy classifications, supermassive
Provide evidence for Dark
black holes. Hubble Deep Field.
Matter and Dark Energy.
Red shift, CMB radiation, CERN research.
List galaxy types and their
structures.

Calculate the distance to

stars and galaxies.
Describe the history of
telescopes (refractor and
reflector) and their uses.
Describe advantages of radio
telescopes, gamma ray
telescopes, etc.
Identify constellations and
notable stars.

Invention, history, and use of telescopes.

Present evidence
supporting the Big Bang
Theory.
Construct a timeline of
the universe, from the Big
Bang to the Big Rip.

Lab calculating distance

to stars using
Red shift, doppler effect, Type IA supernova, H- astronomical data.
R diagram.
Lab identifying and
plotting stars on the H-R
diagram.
Contributions made from astronomers like
Lab identifying
Galileo, Hubble.
constellations and stars.

Solar System
Investigation

universe.
Objective 2
Analyze Earth as part of the solar
system, which is part of the Milky Way
galaxy.
Standard 01
Objective 1c:
Describe the nebular theory of solar
system formation and the evidence
supporting it (e.g., solar system
structure due to gravity, motion and
temperature; composition and age of
meteorites; observations of newly
forming stars).
Objective 2
Analyze Earth as part of the solar
system, which is part of the Milky Way
galaxy.

Describe the formation of the Nebular theory, composition and arrangement

solar system according to the of planets, inner planets and outer planets,
nebular theory.
terrestrial and gas planets, Kuiper belt and Oort
Relate the interaction of
cloud, asteroid belt and dwarf planets.
bodies within the solar system Relationship between distance from sun and
to life on Earth.
chemical composition. Habitable zone.
Identify features and
Interaction of solar system with the galaxy.
characteristics of bodies in
the solar system.
Describe past and present
methods of space travel and
exploration.

Sun, Earth, and

Moon

Objective 1d:
Explain that heavy elements found on
Earth are formed in stars.
Objective 2
Analyze Earth as part of the solar
system, which is part of the Milky Way
galaxy.
Standard 1
Objective 2

Lab designing a future

space probe mission.
Report on the
environmental conditions
on other bodies in the
solar system compared to
Earth.
Report identifying
requirements for
habitability.
Lab that identifies prime
locations in the solar
system for our search for
life.

Objective 2d:
Evaluate the conditions that currently
support life on Earth (biosphere) and
compare them to the conditions that
exist on other planets and moons in the
solar system (e.g., atmosphere,
hydrosphere, geosphere, amounts of
incoming solar energy, habitable zone).
Star Classification Standard 01
and Evolution
Students will understand the scientific
evidence that supports theories that
explain how the universe and the solar
system developed. They will compare
Earth to other objects in the solar
system.

Research and present

findings from past space
probes.

Describe characteristics of
HR diagram.
stars.
Stellar life cycle.
Describe the life cycle of
Characteristics of stars:
stars.
size, mass, temperature, spectrum, luminosity,
Relate the life cycle of stars to composition.
the H-R diagram.
Life cycle of stars: nebula, protostar, main
sequence, red giant, supernova, white dwarf,
Relate the chemical elements neutron star, pulsar, black hole.
on Earth to the stellar cycle.

Diagram the stellar life

cycle and stars along
their life cycle on the H-R
diagram.
Report on how the
composition of the Earth
relates to fusion within
stars.

Explain the phases of the

moon, tides, and eclipses.

Model the phases of the

moon.

Solar and lunar eclipses, annular eclipses,

phases of the moon, tides, spring and neap

Analyze Earth as part of the solar

system, which is part of the Milky Way
galaxy.

Contemporary
Issues in
Astronomy

Standard 5
Students will understand how Earth
science interacts with society.

Diagram the composition and tides. Sunspots, solar flares, corona, nuclear
structure of the sun.
fusion.

Discuss issues related to the The solar wind, solar flares, Coronal Mass
public awareness of cosmic Ejections, asteroid and comet impacts.
threats and attempts to
protect the earth from those
threats.

Objective 3
Indicate how natural hazards pose risks
to humans.
Discuss issues related to light
pollution, funding, and
exploration.
Objective 3c:
Document how scientists use
technology to continually improve
estimates of when and where natural
hazards occur.
Earth Composition Standard 2
Relate the formation of the
and Structure
Students will understand Earth's internal earth to its internal structure
structure and the dynamic nature of the (chemical and physical.)
tectonic plates that form its surface.
Identify the layers of the
earth.
Objective 1
Evaluate the source of Earth's internal
heat and the evidence of Earth's internal
structure.

Plate Tectonics
and Tectonic
Activity

Objective 3
Demonstrate how the motion of tectonic
plates affects Earth and living things.

Describe the history and

evidence for plate tectonics.
Diagram the interior of a
volcano.

Diagram the interior of

the sun.
Participate in a debate
concerning the funding of
research into
astronomical threats.
Discuss careers in
science and technology.

Earths internal structure and heat sources.

Crust, asthenosphere, lithosphere, mantle,
inner and outer core.

Diagram Earth interior,

including layers and
movement.

Physical and chemical distinctions.

Describe the evidence for

these layers and
movements.

Magnetosphere.

Describe the role of the

magnetosphere to life on
Earth.

Objective 2
Describe the development of the current
theory of plate tectonics and the
evidence that supports this theory.
Objective 3
Demonstrate how the motion of tectonic
plates affects Earth and living things.
Objective 2
Describe the development of the current
theory of plate tectonics and the
evidence that supports this theory.

Model eclipses.

Mid-ocean ridge, deep ocean trench,

continental shelves, fossils, rock layers.
Earthquakes, volcanoes, mudslides, sinkholes,
tsunamis.
Mountain building, rift valleys.
Convection currents, magma plumes.
Convergent, divergent, transform boundaries.
Subduction zones. Shield, strato, and cinder
cone volcanoes. Recycling of materials in the
crust to sustain life.

Present evidence for the

theory of plate tectonics.
Research project
investigating a natural
disaster (volcanic
eruption, earthquake,
etc.)
Model the different plate
boundaries and the
interior of a volcano.

Model plate tectonics,

plate boundaries.

Rock Cycle

Objective 3
Demonstrate how the motion of tectonic
plates affects Earth and living things.

Rock and Mineral Objective 3

Demonstrate how the motion of tectonic
Identification
plates affects Earth and living things.

Standard 5
Contemporary
Issues in Geology Objective 2
Describe how humans depend on
Earth's resources.

Diagram the rock cycle and

the processes involved in
creating or changing rocks.
Identify common rocks and
minerals and their uses in
society. (Construction,
engineering, technology.)
Describe how scientists
attempt to forecast tectonic
activity, identify locations and
processes for mining, and
help make decisions about
construction.
Describe how we can learn
about past climate and
geologic history.
Discuss the future of
Yellowstone and the north
pacific megathrust fault.

Identify features of plate

tectonics on the earth
when provided with maps
or satellite images.
Diagram the rock cycle.

Sedimentary, Metamorphic, Igneous rocks.

Erosion, weathering, transportation, deposition,
cementation, melting, crystallization. Intrusive
and extrusive. Mafic and felsic.
Texture, foliation, rock composition, rock
Identify rock and mineral
formation. Fossils. Mohs hardness scale,
samples in a lab.
cleavage, streak test.
Mining, construction, environmental impact
(greenhouse emissions from fossil fuels,
mining, waste management, pollution).

Forecast tectonic activity

using geologic and
atmospheric data.

Radioactive decay, geologic time scales,

fossils, and Earth history.

Explain geologic record

and evidence for the age
of the earth.