Heidi Peppers TA355 October 5, 2012 ANIMATED DIAGRAM LESSON PLAN Solar and Lunar Eclipse RATIONALE FOR

THE LESSON: This technique is used to bring the diagram off the page and animate it. It helps students to understand the different parts of a diagram. It can also be used to present tables and information in a different way and to engage in a more physical and visual way of learning and to promote physical memory. Human diagrams can be further developed and animated to become role-play Science Content & Performance Standards: E.4.4 Identify celestial objects (stars, sun, moon, planets) in the sky, noting changes in patterns of those objects over time A.4.5 When studying a science-related problem, decide what changes over time are occurring or have occurred C.4.1 Use the vocabulary of the unifying themes to ask questions about objects, organisms, and events being studied

LEARNING OBJECTIVE: The students will: Understand the concepts through physical and visual learning in order to solidify their abstract understanding of a solar eclipse into a more concrete perceptive. MATERIALS: Picture of a solar eclipse diagram 12 x 12 signs Earth Moon Sun These can be decorated or on circles of card, possibly of different sizes, and prepared in an earlier lesson by the students. PROCEDURES: 1. Introduction: (5min) Gather the students o Explain that they will be working together to create an animated diagram Show a picture of the solar and lunar eclipse diagrams o Explain what a solar eclipse is

An eclipse of the Sun occurs when the Earth passes through the Moon's shadow. A total eclipse of the Sun takes place only during a new moon, when the Moon is directly between the Sun and the Earth. When a total eclipse does occur, the Moon's shadow covers only a small portion of the Earth, where the eclipse is visible. As the Moon moves in its orbit, the position of the shadow changes, so total solar eclipses usually only last a minute or two in a given location. o Explain what a lunar eclipse is A lunar eclipse occurs when the moon passes through the shadow of the earth. A lunar eclipse can last up to an hour and a half. During a lunar eclipse the moon may turn a reddish color. It is not dangerous at all to look at a lunar eclipse because the moon does not make its own light. Explain how, as a group, they are going to make diagram come to life. 2. Demonstration/Participation/Practice/Performance (20 min) Give the three cards to three different students Talk through how each one exists in relationship to each other. o The Earth orbits the sun o The Sun turns on its own axis once every twenty four hours Ask the students to act this out while the rest of the class is the audience Talk about some relationships with the Earth and Moon o The moon takes 27.3 days to orbit the Earth o The moon is always synchronized rotation with the Earth Then ask students to act out the relationship between all three pictures Finally have students act out a lunar eclipse and a solar eclipse Give multiple students a chance to act out the diagram

3.

Closure/Recap (1-2min): o Explain to students the process of a solar and lunar eclipse. Explain that using creative drama to build human diagrams is another way to help our brains understand new concepts and ideas; like how a solar and lunar eclipse work.

ASSESSMENT: Students will be informally assessed during the lesson but also formally assessed though their completion lunar eclipse worksheet.

Source:

Tees Valley Arts. (n.d.). A creative drama manual for science teachers. Retrieved from http://teesvalleyarts.co.uk/resources/Drama_Manual.pdf