Reasons for the Seasons Lab | Hands-On Activity
- February 27, 2021
- 3 minutes read - 510 words
Overview
In this lab activity, students have an opportunity to model Earth’s orbit and work in small groups to discuss different ideas for why we have seasons.
Materials
Light bulbs, either with a clamp or as part of a lamp (to represent the sun)
Foam balls (to represent the Earth and moon)
Pencil/stick (for Earth’s axis)
Student worksheets
Preparation
- Depending on the number of groups, set up lamps/light bulb stands and foam ball throughout the classroom (1 light source and 2 foam balls for each group)
Resources
Pacing
Suggested Pacing
Day 1 - introduce lab & model the activity | model and discuss ideas in groups
Day 2 - wrap up group work (skip last two pages) | review activity questions
Pacing w/ Teacher Notes
Day 1 - For their warmups, I ask students to share some of their ideas for why they think we have seasons. After we discuss the warmups, I have students get into groups of 3-4. Groups may be random or student-selected. I project the worksheet on screen and I have students read the directions.
To model what they will do in their groups, I use similar materials to the Moon Phases Demonstration , but with two foam balls and I move them around the light source (ideally, you would have one small one (moon) and one larger one (Earth), but it can also be done with only one foam ball representing the Earth). I ask them to think about what they know about Earth’s orbit and to do their best to simulate that in the groups.
In their groups, I give them about 5 minutes to read and model each activity. They may discuss their ideas with each other and they should all be on the same page before moving to the next activity. As they work, I rotate between groups and answer any questions they may have.
Day 2 - For their warmups, I ask students about what they observed during the previous day and if they had any new ideas about why we have seasons. I also show them a video to give them some perspective on how Earth moves . After our discussion, I give them more time to finish up the worksheet. I normally make the last two pages optional and I ask them not to mark up the foam balls, but this is up to your personal preference.
In the last half of class, we review the questions as a class before they turn it in. Optional: As part of the review, you may share with them two videos that summarize what they’ve learned or assign them as EdPuzzles (Why do we have seasons? | Cal Academy and Reasons for the seasons | TedEd ).
Credits: Ann Bykerk-Kauffman. Cover image by Chris Lawton via Unsplash.
