Education Provider Classroom Programmes

§ The Sun shines on the Earth, creating light on one side of the planet. 

§ Anything not facing the Sun is in shadow.

§ Anyone standing on the part of the Earth that faces the Sun sees daytime

§ Anyone standing on the part of the Earth that faces away from the Sun sees night time

§ We see different times of the day due to the rotation of the Earth and how we face the Sun.

Advanced understanding:

§ Describe the different times of day seen by different locations on the world (ie. time of day that N.Z. sees compared to the time of day that the U.K. sees)

§ Define the terminator line (the line where the lit side and shadowed side of the Earth meet)

Describe the day and night on other planets (ie. how does their rotation change things)

Earth Moon and Sun Movement

 We want students to understand that::

§ The Sun is in the centre of our Solar System

§ The Earth rotates on its axis as it revolves around the Sun

§ The Moon revolves around the Earth while the Earth revolves around the Sun

Advanced understanding:

§ Describe how the Moon rotates so that the same side of the Moon always faces the Earth

Describe how gravity keeps the Earth and Moon in their orbits

Seasons

 We want students to understand that::

§ The Earth sits on a tilt, causing the southern and northern hemispheres on the Earth to be pointed more toward or away from the Sun over the course of the year.

§ The northern and southern hemispheres experience opposite seasons (ie. in June, the northern hemisphere experiences summer, while the southern hemisphere experiences winter)

§ For a particular location on Earth (ie. New Zealand), the Sun’s apparent path across the sky changes over the course of the year, giving us longer days in summer, and shorter days in winter.

Advanced understanding:

§ The Sun’s apparent path across the sky changes according to the latitude that we are observing it from (ie. from the north pole in summer, the Sun always stays above the horizon, making a large circle in the sky. From mid-latitudes in summer, the Sun makes a large arc across the sky).

 Moon Phases

 We want students to understand that::

§ The Sun shines on the Moon, causing half of the Moon to be lit, and the other half shadowed

§ The Moon does not shine on its own; it merely reflects light from the Sun

§ The Moon goes through phases due to the angle that we are viewing it from as the Moon orbits the Earth.

Advanced understanding:

§ Describe why different phases of the Moon appear different times of day (ie, the full moon rises at sunset and sets at sunrise; the first quarter moon rises at noon and sets at midnight, etc).

§ Describe how Mercury and Venus also appear to go through phases as seen from the Earth.

Solar System

 We want students to understand that:

§ The Sun brings heat and light to the rest of the Solar System

§ There are major differences between the various planets in our Solar System

§ Earth has the right conditions needed for life to exist.

§ There are major attributes that help determine what kind of conditions are on a planet (ie. distance from Sun, type of atmosphere, type of planet, etc)

 Advanced understanding:

§ Describe the interiors of the gas giants (increasing density, pressure, and temperature with depth), and how Neptune and Uranus differ from Jupiter and Saturn

§ Describe how the atmosphere can change the conditions on the surface of a rocky planet (ie. the thick, mostly CO2 atmosphere of Venus creates a runaway greenhouse effect, while Mercury has no atmosphere and therefore no weather patterns to even out the temperatures of the planet).

Describe how the rotation and tilt of a planet can change the conditions on a planet (ie. Earth is slightly tilted and therefore has seasons, Jupiter’s fast rotation helps propel the clouds into bands and vortexes).

Unmanned Space Exploration

 We want students to understand that:

§ Machines are able to explore space more easily than humans.

§ Each machine is designed to learn certain information about the object it is studying.

§ The information the machines send back is very important for our understanding of the Solar System and our own planet.

Advanced understanding:

§ Describe the decisions behind why certain instruments were chosen for various space probes

§ Describe the difference between fly-bys, landers, and orbiters

• It is important for humans to learn to adapt to different places (ie. Moon, Mars, etc)
• Comparing our planet to other environments helps us learn more about the conditions needed for life
• The different features that we find (craters, rocks, etc) can tell us a lot about the history of a place

Advanced understanding:

• Discuss different ways to adapt to conditions on the Moon and/or Mars
• Discuss what types on environments on the Moon and/or Mars are best suited for us to live in.

 Matariki

 We want students to understand that:

• Matariki is a group of stars that help signal the time of the Maori New Year
• Matariki can be seen in the night sky during most of the year, rising and setting at different times

Advanced understanding:

• Discuss why Matariki cannot be seen in the sky during the month of May
• Discuss why the northern and southern hemispheres of the Earth see different constellations
• Discuss why we see different constellations in the night sky on a yearly cycle.

 Aliens, UFO’s and Exoplanets

 We want students to understand that:

• Our mind and eyes can often get fooled into believing something without knowing the full story behind a picture.
• It is quite difficult to travel between different stars and solar systems due to the vast distances in space
• Only certain planets will have the requirements needed for life.

• Discuss what kinds of planets are suitable for life
• Discuss what kinds of stars are suitable for life

Discuss methods used to search for extra-terrestrial life

 Night Skywatching

 We want students to understand that:

• When we look at our sky, we are seeing objects in our atmosphere as well as objects out in space.
• We use constellations to help us find our way around the night sky.
• The objects in the sky appear to rise and set (or circle around) due to the spinning of the Earth.

Advanced understanding:

• Discuss why we see different constellations at different times of year.
• Discuss why the planets, Sun, and Moon appear to follow a line (the ecliptic) in our sky

Deep Space

We want students to understand that:

• Our Solar System is just a small area in the huge expanse of space
• There is a relationship between nebulae, the lives of stars, and our Solar System
• Our galaxy is one of many galaxies, which all contain many stars, and many of those stars have planets orbiting them.

Advanced understanding:

• Discuss what types of objects can be found past our Solar System
• Discuss how nebulae form various types of stars and solar systems

Discuss the cyclical nature of nebulaàstaràdeath of staràback to nebula

 Smaller Solar System Objects

• There are many other smaller objects in the Solar System, including moons, asteroids, comets, and meteorites.
• Many moons in the Solar System are quite different from each other.
• Many of the asteroids and other small objects are left over from the early formation of our Solar System.
• Many of these smaller objects are grouped together in certain areas of the Solar System

Advanced understanding:

• Describe the differences between an asteroid and comet

Describe the difference between a meteoroid, meteor, and meteorite

 History of Astronomy

 We want students to understand that:

• Astronomy, like so many other sciences, is a process that builds upon the ideas of those that came before us.
• There are several pivotal discoveries and theories that have helped us understand our universe as it is today

Advanced understanding:

 Time and Calendars

We want students to understand that:

• The Sun has a daily motion across the sky
• You can tell time by measuring the movement of shadows over the course of a day
• You can find north using the Equatorial Sundial

Advanced understanding:

• Discuss how the Sun’s path changes over the course of the year, moving through a larger arc in summer and smaller arc in winter.