Objective

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to understand how the Earth and the Sun interact to create regular changes and how these interactions affect the Earth's surface.

Materials and Prep

Materials needed: paper, pencil, ruler, globe or world map

No prior knowledge required, just bring your curiosity and enthusiasm!

Activities

• Sun Shadow Experiment: Go outside with your globe or world map, pencil, and ruler. Trace your shadow at different times of the day. Observe how the length and direction of your shadow change as the Sun moves across the sky.
• Earth's Rotation Drawing: Draw a simple picture of the Earth and the Sun. Show how the Earth rotates on its axis and orbits around the Sun. Label the different parts to show your understanding.
• Landforms Creation: Use your paper to create different landforms like mountains, rivers, and valleys. Use your pencil to represent how these landforms change over time due to processes like erosion and weathering.

Talking Points

• "The Sun is a star that gives us light and heat. It rises in the east and sets in the west every day."
• "The Earth spins around like a top, and this spinning is called rotation. It takes 24 hours for the Earth to make one full rotation."
• "As the Earth rotates, different parts of the Earth receive sunlight, causing day and night. This is why we have morning and evening."
• "The Earth also moves around the Sun in a path called an orbit. It takes 365 days for the Earth to make one full orbit around the Sun, which is why we have seasons."
• "The Earth's surface is always changing. Mountains are formed by the movement of tectonic plates, and rivers carve out valleys over time."