EARTH, MOON & SUN - Peoria Riverfront Museum

EARTH, MOON & SUNCLASSROOM ACTIVITIES

EARTH, MOON & SUNCONTENTSIntroduction ...................................................................................... 2Connections to Standards ................................................................. 3Lesson Planning ................................................................................ 4CLASSROOM ACTIVITIESStories that Teach Us: Learning about Fables .................................. 5Coyote and Sun: Learning about Food Chains ............................... 10Write Away: Learning to Use Experiences to Develop Writing ..... 12Looking Up: Learning More about Words Related to Space ......... 14BACKGROUND INFORMATIONAbout Navajo Story-Telling Traditions .......................................... 19About Coyotes ................................................................................ 21About the Sun ................................................................................. 23 .............................................................. 25PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 1

EARTH, MOON & SUNLESSON PLANNINGThis guide describes a variety of activitiesthat build on content referred to inthe Earth, Moon & Sun show. Becausewriting is such an important skill to developthroughout a child’s school years, many of theactivities emphasize language arts. Science,social studies, and information skills are alsoaddressed. The activities in this guide can beconducted during class periods after studentssee Earth, Moon & Sun. Some of the activitiescan also be used to help to prepare students forthe experience of seeing the show. (Trainingand materials for additional activities—includingmany connected to Earth, Moon & Sun’sastronomy and math content—are included inthe Morehead’s A Peak at PLANETS teacherworkshops.)The following sample lesson plan uses activitiesselected from the Earth, Moon & Sunclassroom activities guide:TEACHER’S GUIDE: BEFORE THE SHOWPart 1. Review “Information for Teachers:About Coyotes” (pp. 21-22) and “Write fromYour Research: Prompt A” (p. 13). Let studentsknow that a coyote plays an important part inthe planetarium show they will be seeing. Tootes.Ask students to (individually or in groups)prepare short factual reports on coyotes. In a may already know about coyotes. Follow witha web quest or research in books from theschool’s media center. Students can draw picturesto accompany their writing.Part 2. Review “Information for Teachers:About the Sun” (pp. 23-24) and “Coyote andSun: Learning about Food Chains” (pp. 10-11). Using their research about coyotes, studentscan create food chains in which coyotesare links. They can also create paper-bag puppetsof the Sun, Coyote, and other organismsin their food chains and present simple skitsillustrating the transfer of energy within theirchosen ecosystems.TEACHER’S GUIDE: AFTER THE SHOWPart 1. Lead students through the pre-writing Away: Learning to Use Experiences to DevelopWriting” (pp. 12-13). Assign one of the“Write from Your Experience” prompts (p. 13)or develop a prompt to help students translatetheir experience of the Earth, Moon & Sunshow into writing and discussion.Part 2. Review “Information for Teachers:About Navajo Story-Telling Traditions” (pp.19-20) and “Stories that Teach Us: Learningabout Fables” (pp. 5-6). Use your students’ prewritingabout Earth, Moon & Sun to spark discussionabout story-telling traditions, includingfables. Discuss “Coyote and Crow.” Ask yourstudents to write their own fables about Coyoteand other animals that can be found togetherin ecosystems. You may wish to assign someof the words that were listed on the board duringpre-writing. Students can create paper-bagpuppets (or use those they created earlier) andteam up with other student-authors to act outtheir fables for the class. PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 4

EARTH, MOON & SUNSTORIES THAT TEACH USLEARNING ABOUT FABLESThe central character in Earth, Moon &Sun—our guide from misconception tounderstanding—is Coyote, a characteradapted from Native American oral traditions.The following pages include an example of aNavajo fable that also features Coyote. Thisexample will provide an opportunity to discussstory-telling traditions and fables as a literaryform. In reading the tale, students can exploresetting), the motives of the two main characters,the lesson the tale teaches, and why such alesson might be important to a society.The activities described here can help teachersaddress several of the new Common Core Standards.For instance, the English Language ArtsReading standards for Grades 2-3 ask studentsto recount stories, including fables and folktalesfrom diverse cultures, and determine theircentral message, lesson, or moral (Standard 2).TEACHER’S GUIDEWoven throughout the Earth, Moon & Sun showare traditional Native American stories basedon observations of the world around us and thesky above us. The stories in the show featureCoyote, who is often the leading character insuch tales. Coyote is known as “the trickster,”because he is sometimes actively mischievous.ways humans can be—greedy, impatient, unreliable,overly ambitious. In Earth, Moon &PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 5

EARTH, MOON & SUNSunteringthe stars instead of placing them carefullyin the sky as he is supposed to. Like anyinteresting character in a story, Coyote givesreaders and listeners much to consider, as theythink about his actions and motivations and tryto learn from them.Another story told in Earth, Moon & Sun involvesCoyote, Crow, and Moon. Coyote andCrow steal the Moon so they will have lightwhen they hunt at night. But when Coyotesneaks a look in the box where they’re keepingMoon, Moon escapes. And now, Moon hideswhenever Coyote is near. This story illustratesour perceptions of the Moon’s phases, whilealso providing another example of Coyote’sbetween this story and “Coyote and Crow.”1. Read aloud. Especially if you have veryyoung students, you may choose to read “Coyoteand Crow” aloud to the class, with your studentsfollowing along (with paper copies of thestory, or with a copy written or projected on theboard) so they know how to pronounce all thewords. You can also assign parts to students toread aloud: a narrator, Coyote, Crow. And youcan even ask students to act out the tale withsome of the same paper-bag puppets that havestarring roles in their food-chain skits (see p. 11for instructions).2. Investigate sounds. Ask your students tounderline or point out words in this tale thatbegin with a hard sound: cactus, carefully,caw, could, Coyote, Crowwords that end with the similar hard sound of: ask, back, look, pick, rock, walk. Stu-the word with a soft sound in it: nice (in“A nice bluebird,” on the ninth line).3. Discuss characters. Sometimes stories includecharacters who do not do the right thing.Is Coyote a character like that? Can your studentsremember mistakes that Coyote made inEarth, Moon & Sun? Were the mistakes intentionalor unintentional? What does Coyote doin “Coyote and Crow”? What mistake does hemake? What happens because of his action?What should Coyote have done? Coyote isnot the only character in “Coyote and Crow.”What about Crow? Is Crow a good character?What do your students think about the trick thatCrow played on Coyote? Was that a nice trickto play? What should Crow have done?4. Talk about fables. Typically, fables areshort, tell a story, and teach a lesson, and animalsare their main characters. Ask your studentswhether “Coyote and Crow” has any ofthe characteristics of fables. Are your studentsfamiliar with any other fables, like “The Tortoiseand the Hare”? You may wish to showbooks from the media center and read some selections,letting students know that fables havebeen told by people around the world for centuries.5. Explore settings. Though fables have beentold by many kinds of people around the world,origins. Ask your students what clues tell themthat “Coyote and Crow” comes from a particularpart of the United States? What about theanimal and plant life this fable refers to? Thediscussion of setting/environment can form aconnection to science content and an activitylike “Coyote and Sun” (see pp. 10-11 for instructions).6. Tell tales. Worksheets on the following pagesprovide frameworks for students to writetheir own fables or other types of stories aboutCoyote and Crow (or about Coyote and anotheranimal they choose). Ideas for characters andsettings can be drawn from the work studentsdo for “Coyote and Sun” if that activity is as- PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 6

EARTH, MOON & SUN___________________________________________________________Written by __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 8

EARTH, MOON & SUN___________________________________________________________Written by __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 9

EARTH, MOON & SUNCOYOTE AND SUNLEARNING ABOUT FOOD CHAINSOne of the most charming segments ofEarth, Moon & Sunraand fauna on our planet are nourished dogs, and shrimp are shown in this segment.All these organisms and more depend upon theSun—as do your students themselves!A discussion of this part of Earth, Moon & Sunand an activity such as the one described in thisguide can be grade-appropriate ways to explorewhy the Sun is so important, how the Sun’s ener-chain is.Such a discussion and activity can become partof a lesson plan addressing North Carolina’sGrade 5 Science Objective 1.04: Discuss anddetermine the role of light, temperature, andsoil composition in an ecosystem’s capacity tosupport life.TEACHER’S GUIDEYou can begin discussion of this topic by askingstudents what would happen if we did not havethe Sun. Yes, we would feel cold, and we wouldbe in the dark, but we also wouldn’t have anyenergy to do things! You can provide a simpleexplanation of the Sun as a source of energy, andthen explain that we get energy from the Sun asour environment. This is why we can’t just standin the sunlight in order to soak up energy (weneed to eat regular meals) and also why we mustmake sure that the animals, plants, and environmentswe and they rely on in this cycle of energyare well cared for.PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 10

EARTH, MOON & SUNIn order to create a connection to the Earth,Moon & Sun show, you may wish to ask yourstudents to learn more about coyotes and constructfood chains that include this animal.Students can research coyotes in North Carolinaand in other states, noting the differences inthe plants and animals they can include in thefood chains for each ecosystem. They can evenmine “Coyote and Crow,” the Navajo tale includedin this guide, for examples of organismsthat live in the Southwestern United States.The illustration that accompanies “Coyoteand Crow” is by Andrew Tsihnahjinnie (1916-2000), an important Navajo artist. This illustrationprovides additional clues as to the organismsstudents may include in their food chains.You can also discuss which of the characters inthe tale are “prey” and which are “predators.”LESSON EXTENSIONPut on a Puppet Show. The food chain assignmentcan become a group project. Oncethat project is completed, each group of studentscan put on a puppet show to illustrate themember of the group can create a simple paperbagpuppet to represent a link in the chain. (Besure to include the Sun!) The students can thenFor instance: “I am Sun, and my rays give energy.”“I am Berry Bush, and I get energy fromSun.” “I am Bluebird, and I get energy fromBerry Bush.” “I am Coyote, and I get energyfrom Bluebird.”Examples of food chains for which your studentscan create puppet shows include: sun sage brush quail coyote sun cactus rabbit coyote sun cactus grasshopper roadrunner coyote sun grass grasshopper gopher badgercoyote sun shrub lizard roadrunner coyote sun berry bush blue bird coyoteIn Earth, Moon & Sun, we see Coyote beingpursued by a hungry dinosaur. Of course, a dinosaurwould not really be the coyote’s naturalpredator! Some of the coyote’s predators arebears, wolves, mountain lions, and even humans.If you wish,you can ask yourstudents to includethe coyote’s predatorsas additional“characters” intheir food-chainpuppet shows.Instructions formaking inexpensivepaper-bagpuppets are locatedhere: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/puppets/paperbag/.PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 11

EARTH, MOON & SUNWRITE AWAYLEARNING TO USE EXPERIENCES TO DEVELOP WRITINGThe Earth, Moon & Sun show provides yourstudents with a rich experience you candraw upon for writing assignments. Thenew Common Core’s English Language ArtsWriting Standards for Grades 2-5 ask studentsto recall information from experiences (Standard8) and to write narratives to develop realor imagined experiences or events (Standard2). Assignments that address these standardscan help students develop writing skills andbe able to call upon throughout their schoolyears.When giving any of the writing prompts describedbelow, assign the length dependingupon the time available and your students’level of writing skill. All of the assignmentscan be accompanied by pictures you ask thestudents to draw. The pre-writing steps can beused with the suggested writing prompts orwith prompts that you create.TEACHER’S GUIDE: PRE-WRITINGEarth, Moon & Sun is included at the end ofthis guide. These are all useful words you maywish to review with your students and includein class discussions and writing assignments.However, in writing about aspects of the show,your students may choose to convey memoriesand ideas that require additional vocabulary.Students may already know some of the wordsthey need, but not know how to spell them. Orthey may need to learn new words in order todiscuss and describe the new experience thisshow represents for them. The following stepswill help students build their vocabularies.1. Remembering. Ask your students to closetheir eyes for a little while and remember allthe things they saw when they were in theplanetarium.2. Discussing. Ask your students to open theireyes and say out loud some of the things theyremember. You can give every child the chanceto mention one thing she or he remembers. Youcan make a rule that they must mention thingsthat aren’t already on the board.3. Recording. Write the words down on theboard as they are mentioned so that the studentscan see how they are spelled. Studentscan look at the board and draw from this vocabularyas they respond to the writing promptyou assign.You can repeat steps 1-3 to focus students’ attentionon particular aspects of Earth, Moon& Sun, possibly providing some questions thatguide them toward content you wish to cover.4. Telling. Keeping an audience in mind canbe a complicated task, but you may wish todiscuss this topic with students old enoughto consider it as they write. Writing is a greatopportunity to tell someone else about an ex-PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 12

EARTH, MOON & SUNperience, an idea, or something else the writerwants others to know about. Ask your studentsto think about the person or people to whomthey are going to “talk” as they write—possiblya parent or guardian at home, or someone atschool, like the principal or a friend.5. Organizing. If your students are old enoughto write a long paragraph or an essay of multipleparagraphs, remind them that organizationis important because it helps the person they’retelling follow along and not get confused. Youcan mention that a good way to organize writingabout an experience is to write about it inthe order that things happened. Another goodway for them to organize is by choosing somethings to focus on (which they can do in a prewritingor brainstorming phase), rather thantrying to write about everything all at once!WRITE FROM YOUR EXPERIENCEPrompt A. Describe Earth, Moon & Sun tosomeone who did not get to see the show.Prompt B. Tell someone who did not get to seeEarth, Moon & Sun about the most interesting,important, or surprising thing you learned fromthe show. Tell why you think it was an interesting,important, or surprising thing to learn.Prompt C. Based on what you learned inEarth, Moon & Sun and what you know aboutliving on Earth, write about which place wouldbe your favorite place to live: Earth, Moon, orSun? Explain why your choice is the best one.WRITE FROM YOUR IMAGINATIONPrompt A. What did you think about Coyote?Do you remember all the funny things he did?Write your own story about Coyote. Your storythat were written on the board during the classdiscussion of Earth, Moon & Sun.Prompt B. Do you remember seeing the astronautsgoing to the Moon at the end of the planetariumshow? No one has been to the Moon ina long time. Can you imagine what it would belike if you could go to the Moon? Would youlike to go? How would you get there? Whatwould you like to see and do on the Moon?Prompt C. Based on what you saw in Earth,Moon & Sun, write a poem about how differentthe world would be without the Sun (or withoutthe Moon).WRITE FROM YOUR RESEARCHPrompt A. Coyote is a cartoon character in theEarth, Moon & Sun show. But coyotes are alsoreal animals that live in every state in the UnitedStates. Find out more so that you can writea description of coyotes for someone who doesnot know about them.Prompt B. Was there something in the Earth,Moon & Sun show that you would like to knowmore about? Tell your teacher so that she canhelp you learn more (by talking about it in classand looking up information in the media center).Write about what you learn.Prompt C. The word misconception was discussedthroughout Earth, Moon & Sun. Whatdoes this word mean? Can you think of otherwords that begin with “mis.” (What about mistake,misunderstanding, misfortune, misspelling?)Does “mis” in front of a word usuallymean the word is describing a good thing ora bad thing? Can you remember some of themisconceptions you heard about in the show?Discuss a misconception that interests you(possibly one of those mentioned in the show,or another one) and research the facts we knowthat prove this misconception wrong. (Here aresome misconceptions to get started with: Allspiders make webs. Clouds are soft. GeorgeWashington had wooden teeth.) PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 13

EARTH, MOON & SUNLOOKING UPLEARNING MORE ABOUT WORDS RELATED TO SPACEIn this activity, students learn about NASA anduse the Internet for research. After viewingEarth, Moon & Sunthe new words they encountered by navigatingthe “Picture Dictionary” on NASA’s website.They incorporate what they learn into a story.The “Picture Dictionary” is designed for K-4students. Therefore, you may prefer to ask olderstudents to explore NASA’s “Homework Topics,”which are designed for students in Grades5-8. You can also expand their writing choicesto include poems and songs. A worksheet forthis alternative assignment is included (p. 18).The “Looking Up” assignments describedhere can help teachers address several CommonCore Standards. For instance, the EnglishLanguage Arts Language Standards for Grades2-5 ask students to acquire and use accuratelygrade-appropriate general academic and do-Picture Dictionary—http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/k-4/dictionary/index.htmlHomework Topics—http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/5-8/features/homeworktopics-index.htmlTEACHER’S GUIDE1. Lead a brief discussion about NASA. Askstudents: What does the acronym NASA stand for? Who works at NASA? What kinds of things do people at NASAdo?NASA is the National Aeronautics and SpaceAdministration. From the History Division ofthe NASA website:Since its inception in 1958, NASA has ac-nologicalfeats in air and space. NASAtechnology also has been adapted for manynon-aerospace uses by the private sector.research and in stimulating public interest inaerospace exploration, as well as science andtechnology in general. Perhaps more importantly,our exploration of space has taught usto view Earth, ourselves, and the universe ina new way. While the tremendous technical demonstrate vividly that humans can achievepreviously inconceivable feats, we also arehumbled by the realization that Earth is justa tiny “blue marble” in the cosmos. (http://history.nasa.gov/;; accessed 7/2009)2. Write out “NASA—National Aeronauticsand Space Administration” on the board.3. Explain that the NASA website is a great-web address (http://www.nasa.gov) on theboard. Tell students they will use a certain partPLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 14

EARTH, MOON & SUNof the NASA website called the “Picture Dictionary”to gather information.4. Pass out the “Looking Up” worksheets. Mentionto the students that they heard all of thewords they see on the worksheet in the Earth,Moon & Sun planetarium show.5. Read the list of words aloud to your students,so that they associate the correct pronunciationwith the spelling of each word.6. Ask the students to circle three words on theworksheet about which they would like to learnmore. Students should write the three wordsthey select in the appropriate spaces on theirworksheets.7. Once students have selected their words, directthem toward the computers. If completingthis activity with younger students, a teacheror teacher’s aide should sit with the studentsas they conduct their research. Explain thestructure of the “Picture Dictionary” website.(Words are listed alphabetically. Students caneither scroll down the page or use the hyperlinkedletters at the top of the page to jump tothe appropriate sections.)8. page of the dictionary, instruct them to click onthe pictures associated with their words. They from the web page or in their own words) ontheir worksheets and read the example sentencesfor comprehension. Make sure studentsknow how to use the “back” button on the webbrowser to return to the main page of the “PictureDictionary.” Students should repeat this9. ryusing all three of their words correctly. Eachstory can be as short as two or three sentences,or it can be longer, depending upon the age andwriting level of your students. With youngerstudents, you may ask them to select just oneor two of their chosen words to include in astory, or you may skip this step of the activity.10. Students can write their stories on the backof their worksheets. A ruled back page to photocopyis included for this purpose (p. 17). Alternatively,this may be an occasion when youwant students to develop their word-processingskills by composing their stories on the computersthey used for their vocabulary investigations.The back of the worksheet can also beleft open for brainstorming and outlining priorto composition.LESSON EXTENSIONSExplore the vocabulary. Talk together aboutthe words the students chose and why theywere interested in those words. What were themost surprising or interesting things your studentsdiscovered as they researched? You canmake a simple graph on the board showing themost and least popular words.Share the stories. Ask students who chose towrite about one or more of the same words toread their work aloud, so that everyone can hearhow the words were used by different writers.Find out who used words that no one else in theclass used, and ask those students to read theirwork aloud. Be certain that every student whowould like to has the opportunity to read aloudand to receive praise for her or his writing.Look up other words. Have your studentscomplete the “Looking Up” activity more thanonce, but select different words from the worksheeteach time. You can also ask your studentsto select words that they are interested in thatappear in the “Picture Dictionary” but do notappear on the worksheet. PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 15

EARTH, MOON & SUNName ________________________________________________________LOOKING UP: WORDS IN EARTH, MOON & SUNAll these words are used in the Earth, Moon & Sun show. They are also in NASA’s “Picture Dictionary” (http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/k-4/dictionary/index.html).Circle three words that you want to learn more about.AstronautExperimentRotateSpaceAstronomyLunar EclipseSeasonSpace WalkAtmosphereOrbitSolarTelescopeEnergyPlanetsSolar EclipseUniverseWord 1: _____________________________________________________________Definition: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Word 2: _____________________________________________________________Definition: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Word 3: _____________________________________________________________Definition: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Use your three words in a story. Remember to use complete sentences when you are writing. Your teacher will tell you howlong your story should be and if you should write your story on the back of this worksheet or on another piece of paper. Use yourimagination and have fun writing your story!PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 16

EARTH, MOON & SUN___________________________________________________________Written by ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 17

EARTH, MOON & SUNName ________________________________________________________LOOKING UP: TOPICS IN EARTH, MOON & SUNAll these topics are connected to the Earth, Moon & Sun show. They are also covered in NASA’s “Homework Topics” (http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/5-8/features/homework-topics-index.html).What Is Antarctica?What Was the Apollo Program?Who Is Neil Armstrong?What Is Earth?What’s an Orbit?What Is a Rocket?Circle your chosen topic. As you read about this topic, note any facts that you would like to remember when you write yourshort story, poem, or song. Use the back of this worksheet to make sketches of interesting details you find in the photographs orillustrations that NASA has provided with each topic .Notes:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The most interesting fact about this topic:_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Four words on the topic page that rhyme with each other. (At least two of the words must have two or more syllables.)________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Write a short story, poem, or song that includes your chosen topic. An important requirement of this assignment is thatyou must use accurate scientific information even when you are writing from your imagination. Your teacher will tell you howlong your piece of writing should be. Have fun writing!PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 18

EARTH, MOON & SUNABOUT NAVAJO STORY-TELLING TRADITIONSINFORMATION FOR TEACHERSAdapted from Robert W. Young’s introduction to Navajo Tales, first published in 1949[The collection called Navajo Tales provides anhistorical snapshot, taken more than 60 yearsago, of story-telling traditions that seemed, then,to be passing away. Robert W. Young likened thetales arising from these traditions to “the multitudeof stories and fables inherited from theancient Greek, Roman, Celtic and Germanic story-tellers,which have delighted and instructedcountless generations of people.”While times and customs change, as Young mentions,today’s students can and do continue to enjoyNavajo and other Native American tales. Becausemodes of communication are also changing, studentscan—through a search of the Internet, forinstance—readily discover that there is a widespreadand active interest in preserving, understanding,and learning from this literary heritage.]During the last decade or so, many of thecustoms which formerly characterized theNavajo people have tended to disappear.Among these apparently dying customs is that ofstory-telling.Not many years ago, few Navajos had access torapid modes of travel to visit neighboring towns.Few went to movies, or to other types of commercializedentertainment. In fact, few knewhow to read and write, for there were not manyschools, and the white man’s education was notalways something to be desired from the point ofview of the Navajo of former times.But this did not mean that there was a completelack of entertainment and instruction of theyoung. The old way of life maintained certainstandards of right and wrong, and had certainnon-material aspects about which each successivegeneration had to learn. And winter nightsPLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 19

EARTH, MOON & SUNwere long for a family gathered around the ho-people wanted to remain awake as long as possible.So they achieved a dual purpose of instructionand entertainment by telling stories.The story-telling period usually began in the fall,spiders, lizards, snakes and other hibernatingcreatures had crept to their winter resting places.A child might be sleepy, but his father, grandfather,mother, or others of the older generationwould awaken him and tell him to listen to a story.The story might take the form of history;; itmight tell of clan origins, clan interrelationships,or clan taboos. Again, it might be a portion of thelegend connected with a certain ceremony.Often such stories as the latter served to instructthe young with regard to right and wrong, andmany times the characters would be personi- pitched voice with a nasal quality to imitate thespeech of the animals, much to the delight of thelittle folk in his audience. A story might illustratethe fact that the strong should not use theirstrength to take things from the weak. Whateverthe moral, the narrator might enlarge upon it atthe end of the tale to be sure that it was properlyimpressed upon the hearer.This was Navajo education of a former day.“School was out” in the early spring when thedays lengthened, and the various creatures cameout of their winter hiding places.[“Coyote and Crow,” the tale included in theEarth, Moon & Sun guide, comes from NavajoTales.]Navajo Tales contains adaptations of several Navajostories. Their purpose is to provide familiarmaterials to Navajo children who are learning toread. To keep the stories at the vocabulary levelof children learning to read, it was necessary totell each story within a selected group of Englishwords and to repeat the selected vocabularyas much as possible. Consequently, the form andlanguage of the tales vary radically from thosewhich characterized the original versions. But thesubject matter—the theme of each narrative—iswholly Navajo. _______________________________________Adapted from Coyote Tales in the “Navajo Life Series”(Division of Education, Bureau of Indian Affairs, 1949).Collected by William Morgan. Navaho text and translationby Robert W. Young. English adaptation by HildegardThompson.The illustrations—one of which accompanies “Coyoteand Crow” in this Earth, Moon & Sun guide—are byAndrew Tsihnahjinnie (1916-2000), an important Navajoartist.PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 20

EARTH, MOON & SUNABOUT COYOTESINFORMATION FOR TEACHERSAdapted from materials created by the National Park ServiceCoyotes are small mammals, about the sizeof a medium-sized dog. They vary widelyin coloration, ranging from an almost puregray to a red-brown. The fur is generally muchthicker in winter, giving the animal a heavierappearance, with the summer coat being muchshorter and lighter.A wide variety of habitats all across the UnitedStates can be called home for the coyote, whichis found in both grasslands and forests. Eachindividual coyote or coyote pack has a hometerritory that is used on a regular basis, but notactively defended except during mating periodsand when the coyote pups are in their dens.The dens of coyotes can also be found in a varietyof places, including rocky ledges, brushyCALIFORNIA VALLEY COYOTE (CANIS LATRANS OCHROPUS) IN THE SAN GABRIEL MOUNTAINS. PHOTOGRAPH BY JUSTIN JOHNSENPLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 21

EARTH, MOON & SUNslopes, hollow logs, even small caves. Sometimesthe shelters of other small animals areused.Coyotes mate only once a year, between Marchand April. The pups are born blind and helplessabout two months later. The young are caredfor by the mother and other helpers, usuallysiblings from a previous year.The adult males of the pack help rear the youngby bringing food to the mother and later, afterweaning, to the pups themselves. The pupsemerge from the den in about three weeks,playful and ready to learn from their parentshow to fend for themselves. This learning relationshipoften lasts for about a year.Most research has shown that coyotes usuallyfeed on small mammals and birds. They do notfeed heavily on livestock or larger ungulates(like elk, deer, or bison) unless these animalsare already dead or dying. Coyotes depend onvarious senses to locate their prey, with sight,hearing, and smell being most important—usuallyin that order.Coyotes may be active throughout the day, butthey are more easily seen early in the morningand around sunset. _______________________________________Adapted from National Park Service. (2006, April 29).Coyote: canis latrans. Retrieved from http://www.nps.gov/archive/wica/coyote.htmNOTE: The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commissionalso provides a very useful two-page documentwith information about our state’s coyote population:http://www.ncwildlife.org/Wildlife_Species_Con/Pro-PLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 22

EARTH, MOON & SUNABOUT THE SUNINFORMATION FOR TEACHERSAdapted from materials created by NASA Science and Solar and Heliospheric ObservatoryThe Sun gives us heat, light, our food, andthe air that we breathe. It powers the atmosphereto give us the winds and rain. Eventhe coal and oil that generate electricity forlight and power come from plants and animalsthat lived hundreds of millions of years ago anddepended on the Sun for life.The Sun heats the land, oceans, and air. It evaporateswater from lakes and oceans. When thewater vapor cools, it drops as rain or snow, givingus the moisture we need for drinking waterand for plants and animals to grow.The energy produced through fusion in theSun’s core powers the Sun and produces all ofthe heat and light that we receive here on Earth.The process by which energy escapes from theSun is very complex. Since we can’t see insidethe Sun, most of what astronomers know aboutthis subject comes from combining theoreticalmodels of the Sun’s interior with observationalfacts such as the Sun’s mass, surface temperature,and luminosity (total amount of energyoutput from the surface).The Sun is an average star. There are other starsthat are much hotter or much cooler, and intrinsicallymuch brighter or fainter. However,since it is by far the closest star to the Earth, itPLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 23

EARTH, MOON & SUNlooks bigger and brighter in our sky than anyother star. The Sun’s diameter is about 1.4 millionkilometers (860,000 miles). It would take110 Earths strung together to equal the diameterof the Sun.The Sun is mostly made up of hydrogen (about92.1% of the number of atoms, 75% of themass). Helium can also be found in the Sun(7.8% of the number of atoms and 25% of themass). The other 0.1% is made up of heavierelements, mainly carbon, nitrogen, oxygen,neon, magnesium, silicon, and iron. The Sunis neither a solid nor a gas but is actually plasma.This plasma is tenuous and gaseous nearthe surface, but gets denser down towards theSun’s fusion core.Stars like the Sun shine for nine to ten billionyears. The Sun is judged to be about 4.5 billionyears old. _______________________________________Adapted from National Aeronautics and Space Administration.(2010, April 5). NASA science for kids: our sun.Retrieved from http://science.nasa.gov/kids/kids-sun/Adapted from Solar and Heliospheric Observatory.(2010, March 22). Our star the sun. Retrieved fromhttp://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/classroom/classroom.htmlPLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 24

EARTH, MOON & SUNKEY SCIENTIFIC VOCABULARYYour students will be exposed to these sci- Earth, Moon &Sun. Afterward, you may wish to exploreseveral further in your classroom by incorporatingthem into discussions of the show andinto follow-up lesson plans, including a writingassignment.atmosphere. The gases that surround a planet,moon, or star.climate. The average weather in different regionsof the Earth.energy. The capacity for doing work.erosion. The result of being worn away becauseof water, wind, or glacial ice.gravity. A physical force that pulls objects together.hemisphere. Half of a sphere. The Earth isdivided into northern, southern, eastern, andwestern hemispheres.horizon. An imaginary circle that marks theboundaries of the sky and the Earth, or an extensionof the plane of the observer.maria. Dark plains on the Moon caused bynuclear fusion. An atomic reaction in whichmany nuclei combine together to make a largerone. The result of this process is the release ofa large amount of energy. The Sun is poweredby nuclear fusion, like all stars, converting hydrogeninto helium.orbit. A path that an object takes as it revolvesaround another object.photosynthesis. This process, which involvesthe Sun, turns carbon dioxide to oxygen.rotation. To turn once around an axis.seasons. Spring, summer, fall, and winter. Theseasons are caused by the tilt of the Earth’s axis.solar eclipse. This is what happens when theMoon blocks our view of the Sun.sundial.object called a “GNoman” to project a shadow,enabling it to use the Sun’s light to tell time.sunspots. Dark patches on the Sun’s surfacethat are thousands of degrees cooler than therest of the luminous surface.telescope. An instrument that makes distantobjects such as the stars appear closer, lettinghumans see things in space.Adapted from www.learnnc.organd www.dictionary.comPLANETS, Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27599© 2010, 2011 by Morehead Planetarium and Science Center 25