PR-0552UK Primary Science - Book 2

Sun facts
Light ~ Activity 5
Objectives
• recognise that the sun gives us
heat and light, without which we
could not survive
• become aware of the dangers of
looking directly at the sun
Working scientifically
• Questioning
• Predicting
• Analysing (sorting and
classifying)
• Recording and communicating
Designing and making
• Exploring
• Making
Background information
The sun is a star around which the
Earth and all of the other planets
in our solar system revolve. The
energy that supports life on Earth
is received from the sun. Humans
have been relying on its heat and
light for a million years. If the sun
was to disappear, animals and plants
would not be able to survive on the
Earth. The rays of the sun bring a
large amount of light to the Earth.
This light is converted to heat energy
within the Earth’s atmosphere, which
holds much of the heat ‘in’.
The sun is made up of 71% hydrogen,
27% helium, and 2% of other, heavier
elements. The temperature near the
centre of the sun is about 16 000
000 ºC.
Half of all new cancers are skin
cancers, caused by overexposure
to the sun.
The sun is an extremely intense
source of light and should not be
looked at directly with human eyes.
Before the lesson
Materials needed
• No extra materials needed.
Preparation
• Draw a picture of a sun on the board or a chart.
The lesson
Stimulus
• Brainstorm words with the pupils to describe the sun and write inside the
picture you have drawn.
• Explain that the word ‘solar’ means ‘having to do with the sun’; therefore ‘solar
energy’ means energy from the sun.
What to do
• Write these headings on the board: ‘Sun Facts’, ‘Sun as our Friend’, ‘Sun as our
Enemy’ and ‘Protection from the Sun’. Read each piece of information with the
pupils and decide which heading it belongs under. Look at the key and colour
the suns to match the heading.
• Ask the class if anyone has accidentally looked at the sun before. What happens?
Explain to the class that the sun is very powerful. If we look at it directly, even
for a few seconds, the light entering the eye is concentrated to a point (as our
eyes work like a magnifying glass) and it can burn the cells of our retina. The
cells can be destroyed and that part of the retina can become blind.
After the lesson
Answers
• Teacher check
Additional activities
• Pupils present the information as a project display. Use a large sheet of
art paper to display on. Select only a set number of facts to describe.
Specialise in ‘Facts’ or ‘Friend’ or ‘Enemy’.
• Pupils make a poster warning of the dangers of the sun.
– Looking directly at the sun.
– Not protecting our skin from the sun’s rays.
Viewing Sample
Display ideas
• In groups pupils make a ‘Sun Mobile’ with facts written on pieces of card and
suspended on string and lengths of cane around the room.
46 PRIMARY SCIENCE ~ Prim-Ed Publishing ~ www.prim-ed.com