Winter, spring, summer, and fall—take the learning of the seasons beyond the elementary level to the middle school classroom. Curious learners begin by watching videos about the seasons and the rotation of planet Earth. Then, they collaborate and share their thoughts before participating in two experiments. Young scientists discover how the angle of rays from the sun directly affect the temperature of the Earth.

Concepts

seasonal change, the four seasons, the earth's axis, the earth's tilt, the earth's orbit, daylight, the lunar cycle, sunlight, the sun, the moon

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Additional Tags

science

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Instructional Ideas

• Flip the classroom and assign the links to the videos to be watched by learners as homework
• Have your scientists use comic creation apps to explain their scientific investigation and findings 

Classroom Considerations

• Calls for some materials that are not usually found in the classroom for the activities 

Pros

• Step-by-step directions provide for easy conducting of the experiment
• Designed for Next Generation Science Standards

Cons

• None

Common Core

W.6.2.a W.7.2.a W.8.2.a SL.6.4 SL.7.4 SL.8.4 RST.6-8.6 RST.6-8.7 RST.6-8.8 RST.6-8.9