Students explore the Universe, its stars, the Earth-Sun-moon system, and how the solar system formed.
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Standards
- MS-ESS1-1. Develop and use a model of the Earth-Sun-moon system to describe the cyclic patterns of lunar phases, eclipses of the Sun and moon, and seasons.
- MS-ESS1-2. Develop and use a model to describe the role of gravity in the motions within galaxies and the solar system.
- MS-ESS1-3. Analyze and interpret data to determine scale properties of objects in the solar system.
Essential Questions and Big Ideas of the Unit
- Why do we need the solar system and how does it impact our life on Earth?
- Patterns of the apparent motion of the sun, the moon, and stars in the sky can be observed, described, predicted, and explained with models. (MS-ESS1-1)
- Earth and its solar system are part of the Milky Way galaxy, which is one of many galaxies in the universe. (MS-ESS1-2)
- The solar system consists of the Sun and a collection of objects, including planets, their moons, comets, and asteroids that are held in orbit around the Sun by its gravitational pull on them. (MS-ESS1-2),(MS-ESS1-3)
- This model of the solar system can explain eclipses of the sun and the moon. Earth’s spin axis is fixed in direction over the short term but tilted relative to its orbit around the sun. The seasons are a result of that tilt and are caused by the differential intensity of sunlight on different areas of Earth across the year. (MS-ESS1-1)
- The solar system appears to have formed from a disk of dust and gas, drawn together by gravity.(MS-ESS1-2)
Download the complete Earth Science – Space Systems framework to customize for your own planning.