This is a multi-day culminating activity based on Wonders Unit 4 weeks 3-4.  Students will use the Wonders materials provided in the Reading/Writing companion, as well as their Literature Anthology to identify and describe the moon phases. Partners will get a moon phase card.  They will work together to program the robot to reach the appropriate moon phase to match the card on the map.  For an optional extension activity, students can create an audio recording to describe the moon phase that they were assigned.  Encourage students to utilize text for support of identification and description of moon phases.

In this activity, students research the phases of the moon and then play a game to review the phases.

Students will model the Moon's orbit around Earth and how this causes the various phases of the moon that we view from Earth.

In this four minute animation, students are introduced to the phases of the moon with a Phases of the Moon rock song. Students are encouraged to sing along with the lyrics as they appear in the animation.

In this three minute video, the phases of the moon are named and explained. The video shows why the moon appears to change shape and points out when to best observe the moon and how ancient cultures used the phases of the moon to mark time.

This course was created by the Rethink Education Content Development Team. This course is aligned to the NC Standards for 4th Grade Science. 

This course was created by the Rethink Education Content Development Team. This course is aligned to the NC Standards for 4th Grade Science.

In this lesson, students learn about moon phases and eclipses through hands-on modeling.

Students will learn about the position of the sun and moon in the sky to develop an understanding of relative distances, the appearance of movement across the sky, and relate it to day and night, Earth's orbit, the spin of the Earth, and the visible shape of the moon.