Starter quiz
- What is the best description of the shape of Earth?
- flat, like a pancake
- nearly spherical, like a slightly flat football ✓
- an oval - narrow at the sides and big in the middle, like a rugby ball
- narrow at one end and wide at the other, like an egg
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- Starting with the smallest, put these objects in order of increasing size.
- 1⇔Earth's Moon
- 2⇔Earth
- 3⇔Jupiter
- 4⇔the Sun
- How long does it take for Earth to spin once on its axis?
- 24 minutes
- 24 hours ✓
- 24 days
- 28 days
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- Which statement correctly explains why we have day and night.
- The Sun goes round Earth once every day.
- The Moon goes round Earth once every day.
- During the day we face the Sun and during the night we face the Moon.
- During the day we face the Sun and during the night we face away from the Sun. ✓
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- Which is the correct statement about Earth, the Moon, the Sun and the stars?
- they are all round like footballs ✓
- Earth and the Sun are round but the Moon and the stars are pointed
- Earth, the Sun and the stars are round but the Moon changes its shape
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- Which is the correct explanation for why stars seem to move across the sky?
- stars orbit Earth
- Earth is spinning ✓
- they are satellites
- the Sun's gravity pulls the stars around Earth
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Exit quiz
- Which is the best description for the shape of Earth?
- a flat disc
- a sphere ✓
- a flat rectangle like a football pitch
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What is the name of the imaginary line about which Earth spins?- meridian
- pole
- equator
- axis ✓
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- In which direction does Earth spin?
- from east to west ✓
- from west to east
- from north to south
- from south to north
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In winter in the UK, (northern hemisphere) the constellation Orion is visible in the night sky. Which two statements correctly explain why?- Earth is between the Sun and Orion ✓
- the Sun is between Earth and Orion
- Orion is between Earth and the Sun
- Earth faces away from Orion at night time
- Earth faces towards Orion at night time ✓
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- Put these seasons in the correct order, starting with summer.
- 1⇔summer
- 2⇔autumn
- 3⇔winter
- 4⇔spring
How long does it take for the Moon to orbit Earth?- about 7 days
- about 28 days ✓
- about 31 days
- about 365 days
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Worksheet
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Lesson Details
Key learning points
- Earth is a planet. It is a sphere that spins once every 24 hours.
- Earth's spin explains day and night.
- Earth orbits the Sun, with each orbit taking 365.25 days (1 year).
- Earth orbits the Sun in a circle so stays the same distance from the Sun all year.
- The Moon orbits the Earth about once per month (27.3 days), this explains why the Moon appears to change shape.
Common misconception
Pupils can find it challenging to see how the movements of Earth as seen from the perspective of space (looking back at Earth) give rise to the observations experienced from Earth's surface.
Model the motions of objects in space with pupils as part of the model (i.e. representing Earth, moving as Earth moves) and with pupils observing the model. This enables them to experience how the same motion appears from both perspectives.
Keywords
Sphere - A sphere is the shape of a ball.
Spin - Spinning objects are rotating.
Day - One day is the time taken for Earth to complete one spin (24 hours).
Orbit - An orbit is the movement of one object in a loop around another object.
Year - One year is the time taken for Earth to orbit the Sun (365.25 days).
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