Sunday, April 21, 2013

Phases of the Moon

We've been studying the phases of the moon for a couple of weeks and it has been a lot of fun. The students have been keeping a moon journal for the month and will finish up a complete moon phase this week. Then we get to cut it out and make it into a flip book!

I explained the moon phases with the class and they each created a moon phase wheel in their notebooks. Anything that involves cutting, gluing, and brads seems to be much more interesting to students (and teachers!).


 Then, I blew their minds! It's difficult for students to understand that the moon always has a light side (that reflects sunlight) and a dark side, and that it doesn't rotate like the Earth does. A few weeks ago Teachingisagift serendipitously posted her moon phases board and I knew I HAD to make it. Unfortunately my Dollar Tree wasn't stocked as well as her's, so I ended up with a blue foam board and ping pong balls. I used dark blue paint to paint one half of them and then hot glued them around a circle I had cut in it (a big mixing bowl worked great for a stencil). And the result was fantastic! All you do is stick your head in and...instant moon phases!


It was difficult to get decent photos, I think the florescent light in my room is making the photos funky. But you get the idea. 

Next we found the Moon Phases Rap on YouTube and the students love it! We've played many times and a student will randomly burst out in song during the day. Needless to say it's been stuck in my head for several days. I even had a group of boys buy the song on iTunes and tell me they had it on their iPods! The class wants to sing it in our year-end talent show...we'll see if they can get it memorized! 




I'm totally behind on TpT projects (sorry to anyone waiting for the next version of Calendar Math!!! I haven't forgotten!) but I keep getting distracted by mini TpT projects. This was one of them...

5 comments:

  1. Don't you just love when they all start singing? We learned the figurative language rap this year... five months later and it's still stick in my head!

    Have a good week ahead...

    Kim
    Finding JOY in 6th Grade

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  2. Kim, I had to look up the figurative language rap...I love it!

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  3. Very creative idea =) Another way I have seen it done is with Oreos. I made the Full and New moon. You can see it here :http://misssara2008.blogspot.com/2013/03/oreos.html


    Sara

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  4. Are you familiar with the turtle moon calendar?

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  5. Mama Nature - I was not until I read you comment and looked it up! How fabulous! I've pinned it for use next school year. Thanks!

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