EdTPA Indirect Instruction Lesson Plan Template

All About Moon Craters

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Central Focus/Big Idea: This concept aligns with outer space and the moon. This standard
could be taught in multiple lessons because you could teach about the rest of the planets in the
solar system, the sun, or the stars.
Subject of this lesson: Moon Craters
Grade Level: 3rd grade
NC Essential Standard(s): 3.E.1.1: Recognize that the earth is part of a system called the solar
system that includes the sun (a star), planets, and many moons and the earth is the third planet
from the sun in our solar system.
Next Generation Science Standard(s): 4-ESS1-1. Identify evidence from patterns in rock
formations and fossils in rock layers to support an explanation for changes in a landscape over
time.
Four Strands of Science Learning: Stand 1 is in this lesson because students will learn about
moon craters and how they are on all planets, including ours, which will help them see the
relevance in their own world. Strands 2 and 4 are used during the sugar and marble activity, 2
because students will be collecting data based on their findings, and 4 because they will be
working together in groups to figure it out.
21st Century Skills: Critical thinking while students are analyzing the moon craters and
looking at the crater pictures on the website. Students will use collaboration while students are
working in groups in the sugar and marble activity.
Academic Language Demand

Language Function: I chose analyze because students will be analyzing the craters on the
moon. Most students will know what a crater is, but in this lesson they will analyze the
crater deeper than they have before.

Analyze

Argue

Categorize

Interpret

Predict

Question

Compare/contras
t
Retell

Describe

Explain

Summarize

Scientific Vocabulary: Craters, meteor, meteorite, and hypothesis

Instructional Objective: The teacher will know if the students understand based on their
answers on their worksheet, and the picture that they drew on the bottom. If the students

answers make sense then they understood what they were doing during the activity. If students
can correctly point out the meteors from the online pictures then they understand what a meteor
looks like.
Prior Knowledge (student): Students should already know what and where the moon and outer
space is.
Content Knowledge (teacher): Teachers should know that craters are on every planet in the
solar system. Craters are caused by meteors or meteorites crashing into planets, and when they
crash they leave a crater behind. When you see a meteor shower in the sky those are meteors
flying through space.
Connections to Students Lives: I will make this relevant to students by talking about meteor
showers and how they can look up in the sky on certain days and see a meteor shower
themselves.
Accommodations for special needs: When students are working with the sugar in their trays the
teacher will pay special attention to the group who has students with special needs. The teacher
will make sure they understand the task, the worksheet, and that they are staying on task during
the activity.
Materials and Technology requirements: 2 bags of sugar, 3 trays to put the sugar in, about 20
marbles, smart board, 20 copies of the worksheet
Total Estimated Time: 45 minutes
Source of lesson: I got the original idea from brainstorming with my CT, but I also used
http://www.cotf.edu/ETE/modules/msese/dinosaurflr/ecraters.html and they YouTube video
Persied Meteor Shower.
Safety considerations: The teacher will always be in the classroom to watch over students and
make sure they are safe, sugar will be used during the activity because that is safe for students to
touch and play with.
Content and Strategies (Procedure)
Engage: On the projector, show various pictures of the moon and its craters. Ask students how
they think those craters are formed and let them answer and guess.
Explore: Students will work with their table; they will receive a tray of sand and marbles. First,
students will make a hypothesis about what they think is going to happen to the sand. Then,
students will take turns dropping the marbles in the sand from different heights and then making
notes about what they found on the worksheet provided.

Explanation: Show YouTube video (Persied Meteor Shower 2013). Explain that those
shooting objects are meteors (basically giant rocks), which crash into the moon causing those
craters. Talk with the class about the activity you just did; ask questions like, What happened
when you dropped bigger items into the sand? What about when you dropped the item from
higher up? Have a class discussion about how the objects affected the sand and how that relates
to what is happening to the moon. Also talk about how there are craters on every planet in the
solar system, including the earth.
Elaborate: Pull up the website
http://www.cotf.edu/ETE/modules/msese/dinosaurflr/ecraters.html This website has pictures of
craters on Earth taken from space, then when you click on the picture it shows where the crater
is. Pull up each picture individually and have students point to where the crater is. Have the
students guess and then show where the crater is in the picture, discuss the picture as a class. Ask
students How did you know that was where the crater was? Are these craters big or small?
Evaluate: Students will turn in their note sheet from the Explore phase so the teacher can look
over to see their observations and to make sure that they stayed on task and got their work done.
This will be an informal assessment and not for a grade.
CT signature/confirmation: _________________________________ Date: ________________
**I sent this lesson plan electronically to my CT so she was not able sign it, instead I had her
sign the bottom of my teacher feedback form.