4th Grade Science

Jamilyn Keele
11/2/2020

Worksheets attached to the bottom of the lesson

Assumed a 1:1 classroom with iPads

LESSON RATIONALE
In this lesson, students will learn about how the moon appears to change everyday. This lesson is
important for students to understand the way earth fits into our solar system. Understanding the
planets and the balance that our solar system is in will connect to the big idea and prepare
students for success in their understanding of earth.

READINESS
I. Goals/Objectives/Standard(s)
A. Goals
1. When students complete the lesson, they will be able to explain why the
moon changes everyday and how the sun affects the moon.
B. Objective
1. Upon completion of the investigative activity, students will discover that
the sun is the source of light that reflects off the moon and students will be
able to explain why the moon changes every day.
2. After students complete the independent worksheet, they will be able to
name the phases of the moon.
C. Standards
1. 4.ESS.1 Investigate how the moon appears to move through the sky and it
changes day to day, emphasizing the importance of how the moon impacts
the earth, the rising and setting times, and solar and lunar eclipses
II. Management Plan
A. Time 45 min
1. Anticipatory set - 5 minutes
2. Input - 6 minutes
3. Guided Practice (Inquiry based discovery) - 20 minutes
4. Independent Practice - 10 minutes
5. Review/Closure - 4 minutes
B. Space
1. Students will complete the Anticipatory set at their desks for independent
work on the picture with the Miras
2. Students will remain at their desks for the input/instruction portion of the
lesson. They will not need to move during this time because they will be
listening to the teacher.
 3. Students will move their desks to work in groups for the investigation
portion of the lesson. They will be in table groups all around the room to
work on their experiment in their science lab groups.
4. After the lab, students will move into partner/independent work on a
worksheet. They will be all around the room to find space to work without
disturbing other classmates
5. Students will move back to their desks for the review/closure portion of
the lesson. This is time for a review and students will be seated at their
desk and listening or sharing with a partner.
C. Materials
1. Mira(s)
2. Paper with clothes and person (Anticipatory Set)
3. Experiment sheets
4. Independent practice worksheets
5. Cake pops (earth and moon)
6. Clay stands (for cake pops)
7. Flashlight
8. Green duct tape
9. Directions
10. Pencils
11. Laminated moon phases
12. Paper
13. Expo Marker
D. Behavior
1. Students will listen quietly during instruction. They will raise their hands
to answer questions. Students will not be distracting. If students need to
take a brain break or go for a walk to refocus their brains, then they may
do that.
2. Students will follow all safety procedures in the
investigation/experimentation portion of this lesson. They will listen to the
teacher and practice safe science habits. They will be reminded of their
safety precautions and protocols before beginning the experiment. If they
violate or break a rule, they will not participate in the experiment
anymore.
3. Students will work in groups for their investigation. They will work well
together and respect each other's ideas. Positive collaboration is the
expectation for students.
4. Students will work independently on their worksheets or with a partner,
depending on their choice. They will work quietly enough to be respectful
of other partner groups working together. They will work diligently and
accomplish the work asked of them during class.
III. Anticipatory Set
A. “You are going to receive a piece of paper that has a boy or girl that needs to be
dressed. There are different clothing options along the sides that you can choose
from. Using your mira, you will angle the paper to line up the clothes and then
draw them on the person. I will demonstrate how to line up the clothes and then
you can try it one your own.” Make sure every student has a Mira and piece of
paper. Demonstrate the way to move a Mira to line up the clothes onto the
person.
B. “Great job! Our time is up for this activity, but share with the person next to you
which clothes you chose and how your drawing turned out! Real quick!”
IV. Purpose Statement
A. “Today we are going to be learning about how and why the moon appears to
change everyday through the moon cycle. It is important to understand not only
the balance of our world, but the balance and stability that the moon creates in our
world.”

PLAN FOR INSTRUCTION

V. Adaptations
A. ELL
1. There will be visual direction sheets for the experiment so that students
can look at what they need to be doing if they cannot read the directions or
even listen to the directions
2. Students will be working in groups. ELL will be in groups with their
buddy so that they have at least one familiar person to collaborate with or
ask for assistance (the teacher will be walking around the room and
assisting students as needed)
B. ADHD
1. Students will be involved in a very hands-on experience for the majority
of the lesson. If students need to take a walk or visit the brain break
station, they may do so to allow themselves to refocus for the instruction
portion of the lesson.
2. Students can use a grippy for their pencil or a seat cushion to help
stimulate their brain if that will allow them to focus better on the
instruction and independent worksheet portion of the lesson
C. Sensory
1. Students will be working in groups so if they do not want to touch or
move the cake pops, they may have a different group member do so
2. They can use speech to text on an iPad instead of using a pen/pencil to
record their notes (an electronic version of the lab worksheet will be
provided for iPad use)
VI. Lesson Presentation
A. Input
1. “So have you ever looked up at the sky during the day or the night and
found the moon? Does it look the same every time you see it or does it
change?” Responses should be that it changes every time. “Right,
whenever I see the moon, it always seems to be different. These are called
phases of the moon. Phases means a specific stage in a series of events.
These different phases all have their own names.” Hang the laminated
pictures up of the moon at each phase. This way the students can have a
reference for what the phases of the moon look like while they do the
investigation and independent worksheet.
2. The photos of the moon should be placed in a circle (around a picture of
the earth) and then the teacher can label them. “Alright so the moon
moves in a counterclockwise direction. The phases of the moon begin with
the New Moon, Waxing Crescent, First Quarter, Waxing Gibbous, Full
Moon, Waning Gibbous, Third Quarter, Waning Crescent, and back to the
New Moon. For today, we will only be focusing on four phases of the
moon. The New Moon, First Quarter, Full Moon, and then the Third
Quarter. They will all be labeled up here for the remainder of the lesson.
The moon moves around the earth in this direction over the time period of
28 days or about a month. The moon does not have its own light source,
but rather reflects light.”
3. “In our investigation, we are going to focus on why and how the moon
changes over time. Where does the moon get light from? These are the
two questions that we are going to be investigating in our experiment
today. What questions do you have about the moon so far? Take out a
piece of paper and pencil and write down questions or things that you
want to learn about the moon.” Allow time for students to write down their
questions and curiosities. “Alright share with the person next to you about
what you want to know about the moon.” Give students time to share and
talk to one another about their questions.
B. Guided practice
1. “Before our investigation, I want everyone to look over our science
experiment safety rules. Re-read the rules aloud with me.” Read the rules
aloud with students in a choral reading. “You know these rules. You and
your parents or guardian signed the lab safety requirement agreement. If
you are not following these rules or safety guidelines, you will not
participate in the investigation.”
2. “For our investigation today, we are going to be experimenting with the
way that light reflects off of the sun. Why does the moon look like it's
changing in the sky? We know that the moon does not have a source of
light, so how does it look like it has a light source at night? You have
 investigation sheets in front of you. Based on the question at the top of the
paper, I want you to develop a hypothesis for the question: How does the
moon change every day? What is the source of light? There are two parts
to this investigation, but you will be able to discover the answer to both
questions during this investigation. You will need to provide justification
for your answer to the investigation question. What questions do you have
so far?” Answer all questions that students have.
3. “Before we begin the investigation, I want you all to write your
hypothesis. You will have a couple minutes right now to develop your
hypothesis.” Give them time to write their hypothesis.
4. “Alright now that you have your hypothesis for this investigation, we can
start our experiment. This investigation involves cake pops, which you
CANNOT EAT until the very end of the experiment. The cake pops are
going to represent Earth and the moon. All groups should have a circle on
your table made out of clay holders. There is one in the center and four
along the circle. The BIGGEST cake pop should be placed in the center
and the smaller cake pop will move along the outside in the other clay
holders. There are directions and pictures for each investigation table so
you all have a visual and verbal print out of the directions. The flashlight
is to represent the sun and should be held at the level of the moon on the
green duct tape. Using your experiment sheet, draw what the moon pop
looks like with the light from the ‘sun’ (flashlight). You can write down
observations that you have around each circle or you can write down
questions you want to know or you don’t understand. You have about 20
minutes to collect your data and record your results. What questions do
you have for me?” Answer any questions they have.
5. “When you are using the flashlight for the moon behind the earth, angle
the flashlight up so the earth isn’t in the way because in the actual solar
system the move is higher up and tilted, so the earth is not in the way.”
6. “There are eight phases of the moon, but in this investigation we will only
be looking at 4 phases.”
7. New moon (in between flashlight and earth), half moon (light on half the
moon), full moon (light from flashlight on the whole thing), half moon
(shadow on the other side), back to new moon
8. “When you have finished your experiment, please answer the last two
questions to the best of your ability and we will go over the answers once
everyone has finished. You may collaborate with your other group
members on these questions. Reach a conclusion together that you will
share with the class in a few minutes.” Give the class time to answer the
last two questions and discuss what they will share with the class.
 9. “Alright, each group will share with us what they discovered through the
experiment.” Go around the room and have each group share their
conclusion and their reasoning for that conclusion. Make sure to tell them
that the light source is the sun and that the moon reflects light from the
sun and that’s why it appears to change every day.
C. Independent practice
1. “Now that we understand why and how the moon changes, we are going to
look at the different phases of the moon. All of the phases have names. I
have a worksheet for you guys to complete. The first half of the moon
phases are on the left sheet of the paper. Using your Miras that we used in
the beginning activity, I want you to complete the moon phase cycle. After
you have completed the drawing, you are going to watch this video on
your iPad with a partner and correctly label all the phases of the moon. I
want you to write down at least two interesting facts you heard in the
video on the back of the paper. If you need to rewatch the video to get
your two facts, then you may do so as time allows. What questions do you
have for me about these directions?” Answer any questions that students
may have.
VII. Check for Understanding
A. Groups will share their conclusion with the class. This allows the teacher to
quickly see if students understood the experiment and reached the correct
understanding or conclusion. What may need to be retaught?
B. Teachers will collect the worksheet from the independent practice along with the
experiment sheet. This will be used as a summative assessment and will inform
what instruction needs to happen for the teacher. What needs to be retaught and
what do students know and understand?
VIII. Review Learning Outcomes/ Closure
A. “I want you to pull the paper with your questions about the moon back out. Talk
with your partner about whether or not any of your questions were answered.
Write down if you have other questions that have come up or if you learned
something interesting that you wanna remember.” Allow time for students to
share with one another and collaborate about what they’ve learned and what they
still want to learn.
B. “Make sure to keep that paper in your science folder/binder so you can pull it
back out later. The moon is a part of what keeps our world in balance. The
changes and phases of the moon keep our world in stability. The sun, moon, and
earth work together to create that stability.”
PLAN FOR ASSESSMENT
● Formative
○ The teacher will walk around during the investigation portion and make sure
students are doing well with the experiment and are on task. The teacher can
 provide support with what students should be looking for and gathering
information on. The teacher can assess what may need to be retaught or taught.
○ The teacher listens to the responses of investigation groups when they share their
conclusion and reasoning with the class. This will inform teachers quickly if
students obtained the desired results.
○ The teacher will walk around the room during the independent worksheet activity.
The teacher can then assist students who may need extra help or direction with
their worksheets. The teacher will be able to tell which students have a grasp of
the concept that the moon changes and what causes those changes.
● Summative
○ The teacher will collect their experiment sheet to take for a grade (participation).
The teacher will also use this sheet to inform further instruction. What may need
to be retaught, what did students learn (hypothesis to conclusion), and what do
they still have questions about?
○ The teacher will collect the independent worksheet to inform instruction. What
needs to be retaught? What do students know? What further knowledge do
students need?

REFLECTION AND POST-LESSON ANALYSIS

1. How many students achieved the lesson objective(s)? For those who did not, why not?
2. What were my strengths and weaknesses?
3. How should I alter this lesson?
4. How would I pace it differently?
5. Were all students actively participating? If not, why not?
6. What adjustments did I make to reach varied learning styles and ability levels?
7. Do students understand the cycle of the moon?
8. What needs to be retaught for students to understand the moon cycle?
9. What else should students know about the moon in connection with the big idea?