Sun, Moon and Shadows

A student is observing 3 very bright stars on a diagram. Which question below should help the student understand which star is the brightest?

• How can each star appear in the same pattern and place each night?

• Why does one star look bigger than the others?

• Why are the stars different colors?

• What shape is the star?

A woodchuck is investigating how the sun changes his own shadow.

What else can the woodchuck do to learn about the sun and his shadow?

• The woodchuck will learn everything he needs to know with one observation.

• The woodchuck should come outside at different times of the day.

• The woodchuck should come outside at the same time every day.

• The woodchuck should come when it is raining outside.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

A picture is drawn of a shadow created by the sun on a tree.

How would the shadow be different if the sun was at the top of the sky in the middle of the day?

• The shadow would not change throughout the day.

• The shadow would be much longer in length.

• The shadow would be much shorter in length.

• The shadow would disappear in the middle of the day.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

A student takes a picture and then shows the class. The class is trying to figure out what time of day the image could have been taken.

Which of the following explanations BEST describes the time period?

• This was taken in the evening because the sun is low and casts long shadows.

• This was taken in the evening because the shadows are the same size as the kids.

• This was taken in the middle of the day because the sun is high and casts long shadows.

• This was taken in the middle of the day because the shadows are the same size as the kids.

Tags

NGSS.5-ESS1-2

A student learned that the Sun is a star. What question could students ask to figure out why the sun appears to be brighter and bigger than other stars?

• How many stars are there in the Milky Way?

• What caused the Sun to become the biggest star in the universe?

• What is the color of the Sun?

• What is the distance between Earth and the Sun compared to other stars?

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-3

One night, Timothy and Andy were looking at the stars. Timothy pointed to the North Star and said, "That is Polaris. It is a very big star. It is much bigger than our Sun." Andy did not agree with Timothy. Why would Andy think the sun is bigger than Polaris? Pick the best choice.

• Andy thinks the sun is bigger than Polaris because the sun is the hottest star.

• Andy thinks the sun is bigger than Polaris because the sun is yellow.

• Andy thinks the sun is bigger than Polaris because the sun is closer to earth.

• Andy thinks the sun is bigger than Polaris because the sun is the biggest star.

Read the sentence and answer the question.

Sarah made the claim that the sun may look giant to us but it really is not very big compared to other stars.

What evidence could Sarah use to defend her claim?

• The sun is yellow.

• The sun is the largest star.

• The sun is the brightest star.

• The sun is the closest star to Earth.

Look at the diagram to the left.

Based on the diagram, which statement explains how big the sun is compared to the other stars?

• The sun is a medium sized star. There are some stars that are larger than the sun, and some that are smaller.

• All stars are the same size, so the sun is the same size as all of the other stars.

• The sun is the biggest star in the universe. There are no other stars that are larger than it.

• The sun is a small star. All of the stars are bigger than the sun.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-3

Student 1:

The sun is a medium sized star and is dim compared to ALL of the other stars in the universe.

Student 2:

The sun is a medium sized star and appears brighter than all of the other stars in the universe.

Which student do you agree with?

• I agree with Student 1.

• I agree with Student 2.

Four students made claims about the sun in comparison to other stars in the universe. Which student is correct?

• Student A:

  The sun is the largest and brightest star in the universe.

• Student B:

  The sun is the biggest star in the universe, but the dimmest star in the universe.

• Students C:

  The sun is the smallest star in the universe, but one of the brightest stars in the universe.

• None of the students are correct.