Forces and space: Earth and space
Exploring day and night and the movement of the Earth, planets and Moon.
By the end of the unit, pupils will be able to:
- Describe the geocentric and heliocentric models.
- Name and describe the shape of celestial bodies.
- Describe the orbits of celestial bodies in the Solar System and name the force that keeps them in their orbits.
- Describe the orbit of the Moon around the Earth and its phases.
- Explain how day and night occur.
- Explain how the seasons occur.
- Explain how a sundial works.
- List some of the uses of satellites and explain why space junk poses a problem to them.
When working scientifically, pupils will be able to:
- Pose and identify testable questions about the movement of the celestial bodies in our Solar System.
- Use a model to represent the Solar System.
- Design and draw a table to record data on moons.
- Accurately draw day and night and seasons diagrams.
- Calibrate a sundial using a compass and torch and use it to measure time.
- Analyse patterns in temperature data for the Earth and use them to predict temperature values for the Earth in the future.
