Oreo Phases of the Moon!

Students will be creating 3D models of the moon's lunar phases to be able to connect the names of the moon phases to its shape. This will help students remember the order of the phases as well as what they look like in more a hands-on way. 
Having each student model and describe every phase can help clarify any confusion they had from just hearing or reading about the phases prior.
This can be done in your classroom depending on the rules for food in the school

MS-ESS1-1: Earth-Sun-Moon System: Develop and use a model of the earth-sun-moon system to describe the cyclic patterns of lunar phases, eclipses of the sun and moon, and seasons.

OREO PHASES OF THE MOON ACTIVITY

ACTIVITY —
1. Invite the students to describe what the Moon looks like, and how it changes
shapes.
2. Explain to the students that they will be using Oreo cookies to draw the phases
and to put them into order. Demonstrate how to twist and open a cookie so that the
frosting is all on one side.

• Which side looks like the Full Moon? Which side looks like the New Moon?

3. Pass out 6 cookies, a paper towel, a plastic spoon, and a copy of the
student handout to each student. Each cookie should be able to make two Moon
phases, but some will break, and some of the frosting will go “missing.”

4. Invite the students to twist their cookies open and scrape the Oreo® cookies to
illustrate Moon phases, and ask them to arrange cookies on the poster in order.

5. Check on the students’ progress and invite them to clean up by eating their work! 

Resource: https://www.lpi.usra.edu/education/workshops/phasesSeasons/OreoPhases.pdf

Reflection: This activity is one that I always remembered doing as a kid and looked forward to conducting as a teacher. There is nothing better than getting sweets from your teacher, and this is an easy way for students to solidify the knowledge they know and the knowledge that they don't. This activity creates a class period of minimal pressure and a chance for students to work with their hands and apply the facts they have learned. The moon phases are obvious to represent, therefore it will be apparent when a student may have the order mixed up. This activity creates a more student-run class so you can encourage the kids to check their own work and work together to create the correct order of lunar phases. Having the kids work on mini-projects like this during class time also creates an opportunity for me to circulate the class and monitor their progress in an informal way. Also, allowing the students to eat their moon phases helps with clean-up!

Geologic Time Scale Scavenger Hunt

The geologic time scale is a scale used around the world by geologists, paleontologists, and other Earth scientists to describe the timing and relationships of events that have occurred during Earth's history relating geologic strata (types of rocks) with time. 

This lesson is designed to get students to use this time scale as intended and show them the value it has when trying to pinpoint dates with specific areas on the Earth's surface. 

MS.ESS1.4: Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence from rock strata for how the geologic time scale is used to organize Earth's 4.6-billion-year-old history. (Scale, Proportion, and Quantity)

The Geologic Time Scale Scavenger Hunt!

Students will be putting on their detective hats and sent on a quest for information. They will be given a geologic time scale and be asked to complete an analysis using the scale as their only source of information. All of the questions are answerable, but some may require more thinking than others. 

Analysis

1. For how long has there been life on Earth? _____________________________________________

2. For what percentage of time has life existed on Earth (round to the nearest whole number).

_______________________________________________________________________________

3. For about how many years of geological time have humans existed on Earth?

_______________________________________________________________________________

4. For about how many years of geological time have the dinosaurs existed on Earth?

_______________________________________________________________________________

5. Did dinosaurs exist at the same time as humans? _______________________________________

6. How do scientists determine when an era begins and when it ends?

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

7. What is the purpose of making a geological timeline?

_______________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

This activity makes a normally boring worksheet into a hunt for clues to find the answers to their analysis questions. Assessments like these are casual and get the students engaged, it will be easy for all of them to earn good participation points and emphasize how much these timescales can help scientists uncover the history of Earth.