Debra Lee October 24, 2005

Relative Motion of the Moon, Earth and Sun

Demonstration Lesson Plan

Grade Level
Grade 10 Earth Science Class

Lesson Overview
This lesson will introduce students to the idea that all motion is relative to other motion
by observing the movement of the Sun, Moon, and Earth. They will learn more about
why these solar system bodies move as they do and how our understanding of their
motion changes when we change the reference frame we are in. Most students have seen
typical textbook pictures of a motionless Sun with a circle around it to represent the orbit
of the Earth and similar pictures of the Moon revolving around the Earth. They do not
realize that the Sun has rotational and translational motion and that the Sun’s
gravitational pull affects the Moon’s orbit as well as the Earth’s. They also do not realize
that the Moon’s mass causes a gravitational pull on the Earth in addition to the pull on the
Moon by the Earth. The motions, therefore, of objects in our solar system are much more
complicated than typical diagrams imply and students believe. This fact will be
demonstrated using fruit (to represent the Earth, Sun, and Moon) moved in appropriate
ways.
This lesson is part of a unit that teaches about the solar system. The overarching idea of
this unit is the eternal quest of scientists to answer the questions “How did our universe
begin?” and “What is the structure of the universe?” At this point, the students have
already reviewed the facts about the planets, moons, and Sun. They have learned the
history of discoveries about the solar system, including the Ptolemaic and Copernican
models. They have discussed orbits and gravitation. After this unit, the students will
review how the relative motions of the Earth, Moon, and Sun result in the phases of the
moon and eclipses. The following units will address the Stars and Galaxies and the
Evolution of the Universe.

Learning Outcomes
• Learning Performances
o Students will be able to describe the orbital motions of the Earth and
Moon about the Sun, in addition to being able to describe the rotational
and translational motions of the Sun.
o Students will be able to explain that the typical textbook pictures of the
solar system can be drawn differently if their motions are viewed from a
different frame of reference.
• Links to Standards
o Benchmarks for Science Literacy Grades 9-12: 4G.1. Forces of Nature.
Gravitational force is an attraction between masses. The strength of the
force is proportional to the masses and weakens rapidly with increasing
distance between them.
o Benchmarks for Science Literacy Grades 9-12: 4F.2. Motion.
All motion is relative to whatever frame of reference is chosen, for there is
no motionless frame from which to judge all motion.

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o Benchmarks for Science Literacy Grades 6-8: 4A.3. The Universe.

Nine planets of very different size, composition, and surface features
move around the Sun in nearly circular orbits. The Earth is orbited by one
Moon, many artificial satellites, and debris.

Students’ Prior Knowledge

This lesson will broaden students’ understanding about the motions of the Sun, Earth, and
Moon. The misconceptions that will be addressed include: 1) the Sun does not move, 2)
the Moon does not revolve about the Sun, 3) the Moon’s mass does not cause a
gravitational pull on the Earth.
Prior knowledge important to the understanding of this lesson includes: 1) orbits are the
paths that objects take around other objects as a result of gravitation and orbital velocity,
2) the Earth takes 365 days to revolve around the Sun and the Moon takes 29.5 days to
revolve around the Earth, 3) every object exerts gravitational force on every other object,
4) knowledge of the relationship of the planets and their moons to the Sun.

Establishing Purpose
Ideas are sometimes not as simple as they seem. Additionally, the perspective from
which something is viewed can change how it looks, even in science, where students
assume all things are absolute. Historically, many astronomers have had misconceptions
because their perspective was limited. This lesson will be presented as a way to “blow a
hole” in what the student knows, and “fill the hole” with new, more complete knowledge.
Students are reminded that even today many scientists in the field of astronomy are
getting “holes blown in their knowledge” as new discoveries are made. Scientists have to
keep an open mind and look at problems from many perspectives as they look for
answers to such perplexing questions as “How big is the universe? Is the universe
expanding or contracting? How did the universe begin?”

Instructional Strategies
The following instructional strategies will be used: 1) questioning, 2) modeling, 3)
demonstration, 4) computer animation, 5) class discussion, 6) written assessment, and 7)
internet research.

Materials Needed
o A grapefruit to represent the Sun, a lime to represent the Earth, and a grape
to represent the Moon.
o Computer and screen to display the following website:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tothemoon/puz2n3.html
o Post-lesson assessment.
o Chalk/whiteboard or overhead.
o Video disc of relative motion.

Time required
One fifty minute class period.

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Instructional Sequence
Introduction
o Write on the board: “Relative Motion” and “Motion of the Earth, Moon, and
Sun”.
o Begin by telling the class that you are going to “blow a hole in what they know”
and fill it with new knowledge. Explain “there are some things in science you
probably think you know, but you don’t know everything.” Ask, with a show of
hands, “Who knows how the Sun, Earth and Moon move?”
o Ask a volunteer to draw on the board the motions of the Sun, Earth, and Moon.
o They will probably draw a diagram that looks similar to this:

Remind the students that these “paths” are called orbits, they are a result of
gravitational pull and orbital velocity, and all of the orbits are counterclockwise.

o Explain that this diagram is one way to think about the motion of the Sun, Earth,
and Moon, and it is not wrong, but this diagram does not tell the entire story.
Relative Motion
o Discuss relative motion. How do we know that something is moving? Show
video disc of two trains and a man walking on a boat close to shore. Write on the
board “All motion is relative to whatever frame of reference is chosen, because
there is no motionless frame.” Discuss, asking the following questions: 1) What
is a frame of reference? 2) Why is there no motionless frame? 3) What frame of
reference do we usually use when we are describing motion?
Motions of the Sun and Earth
o Tell the students that first of all we will talk about the motions of the Sun and the
Earth. Ask the students, “Does the Sun move? How do we know?” Explain that
the Sun rotates every 27 days at its equator and moves through the universe at
19.7 km/sec (44,000 mph) as it revolves about the Milky Way galaxy. It is tilted
at a 25 degree angle and headed toward the Hercules constellation. This is the
Sun’s motion relative to the other stars in our galaxy. Model the Earth’s and Sun’s
motions using the grapefruit and lime.
Ask the students, “Do you still think the Earth moves in a circle around the Sun?”
Confirm that the Earth moves in a spiral around the Sun relative to the other stars.
Motions of the Earth and Moon

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o Ask students, “Does the Moon revolve around the Earth?” Does the Earth revolve
around the moon?” Explain that the Earth and Moon revolve around each other
because of the relatively large size of the Moon’s mass. They revolve around a
point called the barycenter, which is their center of mass. The barycenter of the
Earth/Moon system is slightly below the surface of the Earth. Compare this
motion to two dancers who are holding hands and spinning. The larger person has
more influence on where the smaller partner goes. Model using the lime and
grape. Explain that the barycenter revolves about the Sun and the Earth and
Moon revolve about the barycenter. This means that the Earth and Moon each
have orbits around the Sun, but they are intertwined with each other. The Earth’s
and Moon’s orbits are said to have a wobble.
o Scientists have discovered moons on distant planets like Pluto, by first observing
the planet’s “wobbled” orbit.
o Show animation on the computer and explain how this motion appears to us on
Earth as the Moon rotating about Earth.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tothemoon/puz2n3.html
Conclusion
o Conclude the lesson, by asking students to explain the relative motion of the
Earth, Moon, and Sun. Clarify and summarize. Discuss how a student correcting
their preconceptions is similar to ancient astronomers figuring out their
misunderstandings about the solar system.
o Complete worksheet (See Assessing Student Understanding below).
o Ask the student to do research on the internet to find support for these ideas.

Assessing Student Understanding

Students will be asked to work in pairs as they fill out the attached worksheet that
requires the students to: 1) describe the motion of the Sun and the Earth 2) describe the
motion of the Moon and Earth relative to the Sun, including reasons for the motion that
occurs, 3) list 3 questions they still have about what they learned today.
(Have extra fruit available if any students want to try to model the motion themselves.)

Rationale
The introduction of this lesson is intended to pique the students’ interest by challenging
their prior knowledge about the motion of the Sun, Earth, and Moon. Wright (1995)
explains that discrepant events, such as the fact that the moon and sun revolve around
each other, are powerful devices “to stimulate interest and motivate the use of thinking
skills in learning science concepts and principles at a deeper level.” As suggested by
Donovan and Bransford (2005), resilient preconceptions must be engaged in the learning
process and science is about questioning the obvious. The demonstration using fruit is a
model to provide the students with a visual representation of the Earth/Moon/Sun
relationship, so they can correct their preconceptions. The computer animation shows a
relatively complicated relationship between the Earth and Moon is a simpler way, in
another opportunity to correct preconceptions. The questioning and discussion format
allows presentation of the key concepts, with opportunities for formative assessment at
the same time the students’ understanding deepens by explaining their ideas to the class.
The pace of the class can be adjusted by the level of understanding that is demonstrated

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by the students during the questioning. Assessment is also achieved by asking the
students to write/diagram their explanations, and deeper thinking about these concepts is
achieved through asking the students to come up with 3 more questions related to this
lesson. Finally, research on the internet to find support for the concepts learned in this
lesson will verify the importance and accuracy of the ideas and promote the continued
inquiry into the ideas of relative motion, the motion of the Earth, Sun, and Moon, and
their relationship to other bodies in the universe.

Sources

The idea for this demonstration lesson plan was from Ms. Kathy Kibbie, field instructor.

American Association for the Advancement of Science. (1993). Benchmarks for science
literacy. New York: Oxford University Press.

Donovan, M. S. & Bransford, J.D. (Eds.), (2005). How students learn: Science in the
classroom. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

Love, D. J. (n.d.). The moon's motion. Retrieved Oct. 22, 2005, from Principles of
Astronomy Web site: http://www.synapses.co.uk/astro/moon1.html.

Wright, E. (1995). Discrepant event demonstrations. The Science Teacher, 62(1), 24.

To the moon. (n.d.). Retrieved Oct. 22, 2005, from Luna Puzzlers Web site:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tothemoon/puz2n3.html.

Video disc of relative motion

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Name______________________________________ Date____________________

Answer the following questions as completely as possible. You may add diagrams as
needed to clarify your answers.

1. What does relative motion mean? Give an example.

Relative motion is motion that depends on what frame of reference you are in. For
example, from the Earth it looks like the Moon is revolving around the Earth. From
the Sun, it looks like the Earth and Moon are both revolving around the Sun.

2. Pretend you are sitting on a distant star within the constellation Hercules looking
through a powerful telescope that allows you to see the Sun and Earth. Describe the
motion of the Sun and the Earth.

The Sun, while tilted at a 25 degree angle, is moving through the Universe toward the
constellation Hercules. The Earth is orbiting around the Sun, so it is moving in a
spiral through space.

Now you are sitting on the Sun. Describe the motion of the Earth.

The Earth is revolving about the Sun in an elliptical orbit.

3. Pretend you are still sitting on the Sun. Describe the motion of the Moon. Why does
it move this way?

The Earth and Moon are both revolving around the Sun, with their orbits weaving in
and out of each other. The Earth and Moon rotate about their barycenter, which is
slightly below the surface of the earth. The gravitational pull of the Sun on the
Earth/Moon system determines their orbits.

4. Name an astronomer who had a misconception about something in the Universe.

Describe the misconception and how it was proven wrong.

Ptolemy believed that the Sun revolved around the Earth. Improved observations
made by Brahe along with Kepler’s Laws proved the Copernican model was correct.

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5. List 3 questions that you would like to ask related to what we learned today.

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