Hi, It’s Thursday, July 12th, 2001, and while I realize our usual fare is Social Studies on Thursdays, there is an astronomical event taking place that I just had to tell you about…
Recommended Website:
Morning Coffee and Planets
From July 13th through the 18th, four planets (Venus, Saturn, Jupiter, and Mercury), a red star (Aldebaran), and a crescent moon will form a spectacular grouping in the pre-dawn eastern sky. At this site you can read all about what to look for, where to look for it, and how to look for it. Simple diagrams and text explain what’s happening for the novice skywatcher and you can even click on a button to hear the information read to you. As with all NASA webpages, words that may need more definition are highlighted and hotlinked to glossaries and other web pages that give more detail.
Wait! There’s more! Scroll to the bottom of the screen and see “Thursday’s Classroom Corner.” Here you will find:
*Discussion Questions — that inspire your students to wake up early to watch the sky show.
*Hands Up! — how to use your hands to navigate the sky with a lesson plan activity for older and younger kids.
*Sky Orienteering — a lesson that introduces kids to the cardinal directions around their house so they know how to find planets in the sky.
You can read the lessons online or print them out in Adobe PDF format.
Keep scrolling and you will find weblinks to information and spectacular photographs of the players in this week’s sky show — Jupiter, Saturn, Mercury, Venus, and Aldebaran.
You can also sign up for “Express Science News Delivery” — a free email service that will alert you every time “Morning Coffee and Planets” posts a new story!
