Planisphere Activity: Charting the Movement of Constellations

Reference Section: National Research Council Canada Planisphere. (2007. [Interactive Constellation Planisphere for Canada between 45 and 55]. Retrieved Oct. 2 2013, from http://www.nrccnrc.gc.ca/eng/education/astronomy/constellations/planisphere.html Grade Level: 6 Subject: Science Brief Description of Activity: Students will go to the interactive Planisphere and explore the constellations according to the seasons. Students must enlarge the internet page to 200%, since the Planisphere is small to start. Students will find the position of one constellation (Ursa Major) according to the current date. (Clicking on the constellation will zoom-in for a closer view, but to change the date, students must click Back). Next, students will change the month of the planisphere to January (winter season) and find the same constellation on a specific day. *Note: you must select a day on the calendar or the Planisphere will not rotate. Students will record which direction (clockwise/counterclockwise, etc.) the constellation rotated and continue changing the calendar through spring and summer months until the constellation returns to its first position. Students can test two constellations of their choosing to see whether or not they follow the same pattern in movement as Ursa Major. General Learner Outcome: 6 7 Observe, describe, and interpret the movement of objects in the sky; and identify pattern and order in these movements. Specific Learner Outcome: 6-7.2 Describe the location and movement of individual stars and groups of stars (constellations) as they move through the night sky. ICT Outcomes: C.6.1.3: use technology to support and present conclusions C.7.1.4: make predictions based on organized information F.1.1.3: demonstrate an understanding that the user manages and controls the outcomes of technology P.5.1.2: access hyper linked sites on an intranet or the Internet Rationale for Computer Integration: Computers have been integrated to allow students to view the orderly and predictable patterns of the constellations over the course of a year. Students could create their own start chart without technology, however, exploration of the night sky and constellations would be limited to a one-month time period,

while weather, clouds and light pollution could adversely affect the visibility of stars. Furthermore, each student could explore the constellations according to interest level (which constellation they chose) and at their own pace since they can manipulate the movement of the stars using the calendar.

Search Strategies Employed: In this task, I used search engines other than Google. Instead, I tried Bing and Duck Duck Go and typed in key nouns in quotation marks such as Kids Constellation activity or Grade 6 science constellations, instead of a generic Stars activity which Im sure would have produced many irrelevant results. These key phrases delivered useful results such as Grade 6 Science astronomy ideas, and Kids Astronomy sites. After navigating a few different sites, I looked for reliable, user-friendly, and age-appropriate websites and found the Government of Canada (NRCC) one. I chose this source not only because it is easy-to-navigate, but because it is relevant to Canadian students; the Planisphere reflects the night sky between 45 and 55 which is visible to most Canadians.