The Reasons for Seasons.

The Reasons for Seasons

By Gail Gibbons

Illustrated by Gail Gibbons

Book Summary:Book
This book explains in detail how the sun and the earth work together to make the four seasons, winter, spring, summer, and fall, that we enjoy, with each one's unique weather pattern. It teachers students in an easy and developmentally appropriate way new concepts and vocabulary about the seasons and the reasons we have seasons. The book is also filled with interesting facts about each season. It is a great book for learning.

Summary:Lesson: The BIG Question: WHY? Why do We have Seasons?  
Grade Level: Kindergarten.
Lesson Duration: 35 minutes.

Standards addressed: Science

Standard K-4: The student will demonstrate an understanding of

seasonal weather changes.

Indicators:K-4.2: Compare the weather patterns that occur from season to season.

K-4.3: Summarize ways that the seasons affect plants and animals.

Lesson Objectives:
-The student will have a general understanding of why we have 4 seasons.
-The student will be able to explain why the days are longer in the summer and shorter in the winter.
-The student will explain to a parent and/or other adult why we have seasons using the facts and explanation given in class.
Materials:

-Flashlights (13)
-Blow-up mini "beach ball globs" (13)
-Large black garbage bags (to hide the globes so that the students are not distracted by them prior to the lesson).
-http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/time/seasons.htm
-A large world map.
-Plastic party sunglasses.
-A flip chart.
-A CD-any music that is good for movement and the students like.
-A boom box/stereo.
-A sharpie.
-A blue and green tie-dye t-shirt. 
-Gibbons, G. (1996). The Reasons for seasons. New York, NY: Holiday House.

Introduction:

1. The teacher will ask the class, "Why do we have seasons?"

2. The teacher will write down the student's responses on a chart, that will be revisited after the class learns the "reasons for seasons". The teacher will ask the student if he/she can name the seasons and describe them. The Teacher would say, "What would you say to someone (let's say a friendly alien from the moon) if he/she had never seen a season? How would you explain seasons? Describe them?

3. The teacher will tell the students that when is is winter here it is summer on the other side of the world, like in Australia (teacher will show students Australia on a world map), and when it is summer here, it is winter over there. The teacher will ask the students why they think this is.

4. The teacher will tell the class that they have come up with some very smart and creative guesses and today they will be learning the real reason why we have seasons according to scientists who study the earth, weather, and seasons.
5. The teacher will introduce the book, The Reasons for Seasons, and read it aloud to the class.
6. When the teacher reaches the part of the book that discusses the tilt and direct light from the sun hitting the earth verses the sun hitting the earth at an angle, the teacher will stop and put down the book. 

7. The teacher will tell the class that she will be pairing students up for a hands-on activity but before the teacher can hand out the materials the students must agree to follow the rules. The teacher will tell the class that each pair will get a blow-up mini globe and a flashlight. The teacher will tell the class that the students must not through the ball at each other or around the room and each student in the pair must have a turn and the students must share. The teacher will tell the class that the flashlights are not a toy and the light should not be shown in another student's eyes or your own eyes. The teacher will tell the class that doing so could result in serious eye damage.

8. The teacher will ask the class if they can agree to these rules. Once the class has agreed the teacher will pair the students up and hand out one flashlight and one globe to each pair.

9. The teacher will demonstrate for the class the rotation of the earth around the sun and the use the flashlight to show the students how the tilt and rotation of the earth affects that amount of direct sunlight. See Diagram (teacher will simplify the concept for the student to be developmentally appropriate):

10. The teacher will ask the student if he/she has any questions and then let the students model it. The teacher will walk around the room and make sure all pairs understand the concept.

11. The teacher will then collect the materials and ask the class to return to the carpet to finish the book and do some more learning.

Procedure:

1. Once the teacher has finished reading the story aloud to the class, the teacher will ask the student again why he/she thinks we have seasons. This will help the teacher check for comprehension of the text/how good of a job the book does teaching the concept in a simplified way for early learners.

2. The teacher will explain to the students why we have the seasons, again, to repeat and check for comprehension. The teacher will then ask for two volunteers to help the teacher demonstrate why we have seasons.

3. The teacher will have the 2 volunteers join her in the front of the room. The teacher will give one student a pair of sunglasses and tell him/her and the rest of the class that he/she will be the sun. The other student will be given a blue and green tie-dye shirt to put on over his/her clothes in order to represent the earth.

4. Once the two students have on their costumes/props, the teacher will place the student in the sunglasses, who is pretending to be the sun, in a stationary  position in front of the class, the teacher will walk the student, who is pretending to be the earth, around the student who is the sun. The teacher will keep the student who is the earth facing the same direction (facing the same wall as he/she rotates, so that sometimes his/her face is facing toward the sun,sometimes his/her back, and sometimes his/her sides. This will demonstrate why we have different seasons and different weather in each of these seasons because of the "earth's tilt" and exposure to sunlight. It will also demonstrate why, in relation, the days are longer in the summer and shorter in the winter and for both fall and spring the length of the day is somewhere in between.

5. Once the teacher has modeled this for the class, the teacher will thank the volunteers and have them return to his/her partner to do a related activity.

6. The teacher will explain the activity to the class: The activity will be just like we demonstrated, with one partner as the sun and one as the earth. The partner who is the sun will stand in the middle with a pair of sunglasses on (the teacher will hand out one pair of sunglasses to each pair) and the earth will circle around the sun, staying facing the same direction the entire time. The "earth" will start circling the sun when I start the music and when I stop the music, the "earth" will stop. I will then go around the room and ask each of the pairs to tell me what season they have stopped at. So remember, the student will remain facing the same direction as he/she circles, which means you need to be careful since you will be walking backwards part of the time. For the seasons in relation to the "earth's positions, as a quick review, if when the music stops you are directly facing the sun, it is summer, if the sun is to your left (the teacher raises her left hand, realizing not all students know their left from their right hand) then it is fall, if your back is to the "sun" then it is winter, and finally, if the "sun" is on your right (the teacher holds up her right hand), then it is spring. After I have gone through all of the pairs, I will start the music again and the "earth" will start spinning around the sun again, and repeat the process when I stop the music each time. We will do this several times and then switch roles with your partner, so that if you were the "sun" you will hand your sunglasses over to your partner and become the "earth" and if you were the "earth" you will put the sunglasses on and become the "sun" (aka the center of the universe. The earth will now revolve around you-enjoy it). This activity is a little like musical chairs if you think about it only minus the chairs and we are not competing, however, the circling and the stopping, controlled by the music is very similar.

7. The teacher will ask if there are any questions and if there are, answer them.
8. The teacher will turn the music on and the students will do the activity. 
9. Each time the teacher asks the pair what season it is, she will take notes, about what the pair says and if the are correct or incorrect.
10. When the students are done with both pair rotations, then teacher will review what has been learned today and answer any questions.

11. The teacher will then explain a homework assignment that is based off of what the student learned in class today. The teacher will explain to the student that for homework, he/she will have to explain to a parent or another adult the reasons why we have seasons, using what he/she has learned today in class. The teacher will hand out a worksheet that describes the assignment to the parents and gives a place for a signature, assuring that the assignment has been completed and a place for notes and comments about the student's explanation or any general or unrelated issues of concern or questions the adult has for the teacher. The teacher will explain to the students that he/she will have two days to do this activity, and should try and do it tonight when the information is fresh in his/her mind.