Gravity
What direction does gravity always pull things?
Down toward the center of Earth.
What causes day and night on Earth?
Earth rotating on its axis.
What do we call the different shapes the Moon looks like over a month?
Moon phases.
What is the closest star to Earth?
The sun.
What happens to shadows as the sun moves across the sky?
Shadows change direction and length.
What force makes a basketball fall after being thrown?
Gravity.
When our side of Earth faces the sun, what happens?
It is daytime.
True or False: The Moon looks the same every night.
False.
Why does the sun look brighter than other stars?
It is much closer to Earth.
Maisy made a graph of sunrise and sunset. What pattern did she find?
There is more daylight in June than in January.
A marble and a feather are dropped at the same time. What does this show about gravity?
Gravity pulls objects downward.
When our side of Earth turns away from the sun, what happens?
It is nighttime.
Why did Group 4 see the Moon during the day sometimes?
The Moon can be visible in the day depending on its position.
Why is Sirius the brightest star in the night sky?
It is closer than other stars we see at night.
Group 1 saw shadows change throughout the day. What causes this?
Earth rotating.
Why does your body hang down when you’re on the monkey bars?
Gravity pulls your body downward.
Group 3 tracked the sun’s position all day. What pattern did they see?
The sun appears to move across the sky as Earth rotates.
What causes the pattern of Moon phases?
The Moon orbiting Earth.
What do telescopes help scientists do?
See faraway stars more clearly.
A student stands farther away holding a ball. Why does it look smaller?
Objects look smaller when they are farther away.
Group 2 said the basketball’s gravity direction was “up.” Why is that scientifically inaccurate?
Gravity never pulls up; it pulls down.
Which student was correct: the one who said the sun moves around Earth, or the one who said Earth rotates?
The student who said Earth rotates.
How long does it take for the Moon to go through all its phases once?
About one month.
What force did the James Webb Telescope need to escape to reach space?
Earth’s gravity.
How can Group 1 use Group 3’s data to explain the moving shadow?
The sun’s position changes because Earth rotates, causing shadows to move.