"Our Place In Space"
Instead of just listening to someone talk about the Earth and the Sun, students will be asked to help solve a crossword puzzle about the sky. Some clues are easier than others. Starting with ideas as basic as the difference between a star and a planet, one clue builds on another. The answers lead to exploration of the relationship between the Earth and Sun, how apparent size changes with distance, the rotation of the Earth and the effects of gravity (or the lack thereof), and the cause(s) of day and night.
There is a brief segment about constellations and how the sky is a big dot-to-dot game. From there, students will use their imaginations to take a trip into space to visit the planets in the Solar System and travel beyond the realm of the Milky Way galaxy.
Our Place in Space was produced for Tarleton Science Planetarium by Peggy Neill.