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Teacher’s notes

• About the Science IS activities

Integrated strands

Science concept

• The appearance of the Moon is a result of geological features (mountains, craters and plains).

Nature of Science Theme

Open-mindedness is important to the culture of science…

Cultures have different ways of observing and recording the world around them.

DSSA Investigation Focus

Students need to be taught relevant procedural concepts to undertake an investigation…

The process of observing includes recording as much relevant detail as possible.

Activity

What you need

• Rona me te Mārama, a play by M. Wairama; School Journal, Part 2 Number 4, 1993, p. 42.
• An ability to observe the full Moon by actual observation, for example, at a school camp, or by reference, for example, in books or via Internet websites.

Note: Supporting activity resources are provided below.

Focus

• Apart from the fact that it is disc-shaped, what does the full Moon look like? What are some words you might use to describe how it looks?
• Why are there so many stories about the Moon?
• Do you know any stories or poems about the appearance of the full Moon?
• How is your view of the Moon affected by travelling to the northern hemisphere?
• What did the Apollo spacecraft trips to the Moon tell us about the surface of the Moon?

Exploration

1. Get students to look at, and draw, a full Moon.
2. What types of patterns can we see in the Moon’s appearance?
3. With the students, read (and perhaps perform) the play Rona me te Mārama.
4. Discuss the story of Rona and any traditional stories that students know from other cultures for explaining the shapes seen in the Moon’s appearance.
5. Ask if any of them know any science ideas that could explain the shapes of the Moon’s appearance and explore these as they arise.
6. As an extension, students could investigate the names given to geological features on the Moon and how those names arose (for example, Mare Tranquillitatis named by Galileo who thought the dark area was water; mare = sea).

Extension

• The full Moon is always a night-time Moon. What shape Moon can you see during the day-time?
• Why can’t you see a full Moon during the day?
• How is the shape of the Moon you see affected by the position of the Earth, Sun and Moon?

Reflection

• Why might different groups of people have different stories about the patterns they see in the Moon?
• Why have people developed so many stories about the Moon? (For example, because of its observability; because of its association with growing seasons and fishing times).
• Why are current science ideas about the Moon quite different to traditional stories about the Moon?