DE Science Elementary

Patterns in the Natural World

                                                                                         

About Weather – The Big Ideas• Weather is the state of the atmosphere at a specific

time and place.• Weather includes temperature, air pressure,

humidity, wind speed, and precipitation.• Changes in air pressure are associated with changes

in weather.• Air movement is caused by the uneven heating of the

Earth by the sun.• The movement of air is wind as the air moves from

one area to another.

                                                                                         

About Weather – Using DE Science Content

• Virtual Lab: Wow, Windmills!• Video: Climate Zones• Reading Passage: Measure the Weather

                                                                                         

About Climate – The Big Ideas

• Climate is the average weather at a location over a period of years.

• Climate includes seasonal temperatures, winds, and average annual precipitation.

• Movement of water in the water cycle affects climate.

• Latitude and proximity to large bodies of water or mountains affect climate.

                                                                                         

About Climate – Using DE Science Content

• Exploration: About Climate• Reading Passage: Earth’s Changing Climate• Video: Climate

                                                                                         

The Water Cycle – The Big Ideas

• The sun provides the energy that drives the water cycle.

• When liquid water is warmed, it evaporates and turns into water vapor, a gas that enters the atmosphere.

• Water vapor can become liquid water or ice as it cools.

• Water vapor that has turned to liquid water or ice falls as precipitation.

• Water falling from the sky collects in bodies of water on the surface of the Earth as well as underground.

                                                                                         

The Water Cycle – Using DE Science Content

• Exploration: The Water Cycle• Video: The Water Cycle• Reading Passage: It’s Only Water

                                                                                         

The Cycle of Day and Night – The Big Ideas

• Earth rotates on its axis once every 24 hours, causing the cycle of day and night.

• When it is day on the side of Earth facing the sun, it is night on the other side.

• Earth’s rotation makes it appear that the sun, planets, and stars are orbiting Earth once a day.

                                                                                         

The Cycle of Day and Night – Using DE Science Content

• Exploration: The Cycle of Day and Night• Virtual Lab: When’s the Shadow There?• Video: The Movement of the Earth

                                                                                         

Our Star, the Sun – The Big Ideas

• The sun produces heat and light that travel to Earth.• The sun is a star, one of billions in the universe.• The sun is an average-size star.• The sun is mostly hydrogen and helium.

                                                                                         

Our Star, the Sun – Using DE Science Content

• Exploration: Our Star, the Sun• Reading Passage: A Huge Furnace•Video: The Sun and its Planets

                                                                                         

Physical Characteristics of the Moon—The Key Ideas• Marias are “seas” of ancient basaltic lava flows that form

plains on the moon.• Highlands are the older, heavily cratered, mountainous

areas of the moon.• Regolith is the mixture of fine dust and rocky debris that

forms the moon’s soil.• The moon is divided into three distinct layers: core, mantle,

and crust.• The far side of the moon is more heavily cratered because

lava flows have covered many older craters on the near side, creating the maria.

                                                                                         

Physical Characteristics of the Moon— Using DE Science Content

• Audio: The Solar System: The Moon (from :45–2:50)• Video Segment: Surface Features of the Moon &

Review.• Video Segment: Moon’s Surface