Name: Ali Carlson

Class: ELED 3221-001

Date: 03/19/2015

edTPA Indirect Instruction Lesson Plan

The Sun and Shadows
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Central Focus/Big Idea: To discover that the position of the Sun effects the length and direction of
shadows.
Subject of this lesson: Science: understanding shadows and sun placement
Grade Level: 3rd grade
NC Essential Standard(s): 3E1.2 Recognize that changes in the length and direction of an object's

shadow indicate the apparent changing position of the Sun during the day although the patterns
of the starts in the sky, to include the Sun, stay the same.
21st Century Skills:
Creativity/ Innovation- Student will create shadows by using a flashlight, plastic plate, and a straw. They
will move the flashlight/Sun to manipulate the size and direction of the shadows.
Critical Thinking/ Problem Solving- Students will use their flashlights to recreate shadows with their
model to discover that the positioning of the sun has an effect on our shadows appearance.
Academic Language Demand

Language Function: Analyze- Students will analyze the shadows they will create with the
flashlight and their model. Students will relate the flashlight to the sun and discover that,
depending on the position of the flashlight, the shadows change in length and direction.
Scientific Vocabulary: Shadow, Sun, direction, orbit, Earth

Instructional Objective:

Students will be able to observe and make discoveries on their own. They will be able to recreate
shadows and record their findings on their plate models. They will be able to explain their
understanding of the concepts between the Sun and shadows on Earth.
Prior Knowledge (student):
Students should already have an understanding that there is a Sun and that we live on planet Earth.
Students should also understand that the Earth orbits the Sun (not the other way around).
Content Knowledge (teacher):

The teacher must be prepared to answer students questions about why the shadows appear to be different.
The teacher should understand that depending on the position of the light source, the shadow will change.
When the light source is directly above the object (midday) then the shadow will be significantly shorter
(if there is a shadow at all) compared to if the light source were shining at an angle (during
sunrise/sunset). The teacher will also need to know why the Earth experiences night and day (it orbits the
sun, which is why we have shadows).
Accommodations for special needs (individual and/or small group): The teacher will scaffold students
with special needs along the way. The teacher will provide a wide range of teaching strategies to explain
the meaning of a shadow and how they are created through verbal explanation, online
modules/representations/videos, and physical models that the students can manipulate on their own.
Materials and Technology requirements: I will need 16 flashlights, 16 green plastic plates, permanent
markers, 16 straws, Play Doh, a dark room, doc cam, websites:
http://www.schoolsobservatory.org.uk/astro/esm/shadows
http://www.carearts.org/images/lessons/misc/Background_for_Teacher.pdf
http://www.solarsystemscope.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UN2RDobXhbg
Total Estimated Time: approximately 30 minutes
Source of lesson:
Web sitehttp://www.schoolsobservatory.org.uk/astro/esm/shadows
http://www.carearts.org/images/lessons/misc/Background_for_Teacher.pdf
http://www.solarsystemscope.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UN2RDobXhbg
Safety considerations:
The teacher will instruct students to point their flashlights away from their face as well as away from their
peers. Students should never look directly at the Sun or their flashlights as it will damage their eye sight.
Content and Strategies (Procedure)
Engage:
The teacher will start the lesson by asking students what they know about shadows:
-

Have you ever seen a shadow?

Have you ever made shadow puppets in the dark?
What do you think causes a shadow?

The teacher will turn off the lights in the class room to create a dark environment. The teacher will ask
each student to sit facing the wall while passing out flashlights to each of them. Prior to passing out the
flashlights, the teacher must remind students that their flashlights are a tool and not a toy to shine in

others faces, or their own eyes. I will ask them to experiment with their flashlight in order to create a
shadow puppet against the wall.

Explore:
Students will be instructed to return to their seats with their flashlights, where the teacher has previously
passed out plastic plates (with a clump of Play Doh in the middle), pencils, and straws to each of the
students. I will explain to the students that the green plastic plates will represent the ground/grass. I will
demonstrate for the students where to place their Play Doh and how to poke their straw straight in an
upwards position in their Play Doh to represent a person standing on the ground. Students must then use
their flashlight to represent the sun. Upon experimentation the students will recognize that their persons
shadow changes depending on the placement of the sun. I will remind students that the Earth experiences
night and day because the Earth revolves around the Sun.
-

Where is the Sun located?

Is it always in the same spot?
What happens when the Sun is directly above you? Do you see a shadow?
How does your shadow change when the Sun starts to set? Lets experiment to find out

Explanation:
The teacher will show a website to show how the Sun casts over different objects and creates different
shadows depending on the time of day (http://www.schoolsobservatory.org.uk/astro/esm/shadows). Upon
clicking on the different day times, the teacher will explain the fact that shadows change depending on the
angle the Earth is in relation to the Sun. The Earth orbits around the Sun which in turn makes the Sun
appear to be in a different location in the sky at different times during the day.
-

What does the shadow look like as the Sun is rising?

What does the shadow look like when the Sun is directly above the object?
What does the shadow look like as the Sun is setting?

The teacher will then show another real video of an actual time lapse of the sun moving across the sky:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UN2RDobXhbg
The teacher will display a website on the overhead that demonstrates the Sun and why the Sun appears to
move across the sky. http://www.solarsystemscope.com/
-

Do you see how the Earth rotates around the Sun?

Do you see how sometimes our country is in the dark and sometimes it is in the light? This is why
we have night and day at different times during the day.

Elaborate:
I will instruct students to continue experimenting with their flashlight and plastic plate shadow model. I
will ask students to demonstrate three different shadows. Students must trace and label their shadows that
are created when positioning their Sun when it is rising, midday, and setting with a permanent marker.
Students will complete this by laying their plate flat on their desk and orbiting their light around the straw
(in a rainbow curved motion) to imitate the Sun.

Evaluate:
When students have completed their task I will ask them to raise their hand so that I can check their
answers. I will use a summative assessment by meeting with each student and discussing a series of
questions on a check list:
-

What does the paper plate represent?

What does the straw represent?
What does the flashlight represent?
What is a shadow?
What causes a shadow?
Could they provide the shadow of sunrise?
Could they provide the shadow of midday?
Could they provide the shadow of sunset?

If the student lacks understanding in a certain area then the teacher will know what they must focus on to
further explain the concept to clarify for their understanding.
Assessment Results of all objectives/skills:

One student was absent (Jamarion). Each student met all requirements and
expectations after meeting with each student for their assessment. I asked each
student to explain each feature of the model including an explanation of each
labeled shadow. I also asked each student to physically represent where the sun is
at sunrise/midday/sunset along with the shadows that would result.

Teacher signature: