Aiming for Deep and Enduring Understanding

1. Aiming for Deep and Enduring Understanding

2. Six Facets of Understanding • Explanation • Interpretation • Application • Perspective • Empathy • Self-Knowledge

3. Enduring Understanding: • Understand how the relative movements of the Earth, moon, and sun account for the observed moon phases.

4. Example Activities • Here are some examples that show how each facet can be used as the basis of a Stage 3 activity aligned with the enduring understanding.

5. Explanation • Students use a light bulb (sun) and an orange (moon) to give an explanation of how the moon phases are formed from the perspective of Earth (their head).

6. Interpretation • Students research historical explanations of the phases of the Moon (e.g. Aristotle, Plutarch, cultural stories, etc.).

7. Application • Students are given Galileo’s original 1612 drawing of the phases of Venus. Using a light bulb and an orange, students verify these observations and document the relative positions of the sun, Venus, and Earth that produce these phases.

8. Perspective • Students are shown a picture of the Earth from the moon when the Earth is in a waning gibbous phase and then they discuss the relationship of the sun-Earth-moon positions that account for Earth’s appearance.

9. Empathy • Students consider the following scenario: A visitor from another planet, a female alien named Myrna, visited your school last weekend. Myrna’s planet has no moons orbiting it. Put yourself in Myrna’s place. What might it be like to live on a planet without a moon? How might life on Earth be different without a moon?

10. Self-Knowledge • Students in small groups compare their postconception quiz with their preconception quiz and discuss how their answers changed.

11. Examining Units • Look for Stage 3 activities that effectively use the six facets to promote deep and enduring understanding.