Motivation

1. Motivation • Moon’s appearance • Moon’s changing phases • Studying the Moon—a link to our past Lesson 3: Prehistoric Astronomy, Part 2

2. Lesson overview • What can we observe about the Moon today that prehistoric people also would have seen? • How can we explain the Moon’s changing appearance? Lesson 3: Prehistoric Astronomy, Part 2

3. Introduction • The Moon’s changing appearance—obvious to any observer • How to explain—relative positions of the Sun, Earth, and Moon Lesson 3: Prehistoric Astronomy, Part 2

4. How can we explainthe Moon’s phases? • Appearance changes over about one month. • “Month” comes from the word “moon.” Lesson 3: Prehistoric Astronomy, Part 2

5. How can we explainthe Moon’s phases? (cont’d) • What the Moon looks like at night • “Rising” in the east and “setting” in the west • When the Moon rises and sets • How the Moon looks at different times • What causes the Moon’s changing appearance Lesson 3: Prehistoric Astronomy, Part 2

6. How can we explainthe Moon’s phases? (cont’d) • The cycle of the Moon’s phases from new to full and back again. (B) The Moon's phases—pictures in the dark squares show how the Moon looks to us on Earth. Lesson 3: Prehistoric Astronomy, Part 2

7. How can we explainthe Moon’s phases? (cont’d) • How the Sun lights the Moon’s surface • When you can see a full Moon (position 5) Lesson 3: Prehistoric Astronomy, Part 2

8. Lesson review • Where the Moon “rises” and “sets” • When the Moon rises and sets • How the Moon looks at different times • What causes the Moon’s changing appearance • How the Sun lights the Moon’s surface • How we see that surface from Earth Lesson 3: Prehistoric Astronomy, Part 2

9. Activity—Questions for review • Would you see a full moon in the middle of the afternoon? Explain your answer. • Would you see a first-quarter moon just before sunrise? Explain your answer. • Why can’t you ever see a new moon? Lesson 3: Prehistoric Astronomy, Part 2

10. Sun Activity—Test yourself In the small circles draw what the Moon looks like from Earth at each of the Moon’s eight phases. Lesson 3: Prehistoric Astronomy, Part 2

11. Summary • What can we observe today about the Moon that prehistoric people also would have seen? • How can we explain the Moon’s changing appearance? Lesson 3: Prehistoric Astronomy, Part 2

12. Next Done—how prehistoric people used the sky to understand the seasons and navigate the world Next—how certain people developed classical theories about the heavens Lesson 3: Prehistoric Astronomy, Part 2