Earth's rotation and day/night
Use the idea of the Earth's rotation to explain day and night and the apparent movement of the sun across the sky
What a learner can do afterwards
- Explain that the Earth rotates (spins) on its axis once every 24 hours
- Describe how this rotation causes day (facing the sun) and night (facing away)
- Explain that the sun appears to move across the sky because we are rotating, not the sun
The lesson
Earth is always spinning, like a slow-turning ball. One full spin takes about 24 hours - that spin is called a rotation. As Earth turns, different places move toward the sun or away from it.
Mia stands under a lamp in a dark room and turns around slowly. When she faces the lamp, light hits her face - that's like daytime. When her back is to it, her face goes dark - that's like night. Earth does the same thing as it spins, only the sun is the lamp.
It looks like the sun crawls across the sky, but the sun isn't moving at all. You are, because Earth is turning underneath you.
Earth spins once every 24 hours: the side facing the sun gets day, the side turned away gets night, and that spin is why the sun only seems to move.
Watch it
Where it sits
Where this leads
Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.
8 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.