Before our Christmas break, I introduced a song to my students to help them understand the relationship between the earth, moon and sun. I made up some picture necklaces and we are using these during our line time to sing the song and act it out. Three children at a time get up and each wears a necklace. We repeat the song until all children have had a turn to act out a part. With 20 students per session this means seven repetitions of the song. Luckily it's a short song!
Below you can see the three necklaces. If you would like to make your own you can download the Word document here.
Download EarthMoonSun necklaces
The tune of the song is "The Farmer in the Dell." The first verse goes like this:
"The earth turns around, the earth turns around. Once a day, every day, the earth turns around."
During this verse the child wearing the "Earth" necklace spins around in a circle. I have explained to the children that this rotation of the earth is what causes our day and nighttime and have demonstrated that using the globe.
The second verse is:
"The moon goes 'round the earth, the moon goes 'round the earth. Once a month, every month, the moon goes round the earth."
During this verse the child wearing the moon necklace walks around the child wearing the earth necklace. I have told the children that the moon does not make its own light, but reflects the light of the sun which is why it looks lit up.
The third verse is:
"The earth goes 'round the sun, the earth goes 'round the sun. Once a year, every year, the earth goes 'round the sun."
During this verse the child wearing the earth necklace walks around the child wearing the sun necklace. Of course Montessori children have a great frame of reference for this verse since we act it out during our birthday celebration.
Earth's outer surface is divided into several rigid segments, or tectonic plates, that gradually migrate across the surface over periods of many millions of years. About 71% of the surface is covered with salt-water oceans, the remainder consisting of continents and islands; liquid water, necessary for all known life, is not known to exist on any other planet's surface. Earth's interior remains active, with a thick layer of relatively solid mantle, a liquid outer core that generates a magnetic field, and a solid iron inner core.
Posted by: viagra online | April 19, 2010 at 12:56 PM
Thanks, Courtney. I cant sing very well, but I do sing a lot with the children.
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Posted by: Laura | April 14, 2010 at 04:04 PM
Wonderful song! It is so clear - I am sure the children grasp onto it very easily. Great job incorporating music in your lesson. (I am a singer and voice teacher, myself, so I can really appreciate what you have done here!)
Posted by: Courtney Corey | April 13, 2010 at 11:23 PM
Great idea!
Posted by: Deborah | March 29, 2010 at 01:29 PM
Awesome. It is amazing how some people come up with cool blogs. That was glad to see the information is being convey. Its a very nice movie, and i really like the actors. Thanks for the info.
Posted by: Term Paper | February 28, 2010 at 11:32 PM
I really like this activity! So perfect! I stopped by to see what you have for science activities ~ anxious to see what else you have!
Posted by: Michelle | January 14, 2010 at 10:10 PM
thank you for the document! perfect!
Posted by: jamie | January 13, 2010 at 06:32 PM
Just found your blog and your great ideas. Can't wait to explore!
Posted by: Miller Moments | January 12, 2010 at 09:26 AM
This activity is fantastic! Thanks for sharing.
The pressing question I have to ask right now is... if I am to set an activity area for my 3.5 year old son, what are the top 5-10 materials I would want to include to get started? Where do I start?
Thanks so much for your time!
Blessings,
Amy
Posted by: Amy W. | January 10, 2010 at 10:13 PM
Thanks, Karen! Im glad you like the blog andI appreciatethe award very much. Ill head over to check it out!
Take care,
Laura
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Subject: [My Montessori Journey] Karen Drummond submitted a comment to Earth, Moon Sun Song
Date: Sat, 9 Jan 2010 17:42:27 -0800
Posted by: Laura | January 09, 2010 at 09:11 PM
Hi! Just wanted to let you know that I really enjoy reading your blog and the great ideas you share!
I gave you an award today on my blog, so come over and take a look!
Posted by: Karen Drummond | January 09, 2010 at 07:42 PM
Thank you for all the ideas you are sharing :-)
I noticed your activities about our solar system. I did a little project about the universe too. You can check it out here, if you'd like to: http://leptir-mojpribor.blogspot.com/search/label/Svemir
Posted by: Leptir | January 08, 2010 at 10:24 AM
This is a cool activity - I can tell Dylan has been getting more interested about the earth, moon, and sun. The other day he asked me why he could see the moon during the day.
Posted by: Krystal | January 07, 2010 at 08:32 PM
What a fantastic idea! Thanks for sharing. This reminds me that I need to purchase a globe for my girls;)
Posted by: mamaloves | January 07, 2010 at 05:06 PM