Denali
Land of the Midnight Sun
Overview
Starting with the Denali National Park and Preserve quarter, the students will visit the park’s website to understand how day length changes with the Earth’s location. After a reading on Alaska, the class will brainstorm reasons why Alaskan days can be so long. After a demonstration using a flashlight and basketball and a reading about the sun, the class will discuss the Earth/sun relationship’s effect on day and night length and on Alaskan animals. The students will use the “Life in the Midnight Sun” worksheet to describe how day length affects them.
Worksheets
Denali National Park and Preserve Quarter Reverse
United States Map
Life in the Midnight Sun
Download/View
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National Standards
Science
National Science Teachers Association (www.nsta.org)
- Earth and Space Science: Objects in the sky and Changes in the earth and sky
Language Arts
National Council of Teachers of English (www.ncte.org) and International Reading Association (www.reading.org)
- Students adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes.
- Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.
- Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and non-print texts.