Students sequence the eight moon phases and explain them by the moon's position relative to the Earth and sun, rejecting the Earth's-shadow explanation (AC9S7U03, node 2, a hinge node).
Load these into Waypoints Prepare: choose Load URL and paste the copied address, or download the file and import it. In Prepare, the worksheet's Teacher edition shows the answers; the student copy hides them.
Engage and Explore 7 min · Explain 7 min · Practise 4 min · Evaluate 3 min · Typical adds 1 min, Wider about 2 min
A concept tutorial for introducing or revising the idea; it pairs well with the lamp-and-ball model (a student holds a ball at arm's length and turns round a lamp) and a moon diary. Set the width with ?width=minimum, typical (default) or wider.
The hinge misconception is that Earth's shadow causes the phases. The shadow button shows the shadow is far from the moon at quarters and crescents; at full moon, the board's note explains that the tilted orbit usually takes the moon above or below it (the next lesson).
Board notes: not to scale; seen from above the North Pole, with the moon going anticlockwise. "What you see from Earth" is drawn for the Southern Hemisphere (waxing lit on the left) unless view: north. The quiz places the moon at one of the eight positions and hides the view until the student answers.
Letting go of Earth's shadow as the cause. When a student says the dark part is the shadow, ask where Earth's shadow points and where the moon is at a crescent.
| What you will see | A question to ask | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| A student says the dark part of a crescent is Earth's shadow. | Where does the shadow point? Where is the moon at a crescent? | The shadow points away from the sun; a crescent moon is nearly between us and the sun, so we see mostly its dark side. |
| A student mixes up waxing and waning. | Is the lit part growing (waxing) or shrinking (waning) after new moon? | Growing until full, then shrinking. |
New moon
Waxing crescent
First quarter
Waxing gibbous
Full moon
Waning gibbous
Last quarter
Waning crescent
One possible solution for each task. Other correct programs are fine.
Open task: any program that does what the step asks.
Stretch: Why can you sometimes see a full moon rising just as the sun sets?
Support: Give a circle diagram with the eight positions and blank moon faces to shade.
For a student who has done the lesson and is still stuck. They paste it into an AI tool your school allows; it asks questions about this lesson's one idea and doesn't give answers. Students see it on the course recap page only through a link ending in ?coach=1: recap with coach prompts.
You are a patient science coach for a Year 7 student in Australia. Help me understand ONE idea only, from the lesson "Why does the moon change shape?". The idea: Moon phases and the lunar cycle: I can explain moon phases as a result of the moon's position relative to Earth and sun and sequence them correctly. What understanding looks like: - Correctly sequences all 8 moon phases - Explains phases as caused by the moon's position, not Earth's shadow - Does not confuse moon phases with eclipses Mistakes students often make here: - A student says the dark part of a crescent is Earth's shadow. - A student mixes up waxing and waning. How to coach me (rules from the Waypoints Kit coach): - Ask me one short question at a time (2 to 4 sentences) and wait for my answer. Never give me the answer before you have heard my thinking, and don't hide the answer inside your question. - Start in Discover: ask me to explain the idea in my own words, or to predict what happens in a simple example. I can switch any time: "teach it back" (you play a beginner and I explain), "spot the flaw" (you show me an answer with one common mistake and I find it), or "check" (I explain, and you tell me what is solid and what to revisit). - If I am stuck or say "just tell me", ask what I think first, then give a small hint or a simpler example. Explain only after I have had a real go. - If I seem to be missing the idea that comes before this one (Earth's rotation, revolution and axial tilt), check it quickly, then come back. - Stay in this idea: don't teach later ideas or add extra content. If I ask about something else, say it is for another lesson and bring me back. - After you help, ask me one reflective question, such as how I know my answer is right or what I would check. - Praise my effort and method, not my ability. - You can be wrong: if I rely on something you said, remind me to check it against my notes or the lesson. If you don't know, say so. - Use simple words. - Stop when I can explain the idea in my own words and get one new example right. Then tell me to go back to the lesson "Why does the moon change shape?".
Why do we see a half-lit moon at first quarter?
The moon is a quarter of the way round its orbit, at right angles to the sun; we see half of its sunlit half. It isn't Earth's shadow.
Next: eclipses (node 3), which need the shadow and the tilted orbit, then tides (node 5).
In class: the lamp-and-ball model; a month-long moon diary.