A "Moonth" of Phases- Lab Activity

Yesterday in science class, we completed a lab activity called A "Moonth" of Phases.  This activity is from our Prentice Hall Science Explorer Textbook, which is a 6-8 textbook and can include some lab activities that are very challenging, and confusing at times, for my sixth graders.  This lab was GREAT!  It was very clear for the students to understand and allowed them to get a very clear picture of each moon phase. 

We used most of the same supplies that we used on our Reasons for the Seasons lab activity several days ago, so it made prep very easy for me, and the students already had an idea of how to use the light bulbs and where to position their foam balls.  This made the activity move very fast, so that students had a lot of time to work on their questions and we still had time for discussion at the end. SCORE!

In groups of three, students recreated each of the 8 phases of the moon using a light bulb, a foam craft ball and a pencil.  One student held the foam ball at arms length in front of the light bulb while the other two stood behind (representing the earth) to observe what the moon looked like.  Below is a picture of position 1, or the new moon.

 

Next, students holding the foam ball turned 45 degrees to their left, creating a waxing crescent (shown below).  Students continued to turn at 45 degree intervals until they completed the circle (they should have stopped at each of the 8 spots).  The third quarter moon is also shown below.

 At each step, students shaded in the circles on their diagrams (shown below) to represent each phase of the moon.

 

The group above turned in the wrong direction, so their chart is backwards.  

However, this led to a great discussion with this group and I believe the 

students have an even better understanding of the concept after realizing their mistake.

The group who's picture is shown above even labeled each phase, 

which was not a requirement.  I was very proud of them!

After completing the activity, students answered several questions regarding the phases of the moon and making models in general and we then discussed the questions, concerns and misconceptions.  Overall, this lab was great, and did not require a ton of prep or supplies.  I was very happy with the outcome!  I think that it helped to solidify the concept of phases of the moon for my students.  I would highly recommend using a similar activity if you are teaching the phases of the moon.