For teachers.Every simulator, by the standard it serves.
Each one takes 15 to 30 minutes, needs no accounts, and comes with a printable worksheet and discussion questions with answers.
| Standard | What it asks | Simulators |
|---|---|---|
| 1-ESS1-1 | Describe patterns of the Sun and Moon that can be predicted | Moon Phases Simulator Day and Night Simulator Sun Path Simulator Shadow Simulator |
| 1-ESS1-2 | Relate the amount of daylight to the time of year | Seasons Simulator Sun Path Simulator |
| 4-PS4-2 | Model how light reaching the eye lets objects be seen | Why Is the Sky Blue? |
| 5-ESS1-1 | Argue that the Sun's apparent brightness is due to its distance from Earth | Solar System Scale Model Calculator |
| 5-ESS1-2 | Show daily patterns of day and night, and of shadows | Day and Night Simulator Sun Path Simulator Shadow Simulator |
| England, Year 5 | Describe the movement of the Moon relative to the Earth | Moon Phases Simulator Seasons Simulator Day and Night Simulator |
| HS-ESS1-4 | Use mathematical representations to predict the motion of orbiting objects | Eclipse Simulator |
| MS-ESS1-1 | Model the Earth-Sun-Moon system to describe lunar phases | Moon Phases Simulator Seasons Simulator Eclipse Simulator |
| MS-ESS1-3 | Analyze and interpret data to determine scale properties of objects in the solar system | Solar System Scale Model Calculator |
| MS-PS4-2 | Model how waves are reflected, absorbed or transmitted through materials | Why Is the Sky Blue? |
Worksheets.
Moon Phases Simulator worksheet
Grades 3 to 8. Print it, or share the link.
Seasons Simulator worksheet
Grades 4 to 9. Print it, or share the link.
Day and Night Simulator worksheet
Grades 1 to 6. Print it, or share the link.
Sun Path Simulator worksheet
Grades 3 to 8. Print it, or share the link.
Shadow Simulator worksheet
Grades 3 to 7. Print it, or share the link.
Eclipse Simulator worksheet
Grades 5 to 9. Print it, or share the link.
Why Is the Sky Blue? worksheet
Grades 4 to 9. Print it, or share the link.
Solar System Scale Model Calculator worksheet
Grades 5 to 9. Print it, or share the link.
Using these in class.
Ask before you show
Have students write what they think causes the thing, then test it. Each page lists the mix-ups students most often bring, and how the simulator can answer them.
On a projector or in pairs
Every simulator works on a projector, a laptop, a tablet or a phone, and the controls work with a keyboard.
In your learning platform
Each page gives you one line of code to paste into Google Classroom, Canvas or Schoology.
Students' privacy
These pages set no cookies, run no analytics and show no ads. Students don't sign in, and nothing about them is collected. Read the privacy page.
Tell us what's missing.
We read every note. Write to hello@initial.app with a standard you'd like covered, an error, or how a lesson went.