Astronomy: A “Quick Guide” to the Galaxy and Beyond!

Mary Middlebrook

10-17 years old

4 lessons

Now – May 19

$60

Save 10% on a full year with code NLH10 at checkout!

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If your child has taken classes with us before, use the Canvas email they log in with. Each student must have a unique email (the parent email may be reused, but not shared between students).

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Description
Syllabus

THIS IS A SELF-PACED COURSE

Class starts every Tuesday, starting at the beginning of the semester. You have until the final due date at the end of the semester to complete all work for the course. This means you have the entire semester to complete the course on YOUR schedule!

There is no teacher support for this course. All work is to be completed independently.

Read more details about self-paced class format.

CLASS DESCRIPTION

This 4 week class is a “quick guide” to our galaxy and beyond! We are going to cover a wide range of topics, including stars, planets, moons, asteroids, meteors, comets, and more! Plus, we’ll have a lot of fun hands on activities and projects!

CLASS FORMAT

No live classes—view lessons on YOUR schedule. In general, expect 1.5-2.5 hours to work through the lesson plan each week, and an additional 2-5 hours working on assignments (it really depends what assignment your child chooses to do and how they manage their time). For classes with two levels, the material is the same for both—the depth of the assignments differs. Younger students should usually be placed in Level 1. Older students, or younger students who want more of a challenge, should be placed in Level 2.

Each lesson consists of a fully narrated PowerPoint presentation with images and videos to enhance the topics. Students will have access to our learning management system, Canvas, for viewing their lesson, printing worksheets, taking quizzes, viewing/submitting assignments, participating in discussions, and viewing grades/feedback.

Week 1

We’ll learn the difference between rotation and revolution, how astronomy explains why seasons happen on earth, how gravity plays a role in the universe, how the sun and moon work together to create tides, and how the moon was formed and the topography that can be found there.

Week 2

This week we’ll start with an overview of the history of astronomy, and how scientific knowledge changed throughout the years to bring us to our current understanding of how the universe works! We’ll dig a little deeper into gravity, and how it causes revolution of celestial bodies. Then we’ll put on our sunglasses for a hard look at our sun- how it works and its anatomy. We’ll finish up by learning all about the different types of stars and how their life cycle’s differ.

Week 3

It’s time to explore Earth’s neighbors- the planets of the solar system! We’ll look closely at the characteristics of each one and how those characteristics are different and similar to those here on Earth.

Week 4

Now that we know what planets are, it’s time to figure out the difference between a “real” planet and a dwarf planet. Then, we’ll learn about all of the debris zooming around us- asteroids, meteors, comets, and more! We’ll expand even more and learn about galaxies- those nearby and those far, FAR away! And we’ll finish up with a bang….the big bang that is!