Students investigate how gravity and orbital motion shape the Sun-Earth-Moon system by building, testing, and revising physical models that explain lunar phases, eclipses, seasons, and the Artemis mission images. Through hands-on launch labs, analysis of Artemis photos, and work with scale, exponents, and orders of magnitude, they learn to use evidence to create accurate models and communicate their thinking clearly. The experience builds science content, collaboration, reflection, and problem solving as students critique drafts, assess their accuracy, and prepare to present their work to families and the community.

Students will develop and revise physical and scale models to explain how gravity drives motion in the Sun-Earth-Moon system, including orbits, lunar phases, eclipses, and seasons. They will analyze Artemis mission images and use exponents and orders of magnitude to describe relative size, distance, and position accurately in a 3D mission model. Students will communicate scientific reasoning through written explanations, presentations, and critique cycles, using feedback and reflection to improve both their models and their collaboration. They will build content knowledge in space science while strengthening problem solving, precision, and teamwork through repeated testing, revision, and public exhibition of their work.

Students will create a sequence of physical and diagram-based models that explain lunar phases, eclipses, seasons, orbits, and gravity in the Sun-Earth-Moon system, revising each model through feedback for greater accuracy. Using Artemis mission photos and footage, teams will build a scaled 3D mission model that shows the changing positions of the spacecraft, Earth, Moon, and Sun, supported by labels, exponents, and orders of magnitude to justify scale choices. Each student will also produce a short written explanation and reflection describing how their models work, what they improved, and how their group collaborated. The culminating products will be a polished exhibition-ready model set, a presentation for families and community members, and a final choice model of a related phenomenon.

Open with a “Space Phenomena Lab Rotation” where students use lamps, balls, and their own bodies to quickly model day/night, lunar phases, eclipses, and orbital motion, recording only their observations and questions. Then show a short sequence of Artemis mission footage and striking mission photos, and ask teams to build a fast first-draft explanation of how the Sun, Earth, Moon, and spacecraft had to be positioned for each image to be possible. Close with a gallery walk of these initial models and student-generated wonderings, then introduce the driving questions about how models, gravity, and scale help explain what Artemis cameras captured.

Host a “Mission to the Moon Museum” where families and community members rotate through student-led stations featuring the Earth-Sun-Moon models, Artemis mission reconstructions, and a final phenomenon model of each group’s choice. At each station, students demonstrate the model in motion, explain the science and scale decisions using exponents and orders of magnitude, and respond to audience questions about eclipses, lunar phases, gravity, and orbits. Include model draft displays or reflection cards that show each group’s critique, revision, glows, and grows so visitors can see how the work improved over time. End with a short presentation block where selected teams formally present their most accurate model and explain how Artemis images helped them determine object positions in space.