San Francisco Unified School District Content
and Performance Standards
| STANDARDS | DESCRIPTION |
| Astronomy Standard 18.3 | Using light to gather information about the stars |
| Astronomy Standard 18.4 | Creating a scale map of the solar system to understand the scale of the Universe in relation to more familiar objects |
| Astronomy Standard 18.5 | How long does it take light from "nearby" stars to get to earth |
| Astronomy Standard 18.6 | Using different Units to describe the size and organization of various stellar objects |
| Astronomy Standard 18.9 | How is the age of the Universe measured |
| Energy Transformations 2.3, 2.8 | Comparing and contrasting energy sources and observing energy changes |
| Structure of Matter, Content Standard 6 | Atoms are composed of electrons, protons, and neutrons. The same type of atom may have different masses; these are called isotopes. |
| Exemplar | Students will be able to use chemistry and physics to investigate stellar evolution. |
Estimated Time Requirements
Student Prerequisites
Lessons
Scales and Distances
Students will learn the basic units and tools of astronomy
as well as gain a concept of the scale of the Universe.
Students will become familiar with light years, AU, parsecs and
how astronomers measure distance with light.
Stellar Evolution
This Unit was developed as a "jigsaw" activity to guide
students in developing a theory of where the elements come from.
Groups of students will be given "cue cards" with information
about how stars evolve and how matter is formed. From there, they
are to search the web and other resources for more information
to back up their theory.