Unit developed by ISTAT group to provide students with the basic tools necessary to study the stars.  The following is a combination of fun webb activities intermixed with worksheets to familiarize them with the units and calculation of astronomical distances.
 

 a. Learning Objectives
The student should become familiar with the units used in astronomy i.e.. the metric
system plus the units of lighters, AUs, and parsec.
The student should have an understanding of the magnitude of the universe i.e.. a
rough quantitative idea of  how a galaxy compares to a star compares to the universe.
The student should be able to state the inverse square law and explain what it means
qualitatively.

 b. Student Prerequisites
The student should be familiar with Scientific Notation.
The student should be familiar with the metric prefixes.
The student should have the ability to graph simple functions.

 c. Time Requirements
4-6 days depending on students familiarity with units and math basics.
2-3 days on units and measurement.
2-3 days on the inverse square law.

 d. Performance and Content Standards

• Astronomy Standard 18.4
• Astronomy Standard 18.5
• Astronomy Standard 18.6

C - Activities

Power of Ten- Short video from the Smithsonian, that illustrates the concept of scale
 beautifully.
Andromeda’s Scale, look at Andromeda galaxy through different sized photos to get
a concept of the scale of the universe and look at some neat pictures of real
astronomical objects.
WorkSheet  Calculate the distance to the sun, and possibly other places closer to or
farther from home using the speed of light. Use appropriate units light minutes etc.
Desktop Stars -  complete webbased activity developed by CFPA for the Inverse
Square Law.