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This is anchor phenomenon is supposed to create the need for searching for another Earth-like planet, which is the performance task for this unit. 

Students will collect data using a game/simulation to better understand how nuclear fusion results in the release of energy and the formation of new elements, as well as why the lifespan of a high-mass star is much shorter than the lifespan of a low-mass star.

This activity around the concept of gravity will support students in developing an understanding of the big ideas in the Life Cycle of a Star, Structure of the Solar System, and Orbital Motion of Celestial Objects 5E Plans. It also provides an option for having students begin to develop their capacity for constructing scientific explanations, a skill that is crucial for sensemaking throughout this course and in the realm of science.

This performance task is meant to build upon students' prior ideas and what they learn about the universe and celestial bodies. We have designed the unit so students have opportunities to explore and revise/add to the performance task at multiple points, allowing them to apply and evaluate their own understandings about the concepts covered in Unit 1.

Modern technology has allowed us to study the universe, and now we know that stars are not static objects floating in space, but they are born from clouds of gas and dust, live as they get their energy from nuclear fusion that makes them shine and eventually die. In this 5E plan, students will use simulators which provide data that will allow them to explain the life cycle of stars with different masses, and use this understanding to determine which kind of star(s) are most likely to host habitable exoplanets.

Students model the structure of the universe, begin to understand its scale, and consider Earth's place in space by writing Earth's cosmic address.

The Earth, Moon, Sun and planets move in a predictable pattern. During this 5E sequence, students will demonstrate their understandings about different patterns of celestial motion by constructing a model that includes the role gravity and by making predictions about the orbital motion of planets.

Through the use of several simulations and readings, students will collect and analyze evidence with the goal of explaining why and how the astronomical evidence supports the Big Bang theory.

Students sequence planet data cards according to their distance from the Sun in order to surface patterns of mass, volume, density, and composition in the structure of the solar system.

The Regents Item Bank provides questions from past Regents exams aligned with the content of this unit.

Students make observations from online simulators in order to learn about the relationship between age and mass, mass of a new star and lifespan, and the stages of a star life cycles.