All lessons › Earth and the Sun › Lesson 2
Australian primary science · Year 6 · Lesson 2 of 3
Model a spinning Earth
Inquiry question: How can a model show why the Sun rises in the east and sets in the west?
Check practical materials
Using a model
What students learn
A torch and a ball can model the Sun and Earth. Turning the ball the right way shows why the Sun appears in the east first and why different places have sunrise at different times.
Success criteria
- I can use a model to show day and night.
- I can show which way Earth spins and explain why sunrise is in the east.
- I can say one way the model is like the real thing and one way it is different.
Preparation and materials
Before this lesson: Students know day and night are caused by Earth’s rotation (lesson 1).
- Small torch (the Sun) — 13 (one per pair)
- Orange, polystyrene ball or small ball (Earth) — 13
- Wooden skewer or pencil pushed through the ball (the axis) — 13
- Small sticker or marker dot (your town) — 2 per pair
- Darkened room (blinds down, lights off) — 1
Teacher setup
- Push the skewers through the balls (pole to pole) before the lesson.
- Mark North and South at the ends of each skewer.
- Check torches work.
- Plan how to darken the room.
Safety and adaptations
- Carry skewers point-down and keep them away from faces.
- Never shine torches into anyone’s eyes.
- Never look directly at the Sun, even with sunglasses.
Review your school policies and curriculum requirements before teaching.
How to investigate
The lesson sequence should leave pupils with evidence to interpret, not only an activity to finish.
- Pairs set up the torch and ball in the dark.
- Put stickers on Sydney and Perth (or your town and a town to the west).
- Turn Earth the correct way and stop at four positions: sunrise, midday, sunset, midnight.
- Record which sticker reaches the light first.
- List one way the model matches the real Earth and Sun, and one way it doesn’t.
Teacher modelling prompt
Darken the room and shine a torch on a ball. Hold the skewer upright with North at the top. Put a sticker on Australia. Think aloud: “Looking down on the North Pole, Earth turns anticlockwise, so places move from west to east. So I turn it this way… our sticker moves out of the dark and into the light. That’s sunrise, and the light is coming from our east.”
Record and explain evidence
Recording question: How does Earth’s spin cause sunrise, midday, sunset and midnight?
| Position of Sydney sticker | Day or night? | Where the Sun would look from Sydney | Is Perth in the light yet? |
|---|---|---|---|
| ________________ | ________________ | ________________ | ________________ |
Example recording headings; record actual observations, including inconclusive results.
Discussion prompt
Use the model to test both claims.
Check understanding
What should pupils know? Which way does Earth spin, and how does that make the Sun rise in the east?
Explain with evidence: Why do people in Sydney see sunrise before people in Perth?
Apply the idea: Give one way your torch-and-orange model is different from the real Earth and Sun.
Teacher answer guidance and saved classroom work are available through the main lesson experience where supported.