First Grade · Science · week 28

Sunrise and sunset: a daily pattern

Observe and describe the daily pattern of sunrise and sunset, and predict that the pattern will repeat.

Every single day, the Sun appears to rise up in the sky in the morning and set down in the evening. This has happened every day of your life, and it is a pattern you can predict with confidence.

Scientists call something that repeats over and over a pattern. Once you notice a pattern, you can use it to predict what will happen next, even without seeing it happen yet.

📋 For the teacher
Teach it (10–15 min):
  • If possible, look at the sky together near actual sunrise or sunset this week, even just briefly out a window.
  • Ask your child to predict tomorrow's sunrise before it happens, then check together if they were right the next day.
  • Introduce the word "pattern" clearly this week; it is the anchor word for this entire unit.
  • Avoid overcomplicating with why the Sun rises and sets if your child is not ready; observation and pattern come first.
Talk about it:
  • What happens to the sky in the morning? In the evening?
  • How do you know the Sun will rise again tomorrow?
  • Why is a pattern useful for predicting the future?

Mastery looks like: They describe the daily sunrise and sunset pattern and confidently predict it will repeat tomorrow, because it is a pattern.

Common stumbles: Thinking each day's sunrise is a surprise rather than a reliable pattern; confusing what causes daylight with simply observing when it happens.

Homework for this lessonType it, write it with a stylus, or print it for pencil & paper.open →
Records attendance + 15 min of Science for this learner.
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