Modeling Incoming Solar Radiation

Overview

A kinesthetic activity that challenges students to participate in a model that describes the fate of solar energy as it enters the Earth system.  A good initial lesson for Earth’s energy budget, students unravel the benefits and limitations of their model.

Materials Required

Per Student:  

• Face to Face: Modeling Incoming Solar Radiation Student Sheets 
• A way to sketch and record responses 

For Teacher

• Modeling Incoming Solar Radiation Teacher Slides

Procedure

Each student participates to collectively develop a classroom model that assesses the relative distribution of incoming solar radiation once it enters the Earth system.  Models are used to help understand and visualize a process.  Each student plays the role of incoming solar radiation to the Earth system.  The assumptions and limitations of the model are discussed.  A Google Slides presentation may be used to facilitate this activity.

1. Students work together as a class. Each student represents a unit of energy that just arrived to Earth from the Sun.  As a class, students predict how units (students) should represent the amount of solar energy that is reflected as opposed to being absorbed by Earth’s system.  Students should gather on one side of the classroom or the other depending on whether they will individually represent solar energy that is absorbed or solar energy that is reflected.
2. Optional: Classroom teacher will share information about how the NASA CERES Mission contributes to the scientific understanding about Earth’s Energy budget. 

3. Classroom teacher reveals a pie-chart with NASA values from the CERES Mission.

   

   
   
   1. Working as a group/class, students should revise their values and move as necessary to reflect the NASA values.   
   2. Depending on the numbers in your class, students may find that their human model is difficult to use as the percentages of people in the room may or may not evenly divide into the percentages indicated on the pie chart.  Allow students to make a decision on how they will accommodate the difference.
   3. Optional: Teacher leads a class discussion about the limitations of using a pie chart in terms of relaying accurate values.

4. Each group (as designated by the class model for representing absorbed or reflected energy) should discuss how personal experiences can allow them to further divide into categories to predict the quantities of the solar energy that is absorbed or reflected as a result of a specific part of the Earth system. (Note that the sun’s energy is NOT equally divided) 

   

   
   
   1. Absorbed or reflected by/from Earth’s surface (land & ocean)
   2. Absorbed or reflected by/from the atmosphere & clouds
5. Classroom teacher will share a more detailed pie-chart with NASA values from the CERES Mission.
   
   1. Teacher should facilitate a class discussion to uncover any misconceptions students had that may have been revealed with their predicted values.
   2. Working as a group/class, students should revise their values and physically move as necessary to reflect the NASA values.   Students, once again should accommodate for deciding how their values would reflect the percentages provided.
   3. Student groups discuss the limitations and strengths of the two models.  The teacher then facilitates a class discussion to compare/contrast the two different models, noting the following:
      
      1. Limitation: (pie chart and classroom model)  Rounding of decimalized values presented as scientific data often present as inaccuracy in the context of a model.  
      2. Limitation: (classroom model) When extrapolating percentages to numbers less than 100, the modelers decisions about rounding result in inaccurate presentation of data.
      3. Strength: (pie chart and classroom model) Easy to quickly extract qualitative and/or semi-quantitative information in terms of more/less.
      4. Strength: (classroom model) More likely to remember specific information because you associate with with something external (in this case your peers).
6. Working in pairs or small groups, students a asked to consider a third option for a model, an arrow model.  Student groups work together to propose how arrows can be used to communicate the relative distribution of incoming solar radiation once it enters the Earth system. 
   

   1. Provide students something to sketch with or handout of the arrow model starter diagram or the Modeling Incoming Solar Radiation Student Sheets.

      

7. Teacher reveals the arrow model (either as slide presentation or handouts) used to represent the distribution of incoming solar radiation in the NASA Earth’s Energy Budget diagram.  
8. Student groups discuss the following :
   
   1. Explain how the arrow model changes the communication about the distribution of incoming solar energy?  
   2. Explain how the arrow model worsen or complicates communication about the distribution of incoming solar energy?
9. Students share their opinion and evaluate the models.
   
   1.  Individually, using a 1-4 star ranking, students rank the models for their usefulness as a communication tool. (Page 2 of Student Handout).   
   2. Students can be quickly polled to share their ranking with class.
   3. Optional: Teacher follows rankings with a a discussion that may serve as a check for understanding.  
10.  Students individually or in pairs complete a learning check to evaluate their ability to identify specific aspects of a model that helps when evaluating them.
    1. Describe a specific assumption that limits the model’s use. 
    2. Describe an approximation that limit the model’s use.   
    3. Describe an attribute that strengthens the model’s use for a public audience.   
    4. Describe an attribute that strengthens the model’s use for a classroom audience. 

Complementary Lesson Plans