Science · Year 1

Active learning ideas

Daylight Patterns Across Seasons

Active learning works because young learners grasp seasonal daylight changes best through direct observation and comparison. Students need to feel the warmth of sunlight, see shadows shift, and chart time changes to build accurate mental models of Earth’s tilt and orbit.

• National Curriculum Attainment Targets
• KS1: Science - Seasonal changes

• 20–45 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Placemat Activity
• 30 min · Pairs

Outdoor Tracking: Shadow Lengths

Mark a stick in the playground and measure shadow lengths at morning, midday, and afternoon over a week. Students record measurements on clipboards with drawings. Compare results across seasons using a class display board.

Explain why it is still light when we go to bed in summer.

Facilitation Tip

During Outdoor Tracking, have students trace shadows at three set times each day to see real-time changes in length and direction.

What to look for

Give students a card with two columns: 'Winter' and 'Summer'. Ask them to draw one picture or write one word in each column to show how daylight is different in each season.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 02

• Placemat Activity
• 45 min · Whole Class

Whole Class: Sunrise Sunset Chart

Create a large calendar chart where the class adds sunrise and sunset times daily from weather apps or clocks. Discuss weekly patterns and mark summer versus winter lengths with colours. Predict next week's changes.

Compare the length of daylight in winter and summer.

Facilitation Tip

When creating the Sunrise Sunset Chart, invite students to use sticky notes to mark actual sunset times from home, building personal connection to data.

What to look for

Ask students: 'Imagine you are a plant. How would longer daylight in summer help you grow? How would shorter daylight in winter make things different?' Listen for their use of vocabulary related to light and growth.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 03

• Placemat Activity
• 35 min · Small Groups

Small Groups: Globe Model Days

Use a globe, lamp as sun, and teddy bears to tilt the globe for seasons. Groups observe 'daylight' on different UK areas and note day lengths. Rotate roles: tilt, observe, record.

Predict how the changing daylight affects animals and plants.

Facilitation Tip

In Small Groups using Globe Model Days, ask each group to rotate the globe slowly while shining a lamp to replicate the sun’s apparent path in different seasons.

What to look for

Observe students as they track the time of sunset for one week. Ask individual students: 'What time did the sun set today? How is that different from yesterday? What do you think will happen tomorrow?'

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 04

• Placemat Activity
• 20 min · Individual

Individual: Plant Light Journal

Give each child a fast-growing plant seed. Track daily growth and hours of light exposure in a simple journal with drawings. Compare journals at term end to link light and growth.

Explain why it is still light when we go to bed in summer.

Facilitation Tip

For the Plant Light Journal, model how to sketch a plant’s height and leaf count every Friday to link growth with daylight observations.

What to look for

Give students a card with two columns: 'Winter' and 'Summer'. Ask them to draw one picture or write one word in each column to show how daylight is different in each season.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

A few notes on teaching this unit

Start with the Planetarium Effect: use a lamp and globe to show how tilt creates uneven sunlight in summer and winter. Avoid abstract explanations; instead, let students manipulate the globe themselves. Research shows hands-on modeling with immediate visual feedback builds lasting understanding of tilt and orbit.

Students will confidently explain how Earth’s tilt affects daylight by using evidence from their own measurements, charts, and journals. They will compare seasons, describe patterns, and connect daylight changes to plant and animal behaviors.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Outdoor Tracking, watch for students who think shadow length is caused by the sun’s height in the sky rather than Earth’s tilt. Redirect them by asking, 'How does the shadow change when you move your hand closer to the light? How is that like Earth moving around the sun?'

  During Outdoor Tracking, have students measure shadow lengths at the same time each week to see that shadows grow shorter as summer approaches, linking the pattern directly to tilt.

• During Globe Model Days, watch for students who assume all places on Earth experience the same day length. Ask groups to compare the UK’s tilted globe with a straight-axis model to see where light falls.

  During Globe Model Days, ask each group to mark where the UK is at noon in summer and winter, then compare light coverage to show why places have different day lengths.

• During Plant Light Journal, watch for students who think plants only respond to temperature, not daylight. Ask them to compare journal entries from winter and summer to find the key difference.

  During Plant Light Journal, guide students to notice that plants grow taller in spring when daylight increases, even if temperatures are still cool.

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Methods used in this brief

• Placemat Activity