Post on 16-May-2020
Lesson 4: Be Sun Smart
Snapshot
Moving outside, this lesson explores how we both need the sun and need to protect ourselves from its rays.
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Posters 1–3, Take-Home Talk
Flip chart and markers
Black or white board
Large sheets of paper for each child to make a poster
Markers or crayons
Print a dozen different maps of heat, UV, and humidity from different locations on the same day from online weather sites
Note: If it’s sunny out, think about teaching some or all of this lesson outside, but be sure to practice the sun smarts you will be teaching about!
Suggested Giveaways: UV bracelets that change color when the UV rays are at high levels, sunscreen, sun visors or hats that can be decorated, anything to protect from the sun.
Objectives—Students will be able to: •
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define sunscreen, sunburn, vitamin D, and ultraviolet (UV) light;
explain what the sun is;
list three things which the sun provides that we need; and
list three ways that they can protect themselves from too much sun.
Vocabulary: sunscreen, sunburn, vitamin D, and ultraviolet (UV) light
Procedure:1. Introduction (8 minutes)
Optional Activity: Sun Sing Off (10–20 minutes)
2. Defining Terms and Sun Smarts (20 minutes)Optional Activity: Heat and UV Around the Country (10–15 minutes)Optional Activity: Group Work on Animal Sunscreen (10–15 minutes)Optional Activity: Sun Smarts Posters (10–15 minutes)
3. Close and Take-Home Talk (8 minutes)
U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyOffice of Children’s Health Protection
EPA-100-K-13-002April 2013
www.epa.gov
Lesson 4: Be Sun Smart
1. Introduction and the Earth’s Orbit(8 minutes)
Review Askseveralstudentstosharesomethingthattheyrememberfromthepreviouslesson.
Prompts:Whatdidyoulearnthatyoudidn’tknowbefore?Whatdidwetalkaboutthatyoualreadyknew?Whatsurprisedyoufromourlastlesson?Whataresomeofthenewwordsyoulearnedfromourlastlesson?Whatcanyoudotopositivelyimpacttheissuethatwelearnedabout?
DoAsk
[Show Poster #1 (four photos—extreme close-up images of the sun or sun flares).]Whatdoesthislooklike?Whatdoyousee?Whoknowswhatthisis?[Take some time with the photos. This may be the first time that some of the kids have seen images of the sun this close.]
Thisisoursun.Haveyoueverseenapictureofthesunlikethis?Weusuallyseethesundrawnasabigyellowball.ThesephotosweretakenbyNASA.
Whatisthesun?ThesunisthestaratthecenterofourSolarSystem.Thesunis109timeslargerthantheEarthandprimarilyconsistsofhydrogenandhelium(gases).
Thinkofthesunasahumongouspowerplantthatisthrowingoffheatenergy.Wefeeltheheatenergyofthesunwhenwewalkoutside,andit’shotouteventhoughitis93millionmilesawayfromtheEarthbecausemostofthespacebetweentheEarthandthesunisempty,whichallowsthesun’senergytoreachuseasily.
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1. Introduction and the Earth’s Orbit (continued – page 2)
Howhotdoesthetemperaturegetin[insert your city name]atitshottest?
Prompts:InAugust,whatisthetemperature?Whenyouarebakingacakeormakingchicken,whattemperatureistheovenusuallyat?350or400degreesFahrenheit,right?Well,we’reabletoexperiencethesun’senergyfrom93millionmilesawaybecausethecoreofthesunismorethan28milliondegrees!
Today,wewilltalkaboutanenvironmentalhealthissuethatinvolvesthesun:sunsafety.Butbeforewetalkaboutclimateandhowweneedtoprotectourselvesfromthesun,let’sthinkaboutthesunalittlemore.
OptionalActivity:SunSingOff(10–20 minutes)
Dividethegroupintosmallergroupsof3–4studentsandexplainthatyouwillhaveaSingOffbetweengroups.Eachsongorraphastohaveoneofthefollowingwordsinit:Sun,Sunshine,Rays,Star,LightorHeat.
Lesson 4: Be Sun Smart
2. Defining Terms and Sun Smarts(20 minutes)
Whydoweneedthesun?Whatdoesitprovideus?
Prompts:Wouldwehaveplantswithoutthesun?Food?Wouldwebeabletoliveiftheweathergotextremelycoldorextremelyhot?
TheEarthandallofitsanimalsandplantsworktogetherasasystemtosustainallofthetrillionsoflivingthings.It’sacarefulbalanceandifonethingchanges,it’sgoingtohavearippleeffectacrosstheentiresystem.
Whataresomewordsthatyouthinkofwhenyouthinkaboutthesun?Orbeingoutinthesun?
Prompts:Light,sweat,heat,hot,warm,happy,sunscreen,sunglasses,sunburn.
Explain ThesunisessentialforlifeonEarth.Justasplantsneedthesuntogrow,humansandotheranimalsneeditaswell.Whatelsedowegetfromthesun?
Prompts:Dosunnydaysmakeyouhappier?Inthemiddleofwinter,don’tyoulongforsummer?Whatwouldyoueatifthesundidn’thelpplantsandanimalstogrow?
ThesunhelpsourbodiesmakevitaminD,whichhelpsustohavestrongbonesandteeth.Butcertainfoodsandvitaminsareexcellent,safersourcesofvitaminD.
Thesunalsohelpstoregulateoursleepingrhythms.Wehaveevolvedovermillionsofyearsalongwiththesun.
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2. Defining Terms and Sun Smarts (continued – page 2)
So,thesunprovidesuswithalotofthings.Butifwe’renotcareful,itcanalsocausealotofdamage.Whataresomeoftheharmfulthingsthatthesuncando?
Prompts:Haveanyofyoueverhadasunburn?Orhaveyouseenplantsthatgottoomuchsunandnotenoughwater?
TeacherNote:Theissueofsunburnsandtheneedforsunscreenmaybeasensitiveoneforstudentswhosefamilieseitherdon’tusesunscreenorbelievethatsunscreenisonlynecessaryforlight-skinnedpeople.Asyouareleadingthisdiscussion,beawarethatthisissuemaycausesometensionandrefertoyourorganization’spolicyandpracticesforaddressingsensitiveissues.
Andsunburnisexactlywhatitsoundslike—someoftheenergyofthesunisintheformofultravioletraysthatcanburnourskincells,andtheskingetsredandfeelswarm.Didyouknowthatyoucangetasunburnonacloudyday?Upto80percentofthesun’sultravioletrayscangetthroughonacloudyday.Rememberthatevenifyoudon’tburn,anychangetoyournaturalskincolorisasignofdamagetoyourskin.Sunburnscanleadtoskincancer.
Whileweneedthesun,wealsoneedtoprotectourselvesfromitsstrongultravioletradiation.Weneedtoprotectourbody’slargestorgan,ourskin.
WhatareultravioletorUVrays?
Rememberwhenwesaidthatthesunwaslikeagiantpowerplantthrowingoffenergy?Well,someoftheenergyisintheformoflightandsomeisheat,andit’salsosendingenergydownintheformofultravioletraysthatareinvisible—thesamewaythatheatisinvisible.Wecan’tseeheatandwecan’tseeultravioletrays.
Explain HaveyoueverheardoftheUVIndex?Whatisit?TheUVIndexassignsanumbertothenextday’sUV—orultravioletray—levelsandhighlightsthelevelofexposureforpeoplewhoplantobeoutdoors.JustliketheairqualitycodeyouhearaboutonTV,youshouldpayattentiontotheUVlevelsandplanyouractivitiestoprotectyourselffromgettingtoomuchsunbyusingshadeandcoveringupwithsunglasses,ahat,andprotectiveclothing,andusingsunscreen.Thehigherthenumberonthescaleof1to11+,themorecarefulyouneedtobe.
2. Defining Terms and Sun Smarts (continued – page 3)
OptionalActivity:HeatandUVAroundtheCountry(10–20 minutes)
ShareheatandUVMapsfromaroundthecountrywiththeclass.Printadozendifferentmapsofheat,UV,andhumidityforthesamedayfromonlineweathersitestoallowstudentstoseetherangeoftemperaturesaroundthecountryortheworld.Havestudentscalloutthelocation(whichyoucanfindonamap)andthenumbersandrecordthemontheboard.
DifferentpartsofthecountryorworldexperiencetemperatureandUVdifferently,buteveryoneexperiencesUV.
Sincewecan’tseparatethepotentialbadeffectsoftheUVrays(wrinkles,eyedamage,sunburn,skincancer,andimmunesystemsuppression)fromthegood,likevitaminD,expertsrecommendthatyoueatfoodswithvitaminDandtakevitaminDsupplementsratherthanseekingthesunforvitaminD.
WhataresomefoodsthatarehighinvitaminD?
Answer:Salmon,tunafish,fortifiedmilkandorangejuice,eggs,andlotsofcerealsandyogurtshaveaddedvitaminD.
Explain Butdoesn’tthesunfeelgoodsometimes?Don’tyouwanttogooutandfeelitonyourface?Youcertainlycan;butremembertowearsunscreen,sunglasses,andprotectiveclothing,likehatsandshirtswithsleeves,longpantsorlongshortswithhighsocks,topreventdamagetoyourskinandeyes.
Childrenareparticularlyatriskfromthesun.Whymightthisbe?
Children’sskinismoresensitiveandisgrowingmorerapidlythanthatofadults(thecellsaremultiplyingatamuchfasterrate).Andchildrenoftenspendalotmoretimeoutsideinthesunthanadultsdo.
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2. Defining Terms and Sun Smarts (continued – page 4)
Childhoodsunburnsincreasetheriskforskincancerlaterinlifeandcanalsoincreasetheriskforskincancerasearlyasthelateteenyearsandearlytomid-20s.Asignificantamountofsunexposureoccursbeforeage18.Protectingtheskinandeyesduringthefirst18yearsoflifecanreducetheriskofsometypesofskincancerbyupto78percent.Similarly,wearingsunglasseshelpstopreventproblemswithyoureyeslaterinlife.
Howcanweprotectourselvesfromthesun?
DoExplain [Show Poster #2 (photos of turtle, muddy pig, camel’s face, meerkat, and lions in the
shade).]Therearesomesimplestepsthatyoucantakeandsomeanimalscanshowushow.Checkouttheseanimals—theyarealleitherusingastrategyortheirbodieshaveevolvedtohelpprotectthemfromthesun’spowerfulrays.
OptionalActivity:GroupWorkonAnimalSunscreen(10–15 minutes)
Dividetheclassintogroupstodeterminehoweachanimalisprotectingitselffromthesun.
[Review each animal.]Whatdoyouthinkeachoneisdoingtobesunsmart?
Prompts:Whichanimallookslikeit’swearingsunglasses?Hasanyanimalherelayeredsomethingontoprotectitself?Whichonehas“clothes”on?
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Theturtlewearsashelllikeashirt—itsskincan’tbeburntifit’snotexposedtothesun.Youcanwearclothingtoprotectyourskinfromthesun.
Thepigcoversitselfinmudasasunscreen.YoushouldwearsunscreenofatleastSPF15wheneveryouareoutside.
Thebumpsoverthecamel’seyesactlikeahat.Youshouldwearahattoprotectyourface,neck,andheadfromthesun.
Theblackringsaroundthemeerkat’seyesactassunglasses.Youshouldwearsunglassesifyou’regoingtobeoutsideforlongperiods.
Theselionsareusingtheshadowrule—whenyourshadowisshorterthanyouare,seekshade!
2. Defining Terms and Sun Smarts (continued – page 5)
Doallpeopleneedtoprotectthemselvesfromtoomuchsun?Dodark-skinnedpeopleneedtodothingslikewearinghats,sunglasses,andsunscreen?
Prompts:HaveyoueverheardthatAfricanAmericansorNativeAmericansorHispanicAmericansdon’tneedtoprotectthemselvesbecausetheirskinisdarker?
ALLpeopleneedtobesunsmartandwearhatsandsunglasses,seekshade,andwearsunscreen!Ultravioletrayscandamageeveryone’sskinandeyes.
OptionalActivity:SunSmartsPosters(10–15 minutes)
ColoringorcreatingSunSmartssignsforuseintheteachingspaceorathome.Nowthatweknowhowimportantitistobesunsmart,wewanttosharethatknowledge.Eachofyou(orinpairs)willmakeaposterthatexplainsonewaytobesunsmart.Thinkbacktoallthethingswediscussed.
Passoutlargesheetsofpaperorthecoloringpageandmarkersorcrayons.
Lesson 4: Be Sun Smart
3. Close and Take-Home Talk (8 minutes)
DoExplain
Closeyoureyesandtakeanicedeepbreath.We’vecoveredalottoday.Wetalkedaboutthesunandwhyweneedit.
Rememberhowwetalkedaboutneedingcertainingredientstomakeourenvironmentshealthyalittlewhileback?Thesunisakeyingredientinourenvironment,butweneedtobesunsmart.Welookedatsomeanimalsthatwerepracticingsunsmarts.Therearefivethingsthatwecandotobesunsmart—whocannameone?[Go through all five: Wear clothing to protect your skin from the sun; wear sunscreen of at least SPF 15 when you are outside; wear a hat to protect your face, next and head from the sun; wear sunglasses outside; and when your shadow is shorter than you are, seek shade.]Youcanopenyoureyesnow.
DoExplain Forthenextfewweeks,we’regoingtocharttheUVIndexeachday.We’regoingto
chartthetemperatureandtheUVIndexandtakeafewnotesontheweather.Let’sseeifwenoticeanythingaboutultravioletrays.[Show Poster #3 (Charting the UV Index).]
Thecoolestpartaboutlearningsomethingnewissharingtheknowledge.Tonight,whenyougethome,Iwantyoutotalkwithyourfamilyaboutthethingsthatwelearnedtoday.Talkwithyourfamilyaboutwhyisitimportanttoprotectyourskinandeyeswhileoutsideanddiscussthestepsthatyoucanalltaketobesunsmart.
DoExplain [Pass out Take-Home Talk.]ThisTake-HomeTalksheethassomethingsthatyoucan
sharewithyourfamilyandsomeactivitiesthatyoucandoathome.Seewhatyoucanaccomplishonthesheetandwe’lltalkaboutitthenexttimewemeet.