Guiding Questions

• What role did astronomy play in ancient civilizations?

• Are the stars that make up a constellation actually close to one another?

• Are the same stars visible every night of the year? What is so special about the North Star?

• Are the same stars visible from any location on Earth?

• What causes the seasons? Why are they opposite in the northern and southern hemispheres?

• Has the same star always been the North Star?

• Can we use the rising and setting of the Sun as the basis of our system of keeping time?

• Why are there leap years?