This way the shadows will be more vertical, rather than tilted. Students need enough room to spread out that they will not be in each other's shadows. Discussion Ask the students what they learned about what causes the phases of the moon from the activity. A very common misconception is that the phases of the moon are caused by the earth's shadow on the moon. It should be obvious that this is not the case from the exercise that the students have performed.
Extensions Have the students watch the moon for a month and notice the phases that it goes through.
They will be able to see the moon at different times of the day, depending on what phase it is in. Below are the best times to see the different phases, in the order that they appear throughout the month. In the late afternoon the waxing gibbous moon will be in the eastern portion of the sky. After sunset the moon will move across the southern part of the sky and will set sometime after midnight. Full moon Rises when the sun sets, is up all night, and sets when the sun rises.