Why We Have Seasons

Explain seasons with tilt and direct sunlight, not distance; opposite seasons in the Southern Hemisphere.

Warm-up, learn, try it together, practice, then a quick check. About 15 minutes.

What children learn in Level 4

Why are summers hot and winters cold? Many people think Earth is closer to the sun in summer. But that's not it!
Earth is actually closest to the sun in early January, in Georgia's winter. So distance can't cause the seasons.
The real reason is the tilt. When our half leans toward the sun, sunlight shines more directly, like a flashlight pointed straight down: a small, bright, warm spot.
Leaning toward the sun also means longer days, so the ground has more time to warm up. That's summer. Leaning away brings slanted light and short days: winter.
The Southern Hemisphere leans the opposite way, so its seasons are flipped. When it's summer in Georgia, it's winter in Australia!
Try it with a grown-up: tilt a ball and walk it around a lamp, keeping the tilt pointed at the same wall. Watch which half the light hits most.

Georgia Standards of Excellence in Science:

S4E2.c — Construct an explanation of how the Earth's orbit, with its consistent tilt, affects seasonal changes.
S4E2.a — Develop a model to support an explanation of why the length of day and night change throughout the year.