Astronomy Activity and Laboratory Manual

Hirshfeld's Astronomy Activity and Laboratory Manual is a collection of twenty classroom-based exercises that provide an active-learning approach to mastering and comprehending key elements of astronomy. Used as a stand-alone activity book, or as a supplement to any mainstream astronomy text, this manual provides a broad, historical approach to the field through a narrative conveying how astronomers gradually assembled their comprehensive picture of the cosmos over time. Each activity has been carefully designed to be implemented in classrooms of any size, and require no specialized equipment beyond a pencil, straightedge, and calculator. The necessary mathematical background is introduced on an as-needed basis for every activity and is accessible for most undergraduate students. This learn-by-doing approach is sure to engage and excite your introductory astronomy students!
Hirshfeld's "Astronomy Activity and Laboratory Manual" Is A Collection Of 20 Classroom-Based Exercises That Provide An Active-Learning Approach To Mastering And Comprehending Key Elements Of Astronomy. Used As A Stand-Alone Activity Book, Or As A Supplement To Any Mainstream Astronomy Text, This Manual Provides A Broad, Historical Approach To The Field.
Alan W. Hirshfeld is Professor of Physics at the University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth and an Associate of the Harvard College Observatory. He received his undergraduate degree in astrophysics from Princeton University in 1973 and his PhD in astronomy from Yale University in 1978. He is the author of two widely praised books: Parallax: The Race to Measure the Cosmos, which chronicles the human stories involved in the centuries-long quest to measure the first distance to a star; and The Electric Life of Michael Faraday, a biography of the 19th century pioneer of electricity and magnetism. His writings have appeared in numerous magazines and he has lectured at educational institutions nationwide about scientific history and discovery.