Unit 5 · Our Environment · NCERT Class 4 Our Wondrous World

Our Sky

Look up! By day the Sun lights our world, and by night the Moon and stars shine. Clouds drift by and weather changes. Tap each idea to explore the day sky, the night sky, and how to watch the clouds and weather above you.

🌤️ 3 topics⏱ ~12 min📝 10-question quiz

Play with it

Six things in our sky

The sky is full of wonders. Tap each term to explore what we see above us by day and by night.

Explore · The skytap a term

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The three big ideas

The Sun is a giant ball of fire far away. It gives us light and warmth and makes the day bright.
The Earth spins slowly. The side facing the Sun has day; the side turned away has night.
As the Earth turns, day and night take turns — that is why the Sun seems to rise in the East and set in the West.

Everyday example. When it is daytime where you live, why is it dark on the other side of the Earth?

That side is turned away from the Sun, so it has night while your side has day.

The Moon lights the night sky, but it makes no light of its own — it reflects the Sun’s light.
The Moon’s shape seems to change over the month — sometimes a thin crescent, sometimes a full round Moon.
Stars are like far-away suns. Because they are so distant, they look like tiny twinkling dots.

Common mix-up: Mix-up: the Moon does not grow or shrink. We only see the sunlit part, so its lit shape seems to change night by night.

Clouds are made of tiny water drops floating high up. Dark, heavy clouds often bring rain.
Weather is what the sky and air are like — sunny, cloudy, windy or rainy — and it can change from day to day.
By watching the sky we can guess the weather and decide whether to carry an umbrella.

Everyday example. You see dark, heavy clouds gathering in the morning. What might happen, and what should you carry?

It may rain, so it is wise to carry an umbrella or a raincoat.

Where you'll see it

Looking up at the sky

Shadow at noon

Stand in the Sun at midday and your shadow is short; in the evening it grows long — the Sun’s place in the sky changes through the day.

A Moon diary

Draw the Moon each night for a month and watch its shape change from a thin sliver to a full round Moon and back.

Reading the clouds

Dark clouds and a cool wind often mean rain is near — a quick look up helps you decide to take an umbrella.