This week, I posed the question "why do the seasons change," to three participants to see what their thoughts were on the subject. They each told me their unique ideas and backed them up with reason. This is what they had to say:

Katie Phelan:

Earth starts rotating faster in the fall, so winds pick up more and plants die in the cold air. The Earth's speed continues to pick up in the winter, making it colder. Precipitation in the air turns to snow. Then the Earth slows down in the spring and it starts to get warm. In the Summer, Earth moves slowly so the sun's rays can get stronger without interruption from the cold winds.

Ashley Varga:

The seasons change because it's the way the Earth rotates around the sun. For summer, the Earth is closer to the sun and rotates slower. In winter, the Earth is further from the sun and rotates faster, hence why we have shorter days in the winter!

Jimmy Straight:

Winter - after a few months of the sun hitting the ice caps, they begin to melt.

Winter - when the ice melts and the water evaporates, it cools the atmosphere.

Spring - once the atmosphere's temperature reaches a point where it's been cold so long, the sun warms it.

Summer - the atmosphere reaches its peak temperature for awhile...

Fall - the ice caps begin to melt (evaporating into the air and cooling it down)

While all of those are good ideas, here's the real reason for the seasons changes:

Back in ancient times, cultures such as the Myans and Babylonians used complex systems to track the seasonal changes, but never really knew why. It wasn't until Nicolai Copernicus suggested that it was the Sun, not the Earth, that was the center of the universe that our modern understanding of seasonal change started to develope.

We all know the earth rotates while orbiting the sun, right? It's a common misconception that during its orbit, the earth moves closer to the sun in the summer and further in the winter. In actuality, people don't take into account the earths axis. The earth's axis is found at each pole, north and south. The axis is on a tilt, meaning the northern hemisphere will at one point be tilted towards the sun, and at another time, tilted away. This is why when it's winter in the U.S., it's summer in Australia - the southern hemisphere is pointed towards the sun!

The earth is constantly tilted on its axis, which makes the changes in seasons. The sun becomes stronger not because it comes closer to the earth, but because the hemispheres tilt closer towards it.

The seasons are actually marked by solstices and equinoxes. These terms each relate to the Earth's tilt. The solstices mark the points on Earth's axis, north and south, that are at one time or another pointed closest or farthest from the sun. These occur at the beginning of the summer and winter seasons, the times when the daytime and nighttime hours are at their longest or shortest. There are two different terms for the equinox: the vernal equinox and the autumnal exuinox. The vernal equininox occurs on the first day of spring, while the autumnal eqinox occurs on the first day of fall. On these days, the Sun is directly over Earth's equator, making the lengths of the day and night about equal. 

This video further explains the change in seasons in accordance to the earth's axis:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liOJtbCMF0M

I find it interesting how some people don't understand the reason for the seasons' changing; they just accept it as a part of life. I believe partial reason for this is because of how it's taught to us in school. Teachers have a tendency to teach from the textbook rather than using hands on techniques that get students involved in the lessons. Using manipulative's, such as replicas of the Sun and Earth, to demonstrate the Earth's rotation and even having the students use and model it themselves would be a great way to have a hands-on-minds-on lesson that students would be sure to remember.

Another way to spread awareness for the seasons change would be to incorporate it into the local weather, maybe at the start of a season as a fun lesson that helps people understand what exactly is causing the weather to change. A third way to help inform students would be to have a meteorologist come in and explain the concept of season change to them. Inviting a guest to speak is always interesting, and if that guest uses a hands on lesson like previously stated, they'd have an even greater chance of having the students grasp the concept.

I hope this helped clarify the reason behind the seasons' changes! Please, if you have any questions, leave them in the comments.

Thanks :)

Citations: 

Pictures:

http://parishofpohangina.net/files/3513/4344/1622/seasons.jpg

http://www.bioedonline.org/BioEd/cache/file/9A01C166-6F32-46B3-AEF0134BCF8DDE04.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/durPn.jpg

Information:

Williams, Paige. "Learn the Scientific Reasons behind Earth's Seasons." Msnbc.com. NBC, 19 Mar. 2013. Web. 18 Apr. 2013. <http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3077384/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/learn-scientific-reasons-behind-earths-seasons/#.UXClX781YlI>