Glynn County School System
Our Sun
The sun is responsible for almost 99 percent of the solar system's mass. As an essential part of our lives, the sun has many important features. A PowerPoint lesson presents information about features such as sunspots, the magnetic...
Glynn County School System
Terrestrial Planets
Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars are collectively known as the terrestrial planets. Although part of the same group, each planet has its own set of characteristics. Scholars explore the characteristics that make the planets unique and...
Glynn County School System
Solar System Formation and Extra-Solar Planets
Has the solar system always been like it is today? A lesson presentation begins with a discussion of the formation of our solar system. It continues with a compare and contrast of the inner and outer planets.
Glynn County School System
Our Solar System: An Introductory Tour
Take science lovers on an out-of-this-world tour of the solar system. A PowerPoint presentation gives a pictorial view of the planets of the solar system. Images highlight the unique features of each planet, and the final slides include...
PBS
Why Isn't There an Eclipse Every Month?
Searching for an eclipse activity that sends scholars over the moon? Try an interesting interactive to get their minds active! The resource, part of an extensive Space series from PBS Learning Media, uses modeling and data analysis to...
PBS
The Planets of the Solar System
Launch a lesson that's sure to capture middle schoolers' interest! Exploration enthusiasts examine the planets of our solar system using an activity from PBS's Space series. The resource includes images and information for each planet,...
PBS
Experience a Solar Eclipse
Didn't catch the last solar eclipse? Now every day can be eclipse day, thanks to an interactive lesson plan from PBS' Space series for middle schoolers! The well-rounded multi-media experience includes video clips, an interactive, and...
CK-12 Foundation
Venn Diagrams: Planets and Dwarf Planets of the Solar System
Yes, Venn diagrams are helpful in science, too. Learners use an interactive to classify celestial bodies as having moons, as dwarf plants, as both, or as neither. They answer a set of challenge questions based on the Venn diagrams they...
Columbus City Schools
Moon Phase Mania
Now you see it, now you don't. Our moon seems to pull a disappearing act from time to time—but why? Take your seventh grade scientists above and beyond to discover the truth about the moon and the role it plays in Earth's little corner...
McGraw Hill
Solar System Builder
Create your own solar system using a simulation. Young scientists explore the components of a stable solar system through trial and error. Using the simulation, they place planets and watch as they orbit safely or cause fatal collisions.
McGraw Hill
Extra Solar Planets Interactive
Studying what you can't see can be challenging. Discover how scientists use indirect measurements to prove the existence of planets and estimate their sizes. The introduction explains the symbiotic movement of planets and stars during an...
Space Awareness
Living in the Milky Way
Get to know our galaxy with an astronomy-themed, hands-on activity. Scholars watch an informative video, answer questions, and construct a model of the Milky Way in order to examine its contents and the distance inside it.
Space Awareness
History of the Universe
Your pupils may believe that you and their parents are the oldest things in the universe, but surprise! There are elements of the universe that are even older. Elementary scientists create a class timeline to demonstrate the expansive...
Scholastic
Lesson Three: The Earth, Movement in Space
If you feel like you're standing still, you're wrong! The Earth is constantly rotating and orbiting under our feet. Demonstrate the Earth's movement within the solar system with a collaborative activity. With a candle or lamp in the...
Space Awareness
Know Your Planets
Does your class know their planets? Implement an activity that has them describing the solar system, identifying properties of the planets, and placing them in order from their distance from the sun.
Research Parent
Solar System Cards
Find all things solar system in a set of reference cards. Even Pluto makes an appearance! Each of the 24 cards has a picture and accompanying informational text that gives brief background about the object.
Messenger Education
Exploring Exploring
The reason people first began trading was because of their desires for objects other societies possessed. In the activity, classes discuss why exploration has been a common thread in all societies and where these desires have taken...
SciShow Kids
Let's Make the Solar System
Get crafty with the help of pictures and a real-time demonstration from a video that details the step-by-step process in creating a paper solar system.
University of Colorado
Clay Planets
Why do scientists use models? In the first installment of 22, groups create scale models of our solar system. They then share and discuss their models.
Messenger Education
Exploring Solar Systems Across the Universe
Scientists have theorized that our solar system formed 4.6 billion years ago. In this pair of activities, learners first hypothesize how our solar system was formed. Using this information, groups then determine how scientists search for...
Messenger Education
Mission: Possible—How Can We Plan an Exploration of Another World?
An astronaut's spacesuit weighs 280 pounds and takes 45 minutes to put on — that's a serious suit! The second activity of a three-part series allows pupils to see all that goes into space exploration. Through simulations, groups analyze...
University of Texas
Observing the Moon
Why does it look like there is a man on the moon? Why does the moon look different every night? These are the focus questions of a lesson that prompts class members to observe and record the nightly changes of Earth's natural satellite.
Teach Engineering
Manned Mission to Mars
To go or to not to go — the question for a mission to Mars. This resource provides details for a possible manned mission to Mars. Details include a launch schedule, what life would be like on the surface, and how the astronauts would...
Teach Engineering
The Amazing Red Planet
Introduce your class to Mars with a resource that provides information about its size, location, length of day, length of year, number of moons, and average temperature. Also includes is information about the lans for past and future...