The purpose of this lesson is to introduce students to the planet Mars. This lesson will begin by discussing the location and size of Mars relative to Earth, as well as introduce many interesting facts about this red planet. Next, the...

A series of lesson plans designed to be used with the Smithsonian Ocean Planet exhibit (available online). Lesson topics include marine ecosystems, pollution of ocean water, animal strandings, and literature.

In this science activity young scholars will work collaboratively to learn and introduce the eight planets, sizes, characteristics, and their order. They will use size comparisons, research a planet, design a poster and create a...

Students explore the outermost planets of our solar system: Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. They also learn about characteristics of Pluto and its interactions with Neptune. Students learn a little about the history of space travel as well...

Students will compare an informational text versus a narrative text about Earth Day. Included in this lesson are videos and pictures of the lesson in action, a printable Earth Day Venn Diagram, and a recycling activity.

Students use iron filings to explore the magnetic field around a magnet and record their observations then apply their experience with the magnet to understand the magnetic field around Earth.

Smithsonian Institution presents ?Ocean Planet: Interdisciplinary Marine Science Activities?. Through this series of six interdisciplinary lessons, learners will look at such things as the organisms in different marine ecosystems, the...

The purpose of this instructional activity is to teach students about how a spacecraft gets from the surface of the Earth to Mars. The instructional activity first investigates rockets and how they are able to get us into space. Finally,...

Teach the concept of scale models and the size of the solar system through this extensive lesson plan. Students will learn about scale models, estimate which objects to use to create a scale model of Earth and Sun, and figure out how far...

Students will work in cooperative groups to research characteristics of each of the planets in our solar system. Students will design a travel brochure outlining the characteristics of each planet. Each group will make an oral...

This activity combines the concept of Earth's rock cycle with the characteristics of other planets in the solar system.

Create a classroom model of the solar system while teaching about relative size of all the planets, and each planet's distance from the sun.

Art unit in which students draw their homes and share these drawings with students in a foreign country Includes unit description, list of materials, and links to lesson plans.

Did you know that ancient astronomers could measure the distance to other stars? They could also distinguish between stars and planets. How could they do that without modern technology of telescopes? See if you can discover the link...

Students explore Mercury and Venus, the first and second planets nearest the Sun. They learn about the planets' characteristics, including their differences from Earth. Students also learn how engineers are involved in the study of...

Students explore Mars and Jupiter, the fourth and fifth planets from the Sun. They learn some of the unique characteristics of these planets. They also learn how engineers help us learn about these planets with the design and development...

In this lesson plan site, students are asked to construct a scale model of the planets to help visualize the relative size of planets and their relative distance from the Sun. Links are provided to the Sun and the planets which contain...

Students learn how engineers navigate satellites in orbit around the Earth and on their way to other planets in the solar system. In accompanying activities, they explore how ground-based tracking and onboard measurements are performed....

Students are introduced to the fabulous planet on which they live. Even though we spend our entire lives on Earth, we still do not always understand how it fits into the rest of the solar system. Students learn about the Earth's position...

Demonstrate the ability to apply the use of decimals, fractions, ratios and proportions to situations based upon given information about planets in the solar system.

In this lesson, students will learn about types of land use by humans and evaluate the ways land is used in their local community. They will also consider the environmental effects of the different types of land use. Students will assume...

Learners are introduced to natural disasters, and learn the difference between natural hazards and natural disasters. They discover the many types of natural hazards - avalanche, earthquake, flood, forest fire, hurricane, landslide,...

Students are introduced to our Sun as they explore its composition, what is happening inside it, its relationship to our planet (our energy source), and the ways engineers help us learn about it.

When we look at the night sky, we see stars and the nearby planets of our own solar system. Many of those stars are actually distant galaxies and glowing clouds of dust and gases called nebulae. The universe is an immense space with...