Curated OER
Venus Wordsearch
There are a ton of great vocabulary words to be found in a word search about the planet Venus. Learners will locate and circle 34 wonderful words related to planetary science and the solar system. Printing instructions are included.
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...
University of Colorado
Looking Inside Planets
All of the gas giant's atmospheres consist of hydrogen and helium, the same gases that make up all stars. The third in a series of 22, the activity challenges pupils to make scale models of the interiors of planets in order to...
Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
Goldilocks and the Three Planets
Venus is the second brightest object in the night sky after the moon. Here is an interesting lesson that explores three planets — Venus, Earth, and Mars — specifically their surfaces and atmospheres. Through an analysis of their spectra,...
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.
Simply Worksheets
Solar System - Identifying Planets
In this space science worksheet, students read the five descriptions of various planets and match the description with the picture of the planet.
Scholastic
Study Jams! Our Solar System: Inner Planets
Stunning images make up this slide show on the inner planets of our solar system. While visiting Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars, viewers also are introduced to the International Space Station and the Spirit Rover on Mars. Follow this...
A to Z Teacher Stuff
Solar System Book
Young astronomers travel through the solar system in the pages of this printable book. With clear pictures and simple sentence structure, this is a perfect resource for exploring the planets in the early elementary grade levels.
Curated OER
Mercury and Venus
Learners learn about the characteristics of the planets Mercury and Venus. In this planets lesson, students learn about these planets and their differences from Earth. They also learn how the inventions of engineers have made it possible...
University of Colorado
Looking Inside Planets
Researchers use scientific data to understand what is inside each of the planets. The first in a series of six, this instructional activity builds off of that concept by having pupils use a data table to create their own scale models of...
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,...
CommonCoreSheets.com
The Space Race
From the USSR's launch of Sputnik in 1957 to Neil Armstrong's mission to the moon in 1969, review major events in the timeline of the space race during the mid-twentieth century.
Curated OER
How To Build a Planet From The Inside Out!
High schoolers read about the Spitzer Space Telescope and the technology used to learn about planet composition. They calculate the radius of a planet, the size of a planet, the average density of a planet and the likely core composition...
Curated OER
Planets Worksheet
In this planets worksheet, students use Internet research to complete 5 pages about solar system facts. Students answer 25 essay questions and label a diagram of the solar system.
American Museum of Natural History
Cosmic Cookies
Scholars read about each planet then bake a plate of cosmic cookies—no-bake cookies decorated to look like the planets; Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto.
Center for Math and Science Education
Pocket Solar System
How in the world can something as big as the solar system possibly fit in your pocket? Complete this simple modeling activity and find out, as young scientists gain an appreciation for the incredible scale of outer space.
Curated OER
Our Place in Space
Third graders identify the different planets that make up the solar system. In this space science lesson, 3rd graders construct a scale model of the major planets. They explore their different unique features and dress up as planets.
Center for Math and Science Education
Solar System Launch
Trying to understand the vastness of outer space can be quite a challenge for young scientists. Help put things in perspective with this cross-curricular activity as students work in pairs creating scaled models of the solar system,...
Curated OER
Exploring the Planets
Students study robotic spacecrafts that have provided detailed information about the inner and outer planets. In this exploring the planets lesson plan, students use posters and diagrams to study the various robotic spacecraft sent to...
Curated OER
The Outer Planets
In this outer planets worksheet, students will write in the names of the outer planets on a chart. Then students will fill in the chart with information about each of these planets including size and composition, atmosphere, below the...
Curated OER
The Inner Planets
In this inner planets worksheet, students will list the four inner planets on a chart. Then students will write in information for each of these planets including size and composition, atmosphere, temperatures, surface features, moons,...
Curated OER
Ceres and Pluto: Dwarf Planets as a New Way of Thinking about an Old Solar System
Students examine the new categories of planets and how planets were reclassified. In this solar system lesson students complete activities using Venn diagrams and images of planets.
Curated OER
The Planet Venus
In this worksheet on the planet Venus, students look at a picture of the planet and read accompanying facts, along with a brief paragraph.
Curated OER
Who Wants to be a Millionaire: Solar System
Fourth and fifth graders will love showing what they know about the planets and our solar system. This game is fashioned after "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" and has the class work through fifteen different solar system related...