Is Earth's energy flow a little off balance? Explore our energy budget using a click-through interactive. Scholars discover the many factors that move solar energy around the planet and why the system is no longer in equilibrium.

Help your class understand the magnitude of the distance between Earth and Mars with an activity that asks small groups to use balloons to create scale models of the Earth, Moon, and Mars. Class members figure out the distances...

Reinforce concepts and encourage learner engagement with a collection of math games, science experiments, and cross curricular activities. In one fun resource, learners sort objects, keep a diary of everyday fractions, play a game using...

On September 26, 1991, four women and four men entered the scientific experiment, Biosphere 2; the doors were sealed for two years in order to study the interactions of a biosphere. In the activity, scholars explore biospheres by...

A radio receives radio signals, converts them to an electrical signal, then converts this signal to a sound signal, and amplifies the sound so people can hear it. Class members use this information to create a short-wave radio antenna...

Students study the Earth and Solar System through a variety of activities. They compile a coloring book show the characteristics of the Sun and nine planets.

Students describe stellar objects using terms such as stars, planets, satellites, orbits and light. In this sun and stars unit, students research stellar objects through seven individual lessons discovering star characteristics, how...

First graders explore why the sun and moon seems to disappear and reappear creating day and night.

Students are introduced to the challenges involved in understanding the space travel distances and the time involved to do so through the use of an interactive fable. The modeling and comparisons deal with specific distances at different...

Young astronomers follow a step-by-step procedure for dividing a lump of dough into parts, resulting in a scaled volume set of puny planets. Along with the printable directions is a template chart of planet names on which learners can...

For this space science worksheet, learners answer 14 essay questions pertaining to the Earth, moon, and sun and their relationship. Prior knowledge is assumed, or this could be a pre-test.

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...

Scholars go on a hunt to locate objects that best fit the measurements to create an eye-catching scale model of the solar system. 

Young scholars build a scaled model of the solar system. In this space science lesson, students arrange them according to their distances from the sun. They analyze each planet's unique features such as density and relative gravity.

Second graders research distance between planets and the sun using encyclopedias. They use toilet paper sheets as a unit of measurement (50 million km.) students stand at planet locations using toilet paper to measure distance between.

For this solar system worksheet, students fill in the blank to sentences that refer to the solar system. Students fill in 15 blanks with planet names.

Why do planets orbit the sun in ellipses when moons orbit their planet in circles? Pupils control the semi-major axis, eccentricity of the orbit, and position angle. The resulting orbital appears with the related force vectors as...

Examine an innovative approach to a large-scale model. Pupils across the state of Maine teamed up to create a model of the solar system that spans 40 miles. Put thinking skills to work within your classes as they make the calculations to...

Can we model how large the solar system really is? Attempt an astronomical feat with a hands-on-activity that uses a roll of toilet paper. Young scientists measure the distances of the planets from the sun to create a scale model of...

Young scientists know it is hotter along the equator, but why is it also rainier? Through the process of completing two experiments and a worksheet, scholars discover the answer is the intertropical convergence zone. First, they...

Explore the solar system in detail, from it's origins to its components.  Visual data gathered by actual space missions has been used to create the images and animations on each page of this stellar electronic book about the solar...

Students study the variables that affect the Earth's albedo.  In this environmental data analysis instructional activity students interpret and graph information and calculate changes. 

Yeast and sugar go beyond the pantry and into a fuel experiment. Use these common baking ingredients to assist your class in creating ethanol, a natural fuel. Pupils observe the process and gather information to elaborate...

Through a PowerPoint presentation and the embedded animation and video, earth science enthusiasts find out about the moisture in the soil beneath our feet. In the animation, follow a water molecule on its path through the water cycle. As...