Pluto Lesson Plans

In this lesson learners read a news article about a space mission being launched to the planet Pluto. They study the necessary vocabulary and complete an anticipation guide of questions which they revisit after they read the article.

Students read a story called Spacecraft Launched on Mission to Pluto and answer vocabulary and comprehension questions about it. In this current events mission to Pluto lesson plan, students respond to literature by answering questions, recalling details, sharing facts, researching the size of the planets online, and discussing how planets and their moons got their names.

In this lesson students read a story called Pluto a Planet No More and answer vocabulary and comprehension questions about it. In this planet lesson plan, students respond to literature by answering questions, recalling details, sharing facts, creating mnemonics to help them learn the names of the planets in their correct sequence from the sun, and sing a song called The Family of the Sun.

In this lesson students research Pluto. In this research lesson, students use graphic organizers to record information found during research. In this lesson students research the question "Is Pluto a Planet?" and record their data on a graphic organizer. In this lesson students then use the information to write a paragraph.

Students explore the solar system. In this lesson on the planets of our solar system, students graph the diamerer, temperatrue, and distance of each planet. Students research the new planet and what it needs to support life. Students plan a trip to Pluto and create a PowerPoint about what they learned.

In this lesson students investigate the movements of the planet Pluto. In this lesson students participate in a hands-on activity to record data similar to the movements of the planet Pluto. In this lesson students compare their data to that found on a website.

In this lesson students explore the discovery of miniplanet Quaoar and the newly disputed status of Pluto as a planet. They create an updated student astronomy text to reflect these potential revisions to the solar system.

Students are introduced to how to use a graphic organizer. As a class, they watch a demonstration on how to use them and work together with a partner to research whether Pluto is a planet or not. In groups, they travel between stations to discover both sides of the argument.

Students examine the astronomical concept of a year. They relate the passage of time on planets to historical events in the USA.

3rd graders are told that they are going to work on Step 3 of the Research Process. They discuss what a good researcher is able to get a great deal or much of important information from books by looking carefully at and interpreting the pictures and diagrams. 3rd graders are shown examples of pictures and diagrams from page 3 and 4 of "Postcards from Pluto."