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Lesson Plan
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Science 4 Inquiry

Temperature of Inner Planets

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Mars, Earth, and Venus contain atmospheres that generate weather. Young scientists explore the temperature of inner planets. They create a model simulating the greenhouse effect before researching and answering guided questions to...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Planets in Our Solar System

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Each member of a four-student group takes on a specific aspect of an assigned planet to research. After gathering information, the team works together to create a travel brochure and a presentation intended to convince other classmates...
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Lesson Plan
University of Colorado

Looking Inside Planets

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
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...
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Lesson Plan
Virginia Department of Education

Planet Line-Ups

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Should Pluto be considered a planet or a dwarf planet? Scholars research planets in our solar system to understand their similarities and differences. It also includes memory activities related to the order of the planets. 
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Graphic
PBS

The Planets of the Solar System

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
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,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Describing the Planets

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Young Spanish language learners review the names of each planet. Then, in pairs, they work to complete the chart provided. What is the composition of each planet? What is the color? They learn how to describe the planets. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Please Ex-Planet!

For Teachers 5th - 8th
What is most useful about this lesson plan is the "Student Explanet Worksheet," a set of instructions for collaborative groups to use to collect information about an assigned planet. After students have researched and organized their...
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Lesson Plan
Journey Through the Universe

Where to Look For Life?

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Every year we discover new planets including more than 1,000 in 2016 alone. Will we ever find life on another planet? The lesson includes two activities to help scholars understand this concept. First, they analyze the temperature range...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Making Models of the Solar System

For Teachers 1st - 5th
Young scholars make several models of the solar system to learn the positions of the planets in the solar system as well as relative distances and sizes. Creation of these models will help them identify the planets by size, shape, color,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Scale Model of the Solar System

For Teachers 6th
Young scientists gain a better understanding of space, the solar system and its vastness by creating a scale model. Students first need to calculate the distance between each of the nine planets according to the size of their scale. This...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Reading and Writing about the Solar System

For Teachers K - 2nd
A superb interdisciplinary approach highlights this lesson which incorporates space science knowledge and narrative skills. After reading The Magic School Bus, two excellent poems, and watching a video, all about our solar system, young...
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Lesson Plan
NASA

Mystery Planet

For Teachers 2nd - 8th Standards
What can one learn about a planet based on a small surface sample? Learners will explore artifacts from a mystery planet and see what they can determine about the planet based on the evidence in front of them. 
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Lesson Plan
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California Academy of Science

Our Hungry Planet: Design Thinking Challenge

For Teachers 6th - 10th Standards
Scholars investigate an issue associated with food systems and design their own solutions. Working collaboratively, they follow each step in the design process to complete the 10th lesson of the 13-part Our Hungry Planet series.
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Activity
Star Wars in the Classroom

Star Wars Geography Unit

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
What kind of animals live on an ice planet like Hoth? How would the habitat on Tatooine allow different organisms to thrive? Connect social studies, science, and Star Wars in one engaging activity that focuses on the ecosystems of the...
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Lesson Plan
University of Colorado

Terra Bagga

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
One way to identify possible volcanic activity on other planets is by testing the planet for magnetism. A science instructional activity begins with pupils constructing their own planet from a dead battery, magnets, paper, and...
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Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

The Engine of Life

For Teachers 5th - 11th Standards
There is a specific zone, or distance from a star, that a planet must be in order to have water in a liquid form. The activity demonstrates how flux density depends on its distance from the source. A photovoltaic cell gets power to drive...
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Lesson Plan
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Population Connection

The Peopling of Our Planet

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed Standards
How many people live on the planet, anyway? The first resource in a six-part series covers the topic of the world population. Scholars work in groups to conduct research and make population posters after learning about the global...
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Lesson Plan
Virginia Department of Education

Solar System Model

For Teachers 9th - 12th
How many planets can you name? Did you get all 13 in our solar system, including the dwarf planets, or were you surprised when you read there are 13 planets? The instructional activity helps scholars understand the scale of the universe...
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Activity
Las Cumbres Observatory

How Big is the Solar System?

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Find out if it's possible to travel to the edge of the solar system. Learners use a piece of string to model the distance between planets in the solar system. They then use the distances to calculate how long it would take to travel to...
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Activity
Seussville

What Can Your Class Do?

For Teachers K - 6th Standards
Inspire scholars to do their part for planet Earth with a read-aloud of Dr. Seuss's The Lorax, and variety of activities designed to boost the environmental activist in us all. Activities include writing poems about the Earth, sorting...
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Lesson Plan
California Academy of Science

Moons in Comparison

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
Just how big is Earth's moon? With a hands-on simulation, scholars use Play-Doh to model the sizes of the planets Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and their moons. They make predictions as a class, work together to make their models, and discuss...
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Activity
Astronomical Society of the Pacific

Toilet Paper Solar System

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
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 the...
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Interactive
American Museum of Natural History

Planetary Mysteries

For Students 6th - 12th
A website all about planetary mysteries—it's a one-stop-shop for all things, stars, planets, and space travel. Scholars read an astronomy overview to discover the page's big ideas, then choose from the plethora of resources, including...
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Lesson Plan
Science 4 Inquiry

A Whole New World: The Search for Water

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Scholars find Earth won't support humans much longer and need to identify a planet with water to inhabit. They test four unknown samples and determine which is the closest to water. Then they explain and defend their results.

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