Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sky Quest

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Learners identify constellations in the evening sky. In this Sky Quest lesson, students create their own star patterns using a star map worksheet. Learners explain how different celestial bodies in space are viewed through a telescope.
Lesson Plan
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Where Is Saturn in the Solar System? Where Am I in the Solar System?

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
Students engage in a solar system activity, In this activity, students will read aloud as a class about the solar system. The students will then listen to the teacher read a solar system book prior to filling  out a worksheet about...
Lesson Plan
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Day and Night

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders view a classroom simulation that demonstrates how the Earth's rotation creates day and night.
Lesson Plan
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The Milky Way and Beyond

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students consider the scale of the Milky Way Galaxy. In this Milky Way lesson, students hypothesize the length of time necessary to cross the Milky Way.
Lesson Plan
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Earth and Beyond!

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers investigate one or more of the following topics and develop a plan for the future regarding it: global warming, lunar exploration, space travel, Mars exploration, or terraforming. They disucss the audio files and the...
Lesson Plan
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The Path of the Sun, the Ecliptic

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners are introduced to the ecliptic, the zodiac and the apparent motions of the Sun, Moon and planets across the sky.
Lesson Plan
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Finding the Pole Star

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students study the constellations fo the Big Dipper and Cassiopeia and their use in finding the Pole Star. They realize that other celestial objects--Sun, Moon and planets--share the rotation (and hence rise and set), even though their...
Lesson Plan
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Weights of Objects

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students differentiate between the weights of an object on different planets. In this geometry lesson, students investigate different weights and graph their results as it relates to the different planets. They appreciate the design of...
Lesson Plan
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Space Presents Problems

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students use the internet to research problems related to space. They complete a questionaire to direct their research before beginning. They create a database of moon and planet characteristics.
Organizer
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Parts of the Universe

For Students 3rd - 5th
In this universe worksheet, students will complete a graphic organizer by writing in the different parts of the universe, including a brief description of each of these parts.
Lesson Plan
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The Earth, Sun Mood and Stars Unit (Planets too!)

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders prepare five activities to do then show their energy saving skills.  In this investigative lesson students create five projects then participate in an energy saving demonstration. 
Activity
Star Date

Solar System Scale Model Demonstration

For Students 6th - 8th
Explore outer space and decorate your classroom with an astronomy project. Learners create a visual model with the creation of a scaled solar system using different sized balls.
Activity
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NOAA

The Great, Glowing Orb What You Will Do: Make a Solar Heat Engine

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
How is solar energy able to move wind and water to control the climate? Scholars explore the concept of solar energy in the first of 10 activities in the Discover Your Changing World series. They follow instructions to build homemade...
Lesson Plan
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Small Angle Calculations

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Students work with circles, angles and estimating angles in the night sky. For this circles and angles lesson, students practice measuring a degree using the circumference of a circle and apply the degree to determine a way to use their...
Lesson Plan
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Space Words and Comparatives

For Teachers 8th
Which is bigger: the sun or the moon? Which is nearer: the planets or a star? English Language Learners first located a series of space-related nouns and adjectives in a word search, and then identify the comparative and superlative...
Lesson Plan
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Being Nosy About Our Neighbors

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students use the scientific method to explore the effect of size on impact cratering. They compare images of landforms on Earth to those of other planets to compare surface processes. Students infer the geologic history of another...
Worksheet
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Pluto

For Students 3rd - 4th
In this planet science worksheet, students learn 6 facts about the planet Pluto. Students then read a short paragraph about the planet.
Lesson Plan
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Our Solar System to Scale

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students calculate the diameter of planets and their relative distances.  In this space science instructional activity, students discover how small or big the planets are in comparison to each other. Students use cross multiplying...
Worksheet
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Uranus

For Students 4th - 5th
In this planet science worksheet, students learn 6 facts about the planet Uranus. Students also read a paragraph containing more information about the planet.
Worksheet
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Mercury

For Students 3rd - 4th
In this planet science worksheet, students learn 7 facts about the planet Mercury. Students also read a short paragraph about the planet.
Lesson Plan
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Creating Craters

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students explore parts of an impact crater and compare and contrast craters found in Earth, the Moon, and Mars. Crater formation is modelled and the relationship of mass, velocity, and size of the projectile to the crater formation is...
Worksheet
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Scavenger Hunt: Who am I?

For Students 7th - 9th
In this solar system activity, students use an on line source to find the names of the people who discovered the planets, comets, asteroids, black holes and the idea of the big bang theory.
Lesson Plan
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Cosmic Wheels

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students build a scale model of the Solar System and determine the time other planets take to travel around the Sun in comparison to the time of the Earth's revolution. The velocity of the planets are also determined in this lesson plan.
Interactive
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Exploring Jupiter: Galileo Curriculum Module Issue One

For Students 5th - 6th
In this exploring Jupiter:  Galileo Curriculum Module issue one worksheet, students complete a crossword puzzle that tests their knowledge of Jupiter; their are 11 links to other worksheets to explore the planet.