Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Solar System: Uranus

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students research Uranus and its geological formation, atmosphere, magnetic field, satellites, and rings.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cometary Orbits

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students study orbits and ellipses and see the differences between orbits and comets.  In this investigative lesson plan students do an activity that shows them what objects are more like comets and fill out a worksheet. 
Lesson Plan
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University of Colorado

The Jovian System: A Scale Model

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Jupiter has 67 moons! As the seventh in a series of 22, the exercise shows learners the size and scale of Jupiter and its Galilean moons through a model. They then arrange the model to show how probes orbited and gathered data.
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Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics

Charting the Progress of New Horizons

For Teachers 2nd - 6th Standards
In 2006, New Horizons began its mission to fly to Pluto. As it continues its journey, scholars track its progress with the help of an informative website, all the while reinforcing measurement concepts with the construction of a scaled...
Lesson Plan
Space Awareness

History of the Universe

For Students 3rd - 5th
Your pupils may believe that you and their parents are the oldest things in the universe, but surprise! There are elements of the universe that are even older. Elementary scientists create a class timeline to demonstrate the...
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Illustrative Mathematics

Eratosthenes and the Circumference of the Earth

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The class gets to practice being a mathematician in ancient Greece, performing geometric application problems in the way of Eratosthenes. After following the steps of the great mathematicians, they then compare the (surprisingly...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Out of This World Writing!

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Miss Frizzle's class provides the inspiration for your young learners! Read "The Magic School Bus Explores Outer Space," and discuss the solar system. First learners will complete a KWL chart about a planet they're assigned to. Then, as...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mercury, Venus, and Earth

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students learn information about the planets Mercury, Venus, and Earth by playing a trivia game.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How Far Away Is Saturn?

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students work together to create a scale model of the solar system. They write a descriptive paper and a paper comparing and contrasting the Earth to Saturn. They discuss their writings with the class.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Out of This World (Science)

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students participate in various hands-on activities to visually demonstrate the positions of the planets from the sun. Then they draw a pictorial representation of the order of planets from the sun.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Scale Basketball

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students understand that a spreadsheet can be used to find the best scale to use in a model. They place the distances of the planets of the solar system to the Sun in one column of the spreadsheet. Students try different scales so that...
Lesson Plan
California Academy of Science

Kinesthetic Astronomy: The Meaning of a Year

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
How many times have you traveled around the sun? Aspiring astronomers grasp what a year is and they differentiate between orbit and rotation by walking around the sun right within your classroom. Place a lamp in the center of the room to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Voyage to Titan

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Learners go to the linked web page "The Nine Planets" to find facts about Titan. They list elements of the solar system and the five planets of the outer solar system. Students find their weight on each planet. Titan is selected from the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Magic School Bus Lost in Space

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students learn along with Ms. Frizzle's class. In this Magic School Bus lesson plan, students explore outer space as they visit the Sun, Mercury, Venus, and Mars in order to learn about our solar system.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Paper Rockets

For Teachers 4th - 10th
Students design, construct, and fly paper rockets that travel the greatest distance possible across a floor model of the solar system. They construct small flying rockets out of paper and propel them by blowing air through a straw.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Sun in Our Lives

For Teachers 3rd
Third graders identify the different parts of the sun. In this astronomy lesson plan, 3rd graders examine how the sun's energy drive life processes on Earth. They construct a model of a solar system using large rolls of toilet paper.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sun's Impact On Earth's Temperature

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students view NASA images and movies of Venus, Earth, and Mars to deduce weather patterns and manipulate computer models to test competing hypotheses. They manipulate computer models to investigate the influence of solar distance and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Interstellar Real Estate - Defining The Habitable Zone

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explore the orbital characteristics a planetary home needs to support Earth-like life forms. They develop an understanding of critical planetary mass to determine which newly discovered planets might be capable of supporting life.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

TE Activity: Space Shelter

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students simulate that they need to develop a new home on a different planet. They design a shelter that will ensure their survival after researching the characteristics of the other planet. They write an essay about their home design.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Understanding Distance in Space

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Young scholars discover the vocabulary used for distances in space and review measurement units and instruments before creating a scale model of the planets. They determine how to calculate the relative distances between the planets...
Lesson Plan
NASA

Let's Investigate Mars

For Teachers 3rd - 7th Standards
Take your science class on a hypothetical field trip to Mars with an engaging astronomy lesson. After first learning about NASA's Mars rover missions, young scientists plan their own scientific investigations of Earth's...
Lesson Plan
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Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics

Looking to the Future

For Teachers 2nd - 6th Standards
New Horizons set forth on a mission to Pluto in 2006. Ten years later, the spacecraft is still on its way. Here, enthusiastic scholars predict what they will be like—likes, dislikes, hobbies, etc.—when New Horizons arrives at its...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Planet Impact

For Teachers 8th - 10th
Learners use their knowledge to crash a comet into Jupiter or make a comet fly past the planet without colliding with it.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Planet Interiors

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students compare and contrast the Earth's interior with 2 other planets by looking at images on the computer. In this planet interiors lesson plan, students write a paper about their findings.

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