Science: 4-3.1
Recall that Earth is one of many planets in the solar system that orbit the Sun.
Our Solar System
Essential Questions:
What are planets? Where is Earth compared to other planets, the Sun, and the Moon? Which planets are considered rocky, gas filled, inner and outer?
Our sun is a star. A star is a huge ball of hot gases that give off its own light. The sun is only one of many stars we can see. It is an average-sized star. The sun looks so big to us because it is so much closer to Earth than other stars.
The sun is the central star of our solar system. The sun is also the largest object in our solar system. Our solar system is made up of the sun and all the objects that move around it.
Eight of those objects, including Earth, are planets. A planet is a large round body in space, natural satellites, that orbits around a star, such as our sun. The curved path along which a planet or other space body moves is called its orbit.
Essential Questions:
What are planets? Where is Earth compared to other planets, the Sun, and the Moon? Which planets are considered rocky, gas filled, inner and outer?
Our sun is a star. A star is a huge ball of hot gases that give off its own light. The sun is only one of many stars we can see. It is an average-sized star. The sun looks so big to us because it is so much closer to Earth than other stars.
The sun is the central star of our solar system. The sun is also the largest object in our solar system. Our solar system is made up of the sun and all the objects that move around it.
Eight of those objects, including Earth, are planets. A planet is a large round body in space, natural satellites, that orbits around a star, such as our sun. The curved path along which a planet or other space body moves is called its orbit.
The eight planets of our solar system are very different from each other. Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars are known as the inner planets. They are small and rocky. The outer planets are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. The outer planets are large and made mostly of gas. They do not have solid surfaces.
Learning Tasks & Assessments: Notebook Entry: Students will create a mnemonic to remember the order of the planets from the Sun outward. (DOK 1) For Example: My Very Energetic Mother Just Served Us Nachos Reading A-Z Solar System Activity - Mnemonics Notebook Entry: Students will categorize and classify planets according to their surface attributes (rocky, made up of gas, etc.). (DOK 2) Formative Assessment: Exit Slip: Students will complete an exit slip with the following types of questions: ● Categorize the 8 planets of our solar system. (DOK 1) ● Explain why our planet system is called the “solar system”. (DOK 2) ● Recall surface attributes of each planet (True/False). (DOK 1) Assessment Guidelines: The objective of this indicator is to recall that Earth is a planet along with other planets that orbit the Sun; therefore, the primary focus of assessment should be to remember that there are planets that orbit the Sun. However, appropriate assessments should also require students to identify a planet by name or position; recognize planets whose surface is like or unlike Earth; or recognize the Sun as the star around which planets orbit. |
Resources
ABDO Digital e-Book Earth pp. 6-7 Interactive Site: The Earth and Beyond:Planets- Ordering and Mnemonics Capstone eBook: Our Home Planet Earth Discovery Ed Video Elements of Earth Science: The Universe and the Solar System:The Origin of the Solar System ReadWorks Explore Our Solar System Passage and Question Set Reading A-Z Solar System Activity - Compare & Contrast Planets |