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Our Solar System
Grade 5
Big Idea 5: Earth in Space and Time
SC.5.E.5.1, SC.5.E.5.2, SC.5.E.5.3
Does This Matter to Me?
PSELL Big Idea 5 Student Book p. 160
This picture, courtesy of NASA, our national space program, is an
artist's rendering of the planned Space Launch System as a rocket
lifts off with the Orion spacecraft atop. The Orion spacecraft is
already built and ready at Cape Canaveral in Florida. The Space
Shuttle program provided successful low-Earth orbit missions, but
NASA's heavy-lift launch vehicle will provide a new capability for
human exploration beyond low-Earth orbit. The Space Launch
System, shown here with Orion on it, is designed to be flexible for
launching spacecraft for crew and cargo missions that will go far
beyond to the moon again, to explore asteroids, and even to go to
Mars. It will be people who are your age right now, maybe even
you, who will be the ones to go on these exciting missions.
Talk about these questions in your group:
1. How is our view of our Sun different from our view of other stars?
2. How and why does the moon's appearance change over the course of a
month?
3. Why do the positions of the moon, stars, and planets change in the night
sky?
Our solar system is located in a galaxy
known as The Milky Way.
p. 167
What is a Galaxy?
A galaxy is a group of solar systems, dust, and gas held
together by gravity.
Let’s read to learn more: In a Galaxy, Far, Far Away…
What did you learn?
How have astronomers learned about space?
Sun and Stars
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pp. 167-168
Stars come in all different sizes.
Our Sun is the standard used for comparing all
other star sizes.
The biggest stars are called supergiants.
Some are 500 times larger than the Sun.
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Some of the smallest stars are white dwarfs.
Many are 1/100 the size of the Sun roughly the size of Earth
What do we know about the Sun?
Click on SC.3.E.5.2; SC.3.E.5 Sun - Size and Appearance
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The sun is the closest star
to Earth.
The sun is a big ball of hot
gases.
The sun gives off two kinds of
energy: light and heat. This is
called solar energy.
All eight planets orbit, or revolve, around the sun.
The sun is so large that more than a million Earths
could fit inside it.
Solar System
Let’s Explore Your Place In Space: Our Solar System
Resource Link:
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/our_solar_system/solar_system.html
What objects orbit the sun?
pp. 169-170
Planets orbit the sun.
What is a planet?
A planet is a large ball of rock or gas that follows a path
round the sun.
What else orbits the sun?
moons, drawf planets, comets, asteroids
What are the eight planets?
Having trouble remembering them? Try this
mnemonic device:
My Very Educated Mother Just Showed Us
Neptune!
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter,
Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
Inquiry 10: Modeling the Solar System
(SC.5.E.5.3)
Student Resource pp. 173-181
Question: How can we model the distances of
planets from the Sun and from each other?
Make a Prediction:
In a model of the solar system, the Sun and
Mercury (the closest planet to the Sun) are 14
inches apart. How far do you think it is from the
Sun to the farthest planet, Neptune?
120 inches
90 feet
300 feet
How are the Planets grouped?
What characteristics do they share?
Inner Planets
Size: Small
Rocky and Solid
Few or no moons
Temperature: Hot to warm
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 Mercury
 Venus
 Earth (one moon)
 Mars
Outer Planets
Size: Large
Composed of gas and dust
Many moons
Temperature: Cool to cold
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Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
Neptune
Planet Data Table Activity
Comparing Planets in Our Solar System
Planet
Number of Moons Length of Year
in Earth Days
Mercury
Venus
0
0
88
224.7
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
1
2
63
62
365
687
4,329
10,752
Uranus
Neptune
27
13
30,660
60,152
Planet Characteristics
Planet
Size
Length of Its Orbit
Composition of
Planet
Mercury
Small
Shortest
Rocky No moons
Venus
small
Longer than Mercury but
shorter than Earth’s
Rocky
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
Neptune
small
small
Largest Planet
Large
Large
Large
Longer than Venus but
shorter than Mar’s
Longer than Earth but
shorter than Jupiter’s
Longer than Mars but
shorter than Neptune’s
Longer than Jupiter but
shorter than Uranus’s
Longer than Saturn but
shorter than Neptune’s
Longer than Uranus
No moons
Rocky
One moon
Rocky
No moons
Gases and dust
Many moons
Gases and dust
Many moons
Gases and dust
Many moons
Gases and dust
Many moons
Accountable Talk
Interactive Notebook Reflection
Complete the sentences below to compare and contrast planet
characteristics.
1. ________________ are different from ______________
in that ____________________ are ________________ than
the ________________.
2. ___________ is/are similar to ______________________in
that ______________________.
Solar System Review
Inner Planets
Outer Planets
Accountable Talk
Interactive Notebook Reflection
Complete the sentences below to compare and contrast
planet characteristics.
1. ________________ are different from __________________ in
that ____________________ are ________________ than the
________________.
2. ___________ is/are similar to _________________________in
that ______________________.
How does Earth differ from other planets?
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Earth is the 3rd planet from the sun. It is called the
“Rocky Planet,” because it is made of rocks.
Sometimes Earth is called the “Water Planet,”
because about 70% of its surface is covered with
the water.
Earth orbits or revolves around the sun in 365
days, or one Earth year.
While it is orbiting the sun, it also spins like a top! It
spins 1 time in 24 hours, and that is why Earth’s
day lasts for 24 hours.
Earth is the only known planet where plants and
animals live.
It has one moon.
SC.4.E.5.4