Download Lesson #1: Introduction to the Solar System

Earth and Space Science
Lesson #1: Introduction to the Solar System
Time Frame: 1 session of 30 minutes, may take 2 sessions
Learning Standards:
The Earth in the Solar System
13) Recognize that the earth is part of a system called the “solar system”
that includes the sun (a star), planets, and many moons. The earth is the third
planet from the sun in our solar system.
Skills of Inquiry:
- work together in a group to create their replica of the solar system
Student will be able to:
Learn about what the solar system contains: sun, stars, planets, and moons.
Be able to place the different parts of the solar system in relation to the
distance from each other.
Background Information for Teacher:
The Solar System consists of the Sun and those celestial objects bound to
it by gravity, all of which formed from the collapse of a giant molecular cloud
approximately 4.6 billion years ago. The Sun's retinue of objects circle it in a
nearly flat disc called the ecliptic plane, most of the mass of which is contained
within eight relatively solitary planets whose orbits are almost circular. The four
smaller inner planets; Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars, also called the terrestrial
planets, are primarily composed of rock and metal. The four outer planets,
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, also called the gas giants, are composed
largely of hydrogen and helium and are far more massive than the terrestrials.
The Solar System is also home to two main belts of small bodies. The
asteroid belt, which lies between Mars and Jupiter, is similar to the terrestrial
planets as it is composed mainly of rock and metal. The Kuiper belt (and its
subpopulation, the scattered disc), which lies beyond Neptune's orbit, is
composed mostly of ices such as water, ammonia and methane. Within these
belts, five individual objects, Ceres, Pluto, Haumea, Makemake and Eris, are
recognized to be large enough to have been rounded by their own gravity, and
are thus termed dwarf planets. The hypothetical Oort cloud, which acts as the
source for long-period comets, may also exist at a distance roughly a thousand
times beyond these regions.
Within the Solar System, various populations of small bodies, such as
comets, centaurs and interplanetary dust, freely travel between these regions,
while the solar wind, a flow of plasma from the Sun, creates a bubble in the
interstellar medium known as the heliosphere, which extends out to the edge of
the scattered disc.
Six of the planets and three of the dwarf planets are orbited by natural
satellites, usually termed "moons" after Earth's Moon. Each of the outer planets
is encircled by planetary rings of dust and other particles.
Anticipatory Set: Split the students into four groups and pass out materials.
Explain to the that they will be constructing their own solar system with clay.
They will decide where the different parts of the solar system go in relation to
each other.
Activity:
1. Ask the question "what do you know about the planets?" Get students to
brainstorm about this question.
2. Explain to the students that you can study astronomy through the use of
models. The students will be creating a model of the solar system using clay to
represent different planets and other objects in the solar system (asteroids,
moons, etc.). The students can use as much or as little of the clay their group is
provided. Students may use their books or previous knowledge to try to make an
accurate model for the solar system. Tell students that their models should
represent the true size and scale of the solar system.
3. Allow 15-20 minutes for the students to build their models. During this time
students should also pick a spokesperson to explain the model to the rest of the
class.
Closure: Lead a class discussion about the models: 1) What are the strengths
of our models? 2) What are the weaknesses of our models? 3) How are our
models different from the real solar system? 4) How are our models similar to the
real solar system? Explain to the students that 99% of the mass of the solar
system is found in the Sun. That leaves only 1% for the rest of the solar system.
In other words, for the models to be an accurate representation in terms of mass,
99 grams of clay would be needed to represent the Sun, and only 1 gram could
be used for all of the planets, 59 moons, and thousands of asteroids. Hold up 99
grams of yellow clay for the Sun and 1 gram of gray clay that represents
everything else in the solar system. It is hard to believe isn't it? Explain to
students that over the course of the next unit, they will be building upon these
models and correcting them based on what they learn.
Assessment: Group participation in project and class discussion.
Resources and Materials: For each group of 4 students: 50 grams of gray clay,
100 grams of yellow clay, 50 grams of green clay, 50 grams of blue clay, 50
grams of red clay, a balance.