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Evangelical Christian Academy
Instructional Guide: Course Outline
Department: Science
Course Title: Earth Science
Course Length: 2 semesters
Optional Unit #11: The Planets, Asteroids,
Meteors, and Comets
Chapter 5, 6
Unit Length: 8-10 days
Essential Questions:
What are the characteristics of the planets in the solar system?
What are the characteristics of earth’s motions?
Instructional Objectives:
At the end of the chapter, students will be able to:
 Describe Kepler’s three laws of planetary motion to describe the orbits of the planets.
 Compare and contrast aphelion and perihelion in a given planet’s orbit.
 Explain the effects of distance and albedo on a planet’s orbit.
 Classify a planet as inferior or superior, given its position.
 Describe how planets exhibit retrograde motion, to which planets this illusion pertains,
and why.
 Compare and contrast terrestrial or Jovian planets.
 Investigate the significant characteristics of planetary objects other than Earth in the
solar system.
 Discuss how Neptune, Uranus, and Pluto were discovered.
 Summarize several of the missions and importance of the planetary space probes.
 Discuss the condensation theory of the origin of the solar system.
 Compare and contrast plutoids, dwarf planets, and minor planets.
 Discuss the discovery of periodic comets and discuss their relationship to the Oort cloud
and Kuiper Built, if a relationship exists.
If there is time:
 Students will be able to identify a comet’s structural features.
 Students will distinguish between meteors, meteorites, and meteoroids, and describe
how each is related to the others.
 Students will list three classes of meteorites and describe their properties.
Instructional Resources:
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ActivBoard
Student instructional manual
Bible
Have students research individual planetary objects and their moons
Biblical Integration:
 Discuss how the planets will change as mentioned in Rev. 21:23 New heaven and new
Earth Science 8 Unit #11
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earth where the sun is no longer needed
Discuss how the Galilean moons were important in the Copernican theory and how
Galileo was persecuted for going against the Catholic Church. It is important to believe
scripture, (Search the scriptures) but where the Bible is silent, we cannot read into it our
own philosophies.
Discuss the significance of meteorite craters on earth and how they relate to the oldearth/young-earth controversy
Assessments:
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Class participation/discussion (grammar, logic, and introductory rhetoric)
Quizzes
Journal entries (grammar, logic)
Homework (review to develop understanding and mastery)
Test
Evaluation of lab investigations and accompanying questions on labs
Debate (logic and introductory rhetoric)
Student Activities:
 Students will research updates on one of the planets, plutoids, minor planets, and regions
where comets may originate
 Students will work together to place newly observed planets in their proper order from
the sun
 Students will make a model of the distance between planets and between each planet
and the sun
 Students will demonstrate that Kepler’s third law works regardless of the shape of a
planet’s orbit, use data to predict the average distance from a planet to the sun, and use
data to predict the orbital period of a planet in earth years.
 Students will demonstrate that a planet moves faster at the perihelion and slower at the
aphelion because it sweeps through an equal area in equal time.
 Students will demonstrate Kepler’s first law by observing ellipses that they have drawn
and drawing conclusions regarding the focal points and shapes of ellipses.
 Students will demonstrate how the illusion of retrograde motion occurs.
Earth Science 8 Unit #11
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