Understanding the Solar

System
Workshop (5 days)
By: Stephanie Brace, Lexi Sharos, Charity
Jones, and Jennifer Parks

Solar System
Subject: Science (Astronomy)

Objective: Students will understand the importance of the solar system by learning and
memorizing the nine planets along with how the sun plays a key role in our “solar”
system. Students will also learn the similarities of the earth and the moon, along with
historical facts about how each planet was discovered. Students will also learn the
appearance (features) of each planet. Along with learning all the information about the
solar system, students will also practice their communication skills.

Materials:
Handouts (provided)
Computers (Internet)
Styrofoam Balls (various sizes)
Paint (variety of colors)
Floral Wire
Medium Size Box
Construction Paper (Blue, Black, Red)
Toothpicks
Glitter Paint (Silver)
Glue
Scissors

Schedule:

Day 1: Introduce the eight planets to the class. Ask what the students already know
about planets. Have a brief class discussion about the planets. Hand out the
“Introduction to the Solar System” sheet for students to follow along with; then explain
to the students about the solar system (found on handout). Send out a letter to
parents explaining what their children will learn in class this week (solar system) along
with explaining the fifth day’s project.

Day 2: Review the eight planets with students. Give students a quiz on the names of
the eight planets. Explain to the students that they will be doing research on the
internet for the first three planets, which are Mercury, Venus, and Mars. Students will
be divided into groups of five. Students will need to find ten facts online, in their
groups. Give students a handout explaining today’s activity along with room to write
down facts. Students will have twenty minutes to complete their research. After they
have obtained ten facts, they will be called on by the teacher to present their facts to
the class. Each student is required to participate in this presentation.

Solar System
Day 3: Have an in-class discussion on what the students learned from previous day.
Give students handout for the day. Explain to the students that they will be doing what
they did the previous day, but they will be researching the next three planets, which are
Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. Students will be spending twenty minutes, in their group of
five, researching on the internet ten facts about the three planets. After research is
complete, students will present their facts to the class. Each student is required to
participate in this presentation.

Day 4: Have in class discussion about what the students learned from the previous
day. Give students handout for the day. Students will be researching the last three
remaining planets, which are Uranus and Neptune. Students will be spending twenty
minutes, in their group of five, researching on the internet ten facts about the three
planets. After research is complete, students will present their facts to the class. Each
student is required to participate in this presentation. Then, handout study guide for
test tomorrow.

Day 5: Students will take a test on the solar system. Then, after the test, give handout
explaining the project students will be completing today on the solar system. Students
will be making “their own” solar system using the materials listed above. Go through
the handout with the students, and explain what they need to do.

Solar System
 Introduction to the Solar System

Quick Overview
The solar system is truly amazing. Our solar system consists of a huge star
we call the sun, eight planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter,
Saturn, Uranus, Neptune), the moons of the planets, comets, asteroids,
meteoroids, and the interplanetary medium. It is necessary for you to
understand how the solar system works, because it has more to do with
your everyday life than you would think!

The Orbit of the Planets

The main reason why the planets orbit the sun is the gravitational pull or
force the sun gives off. This is the same example of the earth and the
moon. The Earth’s gravitational force keeps the moon orbiting the earth.
The Earth completes its rotation every 24 hours (1 day). The Earth rotates
around the sun every 365 days (1 year).

Who discovered gravity?

Isaac Newton discovered the idea of gravity. He discovered gravity when
he was very young. Newton was outside near an apple tree when he
heard the thump of an apple falling on the ground next to him. This was
the beginning of his research to discover gravity.

A Closer Look

Sun: The sun is a burning ball of heat and gas. It is the main
part in our solar system. That is where the name “solar” came
from. The sun makes up about 99.9% of the solar system.
That’s huge!!

Mercury: Mercury is the closest planet to the sun, and the

second smallest of the eight planets. It was named by the
Romans after a messenger of the gods, because it seems to
move faster than the other planets. Even though this is the
closest planet to the sun and the sun appears 2 ½ times larger than it

Solar System
does on earth, the sky is always black. This is because Mercury contains
no atmosphere to provide the scattering of light. Mercury consists of
craters, high multi-ring basins, and lava flows. Scientists believe that
Mercury is about 70% metal and 30% silicate.

Venus: Venus is known as the “jewel of the sky,” and is named

after the goddess of love and beauty. Venus is surrounded by
thick clouds made up of sulfuric acid. It is also known as Earth’s
sister planet. However, Venus has no oceans and is surrounded
by an atmosphere that consists mainly of carbon dioxide. A Venusian’s day
is 243 of Earth’s days. At least 85% of Venus’ surface is made up of
volcanoes or volcano features.

Earth: Our planet!!! Earth is the only known planet that is able
to maintain life! It is made up of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen,
and 1% of other substances. Our Earth travels at about 67,000
miles per hour. The Earth also has 1 moon.

Mars: Mars is the fourth planet from the sun. It is known as the
red planet, because the rocks, soil, and sky have a red tint. Mars
was named after the god of war. One reason scientists believe
that there could be life on Mars is because of the seasonal color
changes it has. The average temperature on Mars is -81 degrees
Fahrenheit.

Jupiter: Jupiter is the fifth planet from the sun. Jupiter could
equal up to more than 1,000 earths. It also contains more
matter than all of the other planets combined. There are four
rings on Jupiter, but they aren’t visible to Earth.

Saturn: Saturn is the sixth planet from the sun. It is also the
second largest of the eight planets. One significant factor of
Saturn is its very visible rings. Winds move at very high speeds
around Saturn. Saturn has 31 recognized moons.

Solar System
 Uranus: Uranus is the seventh planet from the sun. It is
the third largest in the solar system. It is 83% hydrogen,
15% helium, and 2% other substances. Uranus’ has a
greenish color to it due to methane. Uranus also has a
variety of narrow rings.

Neptune: Neptune is the eighth planet from the sun, and it is

also the fourth largest planet. Neptune has eight moons.
Neptune’s bluish tint is from the fact that is made up of 1%
methane.

****
Pluto: Pluto, formerly known as the ninth planet from the sun,
has recently been discovered to be a dwarf planet, which does
not fall under the true definition of a planet. Little is known
about this little planet. However, a spaceship was launched to
Pluto recently, and it will take 9 ½ years to get there! Pluto is also smaller
than seven of the moons in our solar system.

Solar System
 02/04/2006

Dear Parents,

This is just to give you a little idea of what your children will be learning
this week in our solar system workshop! Students will be learning about
the solar system, along with memorizing the eight planets in order from
the closest to the sun. We are really excited about this workshop, and we
feel your children will be to. On Friday, we will wrap up this workshop by
making a model of the solar system. This project will be very exciting for
the students as well as the NWA Planetarium staff. We will provide
students with the materials. As for the test on Friday, students received a
handout today, and they will need to study that along with their activity
sheets they work on every day. We look forward to teaching your children
about the exciting world of Astronomy!

If you have any concerns or questions, feel free to give us a call at 479-
123-4567.

Thank-you,
NWA Planetarium Management and Staff

Solar System
Name_________________ Date: _______________

Directions: Now that you’ve had a quick overview of each planet…you are
going to do a little research of your own. You will get into groups of 5
(We will pick the groups). Then, it is time to surf the web and find 10 facts
on the internet about the first three planets, Mercury, Venus, and Earth.
The facts can be anything that has to do with the history, appearance,
missions, etc. Make sure to at least find three facts about each planet.
You will have 20 minutes to complete this exercise, and after that your
groups will present your facts to the class. Happy surfing!

1. ________________________________________________________

2. ________________________________________________________

3. ________________________________________________________

4. ________________________________________________________

5. ________________________________________________________

6. ________________________________________________________

7. ________________________________________________________

8. ________________________________________________________

9. ________________________________________________________

10.________________________________________________________

Solar System
Name_________________ Date: _______________

Directions: You will get into your same groups of 5. Then, it is time to
surf the web again and find 10 facts on the internet about the next three
planets, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. The facts can be anything that has to
do with the history, appearance, missions, etc. Make sure to at least find
three facts about each planet. You will have 20 minutes to complete this
exercise, and after that your groups will present your facts to the class.
Happy surfing!

1.___________________________________________________________

2.___________________________________________________________

3.___________________________________________________________

4.___________________________________________________________

5.___________________________________________________________

6.___________________________________________________________

7.___________________________________________________________

8.___________________________________________________________

9.___________________________________________________________

10.__________________________________________________________

Solar System
Name_________________ Date: _______________

Directions: You will get into your same groups of 5. Then, it is time to
surf the web again and find 10 facts on the internet about the last two
planets, Uranus and Neptune. The facts can be anything that has to do
with the history, appearance, missions, etc. Make sure to at least find
three facts about each planet. You will have 20 minutes to complete this
exercise, and after that your groups will present your facts to the class.
Happy surfing!

1.___________________________________________________________

2.___________________________________________________________

3.___________________________________________________________

4.___________________________________________________________

5.___________________________________________________________

6.___________________________________________________________

7.___________________________________________________________

8.___________________________________________________________

9.___________________________________________________________

10.__________________________________________________________

Solar System
 Solar System

1. Name the planets in order starting from the closest to the sun.

2. How many planets are there?

3. What force controls the orbiting of the planets around the sun?

4. Who discovered the force that controls the orbiting of the planets around the

sun?

5. How many moons does Saturn have?

6. What substance gives Uranus its greenish color?

7. Which dwarf-planet has a spaceship traveling to it that will take 9 ½ years to get

there?

8. Where did scientists get the name “solar” system?

9. Which planet was named after the Greek goddess of love and beauty?

10.Which planet, at one point, did scientists believe could have potential for life?

11.Which planet was named after the Greek god of war?

12.How often does the Earth complete one rotation?

13.How often does the earth rotate around the sun?

14.Which planet has the most visible rings?

15.What is the smallest planet in the solar system?

Solar System
 Solar System Model Project

Directions: This is designed to be a fun project. You are going to create your own
solar system. This will be done in your groups of 5. We will provide you with the
materials to do this.

Step 1: You will need to use the glitter paint to paint the black construction paper. This
will symbolize the stars in our solar system.

Step 2: You will need to get your box and paste the black construction paper all
throughout the inside of the box.

Step 3: Then poke eight holes on top of the box. Make the holes approximately 3
inches apart, and make them side by side.

Step 4: Then, we will give you eight Styrofoam balls. They each will be different sizes.
This is because each planet varies in size. For example, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and
Neptune will be symbolized with the large Styrofoam balls. The remaining four planets
are going to be symbolized with the smaller Styrofoam balls. Throughout this week,
you have learned about the appearances of the planets, including colors. We will
provide you with different colors of paint, and you will paint each planet (Styrofoam
balls).

Step 5: You are going to take floral wire and stick it in the Styrofoam balls. You will
take the other end of the wire and put in through the holes that you made in the box in
step 1. Then, you will tie the wire (on top of the box) so that the Styrofoam balls hang
in place (like a planet). You will do this with each Styrofoam ball.

Step 6: You will take the toothpicks and glue pieces of blue or red construction paper
to them. Then, you will label the eight planets onto the flags you made. Then, you will
stick the toothpicks into the correct planet (Styrofoam ball).

Step 7: Congratulations! You are finished creating your own solar system.

Solar System