The Solar System

The Solar System was a subject that we were going to do last summer, and then life got busy and mom got pregnant, and school started again, and it just didn't happen. Finally, here it is.

Pre-Lesson Knowledge:

Hannah: The sun is the biggest planet. Rockets go into outer space. Mars is red from all the iron.

Jupiter is the 2nd biggest planet (after the sun.)

Seth: The sun is bigger than the planets in space. The sun has gas.

We started with some basic vocabulary. What is a planet? What is the solar system? What is an orbit? Etc.

Then we discussed each planet in turn. We covered distinguishing characteristics, size, the mythological reasons for each planets name, and number of moons or rings. We also discussed whether or not life could exist on this planet based on temperature, air quality, etc. We discussed the dwarf planet status of Pluto, but didn't really go into the other dwarf planets too much.

We did a little experiment trying to recreate the swirly surface of Jupiter by putting milk in a pie plate, adding food coloring, and then dropping dish soap in. The kids thought this was VERY cool, and it was SO EASY!

At the end, I gave them a little quiz.

1. What other planet (besides Earth) could possibly sustain life?
2. What planet is closest to the sun?
3. What is the biggest planet?
4. Which has rings?
5. Which is hottest?
6. Which is coldest?
7. Which is not really a planet?
8. Which has most moons?
9. What is the circular path each planet follows called?
10. All planets revolve around what?

If I had it to do over again, I would go more into the other aspects of the solar system...comets, asteroids, asteroid belt, milky way, etc. But there is only so much time in a day.

Finally, we made our own solar system out of balls and clay. This was their favorite part. Seth had been begging all week. I bought the crayola modeling magic clay stuff. It was super easy to work with...doesn't get stuck in everything like clay can...and it mixes really well, so we could make our own colors. Hannah spent a lot of time on the Earth. I think she did a fabulous job! This was before she added the clouds...

Post-Lesson Knowledge:

Hannah: The sun is a star, not a planet. (glad we cleared that one up!) Pluto is not really a planet. Some planets are just made of gases, so you would just sink through them. Mercury is both freezing cold, and burning hot. Our atmosphere doesn't trap heat or cold, so we can live here...

Seth: The planets go around the sun. The sun is not a planet, it's a star. Mercury is closest to the Sun.

Just a little note. Between Seth saying "The Sun has gas," the repeated use of the word Uranus, and Seth's insistance that Venus is pronounced Wee-nus, I think this lesson was a young boys dream. Potty joke central...and all in the name of learning.

Next week? Turtles and Tortoises.