Objectives:
Materials:
Events of Instruction:
Resources:
References:
- Order the eight planets sorted by size from largest to smallest: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Earth, Venus, Mars, and Mercury.
- Understand that Pluto is no longer a planet because it is too small
- Understand that Pluto is now considered a dwarf planet
Materials:
- A-Z worksheet
- PowerPoint
- Markers, colored pencils, crayons
- Journals
- Glue
- Scissors
Events of Instruction:
- Begin with an A-Z worksheet for students to complete on what they have learned about the solar system so far.
- Use equity sticks to call on each student to ensure engagement from all students. Go through the alphabet and ask the student called on to tell what they wrote down for the letter and to explain what they know about it.
- The teacher will then ask students to get their journals out to take notes.
- The teacher will present a PowerPoint that contains an image of the planets in the solar system, with the planets shown true to size. The teacher will continue to use equity sticks and call on students. Ask question such as:
- Based on this picture, which planet do you think is the largest?
- Based on this picture, which planet do you think is the smallest?
- Based on this picture, which planets do you think are most similar in size?
- Based on this picture, which planets do you think are most different in size?
- Then, review a slide with the planets shown in order of size, largest to smallest (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Earth, Venus, Mars, and Mercury).
- Instruct students to draw this image in their journals and to label each planet.
- After students draw their planets ordered by size, continue with the powerpoint.
- Review slides on Pluto (no longer a planet because it is too small, now considered a dwarf planet).
- Show an image of Pluto on the PowerPoint and ask students to draw pluto on a new page in their journal and to write down a fact about Pluto that they learned today.
- Assessment: After students complete this activity, hand out flashcards of all the planets. Instruct students to order, on their desk, these flashcards of the planets based on the size (of the planets). Next, tell each student to raise their hand to get their order checked and then once the teacher initials their journal page to confirm the order of the planets based on size, to glue the flashcards into their journals. This will serve as the summative assessment for this lesson.
- Review the order of the planets based on size by using the image provided in the PowerPoint.
Resources:
- http://www.kerpoof.com/edu/plans/The_Planets/Planets.pdf
- More information on the size of planets for teachers to provide for interested students: http://www.silkysteps.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1171
- More information on the size of planets for teachers to provide for interested students: http://idahoptv.org/ntti/nttilessons/lessons2000/lau11.html
- A-Z worksheet: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/alphabet/wordforeachletter/gifs/atozcapssmall.GIF
References:
- http://www.kerpoof.com/edu/plans/The_Planets/Planets.pdf
- http://idahoptv.org/ntti/nttilessons/lessons2000/lau11.html
- http://www.silkysteps.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1171
- http://www.enchantedlearning.com/alphabet/wordforeachletter/gifs/atozcapssmall.GIF