Curriculum: Science, Language Arts, and Music

Goals: The goal of this lesson will be for the students to know the planets and be able to name them. They will understand the characteristics of the planets and through music, get a sense of what a planet might be like if we described it musically.

Objective: The students will be able to identify the planets and their position to the sun and other planets. The students will also be able to identify if any life and the atmosphere that exist for each planet. The students will construct a project and writing of their solar system.

Prerequisite Concepts: The students will have an understanding of our solar system. The students will have some knowledge of Internet access. The student will have an understanding of atmosphere.

Materials Needed: Internet Access, Computers with Audio Availability, Black Construction Paper, Styrofoam balls of different shapes, piper cleaners, box, paper, pencils, different colored paints, cardboard, scissors, glue, aluminum foil, crayons, colored pencils/markers, and other art supplies. Cassette/CD Player, VCR/TV.

Audio: The Planets London Symphony Orchestra/Geoffrey Simon.

Video: Eyewitness Video: Planets (1997).

Suggested Websites:

http://pds.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/

Site on solar system, it gives visual photos of planets and information on each.

http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/billa/tnp/nineplanets.html

Visual and written documentation of planets, moons, asteroids and other solar system information.

http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/billa/tnp/nineplanets.html

Very detailed website designed for ThinkQuest on the Soar System.

http://amazing-space.stsci.edu/trading/card5right.htm?ssssssssssss

On-line Card Game to learn more of the Soar System.

http://www.smplanet.com/cgi-bin/pl2pt1.cgi

Another on-line game to supplement learning of solar system. This is split up by age.

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/solarsystem/ax/low.html?2d

3-D or 2-D Visual and written exploration of planets, asteroids, comets, and others within solar system exploration.

http://www.framingham.com/CHRISTA.html

Biography info on Christa McCauliffe.

http://home.flash.net/~imagine5/bios/Armstrong.html

Biography of Neil Armstrong.

http://www.imagine5.com/

Full websites of space missions, astronauts, etc.

http://www.historychannel.com/speeches/index.html

Students can hear the historic speech of first step on the moon.

John Glen – oldest person in space.
 

http://www.spaceweather.com/

A website on conditions in space with links to other sites. Also can access lesson plans.

http://science.nasa.gov/ssl/pad/sppb/edu/magnetosphere/bullets.html

Explains earth’s magnetosphere with additional links, some good photos.

http://www.thursdaysclassroom.com/

Lesson plans and children’s science studies of the skies, it starts off with the "skies of Fall", some diagrams and descriptions on located stars using the degrees of your hands, also a good lesson plan on pumpkin carving a constellation for Halloween.

http://www.sec.noaa.gov/forecast.html

Actual forecasts posted, this would be useful most likely for upper secondary grades to use, probably just as a reference or an example to view.

http://www.britannica.com/bcom/eb/article/6/0,5716,120716+1+111026,00.html

Britannica’s site on space with different subtopics. The site lists topics covered and the user can click right into those sites. It begins with Sputnik and goes into other topics, such as manned space travel, satellites, astronauts, etc.

http://hubble.stsci.edu/sci.d.tech/discoveries/10th/telescope/allabout.shtml

Description of the Hubble telescope, what it does, and who it was named for, has links with shots taken by the Hubble telescope.

http://fullcoverage.yahoo.com/fc/Science/Space_Shuttle/

This is Yahoo’s search lists of Space Shuttles and their reports from each.

http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/kscpao/chron/sts-99.htm

This Kennedy Space Center’s listing of Space Shuttles you can check by date, then go right to the shuttle and learn everything about the launch, weather, crew, and what was accomplished. It is amazing how many shuttles happen, that most people are not even aware are happening these days.

http://www.time.com/time/reports/space/shuttle.html

Space shuttle information through Time/Life, current information and articles.

http://www.horizon.unc.edu/TS/cases/1999-01.asp

This is a true "educational" site, it explains how students can take photos and how they are transferred from shuttles to the classroom. This site seems extremely interesting, it seems to have been developed by Sally Ride and Dennis Govini to integrate the internet, education and NASA.

http://earthkam.sdsc.edu/

This is the site that holds the photos taken, it is called EARTHKAM…..great shots, you can search by geographic area, shuttle, county, and by school.
 

Assessment: There will be continuous assessment, as the students will work in groups and independently. There will be a class display of finished solar system projects along with written assignments. These will be assessed on participation in a group, neatness, creativity and the writing assignment will be assessed for spelling, grammar, imagination, and content.

Modifications: Any modifications will be made along the way if students have difficulty working in groups. They will be assigned a group job to do, if they have difficulty working together. The project will be assessed as a group.

Procedure:

Day 1

The class will be introduced to the solar system. Discussion will take place on how many planets there are in our solar system. The class will then view the video, Eyewitness Video: Planets (1997). After the video, the class will be split up into nine groups and each group will pick a planet name from a hat that will be "their Team Planet". The students will be asked to think about for homework, if they could live on the perfect planet…

What "their own" planet would be like to live on?

What type of living beings would be on their planet?

What type of terrain their planet would have?

What size would their planet be?

What would the atmosphere be like?

The students will write a rough draft on what their perfect planet would be like to bring back to school for Day 2.

Day 2

The students will work in their groups and will research their group planet. They will use suggested websites and classroom encyclopedias to gather information on their group planet. The information should consist of at least the following, visual of the planet, size, distance to sun, relationship to the other planets and sun and the atmosphere of the planet. While the groups are working the music of "The Planets" by London Symphony Orchestra/Geoffrey Simon will be played quietly suggesting the students imagine each planet as the song is played. A list of the planet names and what song that accompanies that planet will be listed on the board, so that the students can refer to it while they hear each selection.

Day 3

The students will be told they have just been given the job of "Travel Director" of the Space Shuttle. The students will write a final copy of a comparison of their group planet to their individual "perfect planet" that will convince the audience to travel to the best planet. This can be accompanied by drawings of their planet also.

Day 4

Working in there groups the students will design their own solar system, using all the art supplies and materials. They will refer to websites for visuals as needed. This will continue to Day 5.

Day 5

Solar System construction will continue.

Day 6

Each group will display around the classroom their solar systems and the "Planet Team" will be posted as to who created it. After the students have had some time to view the other team’s projects, the students will return to their team and will individually read their writing to the rest of the team on their "perfect planet." The team will vote on which "perfect planet" will represent their team.

Day 7 and Day 8

Each team will choose a reader to read the class their team’s "perfect planet" and will discuss their team planet while presenting their solar system.

After all presentations have been completed, the class will vote on the winning "perfect planet", with a class discussion on why we chose that place to travel. Topics of physical of cultural qualities will be questioned by the teacher as to what is important to us to be a perfect habitat.

A Closure to the unit will be the class listening to :http://www.historychannel.com/speeches/index.html, for the speech of the first walk on the moon and discussion of what they might have been like for the students. The teacher will ask, "if you were the first to be on a planet or in space what might you say to be remembered by?"