LEARN NC

K–12 teaching and learning · from the UNC School of Education

Sizing up the solar system

http://www.sciencenetlinks.com/Lessons.cfm?DocID=33

A lesson plan for Grade 6 Science and Mathematics

Provider: American Association for the Advancement of Science

About this resource

Appropriate grades
6
Subjects
mathematics (geometry), science (astronomy)
Provider
American Association for the Advancement of Science

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Creative Commons License

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The purpose of this Science NetLinks lesson is to use the internet to investigate and design various models of size and distance related to the solar system. This investigation focuses on the part of the universe that is most familiar to students: the solar system. A student's grasp of the ideas of composition and magnitude of the universe have to grow over time. In middle school, students can begin to add more detail to their picture of the solar system and the universe, paying increasing attention to matters of scale and distance.

North Carolina Curriculum Alignment

Mathematics (2004)

Grade 6

  • Goal 3: Geometry -The learner will understand and use properties and relationships of geometric figures in the coordinate plane.
    • Objective 3.02: Identify the radius, diameter, chord, center, and circumference of a circle; determine the relationships among them.
    • Objective 3.03: Transform figures in the coordinate plane and describe the transformation.
    • Objective 3.04: Solve problems involving geometric figures in the coordinate plane.

Science (2005)

Grade 6

  • Goal 5: The learner will build understanding of the Solar System.
    • Objective 5.01: Analyze the components and cycles of the solar system including:
      • Sun.
      • Planets and moons.
      • Asteroids and meteors.
      • Comets.
      • Phases.
      • Seasons.
      • Day/year.
      • Eclipses.
    • Objective 5.02: Compare and contrast the Earth to other planets in terms of:
      • Size.
      • Composition.
      • Relative distance from the sun.
      • Ability to support life.
    • Objective 5.05: Describe the setting of the solar system in the universe including:
      • Galaxy.
      • Size.
      • The uniqueness of Earth.