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Explore the size relationship between the sun and Earth by using tape and stickers. Learners estimate, then place and count the number of one-inch diameter stickers (representing Earths) that would fit across the diameter of a nine-foot circle of... (View More) tape (representing the sun). The relative size of each becomes visually apparent. Related Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are listed. (View Less)
Materials Cost: 1 cent - $1 per group of students
This is an activity about scale. Participants will arrange imagery of Earth and many other space objects in order of their size from smallest to largest, their distance from Earth's surface, their temperature from coolest to hottest, and/or their... (View More) age from youngest to oldest. By manipulating these images and discussing their ideas, children and adults represent and confront their own mental models of space and time. (View Less)
Learners select from a variety of fruits to construct a scale model of the Moon, Earth, and Sun. After determining the correct sizes and distances for their models, they remove the Moon. They consider what it would be like if the nearby Moon were no... (View More) longer reflecting the Sun's light in the nighttime or daytime sky. This activity is part of Explore! Marvel Moon, a series of activities developed specifically for use in libraries. (View Less)
This is a demonstration about the density of the planets. Learners will compare the relative sizes and masses of scale models of the planets as represented by fruits and other foods. They will then dunk the "planets" in water to highlight the fact... (View More) that even a large, massive planet - such as Saturn - can have low density. They discuss how a planet's density is related to whether it is mainly made up of rock or gas. This activity is part of Explore! Jupiter's Family Secrets, a series designed to engage children in space and planetary science in libraries and informal learning environments. (View Less)
The 9-session NASA Family Science Night program emables middle school children and their families to discover the wide variety of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics being performed at NASA and in everyday life. Family Science Night... (View More) programs explore various themes on the Sun, the Moon, the Stars, and the Universe through fun, hands-on activities, including at-home experiments. Instructions for obtaining the facilitator's guide are available on the Family Science Night site. (View Less)
This is an activity about perspective. Learners will examine pictures of objects up close and far away to try and figure out what they are. Then, given an image of a star and the Sun and through discussion about the differences and similarities of... (View More) seeing objects up close, learners will use the concept of perspective to relate our nearby Sun to the stars that appear as small points of light in our sky. (View Less)
In this hands-on activity, learners begin by estimating the size of each planet in our Solar System and Pluto and making each out of playdough or a similar material. Then, learners follow specific instructions to divide a mass of playdough into the... (View More) size of each planet and Pluto and compare the actual modeled sizes to the students' own predictions. This activity requires a large amount of playdough material per group of learners. Three pounds is the minimum amount required for each group. (View Less)
This is a building-wide enrichment program consisting of a series of posters and accompanying questions designed to pique student interest in science concepts and their application to the world in which we live. Accompanying each poster is a series... (View More) of question sheets of increasing difficulty levels that students answer and submit at a designated location (collection box, office, etc.). Random prize drawings can be used to recognize/celebrate student participation. The purpose is to expose students to and create school-wide interest about science so students want to "STOP for Science" as displays are changed throughout the year. Although the focus is building-wide, content can be linked to classrooms through use of accompanying teacher resource guides. The website includes several resources for program facilitators, including posters, answer sheets, podcasts, implementation guide and webinars for facilitators. The program targets grades 3-6 for independent use, but can be used with grades K-2 with adult or upper grade level assistance. Each poster in the series stands alone and is not tied to concepts in other posters. Therefore, posters can be displayed in any sequence desired. (View Less)
This is an activity about the period of the Sun’s rotation. Learners will select images of the Sun from the SOHO spacecraft image archive. Next, they will calculate an image scale for the selected solar images. Then, they will use it to help... (View More) determine the actual speed of sunspots based on measurements of their motion in the selected Sun images and, finally, determine the period of the Sun's rotation. This activity requires access to the internet to obtain images from the SOHO image archive. This is Activity 3 of the Space Weather Forecast curriculum. (View Less)
This is an activity to reinforce concepts learned about the Sun, the Sun, Earth, and Moon system and eclipses. Learners will communally discuss their knowledge of these concepts briefly, and will then complete a series of worksheets and writings to... (View More) demonstrate grasp of content. This is Activity 15, the final activity of a larger resouce entitled Eye on the Sky and is meant to follow the preceding 14 activities in the resource. These worksheets and writings would ideally be added to students' portfolios accumulated throughout this suite of lessons and can serve as a summative assessment of student work throughout the lesson suite. (View Less)