TEKS & Objectives
7.9. The student knows components of our solar system.
8.7 The student knows the effects resulting from cyclical movements of the Sun, Earth, and Moon.
We will explore the motion of objects in space.
I will identify the components of our solar system.
1. Watch video.
GG Sun and Other Stars 3-5
2. Review vocabulary and complete quiz.
Star An exploding ball of burning gas held together by gravity
The sun is a star, the one closest to us.
Light Year How far light can travel in 1 year; Light travels at 186,000 miles each second
Kepler Space Telescope This is a huge telescope in space launched in 2009 that is searching for planets outside our solar system. It looks for planets that are around the same size as Earth in the “habitable zone” of a star.
Habitable Zone An area around a star that is approximately the right distance to support liquid water on the surface of a planet.
3. Create a constellation.
Use marshmallows and white crayons or colored pencils to recreate an existing constellation or a new one of your own! What is its name? What does it look like?
Alternate: Create a stellar luminary.
Stellar = Star Luminary = Light Source
- Use permanent markers (Sharpies) or tinted glue (recipe here) to color a night sky onto a rectangle of aluminum foil cut to fit around the inside of a mason jar. You can use lots of colors like blue, purple, pink, red or green.
- Once dry, overlay your foil onto a sheet of cardboard.
- Using a toothpick or something similar to poke holes in your foil to create stars.
- Wrap your foil around a toilet paper tube. Drop it into your mason jar and carefully remove the toilet paper roll.
- Place a battery-powered tea light inside.
4. Kepler has retired. While you’re making your craft, take a deeper dive into the accompishments of this space telescope.
Speaking of stars…
What kind of stars wear sunglasses?
Movie stars
5. “Genius Challenge – Sun and Other Stars”
