Materials: (for
each group of 3 or 4 students)
11 sheets of construction paper or 4 x 6 file cards
1 marker pen or dark colored crayon
One copy of a printout of this sheet of instructions
Preparation:
Print the name of one of the planets on each sheet.
Also label sheets for the sun and the moon.
Activity:
Using a long corridor or outside space, put the marker for the sun down.
Now pace off and place the other planets, using the measurements below.
Each step = 30 million miles.
Place the moon a finger's width from the earth.
If you have enough space you can have several groups put their sun in the same place and then measure off the planetary orbits in different directions.
Remember, the planets go around the sun, not just away from it.
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SUN |
0 miles |
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Mercury |
36 million miles |
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Venus |
67 million miles |
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Earth & Moon |
93 million miles |
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Mars |
142 million miles |
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Jupiter |
483 million miles |
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Saturn |
885 million miles |
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Uranus |
1.8 billion miles |
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Neptune |
2.8 billion miles |
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Pluto |
3.7 billion miles |
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Can you think of a city about 200 miles from where you are now?
Used with permission from Stratton House,a two teacher company that makes inexpensive, imaginative science kits. Visit their site for more free activities! Thank you, Briana and Andy Stratton!