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6th Grade
Students will discover the mathematics behind key components in the solar system - Earth, Earth's moon and, the other planets in our Solar System.

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Understand what the phases of the moon are and how the phases are predicted. Understand the names of the layers of the Earth and how thick they are. Understand the size of planets using geometry calculations.  Understand how to make a scale model of the planets using mathematics.

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What are the phases of the moon and how can we predict when the next phase will happen?  What are the different layers of the Earth? How thick is each layer? Can we calculate the size of planets using geometry? Can mathematically correct replicas of the planets be made?

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Academic Concepts and Subjects Addressed

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Academic Concepts and Subjects Addressed

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Spherical Geometry,
Planetary Science, Geoscience, Mathematics

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Robert T. McCall (1919 - 2010)
An American Artist known particularly for his space art. He also designed stamps like this one for the USA. His works are very detailed aspects of space, including man's exploration of space through rockets and space stations. Some of his works are also imaginations of what space could look like in the future. For example, one of his paintings shows plants growing in glass pods on a planet.

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Scratch Off Art, Mandala, Origami, Papermache Crafts, Painting, Drawing

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Paper, Wax Crayons, Black Acrylic Paint, Dish washing Liquid, Origami Paper, Balloons, Ripped Pieces of Newspaper, 3/4 Glue & 1/4 Water mixture, Acrylic Paints, Scissors, String and Tape, Paper with Planets Example printed on it, Posters / White Paper for Brochures, Markers, Pens, Glue Sticks, Construction Paper

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Why do we see different phases of the moon? Does the moon's phase affect Earth in any way? What are the names of the Earth's layers? How thick is each layer? What are all the sizes of the planets? What distance is each planet from the sun and from other planets? Is Earth the biggest planet?

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Lesson #1: The Phases of the Moon & Scratch Off Mandalas

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Lesson #1: The Phases of the Moon & Scratch Off Mandalas

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Students will learn about the phases of the moon through a video or presentation. In groups, students will research how the phases of the moon are predicted. Each student will then make their own scratch off page and create a mandala on their page by scratching off different phases of the moon.

Formative Assessment: Students will play a game of Kahoot that looks at matching images of moon phases to the names of each phase.

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Lesson #2: The Layers of the Earth & Origami Fun 

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Lesson #2: The Layers of the Earth & Origami Fun 

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Students will make 4 origami spheres (or boxes if the spheres are too complicated for students) of different colors. Then students will cut the spheres open and stick the spheres inside of each other to represent the different layers.

Formative Assessment: Students will each be given a piece of paper and timed for 3 minutes to see if they can draw the Earth's layers and label everything correctly before time runs out. If any student finishes early they can write the thickness of layers if they remember, and any interesting facts they learned about a particular layer.

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Lesson #3: How Big are the Planets Anyways? Papermache Pt. 1

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Lesson #3: How Big are the Planets Anyways? Papermache Pt. 1

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Students will be placed into 9 groups, one group per planet. Each group will select their planet from a bag with all the planet names. Students will use technology to research the diameter of their planet. They'll use that diameter to calculate the circumference and area of their planet. The planet Saturn will not be expected to do calculations for the seven rings but they can if they have time and want to. All of the students will be told to scale their planets down using a formula. Students will blow up one balloon per planet to approximately the diameter of their scale calculation. Students will cover their balloon with paper mache.

Formative Assessment: Each group will present their calculations to the class and show how they reached their answers. When not presenting, students will be expected to note down the numbers on a sheet that has all of the planets printed on it.

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Lesson #4: How Far Are the Planets from Each Other? Papermache Pt. 2

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Lesson #4: How Far Are the Planets from Each Other? Papermache Pt. 2

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Students will work in the same groups as the lesson before and pop the balloons so that just the paper mache is left with a hole. Then they will paint their paper mache balloons with colors that represent their planet well. Saturn will be make a cardboard cut out of the seven rings. Each group will tie their planet onto a long string. Students will then research the distance from the sun and the scale distance from the paper mache sun. The teacher will hang each planet from the ceiling of the classroom but students will help the teacher measure the distance between their planet and the sun.

Formative Assessment: Students will write a reflective paragraph about what they learned from making their paper mache planets, if they think their calculations are correct or not, and what more would they like to learn about the planets in the future.

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Students will create a brochure or poster with all the information they learned across the unit as if they were explaining our solar system to an alien from a different solar system. They will have full creative reign over this project and can remake any art project done throughout the unit but they will also be expected to include informational facts.