The Solar System

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

The picture above shows a view of all the planets in our solar system.

We live on one of those planets! Our planet is called Earth. Can you locate Earth in the picture? It's the third planet from the sun.

There are eight planets that rotate around the sun in our solar system. They are Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune!

• Did you notice that the planets are different sizes? One even has some rings around it.

In this lesson, you will explore interesting facts about each of the planets in our solar system. You will watch fun videos, and complete cool activities and creative, hands-on projects.

First, watch and listen to the Planets Song Video below.

Before watching, print out the Solar System - Planet Notes from Downloadable Resources in the right-hand sidebar. As you watch, listen for interesting facts about each of the planets. Notice where each planet is located compared to the Earth and the sun.

Pause the video to take notes on your Solar System - Planet Notes. You can write words or draw pictures. For example, you can draw a red circle for the planet Mars and add a huge volcano to it!

My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nachos!

What does this have to do with the planets? The first letter of each word begins with the same first letter of each planet name! Also, they are in order from closest to the sun to farthest away from the sun. It's called a mnemonic device, and it helps you remember the order and names of the planets. Let's take a look:

• My = Mercury
• Very = Venus
• Excellent = Earth
• Mother = Mars
• Just = Jupiter
• Served = Saturn
• Us = Uranus
• Nachos = Neptune

Optional

If you love studying the solar system, explore the Inner Planets (Scholastic) and Outer Planets (Scholastic) in more detail. Or watch the SciShow Kids videos below:

Explore the Solar System: The Rocky Planets

Explore the Solar System: The Gas Giants