Hobbies And Interests
Paper Model
Have the students use some colorful construction paper and cut out circles to represent the planets and the sun, or use crayons or markers to color circles of plain paper. Show them how to use a compass so that the circles are the right size proportional to one another. In an area with a lot of open space, like a hallway, lay each planet in a straight line with each the proportional distance from one another. Ask each student to walk along the hall, noting how many steps it takes to get from one planet to another. If possible, you can make this model with big pieces of paper and put the planets outside. Go to an upstairs window and look down at the entire model at once to see how far the planets are from each other and the sun.
Bead Model
Give each student a fine cord and nine beads (ten if you want to include Pluto). Each of the beads should be basically proportional to one another to illustrate how large the planets are and be the basic color of each planet. One bead will represent the sun. Have the students string the beads in the order of the planets; this is a good review if they have been learning the order. The students must tie a small knot on each side of each bead to keep it in place and measure the correct length of string between each bead so that they make a scale model of the solar system. Students may find this activity particularly appealing because they can take their creation home.
Orrery
An orrery is a model of the solar system that demonstrates the movement of the planets as well as the distance between them. An easy method of making a model that is to scale is to hang the rest of the planets from the sun on strings. Divide students into groups. You can have each group make a planet or each group make their own orrery. Students can make the planets from beads or styrofoam balls or they can be creative and use other materials. The planets must be proportional to one another, and the length of the string hanging the planets from the sun illustrates the correct distance from the sun. Tie the ends of these strings to a pushpin in the bottom of the sun. If you stand the sun on this pin, students can move the planets around it. If you use wire or coathangers rather than string, the orrery becomes a little more unwieldy, but the planets can spin around the sun in a mobile-style fashion.
Moving Model
As a class, have the students make the planets from posterboard, then go outside. One student holds the sun, and then eight (or nine, if you are including Pluto) other students hold each of the other planets. Have the students stand at the correct distance from one another. If you have a large class or don't want to leave out any students, ask them to make asteroids or moons and have other students be part of the asteroid belt or the moons of the planets. This model has an advantage in that the students can walk around the sun, modeling the orbits. This makes it easy to understand many concepts about how our solar system works, such as why Mercury, closest to the sun, revolves around the sun more frequently than the other planets.
Solar System Walk
At the Sciencenter in Ithica, New York, there is a "Solar System Walk" in which there are landmarks for each planet and visitors can walk from one landmark to the next. If you have an area that is safe for students to walk, you can set up your own Solar System Walk. Choose nine (or ten if you include Pluto) landmarks that are roughly the right distance from one another proportionally. If you are able to do so safely, send students in small groups so that they can have a more personal experience exploring the solar system. At each landmark, include both the name of the planet and some interesting information. You can also place a stamp or a different colored marker at each "planet" and ask students to mark a sheet of paper to show that they were at each station, or to answer a simple question on a sheet to show that they read the information. Younger students may enjoy pretending that they are on a space journey, and students of any age may be surprised at how long it takes to walk from one station to the next.