Exploring the solar system

Date:

October 21st, 2015

Subject: Science

Grade: 4/5

Goals/Objectives/Standards:
By the end of the lesson, students will understand basic facts about each planet in our solar system.
NETS
1. Creativity and Innovation
2. Research and Information Fluency
3. Communication and Collaboration
Common Core Standard 1-- Students, through the inquiry process, demonstrate the ability to design,
conduct, evaluate, and communicate results and reasonable conclusions of scientific investigations.

Develop the abilities necessary to safely conduct scientific inquiry, including (a step-by- step
sequence is not implied): (a) asking questions about objects, events, and organisms in the
environment, (b) planning and conducting simple investigations
Develop the abilities necessary to safely conduct scientific inquiry, including (a step-by- step
sequence is not implied): (a) asking questions about objects, events, and organisms in the
environment, (b) planning and conducting simple investigations
Use models that illustrate simple concepts and compare those models to the actual phenomenon

Common Core Standard 4-- Students, through the inquiry process, demonstrate knowledge of the
composition, structures, processes and interactions of Earth's systems and other objects in space.
Timeline/structure of lesson:
Time
Opening/Framing the Lesson/Introduction/Early
Assessment
Students will be broken off into 7 groups, one for each
planet excluding earth. The class will complete earth
20 mins
together as a group in order to model the online
program. I will explain to the class that they are to
research their assigned planet together in the computer
lab. They will need to know the planets climate, size,
moons, distance from sun and earth, texture of its
surface, etc. From there, their group will create their
planet on Thing-Link and develop hotspots for each
required fact.

Monitor/Feedback

Once they have gathered their information, as a group

the students will write a script collaboratively with
Google-Docs for a movie they will create documenting a
day in the life on their planet. They must include their
daily wardrobe, means of transportation, what they
would do for fun, what their homes would look like, etc.
Their day should take into account everything they
learned about their planet based on their research.
Earth will be done together on iMovie. I will model how
to create a short movie based on clips I took myself
throughout a day in my life.
The Lesson Structure: Activities
Day 1:
Research planet

Throughout the lesson, I will

assist students with their
projects, help facilitate

Day 2:
Create their planet on Thing-Link
This project
will take a
little over a
week of
designated
Science time

ideas, and work out any

tech errors with Thing-Link.

Day 3, 4:
Write script for their movie.
Day 5-7:
Record movie with iPads, upload onto computer, and
edit on iMovie program.
Day 8:
Present their planet movie to the class and upload onto
class website.

Closing/Assessment
Instructor uploads student videos on class website.
Homework
None
Self Evaluation of the Lesson
Student will evaluate each other using warm-cool feedback.

Resources/Materials
Computers
iPads
iMovie
Google-Docs
Thing-Link

Ensure that all students are

on task and assist with any
iMovie issues.