Student+Activity


 * This page lists your assignments for November 30 through December 4th. I have hyper** ** linked some very helpful sites on this page for your work that is due this week. We will have a final project to create at the end of the week which is due at the end of class on the 4th. **



In your assigned groups and computer stations I want you to find out the different characteristics of the planets. [|This] is another good site as all the planets are lined down the left side for quick reference. Also check this planetary weather site for detailed information as to what the weather is like on each planet. Feel free to use the textbooks that are available in the classroom. Make sure you take notes because you will be writing about this information in a Word document in the online journal that you have created for this class. You can also use any text books that are available in the classroom or any other credible internet website such as an .org or .gov. After you have collected the important information, individually find a computer and compare and contrast the different characteristics of all the planets and their weather in your online journal in Word. Save the document and name it YourLastName-Planetary Characteristics. If you don't have time to fit all of the information that you want in your journal please let me know so I can arrange to have you take home a copy on your flash drive and bring it back to class tomarrow.
 * Monday- Planetary Characteristics**

After looking at the PowerPoint presentation individually, you will get back with your assigned groups and find any additional information on any credible internet site if you wish. I want you to identify the properties of the inner and outer planets and write them down on your note paper from yesterday. Details matter for the podcast you are about to create. You can also look here for more information. In your group of four I want you to create a podcast much like a weather forecast for the particular planet that I will assign to your group. The information that you have collected for this project should give you enough information to make a 60-130 second podcast where each of your group members will discuss important weather facts for the imaginary inhabitants of your particular planet. Include facts such as the daily temperature, the night time temperature, along with the general make up of the planet and describing it's location as either an inner or an outer planet. Please use your notes and save as NameofPlanet-PlanetPodCast. We will share these Podcasts with the class during the last 15 minutes of class.
 * [[image:1planet-med.jpg width="362" height="332"]]Tuesday- Properties of Inner and Outer Planets**

After watching the short video that distinguishes the differences between the sun, planets, moons, asteroids and comets I want you to then open a new file individually in Excel so you can create columns in order to list the differences among these planets. In the field area write the names (sun, moons, planets etc.) then under the name write their different identifying characteristics. Try here for some information about asteroids and comets. If you want any additional information then what was in the video you can look here ,[| here] and read the first 2 definitions from this website. After you create your Excel list you can then individually draw and create pictures of each of these different kinds of phenomena. We are going to use these for our final project. If there is time at the end of class we will begin taking pictures of your drawings for our final project at the end of the week.
 * Wednesday- Discovering the Difference between Suns, Moons, Planets, Asteroids and Comets**


 * [[image:1earthsatellite2-med.jpg width="352" height="333" align="right"]]

Thursday - Identifying Earth's Position in the Solar System** After using the appropriate textbooks, watching the video clip and having internet access I want you to be able to identify Earth's position in the solar system. Get back into your groups from this week for this part. In your groups try using this site for information about our planet Earth. Then I want you to create a newsletter on the computer detailing some key points about the Earth that you will find in that site. I want you to create this newsletter like this is the first time the readers are hearing this information. Make it interesting!! Afterward draw pictures of the Earth and its position in the solar system. You can also include the other planets and the sun, just make sure your get their locations among each other correct. If there is time at the end of class start taking pictures of your drawings so we can have them ready to upload for the final project tomarrow.

Today is the day you are going to take all the information that you have gathered this week and you will create a movie in Photo Story detailing all the facts that you have learned about the solar system and the planet that I have assigned your group at the beginning of the week. Make this like a movie trailer which will show people what your particular planet would be like if they had to move to this planet in the future. I want this movie based primarily about your particular planet and answering the questions I have presented to you the first four days of this week. (Ex. is your planet an inner or outer planet, what are its characteristics, weather etc.) I want you to use the pictures that you have drawn as the pictures for your movie. Use the microphones to create dialogue for your movie. Make sure each person in your group has a chance to talk and show their pictures. Also you can include captions over your pictures such as who drew them or which part of the solar system the picture is representing. Feel free to upload your Podcast as a weather broadcast for your movie if you'd like. We are going to share these with your parents so they can see what you have been learning this week! I will check everyone's progress during the last 10 minutes of class and determine if we need to add time for the project on Monday. Have fun!
 * Friday - Create a Photo Story Movie!**