A Vacation in the Solar System
Computer Resources

Software:
The Vacation to Planet X OR
The Magic School Bus Explore the Solar System

Internet:
StarChild
NASA KIDS
Views of the Solar System
Space Place

About

The Vacation to Planet X
Exposes youth grades 2-4 to the solar system in a whole new way. A new travel agency advertises traveling to Mars or Venus and uses facts to attract the customers. The youth sleuth out these facts. The real-life career segment shows learning about stars from a worker at a planetarium.

VIDEODISCOVERY, INC
  MAC   DOS
7.1 or better Windows 3.1 or 95, 486 or better
8MB RAM 4MB RAM
4MB free hard drive space 4MB free hard drive space
2x CD-ROM drive 2x CD-ROM drive
mouse, speakers mouse, speakers

The Magic School Bus Explores the Solar System
Come along with Ms. Frizzle, her class and the Magic School Bus on a far-out trip to outer space. And finding the hiding Friz is a blast. When you join Ms. Frizzle's class on their wacky adventures, there's a whole lot of fun facts and activities headed your way!

Scholastic/Microsoft
Multimedia PC with 486SX/33 MHz or higher processor
Microsoft® Windows® 95 operating system or Windows NT®
Workstation version 3.5 or later
8 MB of memory (RAM) for Windows 95; 12 MB of memory for Windows NT
6 MB of available hard-disk space
Double-speed CD-ROM drive or faster
Super VGA, 256-color monitor
Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device
16-bit sound card
Headphones or speakers

Cost
  • The Vacation to Planet X $$
  • The Magic School Bus Explores the Solar System $
    • Content Life Science:
  • Aerospace Science
  • Art
    • Life Skills
  • Learning to learn
  • Computer and internet skills
  • Social interaction/teamwork
  • Decision Making
    • Time 4+ hours
    Age Level
  • Grades K-4, but most appropriate for grades 3 and 4
    • Setting

    Youth should work on software and activities as a team of from 2-4 members. Activities can become a day or residential camp, or the program for an afterschool program over several weeks.

    If limited numbers of computers are available-teams could work on different activities. Sample Schedule:

    • Team A - Exploring Planet Sizes
    • Team B - Walking Planet Distances
    • Team C - Internet Scavenger Hunt
    • Rotate
    • Present Planet Promotional Materials
    • Team A - Cosmic Creatures
    • Team B - Computer Software
    • Team C - Activity from MORE ACTIVITIES section
    • Refelction on computer software activity
    *Do

  • Introduction-Tell the youth that they will be travel agents trying to sell vacation trips to other planets. Each team will be responsible for a different planet. (Put the names of the 8 planets on a slip of paper and let each team draw for the planet they will be responsible for.) Their job will be to develop promotional materials for their planet. The goal is to try and get people to want to visit your planet. The materials could include: posters, brochures, radio/TV commercials, songs, etc. The materials should be built on real information about their planet.

  • Activity-"Exploring Planet Sizes" "Walking Planet Distances" from the Theory of Wow! located on the Challenger Center for Space Science Education Web Page This activity will give youth an overview of the planets, their sizes and distances from each other. This activity packet also includes a Space Passport that could be given to the youth to record their travels.

  • Activity-Internet Planet Scavenger Hunt Collect information about your planet to use in preparing your promotional materials.

  • Activity-"Cosmic Creatures" Design/Draw a creature that might live on your planet. What special adaptations would the creature have to have to survive on your planet? Think about how some animals on earth are adapted to live in the desert, or ocean, or in the cold Arctic regions. Think about how your creature will have to be adapted to eat, move, and live in the conditions that it will find on your planet.

  • Activity-Teams should prepare their promotional materials for their planets and present them to the group. Youth could then vote on which planet they would like to visit.

    • *Reflect:

  • How would you feel about going on a trip to another planet?
  • What planet would you like to visit? Why? How did you make your decision?
  • What type of things will you need to pack for the trip?
  • What type of things would you like to do once you reach the planet?
  • Did your team work well together? Why or why not? What could you do to improve on your teamwork skills before your team works on the computer together?

    After using software in Apply use the following reflection questions to process the software experience.

  • What was most difficult part of this program? Easiest?
  • What did you enjoy most about this program?
  • What new things did you learn about the planets?
  • What else would you like to know about the solar system?
  • What was the most important thing you learned?
  • Did the program/experience turn out like you expected? Why or why not?
  • What would you do differently next time?
  • What did you learn about teamwork while doing this program?
  • How did your team go about making decisions?
  • How will the what you learned about the planets be useful in the future?
  • What could you do to become even better at teamwork?

    • Apply

    Software-Vacation to Planet X. Use your knowledge of the planets to sleuth out the facts for the planetary travel agency.

    Software--The Magic School Bus Explores the Solar System. Use your knowledge of the solar system to find Ms. Frizzle who is lost in space.

    More Activities

  • Make a spacesuit or helmet that you might wear on the planet you want to visit.

  • Write a story or play or make a book about your trip to another planet.

  • Make a postcard from your trip to another planet that you could send to someone.

  • Find out what it might be like to live on the Moon. Visit http://www.njin.net/~dmollica/ to help set up a moon colony.

  • Take a tour of the Space Shuttle. Visit http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/ssa/docs/Space.Shuttle/index.shtml

  • Make a puzzle with information about your planet.

    • Extended Activities:

  • The Fabric Flight Connection. 4-H Youth Develoment Cornell Cooperative Extension.

  • Toys in Space: That Free Fall Feeling. Iowa State University Extension. Order #4H-97, video #4H-87A. Play with toys, observing how they perform on earth, and then predict how these same toys would perform in the microgravity of space. Test your predictions by watching a video of the astronauts playing wit the same toys.

  • Test your knowledge of the planets using PC's in Space software. Free software is available for download or a CD-ROM can be ordered from NASA for $6.

  • Charting the Planets: NASA activity guide to download.

  • NASA Lithographs of the Planets to download.


    • * see Experiential Learning Model