Transcript Ms. Kulesz’s Take on Solar and Lunar Eclipses!

Let’s Talk about the
Solar System!
By, Deanna Kulesz
Greetings from Planet Earth!

Hello 3rd Graders, I’m
Ms. Kulesz

I plan on teaching all
of you about our Solar
System

So, put on your space
helmets and let’s start
with the Sun!
The Sun

The star we call “The Sun” is
HUGE!

It is more than a hundred
times wider than Earth (the
Sun has a diameter of
870,000 miles)

Because the Sun is so big, it
attracts many objects with its
gravity

Some objects are large, such
as planets, while some are
small, such as moons and
comets
IMAGE SOURCE:
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link
=/sun/sun.html
The Solar System

These objects that
are attracted and orbit
the Sun are part of
the Sun’s family

This is our Solar
System!
IMAGE SOURCE:
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link
=/our_solar_system/solar_system_1.ht
ml
The Planets

Planets are part of our Solar
System

Did you know that according to
recent research, there are only
8 planets?


Before the year 2006 it was
believed that there were 9
planets!
Do you know which planet is
now called a “dwarf planet”?

Here’s a hint, it’s the name of
a Disney dog…
The Planets

Pluto is now called a
“Dwarf-Planet!”


Other dwarf planets in our
Solar System are called
Ceres and Eris
The planets in our Solar
System in order from
closest to farthest from
the Sun are:

MERCURY
VENUS
MARS
JUPITER
EARTH
SATURN
Mercury, Venus, Earth,
Mars, Jupiter, Saturn,
Uranus, and Neptune
IMAGE SOURCE:
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/our_sol
ar_system/planets.html
URANUS
NEPTUNE
Eclipses

Today, I will briefly teach you
about eclipses!

What in the world is an
eclipse?

Many third graders have this
question

Eclipses occur when the Earth,
Moon, and Sun are in a line

Eclipses have to do with
shadows
Solar Eclipse

A solar eclipse occurs
when the moon blocks
the light from the Sun


This causes a shadow to
be casted on a small area
of the Earth
If the alignment is not
exact, a partial eclipse
occurs

Only part of the Sun’s light
is blocked
IMAGE SOURCE:
http://www.astro.umd.edu/educationalreso
urces/astro/moon/eclipses.html
Lunar Eclipse

A lunar eclipse occurs
when the Moon
passes through the
Earth’s shadow

Since the Earth is
much larger than the
Moon, a lunar eclipse
can be seen by more
people than a solar
eclipse
IMAGE SOURCE:
http://www.astro.umd.edu/educationalreso
urces/astro/moon/eclipses.html
(On the Video)

Now, let’s see a
demonstration….
Conclusion

Well, my studentastronauts, that ends
today’s preview of our
unit on the Solar
System

I hope you are ready
for an “out of this
world” experience!
References
Eclipses. (n.d.). Retrieved February 29, 2008, from
http://www.astro.umd.edu/educationalresources/astro/mo
on/eclipses.html
Kerrod, R. (2003). Universe. New York, DK Publishing.
Robson, D. (1991). Let’s look up the planets. New York,
Aladdin Books.
Russel, R. (2007). Our solar system. Retrieved February
22, 2008, from
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/our_solar_syste
m/solar_system.html