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Select a Planet to ColonizeA Science Classroom Activity to Learn Solar System PropertiesBy selecting a planet to colonize and designing human survival needs, students will learn or review properties of the planets and moons in the solar system.
Central QuestionWhat are the properties of the various planets and moons in the solar system, and what would humans need to survive on these worlds? For the TeacherThis activity is very adaptable. Simply adjust your expectations of the students' work to their level and to the amount of time devoted to the activity. It can be used as a review or as a way to have students look up and learn properties of various worlds in the solar system. The activity can be completed in a single class period, or it can be a major semester project. Students can work individually or in small groups. This activity can be adapted to any level from elementary school through college. At the elementary level, answers will be very simple with a minimum of detail. College or graduate students using this as a semester project should have very elaborate detailed answers. The ActivityImagine a scenario where humans are beginning to colonize the solar system. The students might be on a NASA team charged with selecting a planet or moon to colonize. Alternatively, the students might imagine having access to a space ship that allows them to escape some sort of nuclear or environmental disaster on Earth. First students must select a destination planet or moon. If they are working in groups, they must come to a consensus. Arguing the relative merits of various options will force them to review properties of the worlds in the solar system. Students must give reasons for their selection. What are the conditions on the world that make it most desirable? What makes the other worlds less desirable? Next students must devise a plan for survival on the selected moon or planet. They should consider the following questions. What conditions will colonists encounter on the selected world? Include surface features, atmospheric conditions (or its lack), resources available, and so forth. What resources, such as food, water, air, etc., do humans need to survive? If these resources are not available on the selected world, students must devise a plan for getting them. Can they be made from materials available? Can they be imported from another nearby world? How will the colonist get shelter? What materials will be available to construct sealed enclosures and what conditions will these enclosures need to protect the colonists from? What professions or skills must the colony have for long term survival? Include traditional jobs and new job categories that might need to be created. This often catches students off guard. For example, students often say carpenters are needed to build shelters. However the shelters on an alien world with no trees would not be built from wood. On such a world different construction skills will be needed. Finally students should work on presenting their results. You can assign a written paper, an oral presentation, or a poster presentation. Depending on the class goals and level, you might want to assign all or only some of the questions for this activity. Adapt it to meet your needs. More Science Activity IdeasPlanetary Interiors Lesson Plan Jupiter, Venus, Comets, & Velikovsky
The copyright of the article Select a Planet to Colonize in Lesson Plans & Materials is owned by Paul A. Heckert. Permission to republish Select a Planet to Colonize in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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