The Solar System Presentation

Resources Each group will need to come prepared for class everyday! Materials that your group will need: Manila folder with names and “Solar System Presentation” on it. Pens and pencils Notebook to record information the students will take in class And any other materials for your research (e.g. books, internet sources, etc.) We will have time in class to work on the assignment, but we will only go to the computer lab three days, so the rest of the research will need to be on your own computer from home or you and your partner could come early to school or stay after school to use the school’s computers. Any time data is recorded it should be typed up in a word document, printed, and put in the manila folder. At the end of the assignment all data needs to be typed.

Step 1: The Content In this part of the project, there will only be allowed 2 students per group and you will each research the past information on the solar system and how the solar system is today. Include how it has progressed, the bad things that have happened, any original planets that are not there anymore, and any unknown findings.

Step 1: The content cont… The students will need to record their solar system data and type it in a Microsoft word document. Your group will need to put the information for the project in your groups manila folder. You will need this information for a later date.

Step 2: Pick an Outer Space object Each group will pick something to talk about in class. Your group will need to come up with three possible topics and bring them to class next week in order to make sure that there are no overlapping of groups. The groups may pick from any of the eight planets, the extraterrestrial things that float in space (e.g. asteroids, meteors, comets, etc.), the moon, and the sun.

Step 3: Research Information Each student will need to do their own research in class and at home. The students will work together in class but they they will also need to research on their own at home every week because we will only go to the computer lab three days and the library for two. We will have class time to discuss what each student has researched. Each group will need to combine their total research and type it up in a Microsoft word document and put it in their manila folder.

Step 4: Work Cited Each group has to have 2 books from the library (1 from each student in the group), and four internet sources (2 from each student in the group). Each group will need to make a work cited page and place it in the folder where all your other group work will be.

Step 5: Combining When your group is done researching, put all your information together in the manila folder. All the work will be collected and I will grade it. These will be available any time and will be kept in the classroom filing cabinet. We will start the BIG assignment on November 24 th and the assignment will be presented in class on Dec. 10 th.

Step 6: Creating When every group has finished collecting their data, which will be about two weeks of class time (one week in lab and one week outside class work), we will collect all the information in our manila folders and organize it into an orderly fashion. When it is all organized each group will start on the BIG assignment.

ASSIGNMENT Each group will need to make a PowerPoint or a movie to show the research they have done and how much they know about their subject. The movie or PowerPoint presentation needs to be a creative, entertaining, and nicely organized. It can be funny but it needs to be appropriate. (e.g. acting out the planets in orbit and showing where your groups planet comes in, etc.)

ASSIGNMENT continued… Each presentation, whether it be a PowerPoint or a movie needs to include the following information: How the solar system works? What changes have come about with the solar system? Information about each subject matter (planets, asteroids, meteors, comets, sun, moon, etc.) and how it affects the solar system. Its distance from the sun (dimensions) What each planet looks like including several pictures of your group’s planet. Pictures: One single picture of the planet, the planet shown in the order of the solar system, and the planet in orbit around the sun.

Overview Each group will present this to the class on December 10 th, no exceptions!!! So, in summary, we will go to the computer lab three days and the school library the other two of the first week we start researching. The other week we will spend an hour out of every day for groups to organize and discuss their final project. The final assignment has to be a PowerPoint or a movie and needs to include certain information about your topic. Each assignment will be graded depending on how much research each group has done. ***It is very important that students understand that this is a major portion of their grade and to do well on it, they need to be in class everyday, doing the assignments so they do get behind.

Why is Project-Based Learning so important in education? Having students do project based learning activities, not only helps them to learn the material better because they are with their peers, but it is also more enjoyable to present a movie or a PowerPoint than to stand up in front of the class and read off of a sheet of paper. They actually enjoy doing these projects because the outcome is something great that they, themselves created. They also have fun working in groups instead of alone because they do not feel as pressured to get the assignment done. The benefits of this activity will help boost their grade with an easy and helpful assignment, and it will help them learn the planets of the solar system in a quick and easy way so that it sticks for the next test.