Student slideshow: English | Spanish

Teacher printout: English & Spanish

These readings from Newsela are free with registration. They can be adjusted for reading level. Writing prompts and quiz questions are available for most readings.

• Read about our star, the Sun and where its energy comes from. (Grade 5)

• Read about a newly discovered planet that might be habitable. (Grade 4)

• Read about the TRAPPIST-1 star and the seven planets that orbit around it. Is one of these planets a place where we could live in the future? (English and Spanish, Grade 5)

• Read about the first planet discovered outside of our solar system that has both water and temperatures that can support life. (Grade 4)

• NASA’s “Eyes on Exoplanets” will digitally fly you to any star or planet outside our solar system. You can visit over 1,000 planets that scientists have discovered to orbit distant stars. Find out how long it would take you to get to each place if you were to travel by car, jet plane, bullet train, or starship. Turn on the “habitable zone” display to show the region around each star that could potentially support life. Requires a one-time download of the app onto a desktop computer.

• With NASA’s Exoplanet Travel Bureau, you can imagine what it’s like to stand on the surface of far-away planets. Visit their website, and with the click of a button, you can pretend you’re standing on the surface of planets outside our solar system. On TRAPPIST-1d you can see look up at the sky and see six other planets. You can also see what happens when you stand on a planet that has two stars (instead of one) in the solar system.

You can elaborate student learning and engagement with Mystery Science mini-lessons.

• Is Earth the only planet with life? In this mini-lesson, students explore our solar system and consider if other planets could also sustain life.

• How close could an astronaut get to the Sun? In this mini-lesson, students explore the intense heat of the Sun and the innovative ways scientists use to investigate it.

• Are aliens real? In this mini-lesson, students consider the exciting possibility of intelligent life on other planets!

If you are in an NGSS state, these mini-lessons support the DCI ESS1.A: The Universe and its Stars