10 Solar system projects your students will love

From kindergartners singing about planets to high schoolers calculating orbital mechanics, space has a way of pulling students in and keeping them in orbit.

But teaching the solar system well means going beyond memorizing planet names and their order from the Sun. It means giving students the chance to ask big questions, build models, analyze data, and connect what they’re learning to the wider world. Whether you’re introducing the concept of orbits or guiding students through the physics of gravity, the solar system offers rich opportunities for meaningful cross-curricular learning.

The good news? You don’t need a telescope or a field trip to NASA to make it happen. With the right combination of activities, discussion prompts, and video resources, you can bring the solar system to life right in your classroom.

Why teach the solar system across the curriculum?

The solar system isn’t just a science topic. It connects naturally to math (scale, distance, measurement), literacy (persuasive writing, research), history (belief systems and mythology, space exploration, Indigenous astronomy, women’s history), and even art (model building, creative projects). Teaching it across subjects helps students see the bigger picture and builds deeper understanding.

It also aligns with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) at multiple grade bands, from elementary standards on observable patterns in the sky to high school standards on gravitational forces and orbital mechanics. That makes the solar system an ideal anchor topic for units that span several weeks or even an entire semester.

Elementary activities

1) Sing and sequence the planets

Music is one of the most effective ways to help younger students remember new information, and planet songs make it easier to learn the names and order of the eight planets in our solar system.

Start by watching The Planets of Our Solar System Song as a whole class. After one or two viewings, pause the video at key moments and ask students to predict which planet comes next.

• Play the Planet Song as a warm-up at the start of your space unit each day
• Have students create their own planet mnemonic device (for example, “My Very Excited Mother Just Served Us Nachos”)
• Extend the activity by introducing dwarf planets with The Dwarf Planet Song, then ask students to add a line to their mnemonic
• Give students planet name cards and have them physically line up in the correct order from the Sun

This activity works especially well for Grades K through 3 and pairs nicely with a read-aloud of the animated storybook Earth Yay! for a calming cross-curricular connection.

2) Build a model solar system

There’s something powerful about building a physical representation of the solar system. It helps students visualize scale, distance, and the relative size of planets in a way that diagrams alone simply don’t achieve.

Watch Let’s Make the Solar System together as a class, then have students work in small groups to construct their own models.

• Use different-sized balls, clay, or papier-mâché to represent the planets, and have students justify their size choices based on what they’ve learned
• For an added math connection, challenge students to measure and compare the distances between planets using a hallway or outdoor space
• Watch Our Solar System and What Is the Solar System? to reinforce the Sun’s role as the center of the system
• Ask students to present their models to the class and explain one fact about each planet

This activity works well for Grades 2 through 5.

3) Explore the Sun, Moon, and stars

The Sun, Moon, and stars are the cosmic bodies students are most likely to observe in their daily lives, which makes them a natural starting point for understanding the broader solar system.

Begin with What Is the Sun Made Of? to introduce the Sun as a star, then follow up with What Are Stars? to expand the conversation.

• Use The Sun Song as an engaging opener for younger students (Grades K through 3)
• Introduce constellations with Constellations: Connect the Dots in the Sky! and have students create their own constellation using star stickers on dark paper
• Explore the cultural significance of star patterns with The Zodiac Constellations and connect to a social studies discussion about how different cultures have interpreted the night sky
• For a cross-curricular tie to Native American history, watch Skidi Star Chart, which tells the story of one of the finest star charts ever created by the Pawnee Tribe

This cluster of activities suits Grades K through 5 and provides a strong foundation before moving into deeper solar system content.

4) Persuasive writing: should we go to Mars?

Mars is endlessly fascinating to students, and it provides a perfect springboard for persuasive writing and classroom debate.

Start by watching Was There Water on Mars? and Should We Go to Mars? as a class. Then pose the big question: should humans travel to Mars?

• Have students take a position and write a persuasive paragraph (or full essay for older students) supporting their argument
• Watch What Would We Eat on Mars? to add a practical dimension to the debate
• Organize a class debate with teams arguing for and against Mars colonization
• For a calming wrap-up, guide students through the space-themed meditation, The Spaceship and the Planets

This activity is suitable for Grades K through 5, with writing expectations scaled to the grade level. It’s a fantastic way to blend science content with English Language Arts (ELA) standards.

Middle school activities

5) Investigate the Earth, Moon, and Sun system

At the middle school level, students are ready to dig into how the Earth, Moon, and Sun interact as a system. This is where the topic starts to connect to observable phenomena like eclipses, tides, and moon phases.

Begin with The Earth, Moon, and Sun for a concise overview, then explore individual components in more depth.

• Watch The Spherical Earth and Movements of the Earth to establish how Earth’s shape and motion create day, night, and seasons
• Explore the Moon’s orbit with Phases of the Moon and Where Did the Moon Come From?
• Have students keep a Moon journal for two weeks, sketching the Moon’s appearance each night and comparing their observations to the phases they’ve learned about
• Use Solar Eclipse to explain how the alignment of the Sun, Moon, and Earth creates this dramatic event.
• For a cross-curricular focus, students could investigate the ways different fictional narratives and/or cultural groups have drawn on the phases of the moon, as well as the beauty of an eclipse, to tell stories.

This set of activities targets Grades 6 through 8 and connects directly to NGSS standards on Earth’s place in the universe.

6) Model cycles and seasons

Understanding why seasons change is one of the most commonly misunderstood concepts in earth science. Many students (and adults) believe seasons are caused by Earth’s distance from the Sun, when in reality it’s all about axial tilt.

Use the Cycles and Seasons series as the backbone of this activity. Start with Day and Night, then move to Seasons.

• Have students work in pairs with a flashlight (the Sun) and a tilted globe (Earth) to model how axial tilt creates seasons in different hemispheres
• Watch Seasons and the Sun and ask students to explain in their own words why summer and winter happen at opposite times in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. If they respond in writing, students could add diagrams or illustrations to support understanding
• Explore the Sun’s role in weather patterns with The Role of the Sun in Weather Changes
• Extend to tides with Tides, connecting the Moon’s gravitational pull to real-world coastal observations
• Use The Sun in Space to reinforce the Sun’s pivotal role in these cycles

This activity works well for Grades 6 through 8 and provides strong opportunities for hands-on modeling.

7) Explore gravity and planetary orbits

Gravity is the invisible force that holds the solar system together, and middle schoolers are at the perfect stage to start exploring how it works.

Open with Over (to) the Moon (Gravity on Large Masses in Space) to introduce the concept, then dive deeper with Orbits Are Odd (Planetary Orbits).

• Watch Gravity on Earth and Space, and have students compare the gravitational effects on Earth versus in space
• Use Down to Earth and The Great Escape (Mass, Force and Gravity) to build understanding of how mass affects gravitational pull
• Connect to history with Newton, the Super Scientist, which introduces Isaac Newton’s Laws of Dynamics and Universal Gravitation
• As a hands-on extension, have students roll marbles of different sizes around a curved surface (like a bowl or a stretched fabric sheet with a heavy ball in the center) to simulate how gravity bends the path of smaller objects

What better way to make an abstract concept like gravity feel real than to let students watch it in action?

High school activities

8) Compare terrestrial and gas planets

High school students are ready to analyze the solar system in more detail, starting with the fundamental differences between the inner rocky planets and the outer gas giants.

Begin with Exploring Our Solar System, a 23-minute overview that provides strong foundational context. Then break students into research groups, with each group focusing on a specific planet or category.

• Assign terrestrial planets using Mars, Venus, and Mercury’s Surprising Chemical Makeup
• Cover gas planets with What Are the Gas Planets?, Jupiter, and Saturn
• Have each group create a comparison chart covering atmosphere, composition, size, distance from the Sun, and number of moons
• Watch How Do We Know What Air Is Like on Other Planets? and discuss the scientific methods used to study distant atmospheres
• Use A Comparison of the Inner Planets and A Comparison Between Earth, Mars, and the Moon as visual summaries to consolidate learning
• Too add an extra element of critical thinking, ask students to decide which planet in our solar system is most hostile to life, justifying their view with evidence in a structured paragraph or extended written response.

This activity is well suited for Grades 9 through 12 and encourages analytical thinking and data comparison skills.

9) Investigate asteroids, comets, and space probes

Beyond the planets, the solar system is filled with asteroids, comets, and the spacecraft we’ve sent to study them. This topic blends science content with the history of space exploration in a way that tends to captivate even the most reluctant learners.

Start with Exploration of the Asteroid Belt to set the scene, then explore specific examples.

• Use The Asteroid Belt and Earth’s Evolution and Asteroids and the Barringer Crater to explore how asteroid impacts have shaped Earth’s history
• Watch Comets and A Comet Collides with Jupiter to compare the behavior and composition of comets versus asteroids
• Introduce space probes with Artificial Satellites, then trace the history of deep-space exploration through Voyager, Cassini, and Death of Cassini
• Have students research a current or recent space mission (such as the James Webb Space Telescope or the Artemis program) and present their findings to the class

This works for Grades 9 through 12 and provides excellent cross-curricular links to history, engineering, and technology.

10) Scale the solar system with data and light speed

One of the hardest things about teaching the solar system is helping students grasp just how enormous it really is. This activity uses data, math, and stunning visualizations to make those distances feel more concrete.

Start with Distance Between Earth and the Sun and Distance Between the Sun, Earth and Mars to establish scale.

• Watch Squeezing the Solar System Between the Earth and Moon for a mind-bending visualization that puts planetary sizes in perspective
• Use the Comparing Solar System Bodies series to explore rotational periods, axial tilts, and escape velocities across different planets
• Watch Touring the Solar System at Light Speed and Light Speed to introduce the concept of light-years
• Challenge students to calculate how long it would take to travel from Earth to each planet at various speeds (walking, driving, speed of light)
• Extend with The Rotational Periods of the Planets on a Single Sphere and Objects in the Solar System to Scale in Size, Rotation Speed, and Axial Tilt to bring the data to life visually

This is a strong choice for Grades 9 through 12 and integrates math standards around proportional reasoning, unit conversion, and scientific notation.

Tips for ongoing solar system integration

Here are a few ways to keep the topic alive throughout the year:

• Start a bi-weekly “space news” segment where students share recent discoveries or missions they’ve read about
• Use solar system videos as bell-ringer activities to spark curiosity at the start of class
• Connect seasonal changes to your solar system unit by revisiting Seasons, Solstices and Equinoxes in the Northern Hemisphere during solstices and equinoxes
• Encourage students to track real-time data from NASA’s Eyes on the Solar System tool and report back to the class
• Revisit the origins of the universe with Big Bang: The Theory and the Origin of the Universe and Early Universe when studying physics or chemistry
• Tie in Common Physics Misconceptions when addressing student misunderstandings about space

The solar system is a topic that grows with your students. Whether they’re singing planet songs in kindergarten or calculating escape velocities in high school physics, the sense of wonder it inspires stays the same. With the right resources and a bit of creativity, you can make that wonder a regular part of your classroom.

Sources

1. NGSS Lead States (2013). Next Generation Science Standards: For States, By States. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. Available at: https://www.nextgenscience.org/
2. NASA Science (2025). Solar System Exploration. Available at: https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/
3. Plait, P. (2002). Bad Astronomy: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing “Hoax”. New York: John Wiley and Sons.