THE PLANET EARTH

PLANET EARTH LESSON

Directions:

Print the Planet Earth reading comprehension passage and questions (see below).

Students should read the passage silently, then answer the questions.  Teachers may also use the text as part of a classroom lesson plan.

Lesson Excerpt

   Earth is the fifth-largest planet.  Its diameter is about 7,900 miles or 13,000 km. Earth has one moon and no rings.  It is about one-fourth the size of Earth.  The moon's gravitational pull on Earth's surface causes ocean tides.

     Earth is the third planet outward from the sun in the solar system.   It is about 93 million miles away from the sun.  This distance is known as one astronomical unit, abbreviated AU.  When scientists began studying other planets, stars, and deep-space objects, they needed a larger unit of measurement for distance.  The distance from Earth to the sun was agreed upon.  When we talk about the distance to Pluto, we can say that it is 40 AU.  This means Pluto is 40 times farther away from the sun than Earth.

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