Modeling the Sun in 5th Grade
by Mrs. Naylor

Fifth graders in Mrs. Naylor’s science class made models of the Sun out of colored play-dough.  Their models consisted of a hemisphere that showed the different layers that make up the Sun’s interior.  They learned that the Sun’s core is where the nuclear reactions take place that generate the heat of the Sun.  On the outside of their model they placed broken bits of black beans to represent sunspots.  Students learned that sunspots look dark because they are not as hot as the rest of the surface.  Solar flares were added to the outer surface by gluing on small tufts of cotton.