Beyond the Solar System: Exploring Galaxies, Black Holes, Alien Planets and More

Mary Kay Carson is the author of this amazing science informational text, Beyond the Solar System: Exploring Galaxies, Black Holes, Alien Planets and More. This book is absolutely fantastic, and with good reason it has won the NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book in 2014. Beyond the Solar System includes stunning full-page, full-color photographs of our Universe, of infamous scientists, and other astronomical devices. It includes an incredible two-page timeline that references from prehistory, ancient times, modern times and everything in between. There are numerous info-graphics pertaining to how telescopes work, how to spot constellations, how to identify the rotations of planets, and an HR diagram that displays the lifespan of different stars. It truly has everything needed for a unit on the solar system, including 21 activities for the classroom!

After reading this book or using is as a research source, students will learn about the men and women who have made remarkable contributions to science and astronomy, they will understand the electromagnetic spectrum, and know their place in the Milky Way galaxy. I wish I could own this book for myself and my future classroom, and just might purchase it because of how well designed and informational it is! Pulling from the book itself, an activity I would use in a middle school science classroom would be the "Expand a Balloon-iverse" activity which demonstrates how the Universe is expanding by using stickers, a balloon, measuring tape and markers. It is a cross-curricula activity that integrates science, math and art in which students can measure the distances between the stars on their balloons as the balloon inflates. This shows students that every point in the Universe is generally moving further away and explains concepts from the Big Bang.

Carson, M. K. (2013). Beyond the solar system: Exploring galaxies, black holes, alien planets and more. Chicago, IL: Chicago Review Press, Inc.