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These resources have been reviewed and selected by STEM Learning’s team of education specialists for factual accuracy and relevance to teaching STEM subjects in UK schools.

Solar System in a box

This resource, from the Royal Observatory Greenwich, is a video explaining an elegant method of creating a small model of the solar system, using very simple equipment.

Using a small torch and a transparent ball (for example from a ball pit), you create your centre of the solar system - the Sun. You can then use plasticine and pen lids to create the planets, and simple stands for them. By putting it all in a cardboard box you take away the background light, making the light and dark-side of the planets clear to see.

There is also an alternative method, that uses fruit of different sizes to create the solar system.

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