Name of teaching material
Tactile models of the solar system and its planets (1 to 10 billion scale) self-made product
Japanese Page URL
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| Target | Junior high school and high school students |
|---|---|
| Disability category | visual impairment |
| Teaching units / Applicable scenes | science |
| Specific purposes |
The models help students: ・ Understand the differences in size between the planets by observing (by touching) and comparing them ・ Understand the spatial expansion of the solar system by actually walking the distances between the sun and the planets and realize the dimensions (smallness) of the planets compared to the space. |
| Considerations for disability characteristics |
Observation is essential in teaching science in any school, and schools for the blind are not an exception. However, it is difficult to observe things that are extremely big or small; and methods need to be devised for observing them. The author prepared the tactile models of the solar system and its planets (1 to 10 billion scale) and devised ways to present them to students so they acquire the aimed understanding. One set of models was prepared for each student. The dimensions of the models were decided so that students can understand the sizes by touching. The models were prepared using a correct scale as much as possible so that students can compare the sizes of the planets and feel the expansiveness of the solar system. The materials used for the models are very small spheres. Because it is difficult to feel the sizes by just holding on a hand and they are easily lost, the spheres were glued on thin acrylic plates of about 4cm×6cm to facilitate touching. The plates can be held by a hand, and students can thoroughly observe each model by holding by one hand and touching by the other hand. Wooden frames were also prepared where the planet models can be aligned to help students know where the models are. The names of the planets were printed on the boards in braille as well as with ink so that both students with total blindness and those with low vision can use the models. The models were based on the teaching materials developed by the former National Space Development Agency of Japan (current Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) for a social educational activity (space education program), to which the author worked as a staff member, and were arranged for teaching science to students with visual impairment. |
| Expected effects and results |
Totally blind students have difficulty using vision and have difficulty grasping the spatial expansion of the solar system and the dimensions of its planets. Students with low vision also have difficulty acquiring the correct understanding of the spatial relationship. (It is because the schematic diagrams depicting the solar system in textbooks use inconsistent scales between the distances and planet dimensions. The distances to the sun have to be highly scaled down due to the size of the pages, while the planets are drawn much bigger compared to the distances.) The models help students correctly understand the spatial expansion of the solar system and the dimensions of its planets. |
| How to use |
A lesson using the models involves 1) observing the planet models in a science room, and then 2) walking the (1 to 10 billion scale) distances from the sun to the planets on the school field. Observing the planet models in a science room Hand out one set of the planet models and the wooden frame for aligning the models to each student. Ask students to align the planets in decreasing order of diameter size. Explain that the planets can be classified into big planets, such as Jupiter, and small planets including the earth. Explain their characteristics. Then, instruct students to align the planets in the order of their distance from the sun, and help them understand about the distances of the Jupiter-type planets and earth-type planets. Show the model of the sun, and help them understand that the sun has a diameter much larger than its planets. Walking the (1 to 10 billion scale) distances from the sun to the planets on the school field First, place the model of the sun at the gate of the school. Ask students to touch it and feel its dimensions. Then, check that the sun is at the center (origin) of the solar system. Instruct students to actually walk approximately 450m, which is the 1 to 10 billion scale of the radius of the solar system so that they can feel the distances to the planets. Once in a while, check the direction of and distance from the sun by looking back at the sun or/and making someone stand by the sun and utter a voice. In this scale, you walk at the speed of light if you walk 1m in 33 seconds. Students can feel how far the planets are from the sun and from the other planets even if they can walk at the speed of light, the fastest of all. |
| Related teaching materials and information |
For the planet models, beads and the balls at the tips of ballpoint pens were used as they are easy to feel by touching. Colored beads and beads with patterns are available at handicraft shops, etc. Balls from the tips of ballpoint pens were obtained by removing the balls from spent pens. The model of the sun is a styrene foam ball. Acrylic boards and materials for making the wood frames for aligning the acrylic boards are available at DIY stores. Japanese Association of Science Education for the Blind, https://www.jaseb.net/ SHIBATA Naoto, Practice of science class using the “Tactile models of the solar system and its planets (1 to 10 billion scale)” (in Japanese), JASEB News Letter, No. 29, 2010, pp. 38-42. |
| Useful for other students |
- Informant SHIBATA Naoto, Special Needs Education School for the Visually, Impaired, University of Tsukub
- Keywords 1 to 10 billion scale, solar system, planet, model, tactile model, 3D model
- Created 2025-02-05 15:52:47
- Updated 2025-02-05 15:52:47