Gravity and Black Holes was developed for use with grades 5-8 and grades 9-12. Navigate through the curriculum online using the pull-down menu above or download the entire curriculum as a PDF file. Grades 5-8 (3.5 MB PDF); Grades 9-12 (4.3 MB PDF).

When Albert Einstein first developed his Theories of Relativity, he needed a language to express his description of the natural world. Even the mathematical language of calculus that Newton created to describe gravity could not do Einstein's ideas justice. Luckily, there was a form of mathematics called non-Euclidean geometry that had been developed by G. F. B. Riemann, which helped Einstein express his new, creative ideas. From Einstein's very concise description of space-time in just a few equations, scientists have been able to describe many space phenomena such as the motion of Mercury, the bending of light by massive objects, and black holes. But this mathematical description of the Universe is only completely understood by a relatively few people. It is said that in 1919, a colleague of Sir Arthur Eddington commented that Eddington must be one of only three people in the world who understood the Theory of Relativity. After Eddington was silent for a few moments, his colleague commented that he should not be so modest. Eddington replied, "On the contrary, I am trying to think who the third person is."¹

In an effort to test Einstein's theories, NASA is currently seeking a more thorough description of black holes and so is Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum. NASA has supported three missions "aimed at revealing the nature of these mysterious objects," and completing a figurative "Journey to a Black Hole". While NASA challenges scientists to stretch their brains to describe black holes in a mathematical form, Adler challenges you and your students to describe black holes in other forms. Whether you pick a lyrical, poetic, historical, musical, artistic, graphic or technical way to describe black holes, you will be helping to accomplish NASA's quest to "examine the ultimate limits of gravity and Energy in the Universe."²

The following materials have been compiled by the Education Department of the Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum, as a supplemental teaching resource for exploring the concepts of gravity, black holes and related topics. The activities and guiding questions serve as a starting point for integrated lesson plans, which culminate in a creative description of a black hole. The materials were created to serve as meaningful activities that promote the success of learning science through interdisciplinary approaches within the classroom, and therefore have been associated with National and State Learning Standards. Content background is included as a resource for educators.

Please note: this is not a complete thematic unit. These lessons may be adapted and added to for individual teaching styles and student needs. To further support educators, there is an annotated resource list of related sources from which to gain information and lesson plans. We encourage you to share any additional lessons and ideas with your colleagues.

² Structure and Evolution of the Universe Subcommittee of the Space Science Advisory Committee, NASA. Cosmic Journeys: To the Edge of Gravity, Space, and Time: Structure and Evolution of the Universe Roadmap: 2003-2023. NASA: Goddard Space Flight Center, 1999.

Developed by Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum, Chicago, Illinois.
Geri Smith, Lindsay Clark, Bridget Basta, and Dr. Geza Gyuk.

Sponsored by:
NASA Office of Space Science
National Science Foundation
Polk Bros. Foundation
State of Illinois, Department of Natural Resources
WGN-TV Children's Charities