Preschool math concepts consist of shape recognition, counting and other introductory topics. Create a worksheet containing all of the nine planets in order, along with the sun, and encourage the students to count or write the numbers while counting all nine planets and the sun. Students can number from Pluto in to the sun or from the sun outward, counting from one to 10. Reinforce the circle shape from all planets on a separate worksheet. Some preschool students may have the ability to recognize oval rings around some planets also. Have students cut the circle shapes from the worksheet and glue them to another piece of paper to ingrain circles into the memory and provide a hands-on activity.
Early elementary school students can add values placed on different planets in word problems on a worksheet. For example, if Pluto has a seven value labeled on it and Mars is a three, use word problems that add Pluto and Mars to get 10. Encourage students to show their work on other worksheets by drawing five Neptune and four Mercury to add single-digit numbers together, as an example. Older elementary students benefit from two- or three-digit addition, subtraction, multiplication and division problems with numbers labeled on each planet.
Middle school students begin using formulas, so give each student a hypothetical radius or diameter of each planet, according to the mathematical achievement level of each class and instruct each to show his work in finding the area of a circle, which is Pi multiplied by the diameter. Use word problems centered around the planets and the solar system by challenging students on a worksheet to find the actual distance between each planet. For example, a problem may state that the hypothetical distance between Earth and Neptune is 3.5 million miles and the distance between Earth and Uranus is 2.2 million miles. Ask the students to find the distance between Uranus and Neptune.
High school students have the math ability to use the actual circumferences of the planets and distances between them. Devise worksheets that require students to find the actual circumference of two planets and find ratios between the two. Or, have them graph the distances from the sun to the planets in a line or bar graph on a worksheet. Challenge the students to come up with their own worksheet word problems and trade sheets with another student as an alternative activity.