If your children are interested in learning more about the solar system, you’re in the right place! I gathered some of the most EPIC DIY Solar System Model ideas, perfect for incorporating into a unit study all about the solar system! From pom poms to paper mache, sponge art to string art, you’ll find lots of creative and crafty ideas (18, to be precise!).

The Solar System Family Unit Study

Just before we dive into all of the solar system model ideas, did you know I have an entire Family Unit Study all about The Solar System? You’ll learn about the Sun, the eight planets, and the dwarf planets that call our solar system home—all through fun, hands-on learning!

Take a peek at a sample and grab your copy in the shop right here: https://shop.howweelearn.com/products/family-unit-study-the-solar-system

18 Epic DIY Solar System Model Ideas for Kids

Now onto the DIY solar system model ideas! Below, you will find 18 creative and crafty ideas perfect for kids of a variety of ages and abilities.

 

Pom Pom Planets by We Are Scout – If you’ve never made your own pom pom before, this is your sign to try it! There are pom pom tools that make the process super easy, but you can also just use a fork (this video by Red Ted Art walks you through how to make pompom with a fork). When you’re done creating your planets, you can turn them into an adorable mobile (We Are Scout walks you through that process in this blog post).

The Solar System Sponge Art by The Craft Train – These sponge art planets look so cool! The Craft Train even has a handy printable you can use as a template for creating the planets and the rings.

Planet Sun Catchers by Someone’s Mum – This project uses laminator pouches and acrylic paint to make solar system sun catchers. These would be wonderful for teaching children the order of the planets as they move and stick each planet to the window.

Yarn-Wrapped Planets by And Next Comes L – I love a good yarn-wrapping craft—it is amazing for hand strengthening and fine motor skills!

Yarn Ball Solar System by HubPages – Here’s another yarn-wrapped solar system craft—but this time in 3D! All you need are some balloons, yarn, and glue to make these yarn ball planets.

Playdough Planets and Layers of the Earth by 123Homeschool4Me – Playdough is another fabulous activity for hand strengthening and fine motor skills. I love how this project even shows the layers of the earth using different colored playdough rolled into a ball.

Needle Felted Solar System by Really Pretty Good – Really Pretty Good made a mobile using the needle felted planets, but these would also be so fun as Christmas ornaments. We had a lot of fun making wet-felted Christmas ornaments last year, but our tree definitely needs a few spaced-themed additions this year!

Melted Crayon Solar System by Tell Love and Party – Can you guess how these planets were made? Melting crayons on wax paper!! Shoot. Maybe I should have given you a second before blurting out the answer. They look stunning hung up in the window when you’re all done. 

Paper Mache Planets by Glue Sticks Blog – This DIY solar system craft uses paper mache over styrofoam balls, but you could also use blown-up balloons. 

Solar System Beaded Necklace by Handmade Charlotte – Handmade Charlotte used wooden beads to create this cute solar system necklace. If you don’t have any wooden beads on hand, you could make salt dough beads to paint! 

Felt Planets by Big Family Blessings –  I must have Christmas on my brain, as I keep thinking how sweet these would look as ornaments, too! Big Family Blessings has a printable template you can use to create these felt planets.

Cardboard Solar System Model by Montessori from the Heart – I love these rotating DIY solar system models! All you need is some cardboard, toothpicks, and paint (Montessori from the Heart even has free printable watercolor planets you can use).

Spinning Styrofoam Solar System Model by @nabanita_417 – Okay, this rotating solar system model is the definition of EPIC! This one will take a bit more careful measuring and cutting, but the result will be completely worth it.

Solar System Wall Hanging by Kid Made Modern – Of course, your DIY solar system model doesn’t have to be ultra-realistic—you can also go bright and fun like Kid Made Modern did with these solar system wall hanging!

Solar System Rock Painting by Artistro – We love using acrylic paint markers for painting rocks, but you could also create this rock solar system with regular acrylic paint. It would also be fun to try to find round rocks of different sizes and paint the entire rock to look like the planet!

Cardboard Spinning Solar System Craft by @margaretamiranti – One more cardboard rotating DIY solar system model because… WOW. This is beautiful!! I love how @margaretamiranti used paint splatters in silver and gold to make the galactic backdrop.

Solar System Fingerprints by eHow – Here’s one for the littlest crafters! This craft will have children using their fingerprints to create the solar system.

Ping Pong Ball Tea Light Planets by Journey into Creativity – Last but not least is this super cool tea light solar system idea. For this project, you decorate ping pong balls to look like the planets, poke a hole into one end of the ping pong ball, and then fit it over a tea light. And voila! Glowing planets!

I hope you found some fun ideas for your own DIY solar system model!

Don’t forget to head on over to the How Wee Learn shop to grab your Family Unit Study all about the Solar System right here: https://shop.howweelearn.com/products/family-unit-study-the-solar-system

And be sure to check out our ever-growing collection of Family Unit Studies while you’re there!

Thank you so much for reading, my friend,

xo
Sarah