Pluto isn't a planet?

Question

I have spent the last year teaching my son about the planets.. now they're saying that Pluto isn't one.. how am I going to get him to understand that Pluto isn't a planet anymore?? He's not going to get the whole 'criteria for determining a planet' mumbo jumbo !!

I don't want to let him wait till he goes to school.. people are going to think he's an idiot.

Answer 1

First, I think it's fantastic that your son is so interested in astronomy and that you've spent so much time teaching him all about it.

As for your question, tell him that the scientists realized that they made a mistake, and Pluto is not a planet.

I don't know how old he is, but you could maybe explain that there are new, better telescopes that allowed the astronomers to see Pluto better, and they realized that it's smaller than they thought it was. Kids know "bigger vs. smaller" and that might be enough for him for now.

You could also say that Pluto is different b/c it travels around the sun in an oval rather than a circle like the other planets.

I posted a couple links that might be helpful. They all mention that Pluto isn't considered a planet by many scientists or that there's some doubt about its planetary status.

Answer 2

Yeah it kinda ruins it for the whole system. Think about all those teacher that have to know say Pluto isn't a planet. Hey kids sorry about this but Pluto isn't a planet anymore. A six or seven year old is not going to understand. And all those textbooks that are going to have to go to waste. Every school is going to have to get new, updated book for basically every grade. Horrible I hope those scientist are paying for the new books. Think about it grades 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and I don't think the planets are in any higher than Biology. So at least ten grades at at least 25 students a class with about 3 classes in each school. NO way the public school system can afford that.

Kids, here are some black markers, anywhere you see Pluto mark it out and change the 9 into 8.

Answer 3

Is it really important that you confuse him? I mean, they are still teaching pluto as a planet at my nephew's elementary school. So i would just let it go for now. There will be other kids at school that think pluto is a planet, and others who know absolutly nothing about planets. His teacher will set him straight if it is nessasary.

Answer 4

There are a lot of Pluto-like objects in this solar system and the scientists found out that they are just asteroids; and so is Pluto and Charon. I remember that in 2002, they thought Sedna was the 10th planet in the solar system, but then they found out that it doesn't have enough factors to make it a planet.

Answer 5

Pluto has been taken out of the list of our planets. That will be one less to memorize.

Answer 6

Give them five years. They're scientists, so of course they will change their minds again. Then you'll have to explain to him why Pluto was a planet, then it wasn't, but is again. I can almost promise you it will happen.

Answer 7

It's still a planet. Don't listen to the news media hype. The nerds I mean scientist have just classified it as a dwarf planet.

Answer 8

Yes, I'm all screwed up now.... think about this. We learned the planets by saying this...My Very Educated Mother Just Showed Us Nine..... Nine What? Maybe we'll never know now!

Answer 9

Now try to explain that Pluto is a dog!

Answer 10

With Pluto gone, what are going to do with the phrase
My
Very
Earnest
Mother
Just
Showed
Me
Nine
Planets