Pluto demotion impacts curriculum.

When the International Astronomical Union declared that Pluto is no longer a planet last summer, officially downsizing the solar system from nine planets to eight, the change affected the curriculum in every school district. Pluto was disqualified from the planetary status it had held since its discovery in 1930. since its orbit overlaps with that of Neptune, which violates a new Union rule for defining true planets.

While Pluto's demotion to a new category of dwarf planets made all K-12 curriculum materials pertaining to the solar system inaccurate and obsolete, educators are also looking on the change as a unique educational opportunity. "Pluto will remain a great teaching tool because the controversy is a great example of the scientific method in action," says Roy Morris, director of the planetarium for the Columbia Public Schools in Missouri. Similarly, Dale Basler, president of the Wisconsin Society of Science Teachers says, "Science is all about rewriting and revising after each new discovery." And for kids who learned the order of the planets through the mnemonic "My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas," Basler said. "It will now have to be "... Served Us Noodles!"