Dramatize the stars and planets as they become a visual representation of the solar system in this activity. Young astronomers track and simulate various constellations as they orbit the Earth to learn the position and motion of...

How does the color of the sky change from blue to reds and oranges to black? An illuminating lesson explains how light travels through different mediums using the sun's light as an example. By examining diagrams and illustrations, pupils...

Shine some light on the topic of seasonal change with this collection of activities. Whether it's by measuring the change in the length of their shadows, or modeling the earth's orbit around the sun using a lamp and a globe, these...

Bring the night sky to your classroom! Using simple materials, learners create flashlight constellations on the wall. They then use their imaginations to create their own star patterns that tell a story.

Why does it look like there is a man on the moon? Why does the moon look different every night? These are the focus questions of a lesson that prompts class members to observe and record the nightly changes of Earth's natural...

Following a reading and thorough discussion of books—Anansi the Spider: A Tale from the Ashanti by Gerald McDermott and The Moon Book by Gail Gibbons—scholars complete three activities. First, they use playdough or cookie dough to create...

Walking in nature is the theme of a unit designed to support English language development lessons. Scholars look, write, speak, and move to explore topics such as camping, woodland animals, instruments,...

A Reading Adventure Pack explores the night sky. Reading Her Seven Brothers by Paul Goble and Find the Constellations by H.A. Rey begin the learning experience. Scholars craft a night sky mobile, go stargazing, and write a mythical story...

In this sky observation worksheet, middle schoolers make observations of the night sky and use their planisphere and star charts to help identify what they observe. They make observations and record what they see for 10-15 minutes. They...

Create a scaled model of our solar system in your classroom! Scholars work collaboratively to build paper mache planets and hang them in their proper position to showcase each planet's location in the solar system.   

It is just magnetic. This resource presents the concept of Earth's and another planet's magnetic field and how spacecrafts detect them. Learners study a problem using magnetometers and participate in three experiments to come up with a...

Explore outer space and decorate your classroom with an astronomy project. Learners create a visual model with the creation of a scaled solar system using different sized balls.

When looking up at the night sky, there are many familiar constellations that most people can identify. However, someone had to point those out and create the related mythology. Put your pupils in the place of the creators and invite...

Get kids interested in stargazing with a step-by-step guide. The guide begins with the do's and don'ts, what the defines a star, and introduces a journal. The page is linked to see stars if light pollution keeps stars away in your area.

Let there be light—or maybe not. Pupils learn about light pollution with an investigation of constellations. They create constellation boxes and experiment with different levels of light. Observations are then made about the lighting in...

[Free Registration/Login Required] A poem by Robert Frost about fireflies in the night sky. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

When you are in the city, only a few of the brightest stars are visible. But when you are in the country, you can see many more stars than you can count. Sometimes you can even see the bright belt of our galaxy, the Milky Way. In this...

If you live in a big city or urban area it is hard to see many stars at night. In most urban areas only the most brilliant stars, planets and the moon can be seen. This is because of something called light pollution which is the...

Bill Nye explains why the moon appears smaller when it is higher in the sky, and he presents a Home Demo experiment that proves its an illusion. The experiment requires a bright moon on a clear night, a stiff piece of cardboard, and a...

This hands-on astronomy activity lets learners hunt for different objects in the night sky that contribute to stellar and planetary formation, using a Treasure List. They will learn how stars and their planets form and will find objects...

This is a great project for someone that is interested in both stargazing and photography. Bright city lights and even the light of the full moon obscure the dimmest stars, which can make identifying constellations more difficult. This...

[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about stars in the night sky. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

Do you like to look up into the night sky? There are so many stars, it can be mind boggling. Some ancient people marked time by the changes in star patterns. We still use changes in constellation patterns to mark astronomical time. This...

Two levels of exploration take you on a nighttime bat investigation, offer important vocabulary and definitions, provide a library of articles, and list ideas for bat research and observations in parks and zoos.