As an astronomy teacher, one of my favorite things to teach my students about is the stars. We spend time learning the constellations, but I really love seeing them learn about how stars begin and end. They really enjoy learning about the different types of stars and how they evolve. I use these three activities every time I teach my “Stars” unit:
– HR Diagram worksheet
– Life Cycle of Stars organizer
– Characteristics of Stars foldable

I like to print them in full color so that students can really see what the stars look like at their various stages. You can purchase all three activities here:

The chance to see an eclipse event in the sky is a wonderful opportunity to get  children excited about astronomy. On Monday, August 21st, millions of us in the United States will have the chance to see a spectacular total solar eclipse. The map below, from NASA, shows the path of the sun’s shadow during the total solar eclipse. You must be in that path to see a total eclipse, but a partial eclipse will be visible anywhere in the United States. The map also shows the amount of the sun that will be eclipsed, based on your location.

Safety First!

Never look directly at the sun with your unaided eyes, through binoculars or through a telescope– serious damage can occur. Sunglasses are not enough! You can find solar filters for binoculars and telescopes from many different sources. If you purchase a solar filter sheet, you can customize a filter for your own scope. You can also purchase a pre-made filter to fit the size of your scope. I prefer simple solar shades for eclipse viewing for children, or you can purchase inexpensive solar glasses.

The most economical option is to make your own pinhole projector for viewing the eclipse. The quickest way is to take two sheets of stiff white paper and using a pin, poke a small hole in the center of one sheet. Aim the hole at the sun, and holding the other sheet behind it, move it back and forth until you get a good image.

Helping Kids Understand

The Total Solar Eclipse site from NASA is my favorite place to find eclipse info. You could spend hours on their site learning about the science behind eclipses and exploring different activities to do with your children. The best thing that you can do to prepare kids to view the partial solar eclipse is to help them understand the Earth-Moon-Sun relationship during this event. During a solar eclipse, the moon is between the earth and the sun. (This is different than a lunar eclipse, which is when the earth is between the sun and the moon.) A solar eclipse is when the moon blocks out the sun, from our vantage point here on the earth.

Here is a great modeling activity (shown below) that I use with my astronomy students to help children understand this Earth-Moon-Sun relationship.

Having kids explore Earth-Moon-Sun motions in a kinesthetic way (with their bodies) really helps them understand these relationships. One great activity is to turn on a light source in a darkened room. A single light bulb works great– just take the shade off of a table lamp and draw the shades. Tell your child that his or her head is going to represent the earth, and have him hold an orange (or any spherical object) out in front of him to represent the moon. He can model the lunar phases by spinning around, holding the orange in front of him.  As he turns, he should see different portions of the orange lit up, representing the many phases. Then, have him stand with his head, the orange, and the light source lined up, so that the orange is directly between his head and the light. This represents the times when the moon is directly between the earth and the sun, during the New Moon phase. If the moon orbited the earth in the same plane that the earth orbits the sun, then we would have a lunar eclipse and a solar eclipse every month! But, the moon’s orbit is inclined about 5 degrees to the earth’s orbit. Twice a month, these orbital planes intersect– but not always during the right positions for an eclipse to happen. On average, some type of eclipse ends up happening about 5 times a year, but each can only be viewed in certain locations on the earth.

Go For It!

Eclipse viewing is such a great (and easy!) opportunity to share an astronomy experience with your children. As long as you are prepared for safe viewing, the Total Eclipse of 2017 will be an event that your children will remember forever!

For more ideas on sky-viewing activities to do with your children, visit Stargazing with Kids.

Please note that the Amazon links are affiliate links, and if you do click through and purchase, I will receive a small commission.

For many families, summer is the ideal season for stargazing– the kids are out of school, the weather is beautiful, and everyone seems to be staying up later and sleeping in. Stargazing is for EVERYONE and ANYONE can do it! Here are three easy steps to successful stargazing as a family.

Step 1: Lie Back, Look Up

I know that this one seems like a no-brainer, given the name of this website, but the biggest reason that most families don’t stargaze is just simply because they don’t take the opportunity to look up at the sky together. In the Stargazing with Kids section, you will find a lot of information about how to set up an ideal time and location for stargazing as a family, but don’t let a lack of planning stop you! Anytime that you are outside as a family you can take a moment to look up at the sky and discuss what you see. Have you ever found yourself pulling into the driveway after a family outing, and as you leave the car you notice that it is a perfectly clear night and a million stars seem to be shining? Why not take 15 minutes to lay out a blanket and gaze up at the night sky as a family? These are the experiences that will spark a love for the stars in your children, and they will remember these impromptu stargazing sessions forever.

Step 2: Teach Each Other

The best summer constellation for children to find in the sky is the Big Dipper. If you can find this in the sky and show it to your children, that is just about all that you need to know to get started. For more background, check out the Stargazing Basics section or This Week’s Sky at a Glance. You can also talk about the similarities and differences that you see in the stars. Are they all the same color? brightness? size? distance from Earth? How is our Sun like these stars? How is it different? See if you can locate the three brightest stars in the southern sky, that form the Summer Triangle (print off the Summer Sky Map for help). Ask your children what they know about the stars and which constellations they have heard of. If you ask these types of questions, you might find your children asking you to find out the answers, or looking up the answers on their own!

Step 3: Use Your Imaginations

Our imaginations are what make stargazing accessible to everyone. Even if you can’t locate a single constellation in the sky, you can do what the many cultures before us have done, and find your own constellations and write your own stories. Ask your children to connect the stars to make a constellation and ask them to tell you a story about it. Imagine yourselves alive thousands of years ago, before technology and telescopes. What would you think that the stars were made of? How would you imagine that they came to be? Everyone can pick a star that they’d like to visit– What would you find there? Would there be planets there like the Earth? How long would it take you to get there? How would you travel?

Stargazing as a family really is an easy activity for everyone to participate in. You don’t need any special equipment, nor do you need a PhD in Astronomy to teach your children to appreciate the night sky. Be sure to take the time this summer to lie back and look up.

Here is an updated post from last year…..

As the holiday season descends upon us, it’s time to start thinking about gift giving. And if you are like me, I get tired of buying the same old socks and scented candles for friends and family members. This holiday shopping season, consider these affordable, unconventional gifts– appropriate for seasoned astronomy enthusiasts and young stargazers alike!

Gifts for her

(These are taken right from my own wishlist!)

A  Zodiac Constellation Necklace makes for a great gift for mothers! You can show that special someone in your life that you are thinking about them by buying them this beautiful necklace with their zodiac constellation stamped into it. Mothers love to have a little memento reminding them of their children– consider buying a charm with each child’s zodiac constellation and put the charms together onto one chain.

This stylish hoodie with Ursa Major embroidery is the perfect way for her to show off her love of the constellations. This shop has several other types of clothing with constellation embroidery– all stylish and comfortable looking.

  This 2013 Desk Calendar would look great on a bulletin board or posted on the fridge. Each calendar has a beautiful sketch of a zodiac constellation and the lunar phases. Don’t forget to circle the important dates in astronomy for the upcoming year before you wrap it!

A custom hand-stamped constellation ring is an elegant choice for the astronomy-loving woman in your life. You can choose any constellation, and this gorgeous ring won’t tarnish!

Gifts for him

The Ursa Minor Constellation Decal is a great gift for men and women alike– and you don’t even need to put it on a computer! It also works on car windows or any other smooth surface that might need some livening up!

A Vintage Constellation Chart  is the perfect gift for the guy who loves all things astronomy and all things vintage. The 8×10 size is perfect to hang in a den or office. It’s a beautiful reproduction, so you don’t have to worry about it falling apart. The constellation chart shows both the northern and southern hemispheres, so it’s a great gift for anyone in the world!

A Stars and Moons Fire Pit looks great to cozy up to on a chilly night. It would add a celestial touch to every backyard campfire, and set the stage for stargazing! What better way to tell the guy in your life that you’d love to spend some cozy nights stargazing around this beautiful fire pit.
I know that I can always get a tie or a t-shirt for my astronomy-loving-dad.   He’s received a lot of t-shirts lately, and I love this tie from etsy.com  This great constellation tie might find its way to his stocking this year!

Gifts for the kids

Here is THE BEST constellation book for kids and adults alike. By the famous creator of Curious George, this book does an amazing job of pointing out the constellations with very easy-to-understand drawings. Every child should have a copy of this book!

This is a great low-cost telescope kit for beginners. The Galileoscope allows kids of all ages to build and observe with a telescope similar to (but much better than) Galileo’s. Thirteen year-olds can assemble this with supervision, and younger children with adult help. The process of building the scope is beneficial in itself, and then at the end you have a great beginning telescope to use! It helps to have a tripod to attach the scope to, and then you can enjoy gazing at the moon or Jupiter!

Tickets to your local planetarium make a great gift for all ages. Take the time this winter break to visit a planetarium near you! Planetarium trips are especially fun for those of us in the Midwest during the winter season– the cold weather can make stargazing sessions a little tricky. You will usually find that tickets to a one-hour show are very reasonably priced.

There are many books out there with astronomy themes– fiction and nonfiction alike, for two year-old and twelve year-olds. You can foster your child’s love of reading and of astronomy with one gift!

The Draconids  meteor shower will peak on the nights of October 7th & 8th, with the best viewing before midnight.

While the Draconids aren’t known for producing the most spectacular show, the thin waxing crescent moon won’t be competing for attention. The dark sky along with the early viewing time make this shower a great opportunity for families with young children.

Set up a cozy spot in the yard, have their stargazing diaries ready, and prepare a few snacks as a surprise.

October 21st & 22nd this month, as the Earth passes through the debris from Halley’s Comet, the Orionids meteor shower will fill the sky.

This meteor shower will originate from the Orion constellation, which you can find in the southeastern sky late into the night. The best time to view the meteors will be between midnight and dawn. While this early morning viewing time isn’t for everyone, it is a great chance to make stargazing a  very special time for your family. Be sure to get your children to bed early on Saturday night, and then wake them in the pre-dawn hours for this special chance to  see some “shooting stars“.

Sneak in to wake up your children in the early hours, while it is still dark, and tell them to grab their jackets and hats.  Be sure to have your stargazing playlist ready to go!

Check out our What’s Up in the Sky This Month page for an idea of planets, constellations and special events to look for in the October Sky. Be sure to print off the Fall Sky Maps as well!

Planning on catching a fireworks display on the 4th? What a perfect opportunity for family stargazing! Spend a few minutes after the fireworks display to lie back and look up. Check out a few of these posts for activity ideas and inspiration:

Summer Stargazing     Three easy steps for summer stargazing with your family– it’s easier than you think!

Stargazing Playlist     Check out this list of great background music to stargaze by. Having fun songs for the kids (and adults!) can really set the stage for gazing at the stars.

Stargazing Snacks    Show up prepared with themed snacks to kick off your stargazing time. Have the kids help you make these ahead of time– it will get them excited about the experience.

Stargazing Diary     Having your children keep a journal of the things that they see in the night sky is one way to make a stargazing event a regular experience.

Be sure to print off your Summer Sky Map to locate a few constellations!