How to Introduce Space and Planets to Toddlers

Vito can finally identify the sun, moon and earth, and can’t stop saying the word space whenever he sees a rocket ship!  With engaging activities, you can definitely expose your kids to the concept of space and planets. 

Read books and play!

First, the best way to learn is for the child to actually see the moon and all the stars in the sky.  Just by looking, they’ll be fascinated with the light these heavenly bodies produces.  Once they are familiar with these two, you can start by reading books about space and the heavenly bodies.

For the choices of books, here are the best 3 that we’ve read so far. Nothing but good reviews for these books in Amazon.  You can also get these in Book Depository and they deliver for FREE ANYWHERE in the world.

• On the Launch Pad – a fantastic counting book in learning about rocket ships and numbers!  Vito enjoyed this and over the week that we’ve been reading this, he’s always counting “5… 4… 3… 2… 1… blast off!”
• On the Moon – Vito is obsessed with the Moon and we read this everyday.   We love matching our Safari Toob Space and Lego Space figures to images in the book.
• Stars and Planets – a book given to Mavi when he was 3 years old and now Vito is using it to learn about the sun, moon, Earth and other planets.   We love this book as well!

I highly recommend the Lego Space figures and Safari Toob Space .  I wanted to get the Playmobil Space Shuttle but it’s not in my budget at the moment, so we’re sticking with what we have already.

Experience the surface of the moon

I made a separate post about our homemade Moon Sand (with Recipe) here. This is the first time I made one and it was a hit at home! Just prepare for the BIG CLEANUP afterwards.

This moon sand was the perfect sensory tool for the boys to have that feel of the moon’s surface.  They had a great time hiding, digging and moulding the moon sand using our Safari Toob Space figures.

Create a rocket ship!

We decided to make our own rocket ships! We simply rolled up cardboards (or cardstocks), painted them with silver paints and topped them with cone-shaped heads!

The boys picked red and blue rockets!

On the Launch Pad was the inspiration behind this simple craft project

We also painted the moon and it was so beautiful! See it here.

Introducing planets to toddlers

I made these felt planets years ago when Mavi was in preschool and he loves them to pieces!  He had a great time learning about them through the years. 

And did Vito loved it too? Oh definitely yes!  He cuddles, hugs, kisses and sleep on them!

First, I just gave it to him and told him that these are the planets. He’s familiar with the word “planets” because we’ve been reading books about it.  So he was so happy to see them.  As I said, he hugged, kissed and slept on them as we are doing this activity. He has no interest in matching them with the cards.

When he was settled, Mavi and I arranged the planets again and laid out the cards for him to see that they match.  These cards are from Usborne.

He can identify the sun, moon and Earth but not the others.  When I mentioned the word “space” he immediately took his rocketships and pretended that they were flying over the planets. Well, at least he knows the relationship between the two LOL.

And here he is, landing the rockets on the planet Saturn  

That was an amazing play and learning all at the same time! For older kids, you can check my other post: Guide to Space and Heavenly Bodies Study for Kids (with FREE Resources).

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This post is part of the 12 Months of Montessori Learning which is hosted by Natural Beach Living and The Natural Homeschool.  

Check other amazing blogs that are participating in this series:

Moon Activities - Montessori Inspired Astronomy (Free Printables) | Natural Beach Living

Free Astronomy Home Study {Printable Set} | The Natural Homeschool

Montessori-Inspired Moon Activities for Toddlers and Preschoolers | Living Montessori Now

Montessori Inspired Space or Earth Sorting with Printable | The Kavanaugh Report

Montessori Inspired Solar System Introduction | Mama’s Happy Hive

Space Yoga for Kids | Sugar, Spice & Glitter

How to Introduce Space and Planets to Toddlers | The Pinay Homeschooler

Montessori-inspired Astronomy Resources for Kids | Every Star is Different

Gearing up for Astronomy | Grace and Green Pastures

Astronomy for Christian Children | Christian Montessori Network