Hands-on Learning of Constellations for Preschoolers

Vito and I were exploring constellations earlier this week as we were reading about the Big Dipper.  He was fascinated that I extended our activity into pin poking to recreate the formation of the stars (constellations).

Guide to Space and Heavenly Bodies Study for Kids (with FREE Resources)

I’ve been planning this unit since last month because I wanted to prepare ahead of time. We’ve done A LOT of space and heavenly bodies unit in the past and I wanted to upgrade the lesson, add something new for Mavi to learn.  So right now, I’m sharing our Space and Heavenly Bodies Study for this year. I’m also putting a bunch of links from our previous lessons and activities for your reference. I hope you find this post helpful.

Space and Solar System

               
Solar System and Planets Part I
Solar System and Planets Part II
Planets and Solar System for Preschoolers
Moon Phases

        
The Moon
Phases of the Moon
A look at the Northern and Southern Sky
We looked into the star constellation maps seen in the northern and southern hemisphere.  This is to make Mavi aware that there are stars that can be seen in the northern part of the world but not visible on the other side.

                   
Stars and Constellations
For the details of our constellation study, click here or click the image below.  The material we used here is the Fantacolor pegboard.
Space Exploration History
I made chronological cards of the space exploration history.  The pictures and the fact cards were all taken and referenced from Wikipedia and Wiki Commons.  Though Mavi can read this straight from the site, I wanted to have something tangible and something that we can work on, like arranging the timeline and matching it with objects.

The cards I created contains the year and a title of the major event that occurred in that year.  The description is very much readable by kids though there were a few words that Mavi couldn’t pronounce well or he needed to ask me for the meaning.  Such a good material to improve reading skills, spelling and vocabulary!
After which, I showed him how we can arrange the cards according to their timeline.  This gives him a visual presentation of the order of events. 

Aside from arranging the cards chronologically, you can also use them to match objects.  Here we used Safari Toobs Space, Safari Toob Insects (fly) and Safari Toob Farm (dog).

So if you wanted to have a copy of the cards for Space History Timeline, click here for the link.
Parts of a Space Shuttle
The parts of a space shuttle is something that Mavi really looked forward to.  Oh boy he was so happy that I made him another “flying object”.  The first one was the Airplane Nomenclature Cards, and here’s the newest Space Shuttle Nomenclature Cards.  This is based on the NASA’s space shuttle design.  Using the cards, a child will learn the different parts of a space shuttle.  I wrote the parts’ functions in a notebook because I was out of ink.

To get a copy of the Space Shuttle Nomenclature Cards, click here.
Sensory Tub
Now, this is something I prepared for both of the boys to play with.  Xavi had his own Letter S: Star Unit study last week so it was timely that I prepared this Space Sensory Tub for the boys.  Figures are from Safari Toob Space, homemade PlayDoh planets and homemade Earth felt.

Study of Star Constellation Maps for Kids

To appreciate the study of stars and outer space, we looked into the star constellation maps and understand how people of long time ago interpreted them.  As we all know, constellations were made up by astronomers, travelers, farmers and ancient people to identify stars: basically to tell the directions, seasons and weather.  So Mavi and I explored some of the known constellations, learned when and where they appear and identified their brightest star.

Our materials for the study include homemade star constellation maps and Fantacolor pegboard. 
The cards are so easy to prepare: black cardstock, silver or gold star stickers and a silver/gold marker.

The Fantacolor pegboard was used by Mavi to recreate each constellation…

…and identify their brightest stars.

Ursa Major, Ursa Minor and Polestar (Big Dipper, Small Dipper and Polestar)

Scorpius

Common Name	The Scorpion
	This constellation contains some of the most spectacular stars, nebulae and star clusters.  Closest to Milky Way
Visible from	Worldwide
Location	Southern Hemisphere
Best time to see	After sunset of April to September
Brightest Star	Antares

Leo

Common Name	The Lion
	Lies afar from the band of Milky Way.
Visible from	Worldwide
Location	Northern Hemisphere
Best time to see	After sunset of February to June
Brightest Star	Regulus

Sagittarius

Common Name	The Archer
	This has a vivid constellation and lies in the southern half of the sky. It is rich in star clusters and nebulae.  This constellation shines brightly because the middle of the Milky Way lies in its borders.
Visible from	Worldwide
Location	Southern Hemisphere
Best time to see	After sunset of July to October
Brightest Star	Kaus Australis

Orion

Common Name	The Hunter
	This is the brightest and most popular constellations in the entire sky.  It is exceptional since it can be seen from both the North and South Poles.
Visible from	Worldwide
Location	Mid Latitude
Best time to see	After sunset of December to March
Brightest Star	Rigel

Taurus

Common Name	The Bull
	The constellation looks like the front of a mighty bull charging towards the Orion.
Visible from	Worldwide
Location	Northern Hemisphere
Best time to see	After sunset of November to February
Brightest Star	Aldebaran

Cygnus

Common Name	The Swan
	This constellation contains many fascinating stars and nebulae.  The pattern creates a distinct cross (known also as the Northern Cross)
Visible from	Worldwide
Location	Northern Hemisphere
Best time to see	After sunset of July to November
Brightest Star	Deneb

We are continuously learning about space. Currently, we’re looking at the chronological timeline of space exploration history and how space shuttles work.  This has been a very fruitful topic for Mavi, and I am learning a lot as well!  More posts about Space Study coming up in the next few days. Stay tuned!
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