Fast & Slow You will have to make a music tape before the children arrive for this activity. Tape slow, instrumental music for about twenty seconds. Then, switch to fast, crazy music. Every twenty seconds or so, change the music. Go from slow to fast to medium back to fast. Tell the children to move the way the music makes them want to move. To tie this activity into the space theme, talk to the children about gravity. Explain that on the moon, the astronauts move in slow motion but on the Earth we can move as fast as we like. * Space helmet Bag Straws Crayons or markers Long underwear Cereal or oatmeal box Yarn or string Paper towel tubes Cutting implements (for adult use only) Tape This activity is good for everyday fun, costume parties, and, of course, Halloween. First, make a paper bag space helmet. Glue or tape on straws to simulate wires,tubes, and other important gizmos one would expect to find on a space suit. (You can also draw them with crayons or markers.) The suit itself can consist of long underwear or pj's. Before your child blasts off,make an air tank out of an oatmeal or cereal box. Make shoulder straps out of yarn or string (watch young children). To make an air hose, tape several paper towel tubes together (slit the ends to make it easier to combine them), then make cuts every inch or two that almost pass through the tube as if slicing a loaf of French bread. Tape one end to the air tank and the other to the helmet. * Moon Balls (serves MANY) Ingredients: 2 C. Peanut butter 1 1/3 C. Honey 2 C. Raisins 2 C. Dry milk 3 1/2 C. Graham cracker crumbs (keep 1/2 c. separate) 1. Mix dry milk, raisins, and 3 c. graham cracker crumbs 2. Add honey and peanut butter, mix will (hands do best) 3. Roll into small balls 4. Place remaining 1/2 c. of graham cracker crumbs in a large baggie 5. Place several balls at a time into the baggie and shake, then place on a cookie sheet. 6. Chill then eat * Space Craft Simulator Every successful mission must be simulated in a fake craft. Have the children sit very close to each other inside a rope circle. Lead them through a take off, a bumpy ride and a landing. You will have to be animated to pull this off. * Galactic Mobiles Dough recipe: 2 1/2 c. Boiling water 2 c. salt 4 c. flour Add salt to water, then stir into flour. Have the children knead the dough until it is a good consistency for shaping. Let them roll the dough out and use cookie cutters to cut out star and circle shapes. Each child should have a couple of stars and a couple of circles. Don't forget to put a hole at the top of each shape for hanging. Bake shapes in the oven at 250 degrees for 2 - 3 hours, checking frequently after 2 two hours. Paint them another day. Creative Art-Planet Painting Put out the paint colors needed and supply them with plenty of brushes. More than likely, someone will be unhappy with the outcome of his planet. Remind the children that there are many planets yet to be discovered and theirs can be one of those. Undiscovered planets can look however we want them to look.. * Cut & Color Table-Star Gazers Give each child an empty toilet paper tube. Cover the end of the tube with a piece of black paper. Let the children gently push a toothpick through the black paper to create tiny holes. Give the children markers to decorate their scopes. To use them, have the children hold their scopes up to the light and look through the uncovered end. This will look like a mini-planetarium. * Outside-Meteor Fight Have a good, old fashioned water balloon fight. This should be optional. Some children will not enjoy having meteors hurled at them. * We created a rocket out of washing machine boxes and used ice cream containers from a local ice cream shop for our helmets. We also created space suits out of white garbage bags using permanent markers. We attempted to eat pudding from ziplock baggies through straws to understand how difficult it is to eat in space. * We wrote our own ABC's of space and created and named our own constellations from splatter paint star pictures. Then tell the students to spread out the star pictures all over their sheet of black construction paper.When they are done give them a piece of white chalk and tell them to connect the stars to form constellation pictures.Then have the children name their constellations.Hang up their constellations on a bulletin board, and title it "In the Night's Sky I See..." * Make a mobile from styrofoam balls that represents the planets. * Make a moon walking area. This is how....Place pillows all over the floor. Then cover the pillows and floor with a sheet. Attach x-large sized thick sponges to the children's feet with rubber bands for space shoes. Let the children walk over the area. Play space walk music for a real dramatic effect. * Just a simple experiment - decorate a lunch size bag with a picture of a rocket or shuttle and show the children the principle of flight by blowing up a balloon, inserting it into the bag, and then turning it loose and having the bag "take-off' into space. My 4 year olds wanted to do this all day long. We also made rocket airplanes(out of paper), each varying in size, and threw them and measured the distance they each traveled. Have the children guess ahead of time which one will go the farthest. * Moon Craters- Use the bubble wrap that comes in packages and covered it with plaster of paris. Let dry and peel off. Wouldn't this look like moon craters or such? Then they let the children paint it. I might try it and see what happens! Create your own planet surface! * Rocketships Materials: Toilet tissue tubes, Aluminum foil, 1/2 circle taped or stapled into cone shape, Glue, Brushes, Crepe paper strips (red), Tape. 1. Keep circle halves cut and ready to use. (A coffee can lid makes the perfect size nozzle if cut in half.) 2. give each child a toilet tissue roll and a sheet of aluminum foil to wrap around the roll. Staple together the half circle to make a cone shape. 3. Child should glue the cone onto the roll. 4. Now tape on crepe paper 'flames' from the bottom of the roll. * Starlight mobile Use cookie cutter shapes for moon crescents & stars (or draw your own) to trace a moon crescent & three stars. Trace around each shape twice onto aluminum foil and cut out the traced figures. Glue the foil crescents to each side of the cardboard moon. Glue tinsel to each of the cardboard stars. Glue the foil stars to each side of the cardboard stars. Tape a dark-colored thread from each star to the moon. Glue a long piece of thread along the inside curve of the moon.When the glue dries, hang the mobile in your window. I have an idea for large motor and art activities related to space. Maybe you can have the children go on a pretend trip to outer space. They can pretend to pack all necessary items, put on their uniforms and get into a spaceship. After they return from their visit to outer space, have them close their eyes and try to remember what the life forms looked like. When they open their eyes, they can describe them, draw them on paper, and dictate a description for you to write. My kindergarten children do this every year. They make creatures with many heads, eyes on their feet, rainbow colored skin, etc. I hang the creatures on a bulletin board. It stimulates much conversation among the students. also read "Space Case" and "Merry Christmas, Space Case," by James Marshall. * ART: Moon Rocks.......go on a ( pretend) space shuttle to the moon to collect moon rocks(you hide). The kids can then paint them. Make and decorate space peepers(binoculars). Use toilet paper tubes. Build Robots from various boxes and tubes. After they are dry, paint them with gold paint(or silver). You could do this as a group or individual project. SONG; I'm a Little Robot (I'm a Little teapot) I'm a little robot, watch me walk, Push my button, now I can talk. When I get all oiled up I can work. Even if I have to jerk. I'm a little robot, watch me go, Sometimes fast, sometimes slow When I get all worn out you can see, All I need is a new battery. BLOCK AREA; Add little space people(you can find these at department stores) For a fun filled trip into space, use Greg and Steve's An Adventure In Outer Space from their On The Move CD. Or take your class on its own imaginary trip through outer space. Explain lack of gravity and its relationship to movement. Challenge the children to walk, run, skip, hop, gallop, leap, and crawl through space. Go for a long nature walk on the moon and see what kinds of imaginary items children discover. Or play my Moving Star game. Fly to one star, land, and discover that the only way to move on that star is to do jumping jacks. Then step back into your space ship and land on the "crawling" star...the "hopping" star etc. The ideas are endless! * Here's a space web site for those interested Space Exploration Online MOONRIDE Do you want to go with me to the moon? We'll get in our rocket ship and blast off soon! Faster 7 faster we reach to the sky. Isn't it fun to be able to fly? We'll orbit the moon until we get tired. Then streak back to earth, when our rockets are fired. RING AROUND THE ROCKETSHIP Ring around the rocket ship Try to grab a star. (drop hands and reach up" Stardust, stardust, Fall where you are. STARS At night I see the twinkling stars (shut and open hands) And a great big smiling moon (circle arms over head) My mommy and daddy tuck me into bed (lay finger in cupped hand) And sing a good night tune WHO IS SMILING AT ME? I look out my window (open window) You'll never guess what I see (stick head out of window) That funny man in the moon (point to moon) Is smiling at me! (smile) ROCKET SHIP Our rocket ship is standing by and very, very soon, We'll have a countdown, then we'll blast ourselves to the moon. Begin to count: ten, nine, eight, Be on time, don't be late. Seven, six, five, four, There aren't many seconds more. Three, two, one, zero, zip The rocket is off on its first moon trip. Check out the Raffi songs - One Light, One Sun and Big Beautiful Planet AMANDA BOONE AND HER TRIP TO THE MOON Where are you going Amanda Boon, All dressed up in the afternoon? I'm hurrying home to wash my face, For I'm flying today to outer space. Who will go with you, two friends or three? Just Billy, and Lola, and Christopher Lee. How willyou get there? The trip's very hard. We're building a spaceship in Billy's back yard. What in the world will you pack for the flight? My pillow, and blanket and a high-beam flashlight. Songs or poems: Five brave astronauts floated into space. The first one disappeared without a trace. The second one somersaulted past the moon. The third one entered the atmosphere too soon. The fourth one took off counting ten to zero. And the fifth one landed safely like a hero. Tune: The Farmer in the Dell We're flying to the moon We're flying to the moon. Blast off, away we go We're flying to the moon. Other verses: We're going in a spacecraft We're walking out in space We're landing on the moon We're collecting moon rocks We're flying back to Earth We're landing on the Earth Stars fingerplay At night I see the twinkling stars (fist up and open hands over your head) And a great big smiling moon (circle arms overhead) My Mommy tucks me into bed (Lay pointer of one hand across the palm of the other hand) And sings a good-night tune. (Rock your hands back and forth) Four Little stars Four little stars winking at me. F One shot off, then there were three! Three little stars With nothing to do. One shot off, Then there were two! Two little stars Afraid of the sun. One shot off, Then there was one! One little star Alone is no fun. It shot off, then there was none! Climb aboard the Spaceship! sung to: Itsy Bitsy Spider Climb aboard the spaceship, We're going to the moon. hurry and get ready, We're going to blast off soon. Put on your helmets And buckle up real tight. Here comes the countdown, Let's count with all our might. 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1---BLAST OFF!! Space action song sung to: London Bridge The planets spin around the sun, Around the sun, Around the sun. The planets spin around the sun, We live on earth! The sun is found in the middle, In the middle, In the middle. The sun is found in the middle, It keeps us warm! The stars are twinkling far away, Far away, far away. the stars are twinkling far away, Now make a wish! One little two little three little planets Four little five little six little planets Seven little eight little nine little planets Orbiting the sun. Mercury Venus and the earth Mars jupitur and Saturn Uranus Neptune and Pluto orbiting the sun. Tuning Up For Outer Space (sung to "The Farmer in the Dell") The sun is in the sky. The sun is in the sky. Hot and bright,it gives us light. The sun is in the sky. The moon is in the sky. The Moon is in the sky. Around and 'round the earth it goes. The moon is in the sky. The stars are in the sky. The stars are in the sky. Twinkly bright, they shine at night. The stars are in the sky. Little Stars (Music, Music, Music) Twinkle, twinkle, little stars Friends of Jupiter and Mars. All you do the whole night through Is twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, Rockets keep flying higher Keep flying further, further every day, And need the stars to chart their way, So while you watch the ships go by, Keep on lighting up the sky, Keep on shining through the night And twinkle, twinkle, twinkle. Four little stars winking at me, (hold up four fingers) One shot off, then there were three. (bend down first finger) Three little stars with nothing to do, One shot off, then there were two. (bend down second finger) Two little stars afraid of the sun, One shot off, then there was one. (bend down third finger) One little star, alone is no fun, It shot off, then there were none. (bend down fourth finger) At night I see the twinkling stars, (hold up hands and wiggle fingers) And a big white smiling momon. (form circle with arms and smile) Mommy tucks me into bed, (place finger in opposite hand) And sings a goodnight tune. (rock hands gently) There's a tiny little star Way up in the sky, A tiny little star, Up so very high. She twinkles brightly Through the night, But during the day, She's out of sight. The tiny stars you see at night (point upward, count stars) Are like our sun, so warm and bright. (shade eyes) But far away, they look so small (separate thumb and index finger by small amount) They barely give us light at all. (open eyes widely, strain to see) Have you ever seen the Moon (Sung to the tune of "The More We Get Together") Have you ever seen The moon, the moon, the moon, Have you ever seen The moon, the moon, the moon, way up in the sky. Look this way, and that way. Look this way, and that way. Have you ever seen The moon, the moon, the moon, So very high. We're Going on a Space Trip... (We're Going on a Bear Hunt) After the "mission commander" (teacher) chants a line, the flight crew (students) repeats it and the Motions associated with it. We're gong on a space trip (salute) Pack your flight bag (put items in a bag and zip it up) Get on your spacesuit (get dressed) Let's climb on board (climb steps" Buckle your safety strap (fasten belt) Countdown time! 1 0-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 --Lift off! I see the Moon. (point ahead of you) Can't go over it (point above you) Count go under it (point below you) Have to go around it Continue the chant with some obstacles in your way. Sun, planet, asteroid, meteor, comet... Complete the chant by pantomiming, " Our Mission is completed (clap) Time to turn back. I see the comet. I see the meteor." Traveling in Space... I wish I could ride in a spaceship, It's just what I'd like to do. I'd travel to Mars and them Neptune-- Would you like to come along too? (point to other person) Ring Around the Spaceship... Ring around the spaceship, (walk with others in circle) Try to grab a star (reach up high) Stardust, stardust, (wiggle fingers) All fail down. (drop to floor) A Little Rocket... I'm a little rocket and I'm glad, Soon I'll blast off from my pad. (crouch down near floor) When I get all fired up, hear me roar, Up, up, up I go watch me soar. Jump up and pretend to soar) There's a Tiny Little Star... (Little White Duck) There's a little tiny star Way up in the sky. A tiny little star, Up so very high She twinkles brightly Through the night: The stars are shining bright. But during the day She is out of sight. There's a tiny little star Way up in the sky. A tiny little star. Astronauts Round the Moon... (The bear went over the mountain) Astronauts went round the moon, Astronauts went round the moon, Astronauts went round the moon, And what do you think they saw? They saw____ They saw____ They saw____ And that is what they saw. We'll Be Orbiting Round The Moon... (She'll be Coming Round the Mountain) We'II be orbiting round the moon yes we will. We'll be orbiting round the moon, yes we wiIl, We'll be orbiting round the moon, yes we will, We'll be orbiting round the moon, We'll be orbiting round the moon, We'll be orbiting round the moon, yes we will. More: We'll be landing on the moon, yes we will... We'll be walking on the moon, yes we will... We'll be blasting off again, yes we will... We'll be landing back on Earth, yes we will... Space Song... (London Bridge) The planets spin around the sun, Around the sun, Around the sun. The planets spin around the sun, We live on earth! The sun is found in the middle, In the middle, In the middle. The sun is found in the middle, It keeps us warm! The stars are twinkling far away, Far away, far away. the stars are twinkling far away, Now make a wish! Our Special Earth Our Earth is very special, As special as can be, Though it's not the closest planet To the Sun--that's Mercury It's not the smallest planet, That's Pluto--cold as ice, It's not famous for its'reddish tint, That's Mars to be precise. It's not a ball of gas like Uranus and Neptune, It has no rings like Saturn's, It only has one moon. But Earth's alive with animals, With flowers, grass, and trees, And best of all our special Earth Is home to you and me. I wish I could fly high in the universe, And see what the earth looks like from above. And be close to the planets and stars, Maybe even to touch them and walk upon Mars. Twinkle Twinkle Little Moon Twinkle twinkle little Moon How I wonder what you're doin' Up above the world so high Like a Pancake in the sky Twinkle Twinkle little moon How I wonder what you're doin'. Four Little stars Four little stars winking at me. One shot off, then there were three! three little stars With nothing to do. One shot off, Then there were two! Two little stars Afraid of the sun. One shot off, Then there was one! One little star Alone is no fun. It shot off, then there was none! Climb aboard the Spaceship! sung to itsy bitsy spider Climb aboard the spaceship, We're going to the moon. hurry and get ready, We're going to blast off soon. Put on your helmets And buckle up real tight. Here comes the countdown, Let's count with all our might. 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1---BLAST OFF!! Space action song sung to London Bridge the planets spin around the sun, Around the sun, Around the sun. The planets spin around the sun, We live on earth! The sun is found in the middle, In the middle, In the middle. The sun is found in the middle, It keeps us warm! The stars are twinkling far away, Far away, far away. the stars are twinkling far away, Now make a wish * Rockets If your favorite cool-down snack is an ice cream cone --------- Save the foam mold the pointed cones are packaged in. Discover with the children how the shape of the mold looks like a rocket ship when you hold it upside down. Paint it silver, add glue and glitter stuff with colorful shredded paper with some strips dangling out the bottom. Run your rocket ship with you through the sprinkler and imagine you're traveling through an ice crystal shower on the moons of Jupiter, cool spots of the universe! SNACKS Fold a large soft tortilla in half and in half again. Using clean scissors, make tiny snips and cutouts on the tortilla as you would for a paper snowflake. Unfold to see the surprise design. Spread butter on the snowflake and sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar. -- ^^ Preschoolers will have fun folding a piece of bologna in the same way. Use fingers to tear out tiny chunks of meat, unfold to reveal the bologna snowflake, and eat! Astronomy fingerplays The Star I have two strong hands to help me, (Stretch arms to each side.) Two strong feet to guide me, (Straddle legs wide.) And wide light all around me. (Circle arms down to floor,over the head & return to stretch.) What am I? (A STAR) ****************************************************** Stars At night I see the twinkling stars (Clasping & opening hands.) And a great big smiling moon. (Circle arms overhead.) My Mommie tucks me into bed (Lay finger in cupped hand.) And sings a good-night tune. (Rocking motions with hands.) ********************************************************* The Stars I watch the stars come out at night (Look upward.) I wonder where they get their light. (Place finger on forehead as if wondering.) I don't think rhey'll ever fall, (Shake head "no".) So,I'll reach up & pick them all. (Pretend to pick stars from sky.) ************************************************************ The Sun Over there the sun gets up, (Extend arm horizontally.) And marches all the day. (Raise arm slowly.) At noon, it stands right overhead; (Point straight up.) At night, it goes away. (Lower arm slowly & drop down.) **************************************************************** Moon Ride Do you want to go up with me to the moon? (Point to friend,self,then to sky.) Let's get in our rocket ship & blast off soon! (Pretend to climb in ship.) Faster & faster we reach to the sky. (Jump & reach.) Isn't it fun to be able to fly? We're on the moon,now all take a look. (Look down.) And gently sit down & I'll show you a book. (Sit down gently.) ********************************************************************* Ring Around the Rocket Ship (Tune>"Ring Around the Rosie". Ring around the rocket ship. (All join hands in a circle & walk to the right.) Try to grab a star. (At the word "grab",drop hands & reach up.) Stardust, stardust (On the word"fall",fall to floor.) Fall where you are. ************************************************************************ Bend & Stretch Bend & stretch,reach for the stars. (Suit actions to words.) There goes Jupiter,here comes Mars. Bend & stretch,reach for the sky. Stand on tip-e-toe,oh! so high! (Other things to reach for>planets>Earth,Mars,Jupiter,Saturn,Uranus,Neptune,Pluto, Mercury,Venus etc...) Moon Surface 6" circle cut from yellow posterboard flour and water mixed to make a thick paste Give each child a circle and put some flour paste in the center of it. Let the children use their fingers to spread the paste and make craters and hills for their moon surface. Use rubber bands to hold large sponges on the bottom of shoes. Go on a space walk. It gives the children a feeling of being weightless. Here is a list of great space books. The Moon Book by Gail Gibbons (available from Scholastic) Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! I'm Off To The Moon by Dan Yaccarino (from Scholastic) Planets by Kim Jackson (great for younger children) If You Were An Astronaut by Dinah L. Moche A Day in Space by Suzanne Lord and Jolie Epstein My First Book About Space A question and answer book by Dinah L. Moche The Space Activity Book by Ellen Booth Church I Want to Be an Astronaut by Byron Barton (great for young children) My First Book of Space by Rosanna Hansen and Robert A. Bell My Picture Book of the Planets by Nancy E. Krulik A great cassette to listen to is: Ride Through the Solar System story and songs by Michael Stein and Bryan Smith I See the Full Moon (He's Got the Whole World in His Hands) I see the full moon, in the sky, I see the full, round moon, in the sky, I see the full moon, in the sky, I see the full moon in the sky! Sing about the half moon, crescent moon and stars, too!