Astronomy Homeschool Activities / Everyday Learning 6

Many of my most treasured childhood memories involve one-on-one time with my father: ice skating, hiking trips, studying astronomy. (Okay, and cuddling on the coach watching the original Star Wars movies too.)

I remember eagerly anticipating each lunar eclipse, comet or meteor shower, knowing that we’d get to see it together.

I have waited many years to share this joyful experience with my kids. After studying the ‘butterfly life cycle‘ and ‘leaves and seeds,’ we turned our focus this winter to astronomy, studying our moon, planets and their satellites in the solar system, and constellations in the night sky.

We stargazed with the help of Google Sky, the fantastic Earth Sky blog and Facebook page, and Skymaps with monthly, free printable sky maps…

… poured over dozens of great astronomy books (our favorites being Zoo in the Sky: A Book of Animal Constellations, Glow-in-the-Dark Constellations, and The Stars):

… observed the moon cycle with the Phases of the Moon app (that allows you to scroll forward and backwards through time to see how the moon changes each day) and this craft project:

… discussed the order, size, and characteristics of the planets and their satellites in our solar system with this craft project, these puzzles by Ravensburger, Melissa & Doug, and Crocodile Creek, and a craft similar to this one:

… explored the Greek and Native American myths explaining the stories behind our constellations…

… practiced identifying, drawing, and embroidering constellations:

… celebrated our daughter’s six birthday with a solar system themed party:

… visited the planetarium at the California Academy of Science and created our own version at home (with this fantastic activity)…

… and watched our daughter write her own astronomy book (from Imagine Childhood with this white gel pen):

Three months of study and we still have so much to learn! I have a whole bunch more astronomy-themed activities on Pinterest to explore in the future.

So many fun projects, so little time!