To Infinity and Beyond

Way back in April we learned about Outer Space, & I'm just now getting around to posting about it...yep life has been BUSY!

I love how simple or complex you can go with this unit, and how many times you can repeat it and always add something to make it new. We went really simple this time around & I wasn't sure B was connecting with any of it. I even had half a mind to ditch the whole thing with his disinterest and the list of my ever growing activities, chores and other crazy life things. However, I stuck it out, mostly because it was to fun of a unit to give up on...and I'm glad I did.

A month after this unit, while on a trip B kept talking about the Earth while we were in a restaurant. Honestly I had no clue what brought it up or why he was going on about it. It wasn't until he pointed at a picture across the room with an abstract Earth on it that his sudden re interest made any sense. He got it, he was listening and taking it in...sometimes you need those... Yes! moments. So don't give up Mommies, they REALLY are listening!

Now here are a few highlights from our Space unit...

 When I saw these cute little pie tins at the dollar store I knew they were meant for our space unit. They're so versatile, but we used them to count the stars.

2 Teaching Mommies has awesome downloads for FREE, here's one of the many ones we used planet letter matching.

Creating constellations with shapes and star stickers.

 A few of our fun space puzzles...B is really into puzzles 

 There were so many cute and creative art projects for this unit, but I had to pick just three due to our lack of time. The first one was a must, once I saw how easy it was...

 These little jars are all over the web, called time-out jars or glitter jars but I love how ChasingCheerios blog labeled them ...Starry Night Jars. They look just like a night filled with sparkling stars.

To make the jar, we filled it with warm water, added blue glitter and blue glitter glue. The glue creates a swirling effect when you shake the jar (we found that shaking didn't work, more of a gentle swirling or twisting), and we added a little extra clear school glue. No measuring, just guessed.

Don't be alarmed if you try it and it first just lumps together in the bottom of your jar, it takes a few swirls to get the right consistency.

*We used a mini plastic water bottle & glued the lid on.

How cute is this rocket? Not to mention a unusual keepsake. We simply painted B's foot (he chose the colors), then added some triangles for the top and wings for the rocket. He colored the fire blasting off below and added a few star stickers.

Coffee filter Earth...there are so many projects you can create with coffee filters, I found this one on 2 Teaching Mommies. Here's what you need... coffee filter, blue & green washable markers, spray bottle with water, black permanent marker & paper towels.

First find an print of the Earth, outline it with permanent marker & then color in the ocean and land. (you don't have to color it all in) Lay the Earth on several paper towels & spritz the Earth. The colors will soon fade, creating a swirling effect.

B wanted to make other planets too.

Here's our Earth...if you hang it on a window, it has a stain glass effect to it.

Okay, so what do you get when you combine some of the most random items together into a game...comet catch. This all started because B wanted to catch stars. Well we didn't have stars we could throw or launch, but that's when the idea of comets came along. To make the comets I took some of our $1 Target spot foam cylinders, added a dot sticker with a number and then made a launcher out of two pieces of Tinkertoy & a toy hammer (ghetto I know, but he had a blast with it!).

 Once we got it all set up, we put a 'comet' on the launcher and blasted it into space. On the other side of the room we had a large tote were we tried to make the comet hit. We also tried holding the tote to catch it & an even smaller insect net (that didn't work). To add in a bit more learning, before he could launch one he had to tell me the number on the comet. I think we spend 15 or 20 minutes catching comets. Sometimes, it doesn't take a lot of planning to make something educational or fun.

A few of our books on Space.