Tips for Studying the Night Sky with Kids

Whether you homeschool your children or they go to a conventional school, many parents feel like night time is for relaxing and not for learning. While I agree that there should be a time for your children to take a break from absorbing information, I do not think that night time is off-limits for new experiences!

For those of you who are new and don’t know me, I am a Program Coordinator for an Outdoor Education non-profit and in my free time, I run my small business Wild and Growing. I have learned so much from teaching at an outdoor education non-profit and I apply what I’ve learned in my business frequently. One activity that I absolutely love, is called Night Experience.

This activity is a challenging experience for children and adults alike. As a teacher, I’ve grown and learned a lot from the experience and although I teach pretty much the same thing from week to week, each Night Experience is completely different. My students and I (along with any of their chaperones) leave the experience more confident in the dark, excited, and closer as a team.

I am confident that incorporating a night study into your household or homeschool curriculum can do similar things for you and your family.

Although the traditional Night Experience is unique and would not quite work with your family’s nighttime routine, it does have elements that you should consider implementing.

During Night Experience students learn about stars and constellations, moon phases, light pollution, the forest at night, nocturnal animals, and how species are uniquely adapted for darkness. You can also add information about space and the solar system.

Topics to include in your night sky curriculum:

• Stars & Constellations
• Moon phases
• Solar System
• Light Pollution
• The forests at night/nocturnal animals
• Adaptations for darkness

Activities to include in your night sky curriculum:

Myths & Constellations

I recently shared this activity on my Instagram, but it’s such a great activity that I will share it again.

This activity starts with a discussion of some common constellations, preferably ones that your child will recognize or that you could observe outside in your area. While discussing the constellations, I introduce different myths and stories that societies around the world had to explain each constellation. It’s fascinating to think that many civilizations saw the same shape in the sky but all had different explanations for how it got there.

This part can be simplified by using my Myths & Constellation Flashcard Set. There are 12 cards of common constellations with a myth. I use these cards during my activity and usually pass them around for the class to observe.

After students have a general understanding of constellations and storytelling traditions, we begin the activity portion. I pass out paper and a writing utensil to each student, informing them to make 12 random dots on their sheet of paper. Once they have 12 random dots, they pass it back into me and I randomly redistribute them.

Now that each student has a new piece of paper, they need to find a shape in the “stars”. It may be difficult for some students or really easy for others. Go around and assist anyone having a hard time.

After all the students have made a shape, instruct them to create a story to go along with the image they made. Maybe it is an origin story of how their shape got to the stars or maybe it is a story that honors a certain thing in their life, either way, it should relate to their stars and be original.

Once the stories are complete, we do a show and tell! This way the person who originally made the dots gets to see what the other person created.

This activity usually brings out some amazing creativity in my students and I love seeing their constellations. Afterward, if it’s nighttime, I will bring the class out to observe the constellations and see if they can find any new shapes.

Moon Phases

There are so many activities for studying the moon phases. I’m sure you’ve all seen the oreo cookie activity, which is a yummy classic. I personally like tracking the phases of the moon in my nature journal and I do it using my Lunar Phenology Wheel template.

This activity is great for a calming activity before bedtime. A fantastic activity to incorporate into bedtime routines. Perhaps while brushing teeth you can peer out the window as a family and decide the phase of the moon that night.

I like using the phenology wheel because it is an organized way to keep track of the moon phases. It is also something I can use to look back on, jot extra notes, and share with my students.

You can also track how the moon affects the ocean tides or certain animals in the forest. For example, I always hear the cows on the neighboring cow farm mooing on the night of a full moon.

Going for a night walk

Everyone knows that going on nature walks are beneficial for so many reasons, but have you ever tried a nature walk at night? This is the main event in Night Experience, the activity I was talking about early in this post. My students and I go out into the woods without a flashlight or any other type of artificial light.

We are forced to work together as a team and rely on senses other than sight. I teach them about other animals who are specially adapted for life at night.

This can be particularly scary for kids but even for adults. To start the night walk, I like to meditate. What I do is have each one of my students sit apart from each other, I walk them to a spot and tell them to sit and count the sounds they hear. After a minute or two, I collect my group and we discuss all the sounds that we heard. At this point, they might be feeling less scared and more excited, plus our eyes have adjusted a bit to the darkness.

On night walks I have seen bioluminescent fungus and had an owl literally fly through my hair. One time, my whole group fell asleep on the field watching the stars. I’ve never had a bad experience, aside from kids trying to prank one another which is a strict no-no that I discuss before going out.

I hope you try it with your family!

Night Journal

The last suggestion I have for you is to start a Night Journal. This can be an add-on to an already existing nature journal. It can be of whatever you please. I suggest going outside for at least 10 minutes each night and jotting down everything you experience using your 5 senses. What do you see, hear, smell, feel, taste?

Over time, this night journal will be a valuable resource for you. You may begin to notice differences or patterns. Plus, ending your day with a brief time outdoors is a fantastic way to end each night.

There are so many benefits to learning about the night. Children become less scared of night time and the dark. They also get to experience and study a whole new thing. Lastly, it gets your whole family outside even more. I hope you get to try out some of these activities. If you do, please let me know! You can tag me on social media @wildandgrowing

Keep exploring,

Hannah
Wild and Growing