Growing at Home - Learning from the Sky
We can learn so much from the sky, and there’s no better time to study it than while we’re all under quarantine. Below are some free activities that your whole family can enjoy. Pick a comfortable place on the ground, lay down a blanket, maybe bring a pillow, make sure you’re not looking at the sun, don’t forget some snacks, and here we go:
Cloud Watching: Observe the clouds, what shapes do you see? What do they remind you of? Try to make a story out of what you see.
Can you predict the weather? White, cotton clouds usually indicate good weather. Flat, grey clouds means it is probably going to drizzle. Learn how clouds are formed and identify the kinds of clouds you see using this guide.
Star Gazing: The American Museum of Natural History has great tips on helping your kids get started with star gazing and astronomy and have a map on how to find different planets in the sky.
Look for constellations! DKFindOut has a list of popular constellations, their shapes, and background stories. Pick a few that are your favorites, try to find them, and come up with how you think those stars are supposed to make up their constellations.
To be prepared with your own astronomy gear, use a red flashlight. A red flashlight will provide you with light, while allowing your eyes to stay adjusted to the dark. You don’t need to buy one, there are lots of fun ways to make these at home.
Airplane Tracking: If you see an airplane pass by, talk about where you think it came from, where it’s going, do you think anyone famous is on the airplane?
You can look up your location on FlightRadar24 or Planefinder for details on which plane you see or ask Siri what plane is overhead.
Bird Watching: Watch and listen to the bird’s behavior. If you’re not seeing a lot of birds, maybe it’s time to get up and go exploring! Look for signs of birds, such as cracked seeds, whitewash, or owl pellets. You can use the toilet paper roll binoculars you made in Activities with Amber last week to help you look for birds! Let your kids lead, explore, and investigate.
A lot of bird watching is also about listening. To take bird watching to the next level, download the free Audubon Bird Guide App, here you can listen to different bird sounds and know what to listen for.
Let us know if you have other activities or things you look for in the sky! Have you ever seen a UFO? Have fun observing and learning!