Getting Ready for the Solar Eclipse

Are you psyched for the eclipse? Those of us in the United States have the rare treat of a total solar eclipse happening Aug. 21.

It’s definitely worth it to get to a place where you can experience totality if you can, but other parts of the United States and Canada will still have the cool experience of its suddenly getting darker in the middle of the day.

Space.com has a great rundown of what an eclipse is, why it happens and the different kinds of eclipses that can occur.

I think we all know it’s not safe to look directly at the sun, even during an eclipse, but their are ways you can view or experience the eclipse without harming your eyes.

First, you can buy eclipse-safe filters or glasses through which you can safely view the sun. They need to have an ISO 12312-2 rating, and make sure they aren’t scratched or torn before you use them.

A classic eclipse “viewing” device is a pinhole viewer, through which you can see the shadow of the eclipse. (This is the way I “saw” a lunar eclipse back in 1996.) The Exploratorium has some great info on how to make different kinds of pinholes, plus some no-prep ways to get a glimpse at the eclipse.

If you’d like to really be able to see the eclipse, Smithsonian magazine has a good roundup of the different kinds of gear you can use to view the eclipse safely.

People throughout North America can take readings during the eclipse and report them to NASA for a citizen science project. Sounds like a fun activity to do with the kids.

I haven’t read it yet but I just checked out a book from the library about an eclipse called When the Sun Goes Dark. It’s part of this roundup of books about eclipses for kids from Growing with Science, which has books arranged by age group.

If the eclipse has you in the mood for crafting, check out these ideas:

Coffee filter eclipse craft – Look We’re Learning

Solar eclipse chalk art – Books and Giggles

Sun, earth and moon model – Enchanted Learning

Eclipse paper plate craft – JDaniel4’s Mom

More eclipse crafts for students – Orbit Oregon

Are you gearing up for the eclipse? I’d love to know what you’re planning!

[Photo of solar eclipse by Nakae, via Flickr.]

Next Plan Idea:

Solar Eclipse Activities for Kids

Shark Week generally happens in July, but any time is a good time to learn more about sharks.

First, start with some fun whale facts like these from Kids Craft Room. Here I learned about the dwarf lantern shark, which is the smallest shark and only grows to about 6-8 inches (about 15-20 cm) long. It also emits light. How cool is that?

Natural Beach Living has some great printable shark information guides, where kids can learn about different kinds of sharks, match the facts to the pictures, or print out doubles and do a shark memory game.

Living Life an Learning has some great shark activity pages including the parts of a shark, types of sharks, a crossword puzzle and more. Also check out their parts of a shark and word scramble download, and a life cycle worksheet.

Learn about how sharks float with this great activity from JDaniel4’s Mom.

Need more facts about sharks? This fact pact from The WOLFe PACK on Teacher Pay Teachers includes fact sheets, a printable flip book, informational text, vocabulary, comprehension questions and more.

Living Montessori Now has a great collection of shark themed activities with a Montessori inspired twist. You’ll find a shark roll and cover, shark phonics and lots more shark activities Deb has collected from all over the Internet.

Remember the “Sharknado” movie? A Few Shortcuts turned the combination of sharks and tornadoes into a fun science activity. You’ll need a bottle connector for this project but otherwise should have everything you need on hand. Use their template to make your sharks out of aluminum foil. So fun!

You can also do some shark themed coloring with these coloring pages from Encouraging Moms at Home. Or make a cool 3D shark with this template from korkotak. And there are tons of different shark crafts collected in this post from Kids Activities Blog.

Next Plan Idea:

Have you read?

Leave a Reply