Themes: Space

I plan each term around a theme. Last term I focused on Space. The class were really interested in it and with their families, did their own research at home. It can be a challenge to get my current girls interested in anything to do with Science, but they loved it. As usual I planned much more than we actually got done due to the normal chaos in a school. Below is my basic plan, which describes the focus for each week.

Week 1 Introduce the theme of Space (Science); Brainstorm what children know and what they would like to find out. (Science/English/SOSE)

Week 2 Night and Day; What are the features of the sun? (Science); Make a paper plate sun (The Arts/Design & Technology)

Week 3 Night and Day; What are the features of the moon? (Science); Make a paper plate blue moon (The Arts/Design & Technology)

Week 4 What are stars? How many are there? How old are stars? (Science); Make stars with collage material (The Arts/Design & Technology); Who studies the stars? Introduce the word astronomer (SOSE/Science)

Week 5 The Planets. Learn the names of the planets. What is the name of our planet? (Science)

Week 6 The Planets. Cut and paste the planets in order from the sun (Science/Design & Technology); Create a picture of what you would see through a telescope (Science/The Arts)

Week 7 How do we see into space? Investigate the tools used to explore space (Science)

Week 8 How do humans travel into space? Investigate the different machines that travel in space (Science, Technology), Introduce the word astronaut. What do they do? (SOSE)

Week 9 Robots in Space. Investigate how robots are used in space (Science, Technology); Who makes robots? (SOSE); Design a robot and construct it with collage materials (The Arts and Design & Technology)

We also went to the Planetarium on an excursion with the Reception class. Be aware that when the lights go out, you may have a few crying or scared children....we did!!

Photo by SpaceX on Unsplash