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Space Week Whole School Plan
Monday – Wonder & Curiosity Day
● Space-themed assembly to kick off the week.
● Create a “Space Wonder Wall” in the corridor and each class contributes questions or drawings.
● Introduction to key vocabulary and events.
● Mission Patch Art Competition.
Tuesday – Rocket Launch Challenge
● Each class builds and launches a simple rocket (balloon/straw/paper).
● Results displayed on a school leader board.
Wednesday – Dress-Up & Parade
● Students dress as astronauts, aliens, or planets.
● Space-themed parade in yard or hall.
Thursday – Space Stations
● Classes rotate through activity stations (Art, Coding, Science, Reading, Quiz).
● Older students can help lead or support younger ones.
Friday – Space Cinema & Reflection
● Space themed movie screenings by age group e.g. ‘WALL-E’, ‘Space Jam’, ‘E.T the Extra-Terrestrial’.
● Virtual stargazing or constellation activity.
● Awards and certificates distributed at closing assembly.
Hi Michelle, I love your ideas for Space Week, especially the dress up day for the Friday aswell as the classroom gallery walk which gives pupils the opportunity to showcase their work from the week. Thank you for sharing – I’ll definitely be using some of your ideas next year.
Activity Set: Online Tools to support Science and Space Learning
In this module, I really enjoyed learning about many online tools to support Science & Space learning in my classroom. All children, especially in the Junior classes, love using ICT to enhance their learning so I’m always looking for new ways to do so. It is difficult to choose one online resource in particular from this module so I would hope to focus on the following two tools to engage my pupils:
a) UNAWE – I like the idea of using this resource for sharing astronomy news with pupils, which could be ideal for reading comprehension or science discussion. I would also hope to use the selection of hands-on activities available on this site for Aistear time.
b) Marvin & Milo Cartoons – I like this resource as it provides engagement for various ages and can be adapted easily depending on class level. It has easy to use materials and it encourages pupils’ exploration skills, as well as promoting inquiry based learning in a simple way.I also love the idea of ‘Astronomy Picture of the Day’ and feel it is something that could be done as pupils come into school and get settled in the morning during carpet time.
Hi Kelly, I love your idea of the sensory bin and think it could probably be used with a mainstream class also, particularly in infants. Thank you for sharing, I will be using this with my class.
I would choose the Activity Set: Space & Aliens for a Junior Infants class and would hope to implement it using the following steps:
1. Introduction: I would begin the topic with a great sense of excitement by saying “Today, we’re going on a journey into space!”. We would then discuss flashcards of planets, aliens, rockets and astronauts. I would read aloud the short story ‘Whatever Next!’ by Jill Murphy, and then ask the children simple questions such as “What do you see in space? Who might we meet?”
2. Development: I would provide the children with alien and astronaut puppet figures attached to craft sticks. In small groups, children will tell simple space stories e.g. about visiting planets or meeting aliens, and act them out using their puppets. Next, I would give children playdoh and space themed playdoh mats, and encourage them to create
planets or aliens using the dough.3. Conclusion: We would gather back in a circle and I’d ask the children reflective questions such as “What did we see in space?”, “What did your alien look like?” and “What was your favourite part of our space adventure?”. Finally, recap on any new vocabulary learned today such as rocket, alien, moon, star, planet.
With Junior Infants, I would use the ‘Sun and Shadows’ activity set to introduce early science skills through play and observation. As an introduction to the topic, I would start with a simple discussion about what a shadow is, where and when have we seen one, what we notice about them etc. For the exploration stage, I would take the children outside and encourage them to find their own shadows, play with them, and notice how they move. We would use chalk to trace their shadows and return later in the day to trace them again, comparing shapes and positions.
If it wasn’t a sunny day and we couldn’t go outside to explore shadows, I would encourage the children to use torches and small toys to create shadows on the wall, helping them see how light and objects interact. The children would describe what they see, draw their shadows, and talk about how they change.
I would conclude either lesson with a picture book or song to reinforce the concept in a fun and memorable way.
Hi Aveen,
Thank you for sharing your ideas, especially using The Moon Phases Dance with your class – It is such a creative way to reinforce learning through movement, and then combining that with making their own moon craft gives your pupils multiple ways to engage with the topic.
Hi Aveen,
My inquiry based activity is similar to yours but in relation to ‘Why does the Moon shine?’ instead of the Sun. I’ve completed this activity with infants before and the pupils loved using torches and balls to understand how it works. I never thought of adapting the lesson to talk about why the sun shines so thank you for sharing.
Class level: Junior Infants
Inquiry based activity: Why does the Moon shine?
1. Introduction: Show pupils a picture of the moon at night. Ask: “Why can we see the moon at night?” and “Does the moon have its own light?”. Think, pair, share ideas and record on a ‘Wonder Wall’.
2. Exploring: Provide pupils with a torch (Sun), a ball (Moon), and a mirror or foil. In pairs or small groups, they explore what happens when they shine the light on the ball and what happens when the light is off. Through this work, children discover that the moon only “shines” when light hits it.
3. Reasoning: Pupils will draw a simple picture to show ‘Sun – Moon – Earth’ and use arrows to show how light travels.
4. Reflecting: Whole class discussion – ask pupils “What did we find out?” and “Can the moon shine on its own?”. Children then explain that the moon reflects the Sun’s light. Pupils can then engage in a foil moon art activity.
My name is Kirstin Feeney and I have been teaching Infants for the last few years. Next year I will be in SET working with the junior classes and have a keen interest in all things Science related and STEM. My favourite space fact is: The sunset on Mars appears blue.
