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Using real spacecraft as inspiration is a great way to build context and spark curiosity. I love how the activity encourages teamwork, creativity, and problem-solving, all while introducing important STEM concepts in a hands-on and age-appropriate way.
I would use the story Aliens in Underpants Save the World as a fun and engaging introduction to our space theme. The book is full of humour, bright illustrations, and silly moments that really capture young children’s imaginations. It introduces the idea of aliens and space travel in a playful, non-threatening way, making it perfect for junior infants. We would read the story together, pausing to talk about the characters, the setting, and what the aliens are doing. This is a great way to build language and comprehension skills.
After the story, we’d explore some of the themes—aliens, rockets, and outer space, through discussion and creative activities. I’d then follow up with the Rocket Mice activity, where children make their own “rocket” using a paper mouse and a plastic bottle. This hands-on experiment introduces basic science concepts like force and air pressure, while also developing fine motor skills and encouraging curiosity.This sounds like such a fun activity! I love how it captures children’s natural curiosity about space while introducing early STEM skills in a playful way. The combination of creativity, movement, and simple measuring makes it perfect for young learners.
I would use the activity ‘Where do you live?’ activity in my classroom. This is a fantastic activity for junior infants to help them explore the concept of where we live in a hands-on, child-friendly way. I love how it begins with each child describing their own home, this really values their personal experiences and builds confidence in speaking.
Creating a model of their house from modelling material is a great opportunity to support fine motor development and creativity. Bringing all the houses together to form a class village adds a lovely collaborative element. Asking the children what might be missing encourages critical thinking and introduces early ideas about community and how people live and work together.
This could easily link into Aistear through construction, socio-dramatic play (setting up shops, homes, roads), and creative expression, while helping children better understand the world around them.
The variety of Aistear stations you’ve planned offers a rich, hands-on experience that supports creativity, sensory exploration, and social development. What a lovely way to explore through play 🙂
I would use The Planet Song (Family of the Moon) with my junior infant class as a fun and engaging way to introduce the planets. Music is such a powerful teaching tool at this age. It helps children remember new information and keeps them actively involved. We would begin by listening to and singing along with the song, using actions to represent each planet. This makes the learning more memorable and interactive.
To extend the activity, I would give each child a simple booklet with one page for each planet. They could draw what they imagine the planet looks like i.e. big, small, hot, cold, different colours and attempt simple writing such as the planet’s name or a short word like “hot” or “cold.” This supports fine motor skills, early literacy, and creativity, while reinforcing the planet names and features introduced through the song.
What a lovely and engaging activity! I really like how you’ve integrated music, questioning, and hands-on learning to explore the concept of stars.
The activity I would chose to do with my class is Space and Aliens. I would use this alien-making activity to spark creativity and introduce early science concepts to my junior infant class (ages 4–5). We’d begin by discussing what aliens might look like and how they might live on planets that are very hot, cold, or different from Earth. I’d prompt the children to think about how animals are adapted to their environments, like how polar bears have thick fur for the cold—and encourage them to imagine similar features for their aliens based on different planetary conditions.
Using modeling materials, the children would then create their own aliens. Afterward, we would have a sharing session where each child introduces their alien and explains why it looks the way it does. Finally, we’d work together to sort the aliens into groups based on features like number of legs, color, or size. This supports language development, early classification skills, and scientific thinking in a fun and engaging way.
Hey, my name is Lisa! I’m really excited to be here and connect with other educators. I teach Junior Infants and I love bringing space topics into the classroom…students are always so curious about the unknown! One of my favorite space facts is that a day on Venus is actually longer than its year. It really surprises students and sparks all kinds of questions about how planets move and rotate.
One of my go-to inquiry-based activities is something I call the “Build-a-Planet” challenge. Students work in teams to design their own planet from scratch. They decide things like how far it is from its star, what the atmosphere is made of, what the surface looks like, and if it could support life. I give them a few prompts to guide their thinking, but most of the work is driven by their own questions and ideas.
