Quick and Easy Resources for Littles to Help Explain and Explore the Solar Eclipse!

The solar eclipse of 2024 is an exciting event for children! Here are some resources I quickly put together to help educators and families explore the eclipse and use it to inspire a few activities!

Here is a great picture book to help explain what an eclipse is:

Here is a video that delves into the science behind the eclipse:

Here's a neat time lapsed video of an eclipse:

And here are three quick and easy math resources to use that capture children's excitement about the entire experience!

1. Roll, Subitize and Cover the Suns!

2. Which One Doesn't Belong?

3. See, Think and Wonder

Primary Colour Ice Equations

Today's colour exploration integrated curriculum and ideas from many different areas - math, literacy, science and art. After looking through colour books we invited the children to explore colour mixing with primary coloured ice cubes. 

Children were invited to do some planning before experimenting by using the colour paddles to see which colours were needed to make new ones. 

Once they had an idea, they wrote a colour equation. They recorded how many of each colour of ice cube they were mixing together in their cup. 

Next they added the correct number of cubes to their cups. 

We placed the cups on the light table. The children predicted the heat from the light would help the ice melt. 

We noticed as the ice began to melt the colours pooled at the bottom. 

Some friends thought putting the cups in the sunny window would help melt them faster than the light table. 

We were amazed at the beautiful shades that we created and how different combinations of colours produced different shades. 

Tomorrow we will use the pretty water in an art activity. Stay tuned!

Stained Glass Patterning

I have become a huge fan of attaching clear contact paper to our back windows in order to encourage creative building. We have used our translucent coloured pattern blocks on the light table and I wondered what my son would do if I encouraged him to use them on the back door.

He was immediately drawn to the experience and began to build, fitting the pieces together and commenting on how they appeared to 'glow' as a result of the sunlight filtering through them.

I was amazed at his ability to fit them together as if they were a puzzle.

With my assistance, we created some simple patterns within the larger design - it was a great opportunity for me to discuss the shapes, colours, and sizes of the pieces.

The coloured pattern blocks resembled beautiful stained glass. It was just as much a piece of modern artwork on our back door as it was an exercise in puzzling.

The best surprise of all however was when the mid-afternoon sun illuminated the artwork, sending colours dancing all over the floor as well. Caleb loved to step in and out of the colours, inspiring another dimension to our conversation about sunlight and coloured pattern blocks!

What a fun way to replicate, extend, and explore patterns!

Exploring Shadows

We enjoyed some of the rare moments of sun by heading outside to try and find shadows. The children discovered themselves on the pavement and we encouraged them to try and trace each other's shadow.  

As they worked, we engaged them in conversations about how they thought shadows were made.

"It's when the sun evaporates," explained one of our children. "It's like water when the sun comes out. It disappears. Shadows are when the sun disappears."  What an interesting hypothesis!