How a Mobile Planetarium works

Enhancing Learning with Mobile Planetarium

Have you ever been to a mobile planetarium? Chances are high that you might have had one in your school during the Science week to learn about the wonders of the universe. 

But did you know that a planetarium visit can sprinkle some stardust over the rest of the curriculum too! Who said you can only learn about stars and planets in Science? Bring Space into your Maths, English and Art lessons! Afterall, nothing exists in isolation.

Maths

Space + numbers = lost of math fun! Sizes and weights of the planets. Length and time travel in space. In space your learners will be doing timetables, fractions, converting units of measurements without even knowing it. Now that is what we call math application. For more ideas and inspiration visit Wonderdome's mobile planetarium Space Maths article.

English

Reading The Jamie Drake
Equation 

Science plus fiction equal new trends in literature. With many scientific facts hidden on the pages, kids space fiction books are filled with opportunities to run your very own science treasure hunt! We would suggest  “George’s secret key to the Universe” series by Lucy and Stephen Hawking and “The Jamie Drake Equation” by Christopher Edge for you KS2 classes. 

Inside a Portable Planetarium
Image from the Udvar-Hazy Center

Greek Myths will be a fantastic read after the session on constellations. All those stories about beasts, gods and kings make the sky even more magic! Let the kids explore why some constellations are situated close by in the sky, whereas some chase each other but never meet!  

Debating is an ancient learning activity, which helps to develop many useful life skills. Sadly it is all too often overlooked in primary schools. All you need here is a set a topic and two groups of learners. Give each group an opposite viewpoint to present but leave the teams plenty of time to prepare.  Pupils will need to conduct some research on their topics and prepare written speeches. 

Remember to tell your teams the rules of the debate and ready, steady, go - let the battle of minds commence! For more information about how to bring debating into the classroom look here. 

So, what topics can you get from the planetarium visit? Here are just some ideas we have picked up over the years while visiting schools: 1. Should the UK invest into Space Exploration or into taking a better care of our own planet? 2. Are aliens real? 3. Space race vs space cooperation what is better?

Science

Take a visit from a planetarium with sessions about the constellations to the next level! You can all use your new knowledge “in the field”. Yes, have a stargazing walk or sleepover! Some schools, which we visited had a class sleepover prior to or after our visit. We guaranty that that, if the sky was clear that night, the kids would definitely have a time of their lives. They proudly reported seeing all the bright constellations and naked eye planets. Well done!

Art. 

Well, here the possibilities are infinite. Just go to Pinterest and simply put 'space art projects for kids' in the search. You will be lost for all the awesome ideas that can be found there 

Pinterest ideas