Eclipse Prep

Zilla is 4 years old

Mega is 1 yr. 9 months old

On May 22nd we are going to have an eclipse to look at in the early morning hours.  It is going to occur just before our day gets going so hopefully, with no rain or clouds in the sky, we will be able to enjoy it.
In an effort to help the kids understand what will happen we are taking time to learn about the solar system.  Here are some of the kids favorites:

Space Toob (small plastic models)
The Magic School Bus Lost in the Solar System
DK Eyewitness Astronomy
Berenstein Bears On The Moon

After reading a few books Zilla asked about making a solar system model. I would love a big school-style one but it isn't practical for our home.  I found the Bubble Guppies Solar System Mobile on the Nick Jr. website which matches the Moon Rocks episode which we downloaded in iTunes.  There is a Solar Chart Poster too which I think will make a fun matching activity.  It is great to have preschool level activities!

We discovered a space game on the Magic School Bus homepage which goes along with the book.  Zilla is really good at the game as he pays a lot of attention to what we read!

Of course no study of space would be complete without many visits to the NASA homepage.  They even have a specific Solar System page.  The NASA app is on the iPad and I have introduced Zilla to the NASA podcasts as well since they explain things so much better than I can!