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Add a fun hands-on constellation craft for kids to your space theme. Kids will love building with marshmallows and toothpicks.
Pair this fun STEM activity with a picture book about constellations, and you’ve got an activity that is sure to spark your child’s interest in astronomy.
Whether you’re planning a space theme in your classroom or want a fun way to celebrate National Space Day, your kids are going to love this book-based STEM activity.
Constellation Craft for Kids
All you need to complete this activity is some toothpicks, some mini marshmallows, and a book about constellations.
Once you have all of your supplies close by, just follow the instructions below to complete this fun activity.
Teaching about constellations
To begin, explain to your child that a constellation is a group of stars that forms a pattern or picture when it’s viewed from Earth. Scientists have identified 88 constellations in our sky.
Most constellations represent an animal, mythological figure, or an inanimate object. There are many myths and legends surrounding the constellations.
constellation videos for kids
You can share a video or two about constellations to help your child become more familiar with constellations and where they’re located in the sky.
books about constellations
Gather a few nonfiction books about stars and constellations. Let your kids thumb through them and look at the pictures and/or read the descriptions of each one.
I find these books to be a great way to introduce space, stars, and constellations. Kids can see images of the various constellations while building their vocabulary and learning important facts.
• Stars by Ron and Adrianna Edwards (this is the book featured in this post)
• Constellations for Kids: An Easy Guide to Discovering the Stars by Kelsey Johnson
• Glow-in-the-Dark Constellations by C. E. Thompson
After watching a video and/or reading a book about constellations, provide your child with a pile of toothpicks and marshmallows.
Encourage your child to use toothpicks and marshmallows to create constellations from the book. In this project, we created Ursa Major (the Big Dipper) shown on page 24 and the Cassiopeia shown on the cover.
You can do this activity with any picture book about constellations. Just have your kids choose an image from the book to recreate.
For kids who can’t stay up to see constellations in the night sky, they’ll love creating their very own DIY constellation projector.
Bring the night sky into your home by shining a flashlight through these wooden constellation coins towards your walls or ceiling.
Here’s a fun, hands-on activity to pair with Pete the Cat: Out of This World! Kids will love making and playing with this Pete the Cat space slime!