Science rules!!! And for me, it's just so much fun to think about what's out there in the cosmos :) We did just that today with our Space-themed Family Storytime! What a riot - we had a wonderful crowd today!
Here's what we read:

Mousetronaut by Mark Kelly; Ills. by C. F. Payne
Space Walk by Salina Yoon

Mousetronaut is always a big hit with slightly older kids, and today's young patrons were totally wow-ed by the fact that a real astronaut wrote the book :) It's a really cute story, the illustrations are adorable, and I love how they have a multi-racial and multi-gender crew aboard :) For an awesome girl-power, space-themed book check out Interstellar Cinderellaby Deborah Underwood.

Space Walk by Salina Yoon is a wonderful introduction to our solar system for young people. It's rhyme-y text and lift-the-flap format is complimented by simple concepts to pull in even the youngest science explorers :)

Let's count some stars!
 

5 Little Stars

(Sing to the tune of 5 Little Ducks)

5 little stars were out one night

 

Gold and silver, shiny and bright

 

Up came the sun with morning’s light,

 

And one little star winked out of sight.

And here's a song we didn't get to because we ran out of time!
 

Climb Aboard the Spaceship

 

(sung to “Itsy Bitsy Spider”)

 

Climb aboard the space ship, we’re going to the moon.

 

 

 

Hurray and get ready, we’re going to blast off soon!

 

 

 

Put on your helmets and buckle up real tight.

 

 

 

Here comes the countdown, let’s count with all our might:

 

 

 

10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1‐‐‐ BLAST OFF

We did sing our Stars song, which I want to share with the toddlers this week, too:
 

Stars (sung to “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”)

 

Twinkle, twinkle little star

 

I know what you really are!

 

Giant ball of glowing gas,

 

One of billions in a mass!

 

Twinkle, twinkle little star,

 

Oh how big you really are!

 

 

 

Since your distance is a lot,

 

You look like a tiny dot!

 

Twinkle, twinkle giant star,

 

Very bright, yet very far!

 

Stars are twinkling, everyone,

 

Some are bigger than the sun!

 

 

 

Just a twinkle in the sky,

 

That’s because you’re oh, so high!

 

Twinkle, twinkle little star,

 

Oh how big you really are!

 

Twinkle, twinkle little star

 

I know what you really are!

The scientific alternative to the classic lullaby ; ) Speaking of facts, (scientific facts, that is...) when your kids are ready to learn more about space, if you haven't checked it out yet, the series Cosmos by Carl Sagan is an incredibly wonderful way to learn about space from your TV screen :) Check out the DVDs sometime!

Check out our Paper Plate Solar System craft!

 

 

Nice work, guys! Lots of great space stuff today! Which reminds me of a favorite quote by our own wonderful Carl Sagan, rest his soul: "We are made of star-stuff". I LOVE that :) To think we are made of the stuff of stars!
See you next time,
Miss Kelly