Using thisMoon Song (Animated Music Video), students learn about the phases of the moon through catchy, interesting lyrics.
Using thisMoon Song (MP3), students learn about the phases of the moon through catchy, interesting lyrics.
Look up! The moon is changing
Kindergarteners learn that the moon is a big ball of rock that goes around the Earth, and that we can often see it in the night sky and sometimes even during the day. They notice that the moon seems to change shape, from a skinny sliver to a full circle and back again. They learn that the moon does not make its own light; it shines because sunlight bounces off it. Kids also learn that astronauts have walked on the moon! The click moment is when a child spots the moon in the morning sky and says "It's daytime, but the moon is still there!"
The moon is right there for kids to watch. These moves turn looking up into real learning.
Play the moon song at the start of science time all week, with arms making a full moon and a crescent. Kids pick up the big ideas, like reflected light and changing shapes, while they sing.
Why it works: a catchy, repeating tune gives the brain a hook to hang words on, so sung text is remembered better (Wallace, 1994).
Try it withMoon Song (Animated Music Video)SongsOpen it →Each night for two weeks, kids draw what the moon looks like with a family member. Back in class, line up the drawings and see the shape grow and shrink. Real watching makes the pattern their own.
Why it works: children learn more from words and pictures together than from words alone (Mayer, 2009).
Try it withMoon Song (MP3)SongsOpen it →Scrape the cream off sandwich cookies to make a full moon, a half moon and a crescent. Kids name each shape and then eat the moon! Hands-on shapes stick better than pictures alone.
Why it works: going from real objects to pictures to symbols is a core recommendation of the U.S. Department of Education's elementary math guide.
Blast off to the moon with these ideas.
Teacher favorites right now: Moon Song (Animated Music Video) and Moon Song (MP3).
The moon is a big rock ball that travels around the Earth. It looks bright because the sun shines on it, just like a flashlight on a ball.
The moon doesn't really change. As it moves around Earth, we see different amounts of its sunny side, so it looks like a circle, a half or a sliver.
The moon is often in the sky during the day too. It is bright enough to see when it is not too close to the sun.
Keep a moon journal for two weeks and draw the moon each night. Kids love seeing the shapes change in their own drawings.
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