Learned Tot: Astronomy

I am hardly the first or the most keen parent, especially in our neck of the woods, to wish academic success for my offspring. But more than anything I want to pass on to the Klatch boys the love of knowledge for the sake of itself, love of learning widely dispersed across disciplines. So I find myself supplementing vague preschool curriculum with science experiments, art projects, and worksheets.

Surely other National Geographic-reading hipster-glasses-wearing parents are searching scouring for ideas, kits, books, and project. So I will be gathering reputable resources for above-average kid folk, starting with Astronomy.

We didn't discover Thames & Kosmos Little Labs kits, Santy Clause did.  There is nothing out of ordinary in the box (pack of seeds, picture of solar system, bit of string), but with the handy booklet it is everything one needs for astronomy experiments and set us squarely on the path to space exploration.

Parent involvement: HIGH

By now we own just about the entire Basher Science collection (you are welcome, Simon Basher) and Astronomy is, well, as the author said, out of this world. We are all learning about the space!

Parent Involvement: HIGH (the book is written for 10+ year olds so a translation is required for the younger set)

 Generally I am not in favor of loud battery-operated toys, but this Leap Frog Solar System kit is like an electronic tutor with a strange accent full of facts and drills.

Parent Involvement: LOW (You will need the Leap Frog's Tag wand to use this kit, otherwise this is very hands off, by the time dinner is done your tot will be lecturing you about Jupiter's Red Spot)

A few other resources:

• NASA's Kids website
• These spacy photos came from NASA's Photo of the day website
• U.S. Naval Observatory provides weekly updates about what planets one might spot in the sky
• Space questions old-fashioned style from CalTech.

Activity: head outside for some stargazing, you will feel like a kid seeing planets for the first time.