Astronomy for Kids at The Palomar Observatory

Learning Activities of user
Submitted by - Administrator • Submitted on  07 Apr 2010 02:04:01pm • Go to video page

Meet Me At The Corner: Astronomy for Kids at The Palomar Observatory

  1. When was the Palomar Observatory built?
  2. What is the name of the telescope used in this observatory?
  3. Find Palomar, California on a map. Why was the observatory located there?
  4. How are observatories and planetariums different? Design a Venn diagram to compare and contrast the two. Which would you prefer to visit? Explain your answer.
  5. How often is The Palomar Observatory used?
  6. What discoveries have been made at Palomar Observatory?
  7. Who was Galileo, and why was he important?

The idea of a word wall is to generate a list of words related to the main word. These can be synonyms, antonyms, idioms, similes, or sayings related to the main word. You could also add affixes (prefixes and suffixes) to the main word. An example of a word wall using the word wise might include the following words: wisely, unwisely, unwise, wisdom, intelligent, smart, silly, wise as an owl. The last step in building a word wall is to classify the words by arranging them into related groups.

1. Challenge: If you were to build an observatory in your region, where would you build it, and why? Draw a map of your region and show your new observatory. For a challenge, include contour lines and include topographic features. Don’t forget labels, a key, a compass, and a scale.

2. Other Fun Websites has a lot of exciting activities, projects, and information. Check out Education Station and click on Space Education Resources. Explore NASA for Students and Kid’s Club. Also, the Astronomy link and Kid’s Astronomy link have excellent resources.