Astronomy

Class Description:

During the Astronomy evening activity, students will have the opportunity to observe the night sky using an 8 inch Celestron telescope, binoculars, and the naked eye. A Wolf Ridge instructor will guide the student's viewing, using star charts and constellations to locate objects. There are three stations where students can experience and observe astronomical delights on the observation platform located behing the Science Center.

Total time: 1 hour (outdoors - will be cancelled if the sky is cloudy)
Audience: 6-20 students, 4th grade through adult
Activity level: easy
Travel: none
Total uphill travel: none

Outcomes

Upon completion of the Astronomy evening activity students will be able to:

View seasonal objects in the night sky including planets, stars, the moon, and deep space objects as chosen by the instructor

Use binoculars to explore the night sky including sights such as the Milky Way, the moon, stars, and deep space objects

Use eyes alone to observe objects in the night sky including the northern lights, meteors, satellites, and stars and constellations.

Minnesota Graduation Standards

The Astronomy evening activity will provide students with guided practice, in an authentic setting, to support the following Graduations Standards. We have chosen one to three “major focus” standards per grade level. Due to the holistic nature of environmental education, several other standards, not listed here, are addressed as well.

under construction

Wolf Ridge Curriculum Concepts

• under construction

Classroom Connections*

• Journal page download
• Pre-visit activities
• Post-visit activities
• Links to astronomy information and activities on the web

*requires Wolf Ridge password