The Sky’s the Limit at Holy Cross Elementary

It is impossible to see the stars during school hours, no matter where you live. In spite of this, avid stargazers are aware of how captivating the constellations can be. How does a teacher, who is limited by time of day, locale, or weather, bring students to the stars? The answer is to bring the stars to the students. As the students’ teacher Mr. Malbon said, “Why not bring the outside inside.”

The Grade 5/6 class at Holy Cross Elementary School is learning about sky science in an innovative and hands-on way this week. The students are plotting constellations on a lifesized planetarium in their gymnasium. These students have been learning about sky science for the last three weeks. As a result of these studies, students are moving from a simple view of land and sky, to one that recognizes Earth as a sphere in motion within a larger universe. Each student has chosen a particular constellation and researched it. They have developed presentations about their constellation that they will present it to their peers. The students are climbing inside a life-sized planetarium constructed of plastic tarp, and lifted by a fan, to plot their constellation with small pieces of masking tape.

The students have written their very own mythology behind their particular constellation and they will be acting this out through a dramatic presentation in small groups.

What is next for these students? Students will be examining and learning about space observations and space travel and how that has changed so rapidly in the last decade; even the last couple of years. Each student has been assigned a particular planet to research and they will become an expert on their planet. Then they will create a travel brochure highlighting the key features of the planet in an attempt to get people interested in visiting it.

Kayden is a grade 6 student in the class and she said she is going to study Mars. She said she is, “excited to learn more about Mars and its geographical features.” Ciara, a grade 5 student, is really interested in the constellation Pegasus. She explained, “Pegasus is best seen in the northern hemisphere in July and August, which is when I celebrate my birthday. I also love horses and I have some of my own, so Pegasus was appealing to me.”

The students are using digital sources to complete their research. Students are learning to think critically about where they get their information from and whether or not it is a good source. Mr. Malbon mentioned that they used the example of Wikipedia. He said he wants to make sure students understand the difference between Wikipedia and other more reputable sources. Mr. Malbon is passionate about using Google Classroom with his students. All of the materials and assignments that the students are working on are available through his Google Classroom. It saves time and paper, and it makes it easy to create classes, distribute assignments, communicate, and stay organized. The students are adept at navigating this system using the school’s iPads.

A school-wide presentation of the students’ planetarium took place on Monday afternoon.

*Press Release from Lakeland Catholic School District