Space Theme for preschool and kindergarten

Our solar system is vast and full of mystery.  Exciting events, like the upcoming solar eclipse, bring more questions for little kids.  We are firm believers that young children learn best through play.  So we found several ways to encourage space education through crafts & activities.  Playing with planet printables and crafting spaceships will help their understanding of the great unknown.

March is a great month to use a space theme in your classroom.

Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, we will receive an affiliate commission.  Thank you for supporting Twitchetts!

Printable Space Activities

Break out the printer and grab these fun and educational space printables.

Space Themed Games // Twitchetts

Space Themed Color By Code Pages // Views From A Step Stool

Space Prewriting Practice Printable // Simple Fun For Kids

Solar System Pack // Fun With Mama

Outer Space Alphabet Puzzle // Teaching Mama

Planet Order Easy Reader // 3 Dinosaurs

Planet Sound Clip Cards // Royal Baloo

Space Crafts for Kids

Create your way into outer space with these fun craft projects.

Space Rocks // Twitchetts

Marbled Planets Art // I Heart Crafty Things

Moon and Planets Paintings // Artsy Momma

Build A Model Spaceship // My Mundane And Miraculous Life

Space Easter Eggs // hello, Wonderful

Melted Pony Bead Suncatcher // Schooling A Monkey

DIY Telescope // Highlights

Outer Space Activities

From galaxy jars to star-filled sensory bins, these space activities are great hands-on learning.

U is for Universe Sensory Bin // Growing Hands On Kids

Outer Space Playdough // Nurture Store

Glow in the Dark Stars Space Slime // Little Bins for Little Hands

Nebula Calm Down Jar // Views From A Step Stool

Outer Space Sensory Exploration Bin // Artsy Momma

Hands-On Solar System for Preschoolers // Stir The Wonder

How Planets Orbit Activity // Gift of Curiosity

Shop For Fun Space Toys And Games

Space STEM Discovery Box // Green Kid Crafts

Color the Galaxy Ball // Seedling

Felted Solar System // WoolyTopic

Mole Rats In Space Boardgame // Peaceable Kingdom

Astronaut Role Play Set Costume // Melissa & Dough

Don’t forget to share this roundup with others who have a space theme coming up!

The post Space Theme Inspiration ~ Crafts, Activities, Printables and More! appeared first on Twitchetts.

Space Rocks

There are so many great rock painting ideas out there, they are beautiful, but not always great for kids. We fell in love with these amazing galaxy painted rocks from Color Made Happy and wanted to simplify them for the younger kids. These space rocks were an excellent process art project. Each kid took to them a bit different. If your little one doesn’t like to get messy you might want to try out one of our other stone painting ideas.

Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, we will receive an affiliate commission.  Thank you for supporting Twitchetts!

Supplies for your outer space rocks:

• Rocks. We used these black rocks and some flat rocks for our own.
• Acrylic Paint.
• Old Toothbrushes. (or cheap new ones)
• Surface Cover.
• Clear Acrylic Spray.

How to create easy galaxy rocks:

Start by covering your work space. Choose your space colors.  Purples, blues, and even black if you don’t have black rocks. Set aside a silver or white to use at the end. Give the kids some toothbrushes and let them have fun! I showed both kids how to splatter the paint using the toothbrushes. V opted to paint her rocks using the brush, but the older boys got down and dirty with the splatter. Alternate colors and then grab your white or silver and add the stars.

These galaxy rocks turned out so cool! It was messy…so we opted to do this activity outside. Once the space rocks are dry, give them a few coats of clear coat.

Then they are ready to hide!

Pin this space craft to your favorite Pinterest board

The post Space Rocks ~ Rock Painting Ideas for Kids appeared first on Twitchetts.

Printable Space Theme

We have a very old (Pluto’s a planet old) book about space that V has been into lately. It’s a cute Little Golden Book that says “this book belongs to the Twitchetts” inside. A gift from Grandma that will always be cherished, and read, even if Pluto is included.

We don’t get too deep into space conversations, but we can at least play around with some of the planets! We created this fun little printable to help spark an early love for space and all the planets in our solar system.

Setting up your space-themed games

Print off your game pieces. For a longer-lasting game, you can use cardstock. For one time use, plain printer paper will work. Just cut out all of your game pieces and you’re ready to play!

First, we just mixed them up on the table and put them back together. Just like eight tiny two-piece puzzles.

Once we did this a couple of times she was ready to take it up a notch.

On to a game of memory! Flip over all your pieces and flip them over 2 at a time until you find a match!

We even decided to place them in order… along with a fast little construction paper sun.

For now, she can point out Earth on demand. Mars (the red one) and Jupiter (the big one) were also quick for her to remember. We had a lot of fun playing with our little planets. They are quick to throw in your drawer for a quick boredom buster when you need one!

Pin this Solar System for Preschoolers to your activities board!

The post Printable Space Themed Games ~ Solar System For Preschoolers appeared first on Twitchetts.