Montessori Activities at Home: Lower and Upper Elementary STEM Activity – Literature and Astronomy

Photo Story Time from Space, YouTube

… imagine Astronauts on the Space Station reading stories to and conducting science experiments for the children of Earth as the world rotates below. Imagine no more…it’s Story Time from Space!

—Story Time from Space

STEM Activity - Story Time from Space

Explore space and engage in STEM education by having an astronaut read to you and your children from space. Story Time from Space is a project created by the Global Space Education Foundation, a non-profit initiative that works in partnership with a number of organizations, including NASA and the ISS. The program features astronauts from around the world, like Anne McClain from NASA, Koichi Wakata from JAXA, and Hazza Al Mansoori, the first astronaut in space from UAE. The astronauts read children’s books during various missions in space. The books are diverse and explore a wide range of STEM topics.
See the full list of books from Story Time from Space.


Photo Story Time from Space, YouTube

Things to do after listening to a story from space

• Art: Draw a picture of your favorite part of the story.
• Sequence of events: Make a timeline of the events in the story.
• Astronomy: Research the planet discussed in the book and write about three interesting facts you learned.
• Creative writing: Write a poem or play about what a day would be like on the International Space Station (ISS).
• Math: Find the distance between the planet in the story and Earth.
• Science and technology: Research and write a short report about the ISS, using the six W’s (who, what, where, when, why, how) as applicable. Include photographs or illustrations with your report.

Visit NAMC's website and learn more about our Montessori language and science curriculum for Lower Elementary and Upper Elementary students.

— NAMC Staff

As much as possible, NAMC’s web blog reflects the Montessori curriculum as provided in its teacher training programs. We realize and respect that Montessori schools are unique and may vary their schedules and offerings in accordance with the needs of their individual communities. We hope that our readers will find our articles useful and inspiring as a contribution to the global Montessori community.
© North American Montessori Center - originally posted in its entirety at Montessori Teacher Training on Tuesday, March 31, 2020.