M is for Moon

The first week of October found us studying the Moon. Besides making our own flashcards to learn the phases of the moon, and reading all about the moon’s surface, atmosphere, distance from the Earth and orbit around the Earth, we also learned about the first people who ever walked on the moon. We watched a video online of Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong exiting the Eagle and stepping into the unknown. It was so impacting! After that, we watched “The Astronaut Farmer”, which was a really good movie. It got us all revved up for the next part of our study—a trip to the moon! We took our tent out to our 9 acres of land and the kids decorated the inside with all kinds of spaceship controls. We made it as authentic as we could and with the help of “ground control”—also known as Daddy—we blasted off into outer space. We floated around in the shuttle, catching weightless cereal in our mouths and then landed on the Moon and went exploring. We gathered moon dust, moon rocks and even a moon cactus (?). The neighbors on the next hill must have been amused to see us clomping around in moon boots with aluminum foil on our heads! It was a lot of fun. For more pictures, visit our webpage.
The other important lesson the moon taught us was the reflection of light. Using a globe, a flashlight and a mirror, we demonstrated how the moon reflects the light of the Sun. Then, we discussed how Jesus told us that WE are the light of the world. Well, in our first lesson about the Sun it was Jesus who was the light of the world. So, we learned that we reflect the light of Jesus when we demonstrate his love to those around us.

For more cool sketches from our moon trip, click here!