On April 5, Camelot fourth-grade science students learned more about the eclipse.

Students reflected on how shadows are made when light is blocked. Teachers connected this to the really big shadow the moon made on April 8 during a total solar eclipse.

In this activity, students worked with a partner using two pieces of paper to learn how to watch the upcoming solar eclipse. The classes then went outside to practice using the paper viewers. Although it was a slightly cloudy day on April 5, students were able to use their viewers to observe that the sun has a spherical shape. The excitement really came out when students were given eclipse glasses. Upon signing an agreement saying they would not look directly at the sun, they put their eclipse glasses on and looked toward the sun.

Finally, April 8 arrived it was very overcast. However, they still went outside to see if they could catch a glimpse of the eclipse occurring. They were not able to. One student even remarked, “I was sad we couldn’t see the eclipse.” In learning of this science phenomena, students noted that they will have another opportunity to view an eclipse in their lifetime, 21 years from now, in 2045.

Until then ...