Playdough Planets -- fun preschool space activity

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Space, astronomy, and planets have always been some of my favorite themes, so I love sharing them with my preschoolers! This little Playdough Planets activity can be a whole project on its own, or just a fun extension you can add in to your day next time you pull out some playdough!


We started with Jupiter because I was talking about how you can see both Jupiter and Venus right now, easily, shortly after sunset, with my older kids. (If you live in the northern hemisphere, look for the two bright planets after sunset in the western sky.)

My preschooler joined us while we talked about how some awesome Jupiter Fun Facts (see below), and then I pulled out the play dough. I limited the colors to red, orange, and yellow. He happily designed four different "Jupiters" and then -- on a different day -- asked to repeat the entire activity!

Play dough is awesome for developing fine motor skills and pre-writing muscles. Pulling it out when you talk about science lets kids stretch their imagination, creativity, and design habits! And, it's a pretty clean sensory activity!

Here are some of our favorite planet Jupiter Fun Facts:


** Jupiter's atmosphere has a lot of hydrogen and helium! (I might have made some hydrogen with my kids... it's a fun little chemical reaction, but it has the potential to be dangerous.)
** Over 1,000 planets the size of Earth can fit inside Jupiter.
** Jupiter has enough gravity to hold on to more than 80 moons!
** A year on Jupiter takes more than 11 years on Earth!

If you make playdough planets, I'd love to see them! Tag me on Facebook (@PreschoolPowolPackets) or on Instagram (@Carla.Mae.Jansen)!

And click here for more awesome space themed activities, projects, experiments, and printables!




Happy Educating,
Carla


Dinosaur Made Me Sneeze!
This awesome book introduces the rock cycle with dinosaurs, volcanoes, and more!
(hint: You can buy it on Amazon or use the code Dinosaur25 at OakieBees.com!!)



Have you seen HEEP? It is a preschool homeschool curriculum! Learn more here!



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