No space unit would be complete without some serious talk about the sun. It is the center of our solar system, after all!

The first concept that students were introduced to was that the sun is not just a big ball of fire in the sky, but is actually composed of swirling gases. These gases are called plasma.

To illustrate this point, we created a sun in a bottle!

To do this, we used an empty bottle, vegetable oil, food coloring, glitter, a funnel, and water.

We first filled the bottle halfway up with water.

We then mixed the red and yellow food coloring with the water and filled the bottle the rest of the way up.

Everyone marveled at the water and oil separating within the bottle. This activity fulfilled several developmental goals. First, by creating a a sun in a bottle, your little ones created a representation of the sun, which answered spatial and relational questions between objects in the natural world. Secondly, by adding oil and water, and observing its similarities to plasma, students were able to think critically and logically to make relationships between concept of plasma and explanation of how it works. Lastly, by narrating their results, students exchanged dialogue with their friends and were able to apply their understanding of new vocabulary.