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The Black Hole (Mobile Planetarium)

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Workshop Category: SpaceWorkshop Tags: Badgework, Earth, Light, Shadows, and space

The Black Hole Mobile Planetarium provides a unique and stimulating learning environment. It enhances aspects of the National Curriculum, often regarded as difficult to present in the Classroom.

Using up-to-date digital images, various projection devices and other visual aids. The Black Hole has now been informing and delighting Primary School audiences for eighteen years.

Some of the sessions I run:

KS2 “Earth & Space” presentations cover the nature of our Sun and stars generally, solar system bodies, day & night, years, distances, phases of the Moon and the apparent motions of the Sun and stars. The significance and location of “The North Star” is explained to the older children.

Mythological figures are used to illustrate tales from Ancient Greece whilst graphically demonstrating the motion of stars across the sky. Finally, a full northern starfield is projected as an introduction to navigating the night sky, by reference to the star patterns within the Greek constellations discussed earlier. This latter projection is for many children a quite unique and stunning awakening: sadly owing to light pollution few of them will have experienced such a display ‘in real life’.

It may be you are planning to study the Moon Landings or perhaps the planet Mars in more detail:
“Earth & Space” sessions can be adjusted to include an overview of either of these exciting topics.

KS2 “Light” presentations cover the fundamental concepts of light sources, shadows / shading and darkness. Eclipses and phases of the moon are explained as are the practical uses of shadows in sundials and illustrations. Optical effects such as reflection, magnification, the mixing of coloured light and rainbows are also discussed and demonstrated in the darkened planetarium dome.

“Earth & Space” presentations are also offered to KS1 classes: they include similar material to that of the KS2 sessions but the language is simplified where necessary and some of the more difficult ideas are omitted: this also allows the session lengths to be a little shorter, as appropriate to the younger children. Various images from deep space are included as an illustration of imaginary pictures to be found in the sky. Also in this session, a brief look at the Greek constellations and northern starfield.

“Light & Dark” presentations are aimed at KS1: they begin with a short story to gently ease children into the subject of darkness and move on to address the concepts of light and dark, discussing how sunlight combined with a body’s rotation produces day and night on the Earth, Moon and all planets. The nature of darkness is graphically demonstrated and after discussing man’s approaches to coping with darkness. We look at various animals adapted to living in dark places or preferring to be awake at night. Sessions draw to a close with the children sitting under a beautiful starry sky.

Information about The Black Hole Mobile Planetarium:

The planetarium is an inflatable dome – approximately 5.6m diameter x 3.4m high at the apex –
which comfortably accommodates a class of 35 children accompanied by class teachers.

Presentations are usually between 40 and 55 minutes long, the duration and content being adjusted to
suit the age of the children, time constraints and your school’s individual requirements.

Please refer to The Black Hole website for pricing details:
https://sites.google.com/view/blackholeplanetarium/home

Address: 7 Rugby Road Cubbington
London
Greater London
CV32 7HZ
United Kingdom

Gallery:


Location:

City / Town: Leamington Spa

70

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