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Keep a Moon Journal

Introduce your child to the phases of the moon.

What You Need:

a spiral notebook or notebook paper
a pencil
a large coin or small lid

What You Do:

1. Each evening, go outside with your child and try to find the moon in the sky.

2. Use the coin or lid to trace a circle in your notebook for each day. In the circle, sketch the shape of the moon as you observe it.

3. For each observation, record the date, time, and -- if you know it -- the direction. If weather conditions keep you from observing the moon, make note of that, too.

4. Over the course of one month, make as many observations as you can.

A lunar month is the time between phases of the moon (ie., from one full moon to the next full moon). Based on your observations, how many days long is a lunar month? What do you notice about the time and direction you recorded in your first and last observations?

Helpful Hints:

The moon follows the same approximate path across the sky as the sun but it may rise very early or very late, depending upon its current phase. Remember, too, that during the "new moon" phase, there will be no visible moon in the sky.