Today, for book Number 52 the Geronimo Stilton theme is Mouse in Space and we’re making a fun puffy paint moon craft. The Geronimo Stilton books were written by Elisabetta Dami an Italian children’s book writer.
The Geronimo Stilton series is an absolute delight for children ages 7 to 10 years old and are full of mouse fun and adventure.
Today, Geronimo Stilton theme is about space.
So instead of going back in time like his adventures take him, Geronimo Stilton is headed to space.
Geronimo blasts off on a top-secret mission full of space training, interaction with Dr. Wicked Whiskers, satellites, and a spacewalk.
This book is perfect for diving into some fun science.
Space Unit Study Craft
And today we are going to learn about and create a puffy paint moon that glows in the dark.
This spacecraft has a lot of texture, is fun to make and the fun continues when you turn out the light.
Once charged a bit in the light it will glow brightly, and you have a fun moon to hang up in your bedroom or classroom.
Choose a few activities, crafts, and other books and you have yourself the makings of a space unit study.
I have some ideas to get you started below.
Don’t forget to use the words in different colors, font sizes, and types in the Geronimo Stilton books for spelling and vocabulary.
They make it easy to turn a simple book into a mini unit study.
There are many topics they cover and the layout of the words on the pages makes it fun.
The Space themed Safari Ltd. Toob is a great place to start and can be used in dioramas, sensory bins, or just fun dramatic play situations.
You could also use them to tell a story about space or they can be used as inspiration for a drawing.
Then Basher Space Exploration and Basher Astronomy take big topics and break them down with silly pictures.
This makes topics easy to understand for any grade.
Four Space Hands-on Craft Ideas
Next, add in more hands-on ideas to make this unit study longer.
- Create 4 different puffy paintings to show all 4 phases of the moon.
- Try astronaut ice cream or other freeze-dried food for the true astronaut experience.
- Enjoy Homeschool Pop’s Planets of Our Solar System video on YouTube.
And this last one is my HUGE Exploring Space and Astronomy Free Unit Study for Multiple Ages.
Don’t forget to grab Mouse in Space! (Geronimo Stilton #52).
Then grab the free unit study.
Also, add more Geronimo Stilton book resources for a fun literature slant to space.
Other Geronimo Stilton
Most of the hands-on activities below can be done with multiple ages.
- Field Trip to Niagara Falls Summary And Fun Corn Craft
- Adventures The Journey Through Time #2: Back in Time (Colosseum Craft)
- The Race Against Time Activities: Fun Edible Spine
- Adventure The Journey Through Time #2: Back in Time (Mayan Craft)
- The Curse of The Cheese Pyramid Barbie Mummy
- Easy and Fun Who Is Geronimo Stilton Rodent Notebooking Page
Finally, let’s make this fun glow in the dark moon craft.
Now off to the moon!
You can trace a plate or bowl to create the outline of your moon.
But this makes for a great opportunity to introduce your child to a compass to create circles.
How to Make A Glow in the Dark Puffy Paint Moon Craft
You will need:
- Glow in the dark paint
- Shaving cream
- White school glue
- Artist canvas or thick paper
- A couple small plastic caps, different sizes
- Geometry compass
- watercolors
- Paintbrush
You can make your glow in the dark puffy paint moon craft on paper.
However, we had some flat canvases already and I wanted to create something a little more permanent.
So we used our canvases. Trace your moon either with a round plate or demonstrate how to use a compass to draw a circle as large as your canvas.
Next, combine 1 part glue to 3 parts shaving cream.
How much you mix will depend on how large of a moon you are going to make or if you want extra for more than one.
For a 8 1/2 x12 canvas I used about 1 cup shaving cream, ¼ cup of glue, and 1 heaping Tablespoon glow in the dark paint.
Once mixed, paint in your moon with very thick blobs of paint. Cover the entire circle well.
While the paint is still wet, stamp in it a few times with different size caps to create craters.
Your kids can also use their fingers. Add a few blobs of your glow in the dark paint here and there around the canvas to be stars or asteroids.
Allow paint to dry overnight so it is completely dry throughout.
Once it is dry your child can add very wet watercolor around your moon.
Add watercolor right up to the edges of your puffy paint. Then, sprinkle with a bit of salt to create some texture.
Once dry brush away your salt and it will take some of the watercolor with it leaving a unique texture to the night sky.
You can grab a flat canvas at Dollar Tree to keep it very low cost. Look how great it looks at night!
What do you think? Are you ready for this fun science activity go with your literature study?
