Moon Phases - Fun with the kids

Science is Yummy Mom!

I found this awesome project on pinterest. Teach Moon phases with Oreo Cookies! I thought I would take it a step farther and teach them the definitions of the moon phases and also look up what the moon was doing right now!

#1 - Oreo Cookies (use Popsicle stick or butter knife to scrape off the frosting. (Of course we let the kids & mommy eat it) ;)

#2 - Found a cute Moon Phases Worksheet at(http://ww

w.education.com/worksheet/article/learning-moon-phases/)

We colored the sun to show how it lights up the moon depending on what stage the moon is in. It helped them to better match the oreos to the phases. If you want to expl

ain the phases of the moon her are their definitions.

New Moon - The side of the moon facing the Earth is not illuminated. Additionally, the moon is up throughout the day, and down throughout the night. For these reasons we cannot see the moon during this phase.

Waxing Crescent/Crescent - During this phase, part of the Moon is beginning to show. This lunar sliver can be seen each evening for a few minutes just after sunset. We say that the Moon is "waxing" because each night a little bit more is visible for a little bit longer.

First Quarter/Half During first quarter, 1/2 of the moon is visible for the
first half of the evening, and then goes down, leaving the sky very dark.

Waxing Gibbous/Three Quarters - When most of the Moon is visible we say it is a Gibbous Moon. Observers can see all but a little sliver of the moon. During this phase, the Moon remains in the sky most of the night.

Full Moon - When we can observe the entire face of the moon, we call it a Full Moon. A full moon will rise just as the evening begins, and will set about the time morning is ushered in.


Waning Gibbous/Three Quarters - Like the Waxing Gibbous Moon, during this phase, we can see all but a sliver of the Moon. The difference is that instead of seeing more of the Moon each night, we begin to see less and less of the Moon each night. This is what the word "waning" means.


Last Quarter/Half - During a Last Quarter Moon we can see exactly 1/2 of the Moon's lighted surface.

Waning Crescent/Crescent - Finally, during a Waning Crescent Moon, observers on Earth can only see a small sliver of the Moon, and only just before morning. Each night less of the Moon is visible for less time.

#3 After we had fun "learning" we looked up how the moon is suppose to look tonight.

(www.moonconnection.com)

#4 - And the best part is after we got to eat our "Moon Oreos" with some Milky Way Juice (aka Vanilla Almond Milk)