Eclipse Resources for Lower Elementary Students

Get an Early Start

In order to make the most of this curated list of eclipse resources for young elementary school students, start planning for April 8, 2024 right now!

Find out when, where, deals on eclipse glasses and other general information here. 

Review the videos and resources on this list to see if they will provide your students an age appropriate overview of what happens during a solar eclipse. The closer you are to the totality, the more preparation your students will need. Make sure they know that the sky will get dark, they may see stars as if it is night, animals might get confused, the temperature will get cooler, and even though it is dar, they must follow safety rules when observing the eclipse.

I struggle with placing resources into specific age groups. You may find the perfect materials for your class in the eclipse resources for older students.

Eclipse Videos for Lower Elementary Students

• Solar System Order and Scale – National Space Centre (8 min)
• Lunar and Solar Eclipses Explained – Science ABC (7 min)
• Planet Size Comparison with Sports Balls – Toy Time Town (5 min)
• Eclipse report video from Science Mom on youtube. Skip ahead to minute marker 1:40 for a fantastic explanation of why the air gets cooler during an eclipse and other details. At mm 4:05 Science Mom shares images and explanations of circles of sunlight visible between tree leaves, and a DIY eclipse.
• Five Safe Ways to View an Eclipse from PBS video for children.* (3 min)
• Video of Crescents Made by tree leaves – Butterflies and Birds (1:40 min)
• Solar Eclipse – SciShow Kids (13 min)
• What is a Solar Eclipse? – NASA Space Place (2 min)
• Solar Eclipse Facts for Kids – Homeschool Pop (7 min)

Eclipse Materials for Lower Elementary Students

• It’s a Solar Eclipse! European Space Agency Kids – click around for lessons in many languages
• Sharing an Eclipse with Kids – the Planetary Society
• Lesson Plan Outlines – KidsEclipse
• Free Printable Solar System Activities – Super Star Worksheets – writing paper, planet bracelets bookmarks, cut and paste – I clicked on blue links under images of worksheets and went straight to a PDF ~ yey.
• Solar Eclipse Resources – PBS and NASA

*I’m sharing suggestions for materials you might want to use in your class. Make sure to review them to ensure they are age appropriate and present the information you want your students to have.