School Curriculum

Browse through our show listing and make a reservation to get started on scheduling your show. These shows are designed to be compatible with your school curriculum. We do some outreach to schools, though availability is limited. While you are on campus, consider taking the kids just across the perimeter drive and walking the scale model solar system!

Messages of Starlight

Messages of Starlight

Grades: 5 and up

Live-narrated

How can we discover the temperatures and compositions of the stars given their great distances? Students will analyze the spectra of several light sources in and hands-on activity, then try to unlock the secrets of starlight. The program also include the fulldome feature Expanded View.

Show Guide

Our Place in Space

Our Place in Space

Grades: 4 and up

Live-narrated

This program covers the current sky as seen from your backyard (including star colors and apparent brightness) before moving on to the phases of the Moon, the importance of the North Star, and the apparent motions of the Earth. How do we really know the Earth is round?

Show Guide

Patterns of Earth and Sky

Patterns of Earth and Sky

Grades: 5 and up

Live-narrated

This program shows how we can observe different stars throughout the year to tell time. Watching the constellations can help us set our calendars and aid in navigation. We will watch how the Sun, the Moon, and the planets have their own motions through the sky, and why the stars appear to be stuck in place on a celestial sphere.

Show Guide

Reasons for the Seasons

Reasons for the Seasons

Grades: 3 and up

Live-narrated

Examine why we have seasons by watching the apparent motion of the Sun throughout the year and how its changing altitude affects our climate. If time permits, we then travel to the North Pole and the equator to see how the climate is affected by the Sun.

Show Guide

Shapes in the Sky

Shapes in the Sky

Grades: Pre-K to 2

Live-narrated

Our popular "Prairie Skies" show, featuring the current constellations, is now in a form for very young stargazers. First, we'll play a game, finding shapes in an image, then expand to find shapes among the stars in the night sky. The show finishes off with a new fulldome feature called "Space Shapes" where we look at the shape of the Sun, Moon and planets. "Is it round like a ball or round like a pancake?"

Show Guide

Sky Cycles

Sky Cycles

Grades: 5 and up

Live-narrated

From our backyards we notice cycles in the sky.After looking at the current night sky and noticing a few constellations and planets, the show examines the phases of the Moon through a model on the dome.We then venture to a morning sky and predict where the Sun will rise, then investigate the path of the Sun during our four seasons.If time permits, we’ll zoom away from the Earth to see the planets orbiting the Sun in our solar system, noting the flatness of the planetary system and how planets closer to the Sun orbit faster.This live show matches the Champaign Schools 8th grade curriculum in Space Science, though any group can reserve the show.

Show Guide

Sun, Moon, and Stars

Sun, Moon, and Stars

Grade: Pre-K to 2

Live-narrated

The youngest stargazers are introduced to the spinning Earth and the night sky, plus pay a visit to the Moon. "Sun, Moon, and Stars" was designed for first grade teachers in the Unit 4 district who use the unit of the same name. The program content can be altered to support your classroom instruction.

Show Guide