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First viewing session at a preschool- daytime
Hi all,
This morning I did the morning viewing at my daughter's preschool. I learnt alot from this group of kids & about the choice of object to show.
The age of the kids ranged from early 3's to about 5. It was great to see how different their reactions & capabilities were. This was not a structured 'lesson', more just showing the moon & talk as the need required. No solar viewing at the teacher's request.
First thing I asked was if they were able to close one eye. If they struggled I suggested that the close one with the help of one hand while they held onto the little step ladder railing with the other (was good as very few were then able to touch the scope).
Getting some to look in the right direction into the EP was a good experience as I was able to see that even though I may know how to look into an EP, I noticed that the actual viewable 'angle' is quite narrow. Told each in turn then to 'look into the telescope through the glass'. Worked pretty well.
A thin cresent moon viewed in the morning is not a great target. No contrast & nearly washed out with the sky glow & most people expecting an image like that in a book. Next time if daytime viewing I will first show something more tangible, like a distant church steeple, etc, to show what a telescope does, then view the moon.
It was really good though. It was great for me to learn how to speak to littleies about using scopes, really simplifing the technique as much as I could. Should help with older 'customers' too as I can now see it is a learnt skill. Field of view presenting the greatest challenge.
Mental
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