Wantagh students were home in time for the much-hyped solar eclipse on April 8, but several classrooms were buzzing that morning with excitement about the astronomical phenomenon.

First graders at Forest Lake Elementary School made a solar eclipse craft in STEAM class that morning. Students colored images of the Earth, the moon and the sun, which were then glued to a large sheet of paper. To represent the eclipse, the moon was placed directly on top of the sun.

Wantagh Elementary School students worked on a similar craft, but instead connected the moon, sun and Earth with strips of paper and brass fasteners to move the pieces and simulate the eclipse. 

At Forest Lake, Tara Sottnik’s second graders became citizen scientists. She gave each student a sheet to make observations about the eclipse, including light, temperature and animal behavior and sounds. A little before noon, they grabbed their clipboards and went out to the courtyard for their “before the eclipse” observations. At home, the young scientists were encouraged to record data at 3:26 p.m., and make observations again after 5 p.m. when the eclipse was over.

To get a sneak peak of eclipse viewing, students looked through a pinhole projector made from a cereal box. Ms. Sottnik moved a black circle representing the moon across an illuminated desk lamp. She reminded students of viewing safety precautions they should take at home. 

Additionally, her second graders completed an eclipse packet with word searches and other activities that connected science and literacy.