Engaging young children in the classroom is often about making learning magical, playful, and meaningful. These Space activities for Early Years will do exactly that!
Introducing Wanda, the teddy bear with an adventurous spirit and an insatiable wanderlust! Wanda travels to exciting places and sends postcards back to her friends (your EYFS class) to share her discoveries. This traveling teddy bear can serve as a fantastic educational tool to introduce early years children to concepts about space, science, and geography to name just a few!
Her latest adventure? She’s going to space! With Wanda’s stories, early years children can expand their understanding of the world beyond our atmosphere, helping them grasp basic concepts about space while fueling their imaginations.
Young children learn best when stories are integrated into their learning, especially when those stories involve something relatable—like a beloved teddy bear. Wanda, “the bear with wanderlust,” allows you to introduce complex topics in a way that feel magical. By using postcards from Wanda, children feel like they are receiving messages from a far-off friend, giving them a sense of excitement and the opportunity to learn without even realising it. Incorporate this into the suggested space activities for early years and your children will be fully immersed in the theme.
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Meet Wanda – The Bear With Wanderlust!
Attach a label to Wanda which reads ‘Please send me on lots of adventures’, and using the free rhyming letter written by Wanda, start by introducing your class to their new furry friend with big dreams. The letter explains that she’s a curious bear who loves traveling to new places to learn about the world—and beyond!
Next, tell them that Wanda is going on her biggest adventure yet: she’s off to space! You could even create a “Wanda’s Space Mission Control” corner in your classroom, decorated with stars, planets, and a rocket ship to set the mood.
Have a special ceremony to “launch” Wanda into space. Involve the children in preparing for her journey by “packing” her spacesuit (a silver scarf or tiny helmet), some snacks, and a little toy rocket. This can be a fun, imaginative activity to build anticipation!
Plan to “receive” a postcard from Wanda either daily or once or twice a week depending on your needs using my Space themed postcard pack. Each postcard focuses on a new concept related to space and science and can be the springboard to your space activities for Early Years.
Using Wanda’s Postcards to Build Knowledge
- Postcard 1 – Rocket Trip
- Postcard 2 – The Moon
- Postcard 3 – Earth from Space
- Postcard 4 – The Planets
Each postcard links to a number of space activities for Early Years, whether this be gravity, looking after the planet, our solar system and much more. Simply print the postcards, add your address and wait for them to arrive!
There is even a blank postcard for children to write back to Wanda or ask questions.
Don’t forget to visit my shop to get your space themed postcard pack.
More Space Activities for Early Years to Develop the Ideas Further
- Make simple rockets using found materials or construction kits.
- Rocket Race – count down from 5 as the children pretend to be rockets.
- Use a helium balloon to demonstrate floating.
- Use grey playdough to create a “moon surface” and let children press different items (like bottle caps or rocks) into the dough to create craters.
- Paint a picture of earth from space.
- Use black or dark blue paper and have children create their own starry sky with chalk, glitter, or stickers. Let them “connect” stars with white crayons to make constellations.
- Space Sensory Bin: Fill a bin with black beans, silver stars, small balls as “planets,” and mini rockets or astronaut figurines. Children can explore the “space” bin, moving Wanda (or another bear) through the stars and planets.
- Story Time with Space Books: Choose picture books that introduce space concepts in an engaging way, like There’s No Place Like Space! by Tish Rabe or How to Catch a Star by Oliver Jeffers.
- Look at the planets in more detail.
- Sort other spheres like the planets.
- Music and movement: Put on “space” music (like Holst’s The Planets) and invite the children to dance as if they’re moving through outer space.
- Encourage children to tell stories of their own: “What would you do if you were on Wanda’s rocket?”
- Role Play as Space Explorers: Turn the role play area into a spaceship. Use a big cardboard box or desks pushed together as a “rocket” and have the children go on a pretend mission with Wanda. They can look out for “stars,” “planets,” and even “aliens,” just like Wanda does!
These space activities for Early Years will continue to interest and engage the children as they wait for Wanda’s return.
Once Wanda returns from her journey, have a little “welcome back” celebration where the children can share what they learned and enjoyed most. You could create a display board of all Wanda’s postcards and the artwork children created throughout the lessons. This not only reinforces their learning but also gives them a sense of accomplishment and connection with Wanda’s space adventure.
Using Wanda the Wanderlust Bear as a teaching tool makes learning about space a hands-on, story-driven experience. With simple space activities for Early Years that blend sensory play, arts and crafts, and imaginative storytelling, EYFS children gain knowledge about space in a way that is both fun and engaging.
So get ready to launch into this space-themed adventure with your class—Wanda and your little astronauts will be over the moon!
Even more Space Activities for Early Years
If you’ve still not had enough about space then head over to my shop to get the ‘Space Activities EYFS’ pack with 50 pages of worksheets.
