Barclay Brook students get a chance to explore the solar system from their very own gynasium.
By: Elaine Worden
MONROE After crawling through a pitch-black tunnel of thick, industrial fabric, students in Kristin Raniere’s second-grade class found themselves standing inside a giant, portable planetarium.
On the outside, the planetarium, which was set up on the floor of the gym at Barclay Brook School, looked like a 10-foot-tall inflatable igloo the color of duct tape.
Numerous second-grade classes and their teachers crawled in and out of the planetarium for a 45-minute lesson on astronomy, taught by Gary Muzio, owner of the Ridgewood-based company Star Dome.
Ms. Raniere, along with fellow second-grade teachers Patty Dinsmore and Margaret Delmonaco, wrote and received a grant from the Monroe Township Education Foundation to give their students a hands-on approach to learning about the stars and the mythology behind them.
The grant, titled "Shoot for the Stars," enabled Mr. Muzio to set up his portable planetarium and give presentations to second-grade classes March 15 and 16.
The grant also included a "Space Kit" to assist the teachers with their curriculum. The kit includes literature, videos and games for all of the teachers to use to help explain the solar system to their classes.
Teachers had coordinated their curriculums so that most of the classes would be learning about the solar system and astronomy around the same time.
"It’s just taking what we’re learning and actually doing it," Ms. Dinsmore said of the portable planetarium.
Ms. Dinsmore said that both the children and the teachers were excited about it. Many students had never been to a planetarium, let alone knew what one was, and this was a new and interesting experience for them.
"It’s much more meaningful when you have a hands-on experience," she said.
Mr. Muzio’s presentations included exploring the same constellations visible above Barclay Brook School, as well as seasonal changes and mythology.
Ms. Delmonaco’s class had finished hearing the presentation just before Ms. Raniere’s class was scheduled to attend.
"They were really awestruck," Ms. Delmonaco said after her class had crawled out of the inflatable dome.
After students crawled through the entrance, finally standing inside, Mr. Muzio instructed them to sit on little cushions set up around the perimeter. Then he dimmed the lights, allowing a few minutes for the children’s eyes to adjust to the dark.
"Most of the stars that you can see in the sky at night are actually bigger than the sun," said Mr. Muzio, his voice echoing inside of the dome.
The children, who now were seated on the gym floor with their legs crossed, looked up at the inside of the dome, as Mr. Muzio explained how the North Star is the only star that never moves.
And with a simple flick of a switch, the students were engulfed in total darkness, followed by a sea of stars projected onto the inside of the cloth walls above them.
"Whoa!" the students exclaimed.
With a little red laser pointer, Mr. Muzio began pointing out the different constellations, starting with the Big Dipper. He explained how, by following the path of the bottom two stars along the cup of the dipper, called pointer stars, one can find the North Star.
"Does this look like a big spoon to you?" Mr. Muzio asked the students, outlining the Big Dipper with his laser pointer.
"Yeah!" the students responded. Mr. Muzio went on to explain the folklore behind Orion and his belt, Leo the lion and the scorpion. To further illustrate his point, Mr. Muzio changed projector cylinders and showed the students artwork of Greek mythological characters. He also showed what to look for when star gazing, and how light pollution can disturb the viewing process.
Mr. Muzio admitted that his favorite part of doing presentations is seeing the enthusiasm of the students.
"They’re so busy being entertained they don’t realize they’ve learned a lot," he said.
As Ms. Raniere’s class left, it was obvious they had learned a lot.
"It was cool because there was a lot of stars and he picked out all the pictures in the sky. It was really neat," said Andrea French. Andrea also enjoyed seeing all of the animals and the Big Dipper.
Classmate Alex Windom agreed, saying that his favorite part of the presentation was when Mr. Muzio projected pictures into the sky of the dome.
And what was his favorite mythological character?
"Orion. He’s tough like me," said Alex.