Last weekend, we conducted an astronomy workshop for around 60 school students in Killai, near Pichavaram.
We began indoors with a discussion on stars, the Sun, and the Solar System. The students learned that the Sun is a star and looked at how the planets are arranged around it. To make the scale easier to understand, they worked in groups on a chart-paper activity comparing the planets and their distances.
We then moved outdoors for a Solar System scale walk. Each group represented a planet and walked a set number of steps from the Sun based on its scaled distance. As the groups spread out, the students could see how quickly the gaps between the planets increased.
The students also observed the Sun safely through a solar telescope. This was followed by a question-and-answer session on stars, planets, the Sun, space travel, and other topics they were curious about.
In the evening, we observed the Moon and Venus through a telescope. For many of the students, it was their first time seeing either of them through an astronomical instrument.
The session combined discussion, group activities, and telescope observations, giving the students several different ways to understand and experience astronomy.
