Space Games for Little Kids

Star Search

• Stars work well in outer space games for little kids because children can actually see stars at night. Planets can be more difficult for kids to comprehend because they aren't visible with the naked eye every night. Incorporate stars into a search game for the kids. Cut out several star shapes from paper. You can make them all the same size or vary the size for interest. Look for glow-in-the-dark paper for the star cutouts to make the activity more interesting. Shut off the lights so the paper stars glow. You can also use the glow-in-the-dark stars used on ceilings for the game. Hide the stars around the room. Have the kids search and collect the stars as they find them. The child who collects the most stars wins.

  For an educational twist, write letters, numbers, shapes or other concepts on each star. Call out one of the items written on the stars. For example, call out the letter "A." The students search the room for a star with the letter "A" written on it. The first child to find the correct star wins a prize.

Planet Relay

• Relay races get the kids active. They are easy to adapt to fit a particular theme. In this case, the students retrieve planet cutouts during the relay. Place a basket or pile of planet shapes at one end of the room. You'll need one set of planets for each team. One at a time, the students run to the basket, retrieve a planet and bring it back to the starting line. The kids arrange the planets in the correct order. For young kids who aren't familiar with planet order, provide a picture of the planets in order as a guide. The kids match up the corresponding planets below the guide to get them in the correct order. The first team to retrieve all of the planets and get them in the correct order wins.

  An alternate relay race is to transport "space rocks" from one end to the other. Crumple gray paper or aluminum foil to make the rocks. The kids use kitchen tongs to grab a rock and carry it back to the starting line. The first team to transport all of their space rocks back to the starting line wins.

Space Bingo

• Bingo is another classic game that adapts well to different themes. For Space Bingo, place a picture in each square that relates to space. Pictures of planets, stars, moons, the sun, space shuttles, asteroids and other outer space items work well. Make each card slightly different by placing the pictures in different orders. Hold up a large version of one of the pictures so kids can cover the picture on the card if they have it. Continue holding up pictures until a player covers up an entire row of pictures.