Workshop follow up activities

Workshop follow up activities - Space explorers!

We hope your child had a fantastic time at their Neil Armstrong workshop and had lots of fun learning about Neil Armstrong’s role in the first Moon landing while launching their own rockets and looking at star constellations!

To continue to build upon their knowledge from the workshop and develop their love of outdoor learning, why not work together to build your very own rocket, and see how high it can fly?

Some context . . .

This activity provides the perfect opportunity to spend time outdoors (the natural environment is known to boost mental health and well-being) and for your child to use their bodies and brains to explore and investigate the world around them. Creating and launching their own rockets at home will enable them to develop their gross and fine motor skills, problem-solving skills, scientific thinking, resilience and other cognitive skills which all support their development.

It's also a great and simple way to Reuse and Recycle, using an old plastic milk bottle and a handful of other easy-to-find resources to have a great time!
All the information you and your child need to create a mini rocket can be found below! Have fun!

What you will need:

The rocket template (or create your own)
An empty plastic milk bottle (4 or 6 pint works best)
Scissors
Sticky tape/glue
Natural items to decorate your rocket (leaves, feathers, petals, etc.)
A small outdoor space to launch your rocket (a garden or local park would be perfect).

Launching a paper rocket by squashing a bottle

Download and print the paper rocket template here!

Or if you don't have a printer just copy the template shape onto your own piece of paper!

Download template

Instructions

Cut out the rocket template along the lines. (If you need any help with this, ask an adult.)
Roll it into a cone shape and secure it with tape (making sure it sits snugly on top of your milk bottle neck) – this is your rocket!
Decorate your rocket any way you like. Why not try creating some fins for it - we’d get as creative as you can!
Now pop your rocket on top of the bottle. Hit the sides of the bottle with your hands (to squeeze it) and watch your rocket launch into the air!

A paper rocket on top of a plastic bottle

Congratulations! You made your own rocket launch!

Together with your child, think and talk about:

What makes your rocket fly?
What makes it come down again?
How could you make your rocket travel higher?
How could you make your rocket go more slowly?
Can you make your rocket spin as it falls?
How do you think a real rocket works?