Mr. Golden Sun

[30 Minutes]

Do you like to look at the stars in the sky at night? Did you know that we can see a very important star in the sky during the daytime, too? The sun, the main source of energy for all living things, is our special daytime star. Just like the nighttime stars, it is made up of moving gases. Always remember that a smart scientist never looks directly at the sun. Let’s make our very own model of our daytime star, Mr. Golden Sun!

You'll need:

• four different colors of clay or Play-dough • a rolling pin • four toothpicks • glue or scotch tape • plain paper • a pen or pencil • a butter knife (ADULT SUPERVISION) • safety scissors

What to do:

1. If possible, print out these directions. Read them through with your child before you begin.
2. With your child, gather everything you’ll need.
3. Let your child choose enough clay of one color and roll it into a ball that is approximately 1” thick. Tell your child that he has just made a model of the core of the sun.
4. Invite your child to choose a second color of clay and roll it, with the rolling pin, into a thin layer that will cover the core.
5. Together, maintain the ball shape while wrapping this layer around the core, instructing your child that he has just made the inner layer of the sun’s atmosphere, the photosphere.
6. With your child, roll out another color of clay, thicker than the last layer.
7. Together, wrap this new layer, the chromosphere, around the photosphere.
8. Using the last color, have your child roll out another thin layer, wrapping it around the others. This outer layer is called the corona.
9. Placing the ball in front of your child, help him cut 1/3 of the ball away, so that all layers are visible.
10. Invite your child to write the words core, photosphere, chromosphere, and corona on four pieces of paper, so they can be glued or taped to the tops of four toothpicks.
11. Encourage your child to place the labeled toothpick on the correct layers of the model of the sun.

Let's Talk: Ideas to Explore Together.

• Why do we need sunshine?
• Are there parts of the earth where the sun does not shine?
• What would happen if we didn't have sunshine?

Useful information:

Never ever look directly at the sun! All smart scientists look at the sun only with a filtered telescope. The sun is made up of very hot, moving gasses. The core of the sun is like the core of an apple. It’s the inner most part of the sun and cannot be seen. The photosphere, the next layer, is called “the apparent surface” of the sun, because it is the disk shape that can be seen with a filtered telescope. Outside of the photosphere is the chromosphere, a section of the sun’s atmosphere that is sometimes seen in an eclipse as a red circle. The outermost layer is the corona, which is like a halo and is only visible during an eclipse. It is highly transparent, but much larger than the other layers. Did you know that more than a million earths could fit inside the area of the sun, yet the sun is only a medium sized star! Think about that on the next starry, starry night!