If your school is anything like mine, your upper elementary students are obsessed with basketball. They will look for any excuse to play, especially in PE class. The beauty of constellation basketball is that it satisfies their need to play basketball and helps them identify constellations. It may not be easy to see stars at night in urban areas. Still, if the students can go out in nature to a place with less light pollution, the sheer number of stars in the night sky typically blows them away. This excitement is further elevated when they can look in the sky and correctly identify some constellations they have only seen in books before. If seeing the stars at night is too difficult, there are plenty of good apps on phones and computers to help identify constellations. It is best to play constellation basketball after the students have done the First Great Lesson and some star research.

Materials: 

·      An ample open space (such as a gym or field)

·      Basketball

·      At least one basketball hoop

·      Pennies or jerseys to keep teams organized

·      A book with clear illustrations of constellations

Minimum Amount of Students Needed: This game needs at least ten students to be effective. Less than that, and you won’t have enough players to effectively make the shape of the constellations.

Age: Upper Elementary and Middle School