Archer Street Elementary students explored the sky above without leaving their gym when the Cradle of Aviation's portable Starlab planetarium program visited the school for two days. This unique educational experience was part of a larger ongoing relationship between Freeport Schools and the Cradle of Aviation outreach program.
The Starlab, an inflatable fabric-lined planetarium dome, comfortably seated one class and their teacher at a time for a 50-minute astronomy lesson. A sophisticated projection system enabled students to better visualize the winter sky and the stars that populate it. Starlab educators outlined the shapes of the constellations and explained their astrological names using a laser pointer to map areas on the projected sky. Students then had the chance to ask questions that built on what they had just learned, layered with their classroom science lessons aligned to the New York State Common Core Learning Standards.