Key Stage 2 – Discovery Diaries

Astronaut Workout

Get ready for space with this 5-circuit exercise workout, combining maths with PE.

Your Body In Space

A 10-question 'true or false' quiz about what happens to the human body in space.

Space Dinner

Students will plan and draw a space dinner using the Eatwell food plate as a guide for choosing healthy options.

Eatwell Plates

This activity supports Space Dinner (Activity 0.3 of the Pre-launch Chapter).

Design Your Spacesuit

Design a spacesuit to keep yourself safe, either during mission launch or on a spacewalk.

Investigating Materials

Children will investigate different materials while they research the best insulator for a spacesuit.

Time for Launch

Follow Tim's schedule on launch day! Learn about time and duration while completing a comic strip!

Build Your Own Soyuz

This extension activity supports Time for Launch - Activity 1.1 in Chapter One.

8 Minutes to Space

With the help of astronaut Richard Garriott, describing how it feels to launch into space for the first time.

Fast-Track Rendezvous

Understanding how the Soyuz capsule gets from launch to the ISS is a complex concept.

United in Space

It's time to find out about fellow astronauts and research the countries who have been to the ISS.

Breaking News

Imagining they are astronauts, students will write a newspaper article about their first day in space.

Create a News Report

This extension activity supports Breaking News: Activity 2.2 in Chapter Two.

Earth to Principia

Budding young coders and mathematicians will enjoy this challenging activity.

Your New Home

The ISS is an extremely complex structure and at first glance it can be intimidating.

Build Your Own ISS

This extension activity supports Your New Home: Activity 3.1 in Chapter Three.

Draw Your Own ISS

Get to know your new home! Draw a diagram of the ISS and colour-code the different parts.

Looking at the Earth from Space

Inspire research, discovery and writing using Tim Peake's incredible images of Earth from space.

The Solar System

Explore the Solar System, learning about the weather and conditions on each one.

Create Your Own Solar System Model

This extension activity supports The Solar System: Activity 3.4.

Space Gardening

It's gardening time! Find out which foods are best to grow in space then design your garden.

Space Gardener – Get Outside and Grow!

This extension activity supports Activity 4.1: Space Gardening.

Make a Splash in Space

Water is scarce on board the ISS and an intricate recycling systems allows astronauts to reuse every drop.

Make Your Own Water Cycle

This extension activity supports Make a Splash: Activity 4.2 in Chapter Four.

Experimentally Yours

Curiosity makes a great scientist! Design, draw and label an experiment to answer a scientific question.

Experimentally Yours (Extension)

This extension activity supports Activity 4.3: Experimentally Yours.

Making History

Where are you in space history? Learn about key events on our space timeline.

Space Habitat

After completing the Solar System activity students can create their own imaginary space habitat.

Robots in Space

Humans need robots to do some of the jobs that are too difficult, or too dangerous, for astronauts.

Re-entry

Learn about the complicated and dangerous process of returning to Earth from the ISS.

The Journey Home

You're on your way back to Earth but where will you land and how will you get home from there?

Egg Parachutes

This extension activity supports The Journey Home: Activity 6.2 in Chapter Six.

Send a Postcard to Space

Write a postcard to the astronauts on the ISS and let them know you've made it back to Earth safely.

Signs of Life

This activity asks students to research Earth and Mars and draw them side-by-side, focusing on ‘signs of life’.

Making History

Student complete a space history timeline showing past, present and future missions to Mars.

Mars Quiz

An interactive and entertaining way to find out more about Mars, for students and teachers.

Letter to Tim

ESA Astronaut Tim Peake wants to know the benefits of your mission to Mars.

Word Search 1

Can you find eight scientific words from Chapter 1? Don't forget to write them in your Space Glossary!

Going the Distance

Help students to comprehend the huge distance from Earth to Mars and how orbits effect it.

Astronauts Wanted

What the skills, knowledge and experience might people need for a successful mission to Mars?

Excess Baggage

Students will learn about the essential (and non-essential) items astronauts take to space.

Design Your Own Rocket

In this creative, hands-on activity students will design their own Mars rocket.

Word Search 2

Can you find nine scientific words from Chapter 2? Add them to your Space Glossary!

Weather on Mars

Students create their own infographic (or visual interpretation) of Mars weather data.

Breaking News

Write and illustrate an article telling the world about an exciting discovery - water on Mars!

Mighty Mons

Study images of Olympus Mons from space, and create an interpretation of how it would look from the ground.

Design Your Mars Rover

Design a Mars rover to explore the Martian surface and collect samples to send back to Earth.

Word Search 3

Can you find nine scientific words from Chapter 3? Add them to your Space Glossary.

Team Work

Complete the maze then code a set of instructions for your Mars Rover using the available commands.

Rover’s Discovery

Students practise their visual differentiation skills to crack the code.

Martian Mechanics

This activity asks students to create a machine to get their rock samples back to an astronaut on Mars.

Space Lab

Designing an experiment to test a hypothesis is a fundamental part of scientific enquiry.

Word Search 4

Can you find ten scientific words from Chapter 4? Add them to your Space Glossary.

Town Planner

Practice mapping and drawing skills and explore what makes a good city, society and community.

Biodome Garden

Create a biodome to house food and plant crops that can sustain your Mars population.

Energise Your City

Research energy sources then, design your own sustainable energy source to power your city on Mars.

Protect Your City

How will you deal with the lack of oxygen, extreme weather and severe radiation on Mars?

Word Search 5

Can you find eight scientific words from Chapter 5? Add them to your Space Glossary.

Weekend on Mars

How can you communicate the excitement of space tourism in one image?

Planet X

Design your characters, plan your plot then a comic strip telling the story of life beyond Mars...

No. 1 Space Glossary

Turn the specialist Mars vocabulary you have learnt into a number one hit song!

To Space And Beyond

Imagine what you could discover if you could see more of the Universe than ever before.

The Sky at Night

Plot the coordinates to reveal a star formation you can see with the naked eye.

Ancient Astronomy

Examine an ancient diagram of the Solar System to discover what we’ve learnt over time.

The Starry Messengers

Travel back in time to learn the history of astronomy and the development of telescopes.

Deep Space Quiz

Create a fun quiz to test your friends’ knowledge about the history of space observation.

Lights, Mirror, Action

Design a demonstration to show that light travels in straight lines, reflects off things and casts shadows.

Make-Your-Own Colour Wheel

Use your engineering skills to make a colour wheel that turns the spectrum into white.

Recipe for a Rainbow

Experiment with prisms and light, devising a step-by-step guide on how to make a rainbow.

Infrared Selfie

See yourself in a whole new light! Draw a portrait showing how you’d look in infrared.

Chapter Two Word Search

Can you find eight scientific words from Chapter 2? Add them to your Visual Dictionary of Deep Space!

Blueprint for Space

Complete the sums then follow the key to unveil the blueprint of your space telescope.

Mega Mirror Engineer

Solve this engineering challenge by designing a mirror that meets the guidelines in your brief.

Keep It Cool

Devise an experiment testing how to keep the infrared camera on your telescope super cool.

Pack Your Payload

Design how to fold up your huge telescope, so it will fit into the rocket taking it to space.

Chapter Three Word Search

Can you find eight scientific words from Chapter 3? Add them to your Visual Dictionary of Deep Space!

Parking Skills

Programme your telescope with a series of commands to guide it to its final destination.

Deep Space Decoder

Decode an encrypted message to unlock your telescope’s deployment sequence.

Calibrate for Discovery

Measure the angles your telescope will need to rotate to examine six objects in space.

Chapter Four Word Search

Can you find eight scientific words from Chapter 4? Add them to your Visual Dictionary of Deep Space!

First Findings

Analyse your telescope’s first infrared image to identify the new wonders you’ve discovered.

Data Detective

Examine the datasets to find out if your telescope has identified any planets that might support life.

Visualising the Universe

Share your exciting discoveries with your fellow space experts by creating a scientific poster.

Chapter Five Word Search

Can you find eight scientific words from Chapter 5? Add them to your Visual Dictionary of Deep Space!

Deep Space Daily

Write and illustrate newspaper articles to tell the world everything you’ve discovered with Webb.

Visual Dictionary of Deep Space

Create a visual dictionary using your scientific vocabulary, so everyone can understand your technical lingo.