Keeping the Kiddos Busy

First of all, my apologies for the long absence from this blog.  With the shift from ECQ to GCQ in Metro Manila, I have been busy with my day job and with other concerns.  I imagine that the kids will soon be resuming school (in whatever form "school" will take in the current situation), and keeping them busy will be less of a concern by then.  But every now and then, I will still be posting about fun educational activities for kids of all ages to try.  I enjoyed accompanying all of you these past months, and I hope that in one way or another I have been able to help you all ensure that learning and fun does not end, even during lockdown. One of the activities I featured in this blog is learning about outer space .  This coming Sunday, June 21, 2020, there will be a partial solar eclipse at 3:01 PM (Philippine time).  Observing this natural phenomenon will be a valuable opportunity for you and your children to learn about outer space.  Weather p...

(Image credit:  NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute) Those who know me well know how passionate I am about astronomy and how I love to promote the hobby.  However, I have been controlling the itch to feature it in this blog because I did not want to encourage your kids to violate curfew rules and the other safety measures being imposed these days. But then, I realized, there is no reason kids cannot do what we amateur astronomers do whenever the weather is not conducive to stargazing: take advantage of the downtime to read up about outer space.  There is also no reason you cannot join your kids in learning about outer space. One resource is the kids' section of the NASA website, which has stories, games, pictures, videos, and other activities. ( WARNING: please supervise your kids in doing the activities. Also, use your sound parental judgment in deciding whether to allow the activities that involve going outdoors.) The website of Astronomy ...