Stargazing: Book and Game Suggestions

Ages Infant & Up

Baby Galileo Discovering The Sky
Ages: 9 months - 7 yrs.
The Baby Einstein Company, $19.99 (DVD)

Little ones will take a musical voyage through the sky, investigating the stars, the sun, clouds, planets and whirling galaxies far away. Brightly colored toys, engaging images, stunning video and fun-loving puppet shows highlight this interactive and stimulating journey. Bonus features include Discovery Cards, Puppet Shows, and a DVD-ROM Coloring Book. Product Description

Scholastic's The Magic School Bus Space Adventures
Ages: 3 - 6 yrs.
Scholastic Entertainment (2), $14.95 (DVD)

This DVD collection includes 3 out-of-this-world adventures with Ms. Frizzle and her class on The Magic School Bus: The Magic School Bus Gets Lost in Space!, Out of This World, and Taking Flight.

AdventureKITS Zoom to the Moon
Ages: 3 - 6 yrs.
Imagiplay, Inc., $29.99

Landing on the Moon will be easy with the wooden astronauts and aliens in this 8-piece set. All figures are crafted from rubber wood and hand-painted with vibrant child-safe inks. What kind of scenes will kids imagine with a two-headed dog and a three-eyed alien? All the characters can blast off together in the rocket ship that doubles as a handy tote.

The Big Space Shuttle
Ages 3 - 8 yrs
Little Mammoth Media, $14.95 (VHS)

This video teaches everyone about the mysteries behind the space program - specifically, the topic of space shuttles. Viewers are treated to the multitude of tasks that are preparatory to the launch. There is also a segment on children at Space Camp, additional inspiration for interested youth.

Jr. Astronaut Suit
Ages: 3 - 10 yrs.
Aeromax Inc., $49.95

Well-crafted and authentic looking, this bright orange Jr. Astronaut Suit is appointed with official NASA patches, and a cap bearing striking resemblance to the official astronaut gear, had our young testers talking about planets and galaxies that needed exploring.

A Child's Introduction to the Night Sky
Ages 3 - 10 yrs
Author: Michael Driscoll   Illustrator: Meredith Hamilton
Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers, Inc., $19.95 (Hardcover)

Though stars and planets get most of the attention, "there's lots of other cool stuff up there" according to author Michael Driscoll. Through vivid illustrations and photos of space, Driscoll takes kids on a tour of the universe, including the myths, explorers, and science that make it so intriguing. Also included are a hand-held Star Finder and glow-in-the-dark stickers, Deep Space Dictionary, calendar of important dates, and a list of space resources.

Rescue Heroes Micro Adventure Playsets
Ages: 3 & Up
Fisher Price, Inc., $14.99

This exciting playset includes Roger Houston figure, astronaut figure, space station, crashed space ship with "meteor damage", 2 meteors, space alien, moon rover, rotating space tower and radar dish. DVD with "Houston, We Have A Problem" episode also included. Crashed space ship and moon rover each hold one figure. Product Description

Why Dragonfly? "What's Up with the Moon?"
Ages: 3 & Up
Why Dragonfly?, $15.95 (DVD)

With a pun-loving “magical” dragonfly named Archimedes as its main character, the DVD is reminiscent of Honey I Shrunk the Kids with a science question as its plot. Computer-generated Archimedes is buzzing around a playground when live-action youngsters Emily and Ryan, who are playing on the equipment, realize the moon is out. “Why is the moon out during the daytime?” they ask. The next thing you know, they've gone down the slide and have become miniaturized by Archimedes, who whisks them off on an adventure to find the answer. Between the Space Science Institute and the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, the kids get a full explanation of the obit and rotation of the Earth, moon and Sun.

If You Decide to Go to the Moon
Ages: 4 - 8 yrs.
Author: Faith McNulty    Illustrator: Steven Kellogg
Scholastic Inc./Scholastic Press, $16.99 (Hardcover)
McNulty's text and Kellogg's illustrations coalesce dramatically to capture both the factual minutiae and the lyrical poetry of space travel as a young boy (too bad it's not a girl as well) travels to the moon and back. Readers will truly feel what it means when they turn a page and find a tiny spaceship, the only touch of color in a vast black double page spread sprinkled with stars, and read the accompanying text: “Don't look back at earth. It would make you even lonelier.” Youngsters curious to know what it's really like to sleep aboard a rocket or walk on the moon will come away feeling that they've actually been there.

One Giant Leap: The Story of Neil Armstrong
Ages 4 - 8 yrs.
By Don Brown
Houghton Mifflin Children's Books, ISBN: 0-395-88401-2, $16.00

An engaging biography of Neil Armstrong that relates the story of the first moon landing as a child's dream come true.

Max Goes to the Moon
Ages: 4 - 10 yrs.
Big Kid Science, $16.95

Max goes to the Moon combines a lavishly illustrated picture book format with fundamental science concepts. In this adventure, Max the Dog and his young human friend Tori undertake a quest to make the first trip to the Moon since the Apollo era. Their trip inspires the nations of the world to join together to build a Moon colony. The engaging story encourages children to learn, dream, and explore, while offering the message that we live on a precious planet. Book Description

The Astronaut's Globe
Ages: 5 - 16 yrs.
Global View Foundation, $14.95

Created by using thousands of images taken by NASA in 2003, this globe had our testers talking about weather, continents, oceans and even coral reefs – for hours. Diving into the accompanying guide and website, we learned that there are more insects in two square miles of rural land than humans on earth, that storms spin clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere and counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere, and that the lowest temperature ever recorded was –128.5F. Easy to inflate and much larger than we had expected, the package even included a repair kit in case of a puncture.

Ages 6 & Up

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Buzz Aldrin: Reaching for the Moon
Ages: 6 - 9 yrs.
Author: Buzz Aldrin    Illustrator: Wendell Minor
HarperCollins Childrens Books, $15.99 (Hardcover)

This is my journey. It didn’t begin when I stepped on board Apollo 11 on July 16, 1969. It began the day I was born -- Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr., whom everyone called Buzz. Becoming an astronaut took more than education, discipline, and physical strength. It took years of determination and believing that any goal is possible -- from riding a bike alone across the George Washington Bridge at age ten to making a footprint on the Moon.

Footprints on the Moon
Ages 6 - 12 yrs.By Alexandra Siy
Charlesbridge, ISBN: 1-57091-408-7, $16.95

Twenty-four astronauts have crossed the vast ocean of space that separates Earth and Moon. Twelve have left footprints. With clearly written, comprehensive text, this book chronicles the history of Moon exploration and looks ahead to what the future might hold.

Kids Book of the Night Sky
Ages: 6 & Up
Author: Ann Love    Author: Jane Drake    Illustrator: Heather Collins
Kids Can Press, $12.95

In The Kids Book of the Night Sky, boys and girls will discover all the secrets the night sky holds. They can play games like “Night Sky I Spy,” keep an astronomer’s log and read about night sky myths. Star maps are included for each season — so kids will know what to look for, when and where. Then as the sun goes down and the sky goes dark, they’ll be ready for the night sky’s all-star show!

Do Stars Have Points
Ages 7 - 9 yrs.By Gilda and Melvin Berger, Illustrated by Vincent Di Fate
Scholastic Inc., ISBN: 0-439-08570-5, $5.95

A question and answer book about stars, planets and space presented in an intriguing, lively and understandable way. Attractive illustrated to appeal to young space explorers.

Starry Night 4 DVD Gift Set
Ages 7 & Up
Imaginova Corp. (Formerly Space.com), $49.95 (DVD)

Four dramas of the universe brought to you with heart-pounding realism. Over four-and-a-half hours of killer comets, ominous asteroids, solar flares, coronal mass ejections, auroras, supernovas, black holes, colliding stars and the plucky Mars Exploration Rovers still on the go. This phenomenal gift set includes: "Comet Hunters / Asteroid Seekers"; "Danger! Solar Storm"; "Searching for SuperStars"; and "Wheels on Mars". Product Description

Professor Noggin's Card Game Series - Outer Space
Ages 7 & UpOutset Media, $9.99

Each interest-specific card game combines true and false, multiple choice and trivia questions. The Outer Space series introduces children the cosmos with topics like planets, stars, solar systems, asteroids, and much more. Offering two levels of difficulty, games can accommodate 2 to 8 players.

Ages 8 & Up

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Popular Mechanics for Kids: Radical Rockets and Other Cool Cruising Machines
Ages: 8 - 12 yrs.
Koch Vision, $12.98 (DVD)

In these four episodes of the Popular Mechanics for Kids television show, the hosts, Jay and Elisha, take the audience on an adventure from the depths of the ocean in submarines to the far reaches of space. Once again, the hosts are right in the middle of everything. Jay drives a Trident nuclear sub and participates in search and rescue drills with a Coast Guard cutter crew. Elisha dons a real space suit. As they explore technology in the world they answer questions that kids would ask, such as, how do solar cars work, or how do astronauts go to the bathroom in space?

Galileo: On the Shoulders of Giants
Ages 8 - 12 yrs.Devine Entertainment Corporation, $19.95

The story of young Galileo details his exploration of the magic and mysteries of physics and astronomy. This film will have a positive impact on budding scientists who will branch naturally into further study of the man and his work.

Slooh Explore Space Live Telescope Card
Ages 8 - 14 yrs.
BlueStorm Productions, $10.00 (Windows/MAC)

At 4:10 p.m. EST I logged onto the online telescope at slooh.com, clicked “current mission” on the launch-pad page and in seconds my computer screen was transformed into a live telescopic view of the moon. Not an image of the moon but the actual moon as it revealed its half-glowing, cratered, lunar self at that very moment in the skies above the Canary Islands off the northwestern coast of Africa. That's the location of the Observatorio de Teide and the Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos, two observatories that combine as one of the largest assemblages of telescopes in the world. And thanks to the partnership of Discovery.com and Astronomy Magazine which launched the Slooh site, the deep-space heavens those powerful professional telescopes focus on are now available to you.

Discovery Kids SL - 70 Telescope
Ages: 8 & Up
Discovery Consumer Products, $149.00

Bring the wonders of nature up close with this 70mm, refracting, short barrel telescope. Designed to be user-friendly for kids and adults alike, it's ideal for a range of interests, from stargazing to nature watching. Features include a padded, lightweight shoulder bag with "sling" style strap for comfort and portability; illuminated adjustment dials, azimuth dial and liquid bubble level; red night-vision map light that won't dilate eyes; and removable spotting scope. Product Description

DK Space Encyclopedia
Ages 8 & UpBy Heather Couper and Nigel Henbest
Dorling Kindersley Publishing Inc., ISBN: 0-7894-4708-8, $29.95

A vibrantly illustrated and photographed encyclopedia of space. This rich resource offers food for the brain with detailed text, charts, biographies, and timelines. Includes an interactive exploration of space on CD-ROM.

Space Shuffle
Ages 8 & Up
Playroom Entertainment, $10.00

In Space Shuffle, form Solar Systems and collect points in a game that is truly out of this world! As you place the planets in their correct galactic order, you will gain points depending on the planet's color and the other colors within that Solar System. But keep your eye towards the sky, as other players will also score points if they are the Space Commander of that certain color. So choose wisely as you align the planets in this space-aged strategy game of card laying and placement. Product Description

Night Sky
Ages 8 & Up
Sky Publishing Corp., $17.99 (Subscription)

With Night Sky magazine, you’ll get simple instructions for finding planets and constellations without any technical jargon. We’ll also help you get the most out of your telescope. And in every issue, our equipment experts offer clear advice and useful tips on buying gear, gadgets, and accessories. Product Description

The Incredible Journey to the Planets
Ages 8 & UpBy Nicholas Harris
McGraw-Hill Children's Publishing / Peter Bedrick, ISBN: 0-87226-600-, $18.95

Journey to the Planets is full of colorful images and fascinating information, and the 3-D effect created by the windows cut into each page is a distinctive and clever idea. The text is easily read and is as interesting to an eight year old as it is to an adult.

The Way the Universe Works
Ages: 8 & Up
Author: Giles Sparrow    Author: Robin Kerrod
Dorling Kindersley Publishing, Inc., $24.99

Is the universe expanding? Why do stars twinkle? Will space tourism be a reality soon? All these questions and more are answered in The Way the Universe Works. In this interactive volume, difficult subjects are clearly explained using cutting-edge visuals and the latest in space photography. More than 60 home-based experiments demonstrate key concepts for kids, encouraging learning and better understanding through doing. Book Description

Starry Night® Constellation Adventure
Ages: 9 & Up
Imaginova Corp. (Formerly Space.com), $29.95 (Windows XP/ MAC 10.3.9)

The sky's the limit with this software that turns your home computer screen into a private interactive planetarium. Think of this as an intro to the night sky where you can learn about searching the real thing for constellations and clusters and other galaxies. This Starry Night title connects the dots with 30 guided tours of the stars (though a voice guide would've been nice so we could've kept our eyes on the prize). Among the tours are major upcoming events (mostly lunar and solar eclipses showing what you'll likely be able to see from your location), comets and asteroid happenings and the planets, etc. And, of course, there are the constellations, all located and mapped out in relation to each other and other heavenly guideposts.

Eyes on Mars
Ages: 12 - 17 yrs.
Imaginova Corp., $19.95

All eyes are on Mars as the fleet of international science probes arrives on the Red Planet. Explore the Red Planet with the rovers with EYES ON MARS, a dynamic new DVD from the creators of Starry Night. Product Description

Welcome to Mars
Ages: 12 & Up
WGBH Boston Video, $19.95 (DVD)

Welcome to Mars is a NOVA presentation about the recent landings of two robotic explorers, Spirit and Opportunity, on the surface of Mars and the teams of personnel who made it happen. The mission of the explorers was to find proof that liquid water once existed on the planet. The most striking aspect of this video is that the Mars surface explorations happened because lots of technical folks worked toward one goal about which they were interested and excited. They were charged with every beep received from the rover computers and moved by every photograph sent back. When initial problems were encountered with Spirit and technical issues arose later with Opportunity, their problem-solving skills were tested. No one ever gave up. "Let's find a way to make this work" were the word of the day.

All Ages

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Starry Night Complete Space and Astronomy Pack Deluxe Edition
Ages: All Ages
Imaginova Corp. (formerly Space Holdings), $49.95 (Windows XP/Mac OS X 10.3)

Starry Night Complete Space & Astronomy Pack Deluxe Edition provides an ideal introduction to astronomy with two CD-ROMs of Starry Night software with 50 interactive, guided tours to get you started exploring the solar system; Deep Space Explorer CD-ROM to take you beyond the Milky Way to the outer reaches of space; SkyTheater DVD, over an hour-and-a-half of original movies about space; and Starry Night Companion, a bonus 192-page illustrated book.

When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer
Ages: All Ages
By: Loren Long
Simon & Schuster/Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, $16.95 (Hardcover)

Walt Whitman's "When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer" is an enduring celebration of the imagination. Here, Whitman's wise words are beautifully by illustrator Loren Long to tell the story of a boy's fascination with the heavens. Toy rocket in hand, the boy finds himself in a crowded, stuffy lecture hall. At first he is amazed by the charts and the figures. But when he finds himself overwhelmed by the pontifications of an academic, he retreats to the great outdoors and does something as universal as the stars themselves... he dreams. Product Description

Hey, Mr. Spaceman
Ages: All Ages
Music for Little People, $15.95 (CD), $9.98 (Cassette)

Aficionados of outer space will have a good time listening to these retro homages to alien life. From the Byrds ("Mr. Spaceman") to Sheb Wooley ("The Purple People Eater") to Ella Fitzgerald ("Two Little Men in a Flying Saucer") there's something here for just about anyone who likes science fiction…or likes music. A fun theme-based sampler.