Hello! My name is Caley Melton and I am the TA for the VAMPY astronomy class and I want to report some awesome news here in astronomy classroom! With a mixture of unique and brilliant students, the VAMPY astronomy class is off to a very good start! After some memorable introductions, we dove straight into learning resulting in us virtually traveling to and exploring space! The students have became expert star and constellations finders using the Guide to the Stars wheel given to them by VAMPY. They have modeled the reasons for the seasons doing some kinesthetic motion, using their bodies as a model Earth.
We have visited Western Kentucky University’s famous Hardin Planetarium to attend the “Spaceship Earth” show. During the show, the students traveled outside of our galaxy to get a downward view of our expanding universe. They were also required to do a little singing and dancing during the show, which most had some great dance moves! And the most exciting event in past two days involves a big surprise from Mrs. Murphy and I. Each student was given a 76mm refracting FunScope Telescope! The telescope includes not only the mountable table top base, but also two different size lens perfect for a variety of magnification. Although it is fairly light, this telescope has the power to view Saturn! Needless to say, the students are ecstatic with their surprises and look forward to tonight where will be doing some field observation of the night sky! Stay tuned in to hear more about the adventures of the astronomers here at VAMPY camp! This is Caley Melton reporting, over and out!