Use Oreos to Teach the Moon’s Phases

Did you know that chocolate sandwich cookies provide a fun and easy way to teach your homeschooler about the phases of the moon?

It’s easy! Start with a mini-discussion regarding basic facts about the moon.

First, remind your student that the moon, just like Earth, is a sphere. As a result, the half that’s facing the sun is always illuminated by its light. Then, touch on the fact that the moon orbits Earth approximately every 27 days. As it makes its way around our planet, we see different amounts of light from the sun reflecting off the moon’s surface. The different amounts of light we see are known as the moon’s phases.

Once your child has a basic understanding of these concepts, use the chocolate sandwich cookies and cream filling to create and label the eight phases of the moon on your own delicious diagram!

Directions:
Start by using crayons or markers to draw Earth in the center of the page. Then, add the sun along one edge of the paper. Next, create the phases of the moon by gently gripping and twisting the halves of the cookie in opposite directions until they slide apart. Leaving the white filling on one half of the cookie, use a knife to carve the shape of the moon phase into the filling. Repeat these steps as needed to create all eight phases of the moon. Finally, place them in order on the diagram and add the name of each phase.

Sources:
space.com
NASA