STAR GAZING: PORTABLE PLANETARIUM GIVES STUDENTS DAYTIME LOOK AT EVENING SKIES

Students exited the air-supported portable planetarium after a star show.

Franklin Elementary School students recently became the first in the area to have their school gym converted into a home to the constellations of ancient Africa, Greece and North America.

The constellations were part of a portable planetarium laboratory made available to teachers by Southeast Missouri State University. Faculty from the university received a grant to purchase the equipment, which includes a tent-like structure inflated by an industrial fan and numerous cylinders that demonstrate constellations from various countries.

University staff frequently perform one-day workshops to train area teachers to use the equipment and identify constellations by the various names they carry. The training is performed at no cost, but there is a fee to rent the equipment.

"I think it's very beneficial because we may have some future astronomers or astronauts here," said Helen Arrington, a third-grade teacher at Franklin.

Arrington and Amy Puchbauer, a fourth-grade teacher, were the first to bring the equipment to their school. An evening event was held to allow parents to view the portable planetarium prior to student tours during the next school day.

"I think the parents enjoyed it just as much as the kids," said Arrington. "We had a pretty good response to it."

Students seemed impressed by the moving presentations cast on the interior of the tent. While they were interested in the stories about the African skies, they were startled to hear such familiar names and phrases as Orion, Cyclops, Sirius and even Betelgeuse (say Beetlejuice) during a presentation on Greek astronomy.

"What I learned was that my favorite TV shows aren't just made up," said David Posey, 7. Posey and Kristin Scott, 8, said most of their friends enjoy watching television shows like "Hercules" and "Xena: Warrior Princess." Both shows involve characters from Greek mythology.

Franklin School Principal Julie Davenport said she thought students enjoyed their day with the planetarium. What's more, they learned that the evening skies are beautiful and contain many interesting stories, she said.

"I think this will heighten their interest in astrology and the solar system," said Davenport. "It greatly enhances their understanding of the stars and what's out there."

Arrington said her goal was to enlighten, not educate students with the presentations.

"I didn't necessarily want to teach them anything," she said. "I just wanted to help them appreciate our skies."