4th Grade Science — Astronomy — The Heavens Declare God's Glory
Students will learn about galaxies, the Milky Way, and how the vastness of the universe points to the infinite power of God.
A galaxy is a huge collection of stars, gas, dust, and planets held together by gravity. Our solar system is located in a galaxy called the Milky Way. The Milky Way contains between 100 billion and 400 billion stars — and our sun is just one of them!
Galaxies come in different shapes. Spiral galaxies like the Milky Way have arms that swirl outward like a pinwheel. Elliptical galaxies are shaped like eggs or footballs. Irregular galaxies have no particular shape. Scientists estimate there are at least 200 billion galaxies in the observable universe.
The distances between galaxies are so enormous that scientists measure them in light-years. A light-year is the distance light travels in one year — about 5.88 trillion miles! The nearest large galaxy to ours, Andromeda, is about 2.5 million light-years away.
The incredible size of the universe tells us something important about God: He is infinitely powerful and creative. Psalm 19:1 says, 'The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.' Every galaxy, star, and planet exists because God spoke them into being.
Create a poster showing three types of galaxies: spiral, elliptical, and irregular. Draw an example of each and label our Milky Way galaxy. Write Hebrews 11:3 at the bottom of your poster.