Explanation of star formation for kids.

[Michael131313]

I am trying to find a good analogy for explaining star formation to young kids but I have not figured out anything yet. How can you tell them a cloud of dust and gas condense to make a star? Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks
Michael

[Kerry C.]

Well, perhaps a good visual could be done by using the opposite of heat.
Take a field of freshly fallen snow. The snow represents the gasses in space. Then using your hands that represent the force of gravity gather some of that snow and start compacting it into a snow ball. As you compress the snow into a ball explain it’s like the gravity continuing to compress the gasses is space. Soon the loose snow becomes a ball...a new star. Point out that there is still plenty of snow to make more balls, just as there are gasses in space to create more stars.
All it needs is someone or something to gather the elements needed to create the ball/star.
Of course there are more ingredients than what I have explained. You could use food coloring to represent other things that go into star formation, but all those ingredients are available in these star forming regions, just as they are available for you to make whatever color snowball you wish to make.
Now then after writing this I see you are in Mexico, so this analogy might not work for you.
Just some thoughts, hope it helps,
Kerry

[Refractordude]

YouTube astronomy videos got me hooked into this hobby. Below is one of my favorites.

[Graeme1858]

I quite like the bicycle pump example where the air under pressure gets warm. Imagine how hot a ball of gas the size of the Sun would get! If the kids are old enough to understand what gravity is (if any of us really are!) then a ball of gas the size of the Sun would be really heavy. Air has weight. If you put a glass bell jar over the Eiffel Tower then the air inside would weigh more than the tower! Then you'll have to move onto atoms fusing under the extreme heat and pressure and photons being ejected in the process!

Regards

Graeme

[Ruud]

I think a daddy star and a mommy star love each other very much, and then a baby star is born.

[Greenman]

I quite like the plug hole as an explanation, you can even demonstrate with flower petals. That will show the effect of coalescence explaining that the water is acting as gravity would in pulling things together, and compressing them. Visuals of a simple kind get through more to kids IMHO than fancy simulations as the will now see a lot of the on TV.

Just a throw away thought.

[Greenman]

YouTube astronomy videos got me hooked into this hobby. Below is one of my favorites.

Nice one, I missed the Beeb documentary somehow.

[Michael131313]

Thanks everyone for your ideas. I am sure I will be able to use them to pull something together.

[Baurice]

Not to sound cynical but most adults don't know about nuclear fusion, let alone kids.

[Michael131313]

Again thanks everyone. Here is what I came up with: take a bunch of small pieces of play dough, start putting them together with your hands (gravity) and roll them into a ball until they get hot. Works.