Fort Worth elementary students watch in awe of solar eclipse after weeks of preparation
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Texas Total Solar Eclipse 2024
Everything you need to know about the April 8 total solar eclipse.
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As students across the Fort Worth Independent School District eagerly gazed up at the sky in unison while wearing their ISO-certified glasses, elementary students at Alice Carlson Applied Learning Center clapped, cheered and celebrated as the rare solar eclipse event they had been anticipating for more than a month finally unfolded across the Fort Worth sky.
Although the celestial event itself was brief, as the total eclipse was visible for 2 minutes and 33 seconds starting about 1:40 p.m., weeks were spent on lesson plans, crafts and activities created and organized by a committee of fifth-grade students in charge of educating their peers about the complexities of the solar eclipse.
Mementos and outfit choices were thought out with the same level of spirit one would expect from football fans during the Super Bowl. Pins made of black and yellow felt fabric depicting the solar eclipse were worn on T-shirts; “UV bracelets” changed in color as a visual indicator of the loss of sunlight; and a song explaining the importance of safety precautions was belted to the tune of “I Want It That Way” by the Backstreet Boys.
The lyrics written and performed by Alice Carlson students stated:
“Tell me why? Why can the sun hurt your eyes?
Tell me why? A solar eclipse happens once in your life.
Tell me why? I have to wear these glasses. ‘Cause I want you to be safe!”
As a nod to what is known as the Purkinje effect — a phenomenon that changes how we perceive colors in low light — students were encouraged to wear red, as it would appear less vibrant to the eye during the solar eclipse.
“I think that one of the most important things about this is the pride that we have in our students to be leaders of their own learning, and take on the challenge to develop projects that then impact our entire school community,” Principal Elizabeth Kelz said.
The preparation led to a groundbreaking moment where students, teachers and parents were able to briefly remove their protective eyeglasses and observe the moon’s complete blockage of the sun, revealing its radiating halo known as the corona. Jaws dropped in awe, fingers pointed to the sky and a chorus of screams became steady background music as day turned into night.
“When the clouds covered, it looked like a half moon,” said Kellen Egan, a kindergartner at Alice Carlson. “It looked like a ball of fire.”
Kellen’s mother, Sara, was among the parents who joined their children on the school’s sports field to witness the event. She was grateful the school district was able to educate her son and his classmates about the scientific spectacle.
“It was really special knowing that this is kind of a once in a lifetime thing,” Sara Egan said. “Knowing that I got to share this with him and (that) we’ll talk about it for years is pretty cool.”
This story was originally published April 8, 2024 at 5:00 PM.
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