The idea of rockets or space ships that send people up into space is fascinating for many preschoolers, so they'll enjoy having their own pretend rockets to shoot off. Children can draw rockets on paper, but making them out of toilet paper tubes makes rockets more three-dimensional. Invite each child to decorate a tube with crayons to make it look like the body of a space ship. To make the point of the rocket, help children cut two 2-inch wide triangles from paper. Glue or tape these points on opposite sides of the rocket's top.
Teach children about how the planets move by turning children into planets. Give each child an outline of one planet. Divide up the planets so there are several of each planet being created. Provide pictures of planets so children can decorate them, then ask children to cut their pictures out. Choose one of each planet to come to the center of the room. Ask the child with the sun to stand still, while the other planets rotate around her. If you have cardboard on hand, you can also cut planets out of cardboard. Cut face holes in each one so a child can wear it on her head.
Stars are tricky shapes to cut out, so they provide preschoolers with helpful cutting practice. Give each child a piece of white paper featuring the outlines of four or five stars in a variety of sizes. Help children cut out each star. Keep some pre-cut stars on hand in case children cut too slowly to complete the project in the designated time. Let children use glue to draw designs on their stars, then sprinkle glitter over the glue. When the glue dries, punch a hole and tie a string onto the top of each star. Attach the strings to a clothes hanger. Children can lie under their star mobiles and pretend they're looking into outer space.
Creating pictures of the entire galaxy allows children to combine all the elements of outer space into one project. Give children black paper along with pieces of colored paper, glue and crayons. Explain that a galaxy is a huge area filled with stars and planets, and that the galaxy containing our solar system is called the Milky Way. Hang pictures for children to use as reference, then ask them to create their own pictures. They can cut planets out of colored paper to glue onto the paper, then decorate the rest of the page with crayon stars. Children can even glue small space ships onto their pictures.