How to Throw an Eclipse Party for your School

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Planning school events as a Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) is easier when you lean into events that are already happening.

Solar eclipse events are a fantastic event for your school parent group to turn into a fun school event.

They present both a fun and unique opportunity for PTOs to sponsor educational event!

Let’s dive into how to use this celestial event to delight your school community.

Do Some Advance Planning

First, you’ll need to call your building principal and get them on the same page.

The STEM teacher may already have something in mind and this is a fabulous opportunity to collaborate with the school to take advantage of the eclipse’s wonder.

Working together splits the workload and allows for a richer experience since many hands make for light work.

Next, consult the information assembled by the NASA scientists for all that you need to know about the eclipse.  

I highly recommend you full explore this site to get all of the information you’ll need to plan this event and then some.

Activities for an Eclipse Party

Know that for an eclipse party, there’s so much more that you can do aside from going outside and looking at it!

Get Inspiration from NASA

NASA has compiled some educational information as well as a bunch of downloadable activities resources as well!

Use the resources here to figure out what activities to do during the days leading up to the eclipse to make the most of this event.

Collaborate with the STEM Teacher

Pick your STEM teacher’s brain for activities that are both fun and educational.

If the activities can’t be worked into the regular class time, perhaps do the activities during recess or before or after school?

Viewing the Eclipse

Of course, one of the main activities will be to see the eclipse.  And you’ll want to make sure everyone can view the eclipse in a safe way.

Sunglasses are NOT going to cut it and will lead to eye damage.  Don’t event think about it.  There are several options for safe eclipse viewing.

Safe Eclipse Viewing Option 1 : DIY viewing box

You can hype of the eclipse as an event by building safe viewing boxes a week or two out from the eclipse.

This extends the eclipse party and gets students excited by preparing for what’s to come.

It’ll also give you plenty of time to go over safety precautions so that everyone keeps their eyes safe during the eclipse

The Exploratorium has the details for how to make the eclipse viewing box in this short video:

Safe Eclipse Viewing Option 2: Eclipse viewing glasses

Purchasing eclipse glasses is a great option if you don’t have the time or resources to build the eclipse viewing boxes in advance.

Lucky for you, Amazon comes to the rescue with packs of viewing glasses!  

Your local government may also supply viewing glasses.

Cleveland was in the path of the 2024 total eclipse and it was pretty easy to get eclipse glasses for free.

Safe Eclipse Viewing Option 3: Catch the Livestream!

Oh the technology available to us today is incredible and we should definitely be taking full advantage of everything out there for eclipse events.  

And there will be a replay option as well, so in case you’re not able to get outside to see the eclipse (rain, conflicting schedules), you can watch it later, no viewing box or glasses necessary.  

Eclipse Themed Treats

A true party has treats, and there are several fun options to give everyone a sweet treat.

You can also use the eclipse party as a mini fundraiser by offering extra special treats for sale to help offset the costs of the event.

Moon pies, anyone?  

I like that the classic treat is available in a mini size.

Perfect for class parties!  

Confession time: I don’t think I’ve ever had a Moon Pie.  In fact, I had to check out the description and discovered it’s a chocolate covered cookie!  

Regardless, Moon Pies are too funny to pass up for an eclipse party!

How about some smaller treats in the form of  Earth shaped chocolates?  Super cute!

These galaxy lollipops would be on-the-nose-fun.

Prefer more Earthly pops?

Cupcakes topped with these adorbs sprinkles would be pretty fun, don’t you think?

If you’re not a fan of sprinkles like me, maybe you’d prefer to top off your tiny treat with a cool pair of sunglasses?

Over to You!

And that’s a wrap for how to plan an eclipse party for your school.

Eclipses are cool, so your PTO shouldn’t skip over the opportunity to throw a party for the occasion!

Whatever you decide to do for the next solar eclipse, it’s sure to be memorable for the kids (and you)!

Have fun with it!

Want more ideas for can’t miss school events to delight your school community? Check out fabulous spring event ideas and low cost family event ideas.

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