James Webb Space Telescope

Webb Telescope
Fun Pad
PA C K E D W I T H T H I N G S T O D O !

www.nasa.gov
Introduction
This Fun Pad is designed for grades K-4 and is divided into sections:
- Pages 1-12: Contains general information about the James Webb Space
Telescope.
- Pages 13-27: Contains activities for students in grades K-2.
- Pages 28-46: Contains more challenging activities and is best suited for
students in grades three and four.
- This Fun Pad is best completed with adult guidance.

Education Standards
AAAS Benchmarks: Project 2061
12. Habits of Mind
D. Communication Skills
By the end of the 2nd grade, students should be able to:
• Describe and compare real-world objects in terms of number, shape, texture,
size, weight, color, and motion.
• Draw pictures that portray some features of the thing being described.
• Interpret pictures, drawings, and videos of the real-world objects and events.
By the end of the 5th grade, students should be able to:
• Interpret written descriptions of real-world objects and events.

Common Core Standards for English Language Arts

Reading: Informational Text, Kindergarten
With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations
and the text in which they appear (e.g., what person, thing, or idea in the text
and illustration depicts). (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.1.10)
Reading: Informational Text, Grade 1
With prompting and support, read informational texts appropriately complex
for grade 1. (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.10)
Reading: Informational Text, Grades 2-3
By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including
history/social studies, science, and technical text, in the grades 2-3 text
complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of
the range. (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.10)
Reading: Informational Text, Grades 4
By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including
history/social studies, science, and technical text, in the grades 2-3 text
complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of
the range. (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.10)
 WEBB TELESCOPE
Mission logo

This is the Webb telescope mission patch. The National

Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the European
Space Agency (ESA), and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) are
working together to create and build this new telescope.

1
 JAMES WEBB
A man and his telescope

The Webb telescope was named after the person who

was the head of NASA in the 1960s. Though he is most
commonly linked to the Apollo Moon Program, James
Webb was the one who thought NASA should be
doing more science. Because he inspired NASA’s
successful science program, it is only fitting that the
next generation space telescope bears his name.

2
 HUBBLE IN SPACE
Connect the dots to see Hubble
3 4
2 5

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1 7
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47 48 49 10
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35 34

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31

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27 25
26
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The Hubble Space Telescope was launched into space in 1990.

After more than 20 years and a few upgrades, Hubble keeps
sending back beautiful images and helping scientists to learn
about the universe. The Webb telescope will be the “big
brother” to Hubble and scientists expect great discoveries and
wonderful images from the Webb telescope.

3
LEARN ABOUT WEBB TELESCOPE
Fun facts

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1
2 3

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4
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34 5
6

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31 33 7 8

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30 11
29 28 10
14

15 17
27
23 22 16
18
26 24 21 12
25 19
20 13

The Webb telescope will have the largest mirror ever placed in
space, so large that for it to fit in the rocket, it will have to be
folded like origami. The five layer sunshield, the size of a tennis
court, will protect the telescope from the light and heat of the
Sun, Earth, and Moon. The sunshield adds protection to the
telescope that is equivalent to SPF 1,000,000. Webb will be
such a powerful telescope that it will be able to see a penny
from 24 miles away.

The Webb will be a giant leap forward in our quest to under-

stand the universe and our origins. The Webb will examine
every phase of cosmic history: from the bright glows after the
Big Bang to the formation of galaxies, stars, and planets to the
evolution of our own solar system.

4
 MIRROR... MIRROR
Count and write in the number of
segments in the Webb mirror

Webb Mirror

Hubble
Primary
Mirror

The Webb mirror is very large and will collect 7 times

more light than Hubble’s mirror. However, a large, solid
mirror (like Hubble’s) would be too heavy to launch into
space, Webb’s is made up of 18 mirror segments that will
act as one. The mirror segments will be folded up and put
inside the rocket for launch.

5
A NEW IDEA TO SEE BETTER
How m i c r oshut t er s work

One of the science instruments on the Webb telescope has a

new way of looking at faint, far away galaxies. It uses
something called microshutters. To get an idea of how this
works, think about how you would make something far away
look clearer—just squint! By squinting, your eyelashes block
out the light closest to you. This is very similar to how
microshutters work.

6
 READY TO LAUNCH
Find out how Webb folds up and fits into
the launch rocket nose cone

The Webb telescope

is as wide as a tennis
court and as tall as a
3-story building.

It is too big to fit into

a rocket, so Webb
will be folded up like
origami and tucked
inside the nose of
the rocket.

Once in space, the

telescope will open
like a transformer.

7
WEBB TELESCOPE IN SPACE
How far away will it be?

Earth/Moon
Sun Orbit Around
the Sun
93
M
15

Earth
ill
0

io
M

n
ill

Moon
M
io

ile
n

s
km

1
M
ill
1.

io
5

n
M

M
ill

L2 Point
ile
io
n

s
km

Webb
Telescope

The Webb telescope will live 1 million miles from Earth. This is
nearly 4 times the distance between the Earth and the Moon.

8
 DOWNLOADING DATA
How does the information get to us?

There are three stages in getting the data from Webb to the ground:

1 The Webb gathers the data

2 The Webb sends the data down to ground stations on Earth

3 The data is sent to the Science Center

3
3

9
 INFRARED IMAGING
How Webb will see objects in space
VISIBLE
INFRARED

Infrared light can be seen through some materials that

visible light cannot. Notice that in the visible light
image, you cannot see the man’s hand in the black bag.
With an infrared camera, however, we can detect the
heat from the man’s arm and hand and thus “see”
through the bag. Similarly, Webb can detect the infra-
red light from young stars hidden in clouds and dust.

10
SEEING IN A NEW LIGHT
Infrared facts
Can you tell what animals are in these pictures?

A B C

D E F

A. D.

B. E.

C. F.

To make infrared pictures like the ones above, we can

use special cameras that sense heat. Many things
besides people and animals give off infrared light —
the Earth, Sun, and far away things like stars and
galaxies do also!

A - Parrot, B - Turtle, C - Horse, D - Giraffe, E - Monkey, F - Chicken

11
 MAKE A MATCH
Draw a line between the matching
pictures and words

Hubble
Telescope

Galaxy

Webb
Telescope

Earth

12
DRAW A FACE ON THE STAR
M a k e i t sad, m ad, or gla d!

SAD GLAD

MAD
13
 LOOKING DIFFERENT
Circle the one that is not the same

14
C OL O R TH E W E B B T ELES CO P E
M a ke t hi s a w or k of a r t a nd s p a ce

15
 MIX AND MATCH
Draw a line from the shape to its shadow

16
 MOON DOGGIE
C olor -by-num ber space dog
1
1
1
2 1
2 1
1 3
1
1 1
2
2
2
2 1
2 1 1
2
1
2

3 3
3

4 4 6
3 5 3
5
4

4 5 3 3
4
4 4
2 3
2 2 3
6 2 3
6
2
3 6
3 3 3
3 3
2
6
2 3 3
2 3 3

2 2 2 2
2 2
3 3 3
3
5 5 3 3 3
3 3 3
5 5 3 3
5 5 5 5 4
4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5
5 5 5 4 5 4 4 4 5
4 4 4 4
4 5 5
5 5
5 5 5
5 5
5 5
5
5 5 4
5 5 4 4 5
5 5 5
5 5 5
5 4
5 5
5 5 5
5

1 - Green 4 - Brown
2 - Blue 5 - Tan
3 - Light Blue 6 - Red

17
 IS IT FREEZING IN SPACE?
Connect the dots to see a cold spot

37 38
39
36
40
35
34 41

33 42

32 43
44
30 45
31 29

28 1
27 2
26
3
25
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22 7

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11
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16 15 14 13

The snowman’s temperature is around 27° Fahrenheit (-3° Celcius).

The Webb telescope has to stay at -400° F (-240° C) below zero.

18
 WHAT COMES NEXT?
Draw the picture that comes next in each row

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 DRAWING THE LINE
Draw a line between the pictures and
the words that match

Webb
Telescope

Sun

Rocket

Hexagon

20
 RHYME T IME
W h a t ot h er wor ds r hym e with STAR ?

Candy Bar, Guitar, Car, Jar

21
 AS TRONAUT COLOR B Y N UM B ER
Hel p t he ast r onaut pl ace the fla g

2 6 3 4
6 4
3 3
2 2 4
6 6 4
4
6 6 4
3 4 4
6 6
3 4
6 4
2 3 4
4
3 3 4
6 3
3 3 3
6 3 3
6 6 3
6 3 2
2 3
3
6 3
3
3 2
6 3
1 6
1 1 1
3 3 1 1
6 6
5 5
5 5 2
2 2 1
1 1 1
1 6
1 1
1 6 3 5 5
1
1 1
2 6 1 1
5 3 1
5 6
5 5
5 2
5 5
5 2
2 1 1
1
6
6 3
1
1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1

1 - Tan 3 - Gray 5 - Brown

2 - Blue 4 - Red 6 - Dark Gray

22
 ONE MORE WORD
W h a t w or d r epl ac es t he que s tion ma rk?

Webb ?

Hubble Space ?
?
? ?
Ultraviolet ? ?
? ?

Optical ?

Radio ?

X-ray ?

Telescope

23
 DRAWING LESSON
Draw your own space telescope

24
 SPACE STUFF
Un s c r a mb l e t he let t er s t o spe ll s pa ce words

XLAYGA

HRATE

NTEPAL

NUHALC

UNS

RSTA

UDLCO

Galaxy, Earth, Planet, Launch, Sun, Star, Cloud

25
 ORDER UP!
Alphabetize these space-related words

CO M
OR ET GAL
M ETE AXY

R O S H UT TERS NEBUL A
MIC AST
ERO
S TA ID
R

SU N SH IE LD

MIRRO RS

N ET
PLA

1. 6.

2. 7.

3. 8.

4. 9.

5. 10.

Asteroid, Comet, Galaxy, Meteor, Microshutters, Mirrors, Nebula, Planet, Star, Sunshield

26
 A STRONG ELEMENT
How many words can you spell using
the letters in BERYLLIUM?

1. 6.

2. 7.

3. 8.

4. 9.

5. 10.

Beryllium is a steel grey, strong, light-weight metal that is

used to make the Webb’s mirrors and optics.
Lime, Mill, Brim, Yell, Bell, Mile, Mule, Lie, Rim, Rule, Rye, Bill

27
THE PLANETS AROUND US
Name the planets in our Solar System

M J
V S
E U
M N
HINT: My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Noodles
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

28
 FIND SOME SHADE
How many times can you find
the word “sunshade”?

S U A S U S

U N H U E S

N S A N E A

S U N S H A D E

H N A H S N U S

A S H A U

D H A D A

E A A E H

S D N S

U E A E
N U A E

The large sunshield (sunshade) will protect the

Webb telescope from getting hot by direct sunlight,
allowing it to cool down to a temperature -400°
below zero Fahrenheit (or -240° Celcius).
4

29
 CROSSWORDS
A n sw er the c l ues t o f ill in the word

P
1

L
2

A
3

N
4

E
5

T
6

CLUES:
1. The fifth planet from the Sun, the largest and most massive in the solar system
2. Our solar system is in the Milky Way
3. Celestial bodies that are seen as points of light in the night sky
4. A scientist who studies planets, stars, and galaxies
5. A small extraterrestrial body that is a frozen mass that travels around the Sun
6. Any small solid extraterrestrial bodies that hits the Earth's atmosphere

1. Jupiter 2. Galaxy 3. Stars 4. Astronomer 5. Comet 6. Meteor

30
 LOOK FOR
WEBB TELESCOPE WORDS
Sear c h and f ind

D E R A R F N I
D J D L E I H S
O E W A V E T G
B E T S K Y R A
S P E C T R A L
E O T A T L E A
R C E N U S T X
V S L B E N H Y
A U E N D E G H
T N S C A F I C
O O C T A M L N
R D O L A P O U
Y N P G N A S A
E N E R G Y E L

EARTH INFRARED NEBULA SENSOR SPECTRAL

ENERGY LAUNCH OBSERVATORY SHIELD SUN
GALAXY LIGHT SCAN SKY TELESCOPE
HEAT NASA SCOPE SPACE WAVE
IMAGE

31
 COMPARE THE SIZE
Hubble or Webb: Which is bigger?

Hubble
Space The Hubble Space
Telescope Telescope is about
the size of a large
tractor trailer truck.

The Webb
telescope’s
Webb sunshield is
Telescope
almost as
big as a
Boeing 737
airplane!

Webb Telescope

32
 CROSSWORDS
A n s w er the c l ues t o f ill i n the word

G
1

A
2

L
3

A
4

X
5

Y
6

CLUES:
1. What the Sun, a lamp, or a beacon gives off
2. The Webb telescope will be launched into outer
3. Webb or Hubble Space
4. Heavenly bodies that look like points of light in the sky
5. The shape of Webb’s eighteen mirrors
6. Equipment that is launched on board the Shuttle or rockets for a mission in space

1. Light 2. Space 3. Telescope 4. Stars 5. Hexagon 6. Payload

33
 WAY OUT OF HERE
Get Webb t o t he l aunch pa d

Start
Here

Launch

The Webb telescope will be launched on an Ariane-5

rocket in South America.

34
SEARCHING FOR WORDS
C i r c l e t he Webb t elesc ope words

C A M E R A L Y
P N I R O I K E
A S C O R S N P
Y A R R A C R G
L C O R T I A P
O O S I S T O Y
A S H M A P R M
D M U D R O B O
E O T N C R I N
L S T K A L T O
B B E W G S I R
B T R A W N A T
U E S J D E M S
H T E N A L P A

NASA DATA MIRROR PRISM STAR

ARRAY GAS ORBIT RING SUN
ASTRONOMY HUBBLE OPTICS ROCKET WEBB
CAMERA LENS PAYLOAD SKY
COSMOS MICROSHUTTERS PLANET

35
 WEBB HAS EIGHTEEN...
Find the answer by writing the first letter
of each object in the box beside the picture

Moon, Ice Cream, Rabbit, Rocket, Orange, Ring, Saturn = MIRRORS

36
 SPACE COUNTING
How many times can you find
the word “space”?

E
AC
SP

S P A C E C E S

P P C A E S P C

A E A S E A S S

C S C C C P P E

E C A E A A A C

P P C A P A E A

S E A P S E P P

S P A C E C E S
7

37
DIFFERENT EARTHLINGS
Find and circle 8 different things

38
 MAZE CRAZE
Help light get from the galaxy
to the Webb telescope

Start
Here

The Webb telescope will be a million miles from Earth, which

means that it will be much farther away from us than the
Moon! Webb needs to stay cool so it can see faint, far away
galaxies. The place where Webb will be will let the telescope
use its large sunshield to block out infrared light from the Sun,
Earth, and Moon.

39
 WEBB TELESCOPE PARTS
U s e t he c ode t o nam e the pa rts
of t he spac ec r aft

*
* *

*
A = F = � K= O = S = W=
B = G = L = P = T = X=
C = H = M= Q = U = Y=
D = I = * N= R = V = Z=
E = J =
Primary Mirror, Secondary Mirror, Trim Tab, Spacecraft Bus, Sunshield

40
 COUNT THEM UP
How many objects can you find?

How many telescopes?

How many stars?

How many galaxies?

How many planets?

How many radar antenna?

4 Telescopes, 6 Stars, 1 Galaxy, 3 Planets, 1 Radar Antnenna

41
 IDENTICAL WEBB
Circle the two telescopes that are the same

42
 SCRAMBLE TIME
Tr a c e ov er t he dashed lines and uns cra mb le
t h e w or ds t o nam e t he s pa ce cra ft

LEUBHB
CEPSA
LETPOESCE

BEWB
POCLEETSE

Hubble Space Telescope, Webb telescope

43
 HOW DID WE GET HERE?
F r om t h e f ir st lig ht i n t he unive rs e to the
b i r t h of p l anet s and t he o rigins of life

The launch of the Webb

telescope will be a giant step in
the human quest to understand
our place in the universe. With
the largest telescope mirror
ever placed in space, the Webb
telescope will examine every
phase of our history: from
wisps of gas condensing into
the first stars and galaxies after
the Big Bang, to the formation
of solar systems capable of
supporting life on planets like
Earth, and to the evolution of
our own Solar System.

44
EXPLORE
MORE

For more information on NASA

and the Webb Telescope, visit
these web sites:

http://nasa.gov/stem
http://science.nasa.gov
http://www.nasa.gov/webb
http://www.nasa.gov/hubble
http://www.stsci.edu/jwst/
 James Webb Space Telescope

Webb Telescope
Fun Pad
PA C K E D W I T H T H I N G S T O D O !

NP-2011-04-201-GSFC (rev 8/2016)