More ways to "project" stars and special effects in a darkened classroom

The bright idea of using sequined "mermaid" fabric to project our Story of Creation galaxy nebula and stars came after the following experiment with craft sequins and a flashlight. We had glued a bunch of shiny sequins on cardboard and hit it with a bright flashlight. The effect was fun and immediate -- a ceiling full of stars. We also discovered that it was important to put the sequins on a non-reflective surface like cardboard.

Keep one of these handheld "star reflectors" in your drama supply closet for some quick stars in the sky.

While we glued our sequins in this experiment, they do sell "stick on" sequins which a student or teacher could easily stick to the cardboard and hold in their hand to shine stars up on the ceiling.

We also experimented with other ways to project "space things" on the ceiling. In this "projector" we painted a cut-glass jelly jar using red and blue translucent paints (the kind you find in a craft store next to those "paint your own plastic stained glass" kits).  Below is a photo of our "Red Giant Jar" which just happens to be sitting on some blue/silver mermaid fabric.

The student puts the jar over their flashlight and slowly turns it. See the video for the effect.

Tip: We had to put a pretty thick coat of red and blue on the jar because otherwise, our1300 lumens flashlight washed it out on the ceiling.

We also wrapped some foil around the bottom of the jar --inside and outside, to reduce the noise of the glass jar against our metal flashlight.

Imagine making a couple of "glass jar" effects and adding them to the "galaxy/nebula/star" effect described in the first post. We did that for the Writing Team's Story of Creation Drama Workshop. We made the "beginning of Creation" effects to go with a special music video we were showing and interacting with at the same time.

Having a bright flashlight, and more than one of them, will be a big help in creating your drama's special effects.