Lunar Eclipse Worksheet & Craft

Grab this free printable total lunar eclipse craft and coloring worksheets for kids.

Kids will begin with the coloring worksheets. It will help kids learn about the different phases of a lunar eclipse, and the difference between a lunar and a solar eclipse.

Afterwards they get to complete the craft. The finished craft is small enough for kids to take with them to watch the March 13-14, 2025 total lunar eclipse. It’ll help them determine which phase they are seeing.

But since you’d have to sacrifice some sleep to watch the eclipse, the lunar eclipse worksheets and craft are still a fun way to learn about this space event even if you can’t watch it live.

Lunar Eclipse Foldout

After completing the craft, kids will have a lunar eclipse foldout that opens to show 7 different phases of a lunar eclipse with a diagram for each:

1. full moon – the moon is fully illuminated by the sun
2. penumbral eclipse begins – the moon enters Earth’s outer shadow, causing a subtle shading
3. partial eclipse begins – a portion of the moon moves into Earth’s umbra, creating a visible dark shadow
4. total eclipse – the entire moon is within Earth’s umbra, often appearing red due to scattered sunlight
5. total eclipse ends – the moon starts moving out of Earth’s umbra, and the bright surface reappears
6. partial eclipse ends – only a small portion of the moon remains shadowed
7. penumbral eclipse ends – the moon completely exits Earth’s shadow, returning to a full moon

Kids will need to color the different diagrams to properly represent a lunar eclipse. Children will learn 4 fun facts, and color a diagram showing how the Earth, the sun, and the moon line up in a lunar eclipse.

And kids will get to color the cover page of the moon.

Supplies

Only a few basic supplies are needed for this lunar eclipse craft:

• 2 sheets of letter size white printer paper
• 1 sheet of white cardstock (another sheet of printer paper can be used if you don’t have cardstock)
• crayons
• scissors
• a glue stick
• tape
• the PDF (download it free below)

Directions

This space craft can be done in 8 easy steps:

#1 – Coloring the Cover

Color both halves of the moon with the lunar eclipse coloring page.

#2 – Cut the Cover Page in Half

Follow the line to cut this page in half.

#3 – Fold

Grab the other 2 pages and fold each of them like an accordion. The top and bottom quarter should be folded inwards, and the middle fold the opposite way.

Carefully fold along the lines. For some folds, where you couldn’t see the line, because it was on the other side, I found it easiest to fold the wrong way first, and then fold it the right way.

#4 – Fold the Tabs of the Coloring Page Down

For both halves of the moon coloring page, fold the non colored strip underneath.

This step is a little trickier to fold due to the bulky nature of cardstock. But just do one section at a time, carefully folding along the line.

#5 – Glue the Tab of the Top Half of the Coloring Page to Its Paper

Take the top half of the coloring page, and the folded page that begins with “Full Moon”.

Using a glue stick, apply glue to the tab under the cardstock. I placed a scrap of paper under the tab to make it easier to glue the edges fully, without getting glue everywhere else.

Very carefully attach the top of the folded page to this area. Do your best to line it up correctly, so that it goes just under the line, and so the edges stay flush.

#6 – Glue the Other Tab to Its Paper

Fully glue the tab of the bottom half of the coloring page.

Then carefully attach the bottom of the page that begins with “Total Eclipse Ends”.

#7 – Tape the 2 Papers Together

Join the bottom of the page that ends with “Total Eclipse” to the top of the page that begins with “Total Eclipse Ends”.

To do so, place it like in the image, then flip them over, carefully place the sheets together and tape on the back.

Make sure to put tape from one end to the other. If you miss a spot, you will see a bit of a hole.

#8 – Coloring the Lunar Eclipse Worksheets

And now kids can complete the worksheets, only it won’t look like worksheets, it’ll look more like a lunar eclipse coloring book.

The worksheets will have kids learn about each stage of the eclipse. Using crayons, they can color the images of the moons to represent each stage.

The short video below, and my photo lower down, will help kids figure out how to color the moon at each phase.

Remember, the video shows the moon in much more detail than we would see with the naked eye. But my photo shows a more realistic view of how we would actually see it.

And what’s the difference between a lunar and a solar eclipse? Kids will see a diagram of each and need to color the diagram of the lunar eclipse.

Finished Lunar Eclipse Craft

The finished craft can be carried like a tiny folder, making it easy for kids to have on hand during a lunar eclipse.

Its foldable nature also makes it easy to pack away.

And when you place the 2 pieces together, you see the full moon coloring page.

Download the printable PDF below.

Download & Print

Use any of the forms below to download the printable lunar eclipse foldout.

The 3 page PDF prints in black and white.

Learning About the Lunar Eclipse Resources

Here’s a short video to help kids learn more about lunar eclipses:

Watching the Lunar Eclipse

Since my daughter was 2, we have tried to watch every lunar eclipse.

Many times, due to the weather or cloud cover, we weren’t able to watch it live. Fortunately, when that happens, you can still watch a live stream of the lunar eclipse.

Even tho we would prefer to watch it outside, a live stream does have its perks. You get to see the moon closer up, and you learn quite a bit from the commentary. And of course, it’s much warmer.

But when we do get to see it live, it is truly memorable. My daughter is now nearly 15 and she still remembers her first eclipse when she was 3.

She was quite tired but determined to stay awake and watch it. I set up a comfortable bed in the backyard for her with a pillow and a nice warm blanket. It was a nice moment being able to lie back under the sky and watch it with her.

Other times we had planned a middle of the night picnic eclipse viewing party with some friends on a boat dock.

I tried to take some photos, I should have set my camera up on a tripod, but I didn’t. After the last image you see below, it went cloudy, so we had to go in.

We are planning on watching the next lunar eclipse, on March 13-14, 2025, from our car. Since it’s still winter, we’ll be able to put the seats back, have a nice warm blanket, and look out through our sunroof.

If you get to watch the lunar eclipse, let me know in the comments where you watched it from.