How to Select a Kids Telescope
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If your child is showing interest in astronomy, or just enjoys gazing at the stars and moon, a kids telescope may be a great idea. A beginner telescope can get your youngster involved in a new hobby without needing to make a large investment. You can’t say this about too many sports or activities these days!Giving your child a kids telescope will tell them that you support their interest in astronomy and believe it to be a worthwhile endeavor. A beginner telescope, even without all the features, can give your child or grandchild a head start in learning about the universe and star systems.
What Will a Kids Telescope Cost?
Even though a beginner telescope can be purchased for under $50, these are usually considered more of a toy than a functioning astronomy telescope. A basic beginner telescope can be purchased for around $100 depending on features.
If you wish to invest a little more, a good starter telescope with some of the more advanced features, will cost anywhere from $200 to $300. This will provide your young astronomer with a quality piece of stargazing equipment.
Tips for Buying a Kids Telescope
Many astronomers and educators recommend a telescope with a longer focal length and separate viewer. This allows the child to find objects much easier and reduces the frustration that can result for the novice astronomer.
There are many cheaper models that offer a focal length of only 30mm or 50mm and will provide a more generalized view of the night sky. However, if you want a telescope that will provide a more detailed picture of the planets, moon and constellations, a 70mm or higher focal length is strongly recommended.
Kids telescopes are available from a number of top-rate optics companies like Meade, Celestron, Bushnell, Orion and many others. Even the Discovery Channel offers an affordable 70mm lens kids telescope with easy set-up and easy-to-use features.
The Right Way to Use Your New Telescope
Reading the instructions for your child’s new telescope can’t be stressed enough. Even the basic kids’ telescopes can be confusing to use the first few times. It is advisable for the parent to read through the instruction manual and help the young astronomer learn the basic operations of the telescope.
Starting with a kids telescope is only the first step in a child’s adventure into exploring the universe. Why not take a look at our site reviews and choose the telescope merchant that best suits your needs. Both have a great selection of telescopes at extremely competitive prices.
And while you’re at it, check out the Meade 114EQ-ASTR at Shoptics.com. We found it to be an exceptional beginner telescope for only about $150. It features a 1000mm focal length with four and a half inch aperture, and is also capable of being attached to a 35mm camera body for photographing the images. The Meade is really a lot of telescope for the money and makes an ideal kids telescope with room to grow!
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December 30th, 2007 at 4:45 pm
[…] If you have a young astronomer that is showing an interest in the stars and planets, perhaps it’s time to purchase a child telescope to take her interest to the next level. Now, you don’t need to invest in an expensive mini-Hubble telescope for your child’s first telescope because there are many very adequate telescopes offered by most of the popular optics manufacturers. […]