Brielle Gordon, 7, keeps her eyes closed to simulate being a moon rover while her sister Brynn gives instructions on where to go with library volunteer Brooke Lassinger, 15.

SAXONBURG — Mitchell Miller, 7, took three steps forward and landed on the moon's Copernicus Crater.

“He loves space and robots, so it really worked out today,” said Mitchell's mother Amanda Miller of Sarver.

Miller's son and her 2-year-old daughter were among several kindergarten-to-fifth-graders who shot for the moon during last week's Elementary Space Explorers session designed to teach children about space through experiments, challenges, science, technology, engineering and math projects, games, crafts and NASA activities at the South Butler Community Library, 240 W. Main St.

Butler County libraries drew crowds from out of this world to participate in the summer theme “Universe of Stories” that focused on the stars, sun, moon, rockets and all things related to space.

Children traveled to the moon and back as they learned about gravity by painting Gravity Art, traveled to different locations on the moon during Rove the Moon, a follow-directions-style activity and built a science, technology, engineering and math project called a Moon Lander to land their astronauts safely on the ground without them falling out of their capsule.

Literacy is the foundation of the program to keep the children engaged over the summer, said Michelle Lesniak, the library director.