Curated OER
MAPPING THE TOPOGRAPHY OF UNKNOWN SURFACES
Students describe in words and graphic displays the elevation or depression profile of sections of Mars' Olympus Mons and/or Valles Marineris. They explain how orbiting spacecraft build up global maps one data slice at a time.
National First Ladies' Library
On the Road, on the Sea, in the Air: Women and Transportation
Students research women who made history in development of different forms of transportation, including boats, railroads, automobiles, airplanes, and space shuttles, and create timeline/collage depicting some of their contributions.
Curated OER
Mission Impossible! Are We Alone in the Universe, or Are We Just One of Its Citizens?
Students examine NASA strategy for scientifically studying any celestial body. They brainstorm about all previous space explorations and missions they can recall, and propose an expedition plan to become space explorers of the future.
Curated OER
Robot Earth
Students construct a simple robotic energy transformer. In this space science lesson, students explain how energy is transformed from one form to another. They identify the different uses of robotic devices.
Curated OER
Lift Off with Rockets!
Students obtain information concerning rockets and the use of them in space, create their own rocket on the computer with the graphic choices on the website www.goobo.com, and write descriptive words or phrases to describe their rockets.
Curated OER
How Do We Explore Strange Environments?
Students identify and label the different parts of a robot, rover, or a spacecraft. They discuss and record all of the features their robot will need to accomplish its mission and be able to explain why they chose these features to...
Curated OER
Write a Space Poem
Learners write a variety of space travel poems that will be used to compile a class book and draw their own rocket and half fill it with words associated with space travel and add design and color.
Curated OER
A Tour of the Solar System
Students construct a spacecraft out of Lego blocks and other materials. They work on their models in small groups while building. They become familar with the planets while working cooperatively.
Curated OER
Mission to Mars
Students consider the affects of space travel on the human body. In this human physiology lesson, students compare how the 5 different body systems work on Earth and in Space. Students then design a product that an astronaut could use as...
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Questioning NASA
Space science and math collide in this inquiry that investigates launching times for antacid-tablet rockets! Upper elementary or middle school learners collect data as they launch these mini rockets. They apply concepts of place value...
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Online Planetary Tour
Young scholars develop an interactive presentation about the planets for their fictional interplanetary travel agency. They demonstrate their knowledge of internet research techniques and the Solar System through their interactive...
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BASE-ic Space Travel
In this 3-day place-value lesson, upper-elementary kids investigate the base 5 and base 2 systems as an introduction to exponents and powers. They create a pocket chart to help ground their understanding of bases, exponents, and powers,...
Curated OER
Human Factors
Students design a space settlement for colonizing a planet in our solar system. In small groups, they play a space colony game and read an article about human needs in space to prepare for the design stage. They discuss their design...
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Planetary Tourism
Students pretend they are the first student to be allowed in space. They examine all nine planets on their journey. They complete a KWL chart and worksheets before they do their research. They create an itinerary of their tour and...
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Spacemobiles
Aspiring astronauts construct a space vehicle using cylinders, cones, spheres, and rectangular prisms. This is an engaging method of learning about three-dimensional shapes. Note that the word cylinder is constantly misspelled in the...
Curated OER
Cooler in the Shadows
Young scholars explore Earth science by creating a scale model in class. In this shadow lesson, students research the impact the sun has on Earth shadows and complete a space science worksheet. Young scholars create models of the Sun and...
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Human Factors
Students explain the psychological effects of living in space. They esign the houses and interior of a space settlement, make decisions about the running of a space settlement, and explore the human factors involved in space colonization.
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Outerspace: Frontier for Personal Health and Hygiene
Students view photos of astronauts sleeping, eating, bathing, and using the toilet, and discuss hygiene problems in a zero-gravity environment. They contrast hygiene habits in space to those on Earth, and create storybooks illustrating...
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Organisms, Objects, and Events
Students obtain information concerning rockets and the use of them in space. They create their own rocket on the computer with the graphic choices on the website www.goobo.com. They write descriptive phrases about their rocket.
Curated OER
Hello, Anybody Out There?
Students understand that people believe there may be life in other solar systems. In this communication with other solar systems lesson, students analyze our planet and write things they want to communicate to other solar systems.
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Unveiling the Secrets of Saturn
Students read and study an article then answer questions on Saturn. In this investigative lesson students identify ways space exploration has helped humanity and then they search the Internet for space pictures and sketch a drawing of...
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Sounds of Poetry
Fifth graders read "Tunnel Music" and then explore how words and spacing in a poem affects how the poem sounds.
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People Movers
Students investigate how transportation has evolved through the years. Students also generalize how transportation may continue to change in the future. Students work in small groups to brainstorm ideas the identify and solve a...
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Exploring Mars
Students, working in small groups construct scale models of the planets and solar system. They examine images of Mars and discuss what might have caused the features. They record facts about their planetary research in their journals and...