Introduce your class to the steps that occur in the manufacturing of parts, the assembly, and the testing of a Mars rover. Pupils learn about fabrication techniques and tolerances in the manufacturing process. 

Operating a vehicle remotely can be difficult, especially when the vehicle is on another planet. Young engineers get a feel for some of the real-world challenges as they work to program their rovers (blindfolded group members)...

Help your class understand the importance of exploration using robots. with a resource that provides a short history of robotics as a lead into looking at Martian robotic exploration missions. The activity specifically looks at the...

Take your science class on a hypothetical field trip to Mars with an engaging astronomy lesson. After first learning about NASA's Mars rover missions, young scientists plan their own scientific investigations of Earth's...

Help your class understand the design challenges when trying to land a remote spacecraft on a planet. Class members examine the provided information to understand how each component of a spacecraft is designed in order to safely land a...

Fourth graders identify the Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Pathfinder and the rover, Sojourner.

Introduce your class to Mars with a resource that provides information about its size, location, length of day, length of year, number of moons, and average temperature. Also includes is information about the lans for past...

Students read an article and discuss it.  In this Mars rover instructional activity students complete an activity that allows them to see things through a different viewpoint. 

Students decide whether or not there is or has even been water on Mars. They analyze temperature and pressure data from the Pathfinder mission to Mars, and then they analyze images of Mars, interpreting the landforms they see and...

Students investigate the equipment of Planetary Land Rovers. They construct one using various food products for construction materials. The lesson includes historical background for the teacher to introduce the information. The grading...

Students examine the concepts of forces and motion. They work together to design protective devices for their egg rovers as they are dropped from a specific height. They record their observations and discuss.

Students simulate driving a rover in Mars. In this space science lesson plan, students navigate an obstacle while blindfolded and guided by verbal commands only. They assess the challenges encountered by astronauts in operating a rover.

Students investigate the solar system and what makes a planet habitable. They complete an online Webquest, simulate a NASA training program online, take an online quiz, answer discussion questions, and locate newspaper articles about the...

Students examine core samples from Mars and discover what they can use it to tell the history of Mars.  In this core sample lesson students create and analyze their own core samples then eat them at the end.

Fourth graders participate in a simulation in which they explain the problems of operating a planetary rover.

Students examine how spacecraft land on Mars. Using eggs or lightbulbs, they design a craft that withstand a drop from a table or ladder, competing in groups to see which module demonstrates the most successful landing.

Students study Mars and what it would take to man a mission there.  In this solar system lesson students view a video and complete an art activity in groups. 

Learners discuss the solar system, the planets, periods of orbit and revolution.  In this space lesson students discuss the importance of the study of Mars and brainstorm ideas on how NASA might solve its Rover design problem. 

Students identify the challenges encountered by astronauts in operating a planetary rover. In this space science lesson, students create a rover using their team members. They follow a command sequence from the driver and navigate...

Students read an article about NASA and Mars and complete short answer questions about the article. In this Mars lesson plan, students also create a scale model of the solar system.

Students explore latest Mars rovers - Spirit and Opportunity. They investigate the nature of communications with the Rovers including use of Mars Orbiters as relay stations. They research needs of future missions and design...

Beginning with a discussion about using technology to collect data, this resource includes a video about the next Mars rover as an example. Young scientists are taught that filtering is necessary before collected data can be analyzed....

The Mars Global Surveyor spent two years creating a mineral map of the planet Mars using thermal emission spectrometry. To help young astronomers understand this remote sensing instrument, have them simulate how data is collected and...

Students learn about how engineers help us to know about Mars and Jupiter. In this Mars and Jupiter instructional activity, students are introduced to the telescope, deep space antennas, spacecraft, and planetary rovers that engineers...