A fantastic lesson plan on survival in outer space should excite your learners! Pupils explore the challenges that living, working, and surviving in space elicit. They focus on the spacesuit itself; how it protects astronauts, and...

Students explore the challenges that are faced when transporting materials into space. They review the various forms of energy, including solar arrays, that are used on the International Space Station and how generating this energy calls...

High schoolers discuss the benefits of the International Space Station. They evaluate the challenges the designers faced when trying to design the space station. Students discuss the use of scale models when designing large structures...

Learners view pictures of the space station and discuss their feelings about living in a space station. They discuss the materials needed to build a space station and its various needs for operation. They read the NASA contest rules...

If you feel like you're standing still, you're wrong! The Earth is constantly rotating and orbiting under our feet. Demonstrate the Earth's movement within the solar system with a collaborative activity. With a candle or lamp in the...

Scientists discovered the first exoplanet in 1995 and by early 2018, they confirmed the existence of more than 3,700—that's a lot of data! As part of the PBS 9-12 Space series, scholars interpret data about exoplanets. They compare...

Students explore the different parts of the Cassini spacecraft. In this space science instructional activity, students create a model of the spacecraft using food products. They compare and contrast their model with the real one and...

The propellant needed for space explorations runs in the thousands, while paying to get the craft into orbit costs millions! In the second installment of three, two activities explore laws of conservation of energy and momentum. Using...

Groups explore illumination with NASA's Lighting Environment Test Facility (LETF) as a context. Using the TI-Nspire app, groups determine the lux equation that models their simulation. They then use the lux equation to...

Learners explore satellite orbits and gravitational force.

Students examine the solar system. In this space lesson, students identify the order of the planets and their relative size to the sun. Students create a scale model of our solar system using a variety of household objects.

Young scholars study the unique environment of the moon and Mars. In this space science lesson plan, students design a city located in the outer space. They create a computer aided design, models or drawings of their cities and share...

The first remote sensors were people in hot air balloons taking photographs of Earth to make maps. Expose middle school learners to space exploration with the use of remote sensing. Groups explore and make observations of a new...

Students examine the path a satellite follows as it orbits the earth. In this space science instructional activity, students use a globe as they illustrate a satellite in its orbital plane, then plot points on the satellite's path on the...

Students study the nomenclature, operation and purpose of America's Space Transportation system. They demonstrate how water can be broken down into its component gases of hydrogen and oxygen by electrolysis. They construct and use the...

Learners figure out how to design their own space station. They take a tour on the International Space Station to see what living there is really like, and how lessons learned on the ISS help pave the way for future space tourists.

Learners view a video clip about the role of satellites in space. They examine the concept of center of mass. They participate in an experiment showing how altering the location of an object's center of mass can change its motion.

Eighth graders study the objects in our solar system.  In this space lesson students identify and describe planets, then classify them as terrestrial or gaseous.

Your charges will enjoy putting together this model of the space shuttle and completing the three challenge activities described in the lesson plan. The worksheets embedded in the plan that pupils use to cut out their gliders are...

Your class will watch as one child orbits the sun as Earth, while another orbits as Mars. If the timing is right, they will see the repetitive dance between the two planets and discover how often they are opposite from each other. For...

Here is a terrific science lesson for your elementary schoolers. In it, learners analyze different materials to simulate space radiation shielding on spacecraft, then select the best material to use to build one. This is a classic...

Students 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. 

Young scholars study the orbital space plane, NASA's proposed spacecraft of the future. They work in groups to plan missions to take place twenty years from now and design orbital space planes in which to carry out the missions.

What do Newton's Laws have to do with getting from Earth to Mars?The activities in this resource show how Newton's Laws work with rockets to get them into space. Background information includes facts about orbits and how orbits...