International Technology Education Association
Dampen That Drift!
The spacecraft is drifting too far off course! Two games help explain how a spacecraft can use its thrusters to maintain its position. The games have pupils be the components of vectors in order to create and counteract the disturbances.
International Technology Education Association
Sizing Up the Clouds
How much rain can that cloud make? Through a simulation, the class estimates the amount of candy rain contained in different cup clouds. After probing the clouds using different methods, class members adjust their estimates. Participants...
International Technology Education Association
Pixel This!
Did the image I drew match the image you saw? By simulating a satellite and a ground station, teams of two transmit data in the form of pixels in order to recreate an image. They use four different levels of brightness, creating slightly...
International Technology Education Association
Tidy Up Those Sloppy Force Fields!
It is just magnetic. This resource presents the concept of Earth's and another planet's magnetic field and how spacecrafts detect them. Learners study a problem using magnetometers and participate in three experiments to come up with a...
International Technology Education Association
Become a Weather Wizard
Accurate weather forecasting is something we take for granted today, making it easy to forget how complex it can be to predict the weather. Learn more about the terms and symbols used to forecast the weather with an earth science lesson...
NASA
Water Works on a Blue Planet
Keep within a water budget. Learners find out that less than 2.5% of Earth's water is available to drink—and that there is a fixed amount of water. Scholars read an interesting article comparing the available water to a game of Monopoly...
NASA
Speaking in Phases
Hear from deep space. Pupils learn how satellites transfer information back to Earth. They learn about three different ways to modulate radio waves and how a satellite sends information with only 0s and 1s. Using sound, class members...
NASA
Blinded by the Light!
Pupils learn of multiple ways astronomers look for planets outside of the solar system. By completing a hands-on activity, scholars discover that trying to see the planets directly because of the glare from the nearby star is nearly...
NASA
Write the Book on Weather Metrics
It's not easy to measure the weather. Pupils learn about what all weather has in common—the atmosphere. Scholars discover how a meteorologists must be able to measure aspects of the atmosphere and decipher the data. They then create a...
NASA
Taking Apart the Light
Break down light into spectra. Scholars learn how atoms emit and absorb photons and come to understand how this process allows scientists to identify different atoms based on either absorption lines or emission lines. Learners then...
NASA
Catch a Gravitational Wave, Dude!
It is cowabunga time! Pupils read an article about the NASA LISA mission on gravitational waves and conduct additional research on them. The class participates in a science bowl type competition about gravitational waves. Panels of four...
NASA
Packing for a L-o-o-o-ng Trip to Mars
Pack just enough to fit. Crews determine what personal items to take with them on a trip to Mars. Each team must decide what to take with them on a two-and-a-half year trip to Mars and whether their items will fit within the allotted...
NASA
Taking a Cold, Clear Look at the Universe
Take a look with another perspective. Pupils read to find out what portion of the electromagnetic spectrum a space telescope sees and the difficulties of viewing infrared radiation from other objects in space. Individuals discover how...
NASA
Keeping Nine Eyes on the Weather
Take a look at climate change from another angle. Readers learn about the MISR instrument on the Terra satellite and how it studies Earth. Pupils experience how the multiple cameras give scientists multiple views so they can better study...
International Technology Education Association
Telescope as Time Machine
This resource provides an explanation of NASA's GALEX mission and how the space-based telescope can view distant galaxies as they were billions of years ago. The resource also discusses the other aspects of galaxies that GALEX is able to...
Sea World
Ocean Discovery
Immerse your young marine biologists in the world of marine animals. The lesson includes several activities that are age-appropriate for preschoolers and kindergartners, including coloring pages, gluing feathers and sand onto paper...
Sea World
Endangered Species
Study different endangered species with several activities that incorporate math, science, language arts, and research strategies. A great addition to your instructional activity on conservation or Earth Day.
Sea World
Whales
A whale of a lesson is sure to intrigue your elementary oceanographers! Learn about the mammals of the sea with a series of activities about whales, dolphins, and porpoises. Kids complete worksheets about the anatomy of a whale, create a...
Sea World
Marine Animal Husbandry and Training
Step into the role of a zoo director with several activities about animal training and running a zoo. Kids calculate the amount of food each animal needs, design a habitat for penguins, decide how to breed bottlenose dolphins, and train...
National Security Agency
Classifying Triangles
Building on young mathematicians' prior knowledge of three-sided shapes, this lesson series explores the defining characteristics of different types of triangles. Starting with a shared reading of the children's book The Greedy Triangle,...
National Security Agency
Integers: Quick, Fun and Easy To Learn
A good complement to any integers unit contains a three-day lesson plan about positive and negative integers, adding and subtracting integers, and how to find the additive inverse. Additionally, it provides all necessary worksheets and...
PBS
Working with Coordinate Planes: Activities and Supplemental Materials
Seven activities make up a collection of supplemental materials to reinforce graphing on a coordinate plane. Worksheet objectives include plotting coordinates within single and four quadrants, measuring straight and diagonal lines, and...
PBS
Working With Equivalent Fractions, Decimals and Percentages: Activities and Supplemental Materials
Reinforce math concepts using six worksheets that coincide with Virtual Math Girl's video instruction. The practice pages' objectives include writing equivalent fractions, decimal equivalents, and converting percents to decimals and...
NASA
Spacewalking
Hold your breath. The video and interactive website introduce the class to spacewalking and spacesuits. Using oxygen data from two astronauts, individuals determine a mathematical model to fit the data. Using that mathematical model, the...