Discovery Shuttle Ready for Liftoff

What kind of design challenges are there in building structures to support rocket engines? The unit takes design teams through the process of building the lightest possible thrust support structure that can withstand the necessary forces...

Did you know that Pluto is smaller than the United States of America? It is difficult to conceptualize the size of planets and the distance between them, and the lesson plan addresses those exact issues. After a discussion, pupils create...

NASA needs to create lightweight trusses to use on space craft. But how do you hold up a stack of books with nothing more than paper? This activity takes teams through the process of building a section of truss out of nothing more than...

What will it take to explore space? Teams of pupils determine the needs of a lunar outpost and research the required systems. The pupils then learn about the past space exploration vehicles. The third and final lesson challenges project...

From their sweat to the water vapor in their breath, astronauts recycle every possible drop of water while in space. After watching a short video describing the different ways materials are recycled and reused in space shuttles, young...

What does it take to get stuff to the Moon? Design teams create subsystems for a space transportation system to go to the Moon. The teams study Earth transportation components along with historical space transportation systems to guide...

Sputnik was one of the greatest scientific advancements of the 1950s, and this reading lesson does it justice. Pupils start off with pre-reading questions and a video. They then read an excerpt from an article, which is accompanied by...

Students explore the safety features for various modes of transportation. They create "How It Works" posters showing the safety features on the space shuttle Discovery. Students reflect on how an equipment failure might affect a mission.

Young scholars explore the vastness of the universe and identify terms used to describe solar systems. They take a tour of our sun and its neighbors and discover how spacecrafts can fly and then use their imaginations to draw and color a...

Eighth graders imagine they are getting ready to "take off." They may imagine themselves in any type of aircraft or spaceship. They may then sketch themselves as passengers anticipating this moment.