Curated OER
Technology for Studying Comets
Students design an Aerogel model to capture clay particles. For this space science lesson, students discover what happens to comets as they hit a surface. They explain how the Aerogel technology would help scientists study comets better.
Curated OER
The Nine Planets
A solid lesson on teaching the nine planets in our solar system is here for you. In it, young scientists learn the correct order of the planets, and they choose one of the planets to do a research report on. They must come up with five...
Curated OER
Houston, We Have a Problem! An Introductory Lesson for the unit Stars, Galaxies and the Universe
The lesson plan would make a stimulating introduction to a space unit. It is highly imaginative and suggests that the teacher darken the room to set the mood and dress as an astronaut. Teams are asked to help solve an imaginary problem...
Curated OER
Life In Space: The International Space Station
Young scholars learn about the International Space Station. In this space instructional activity, students learn about the structure, operations, and experiments that go on in the International Space Station.
Curated OER
Making Regolith
You may not be able to take a field trip to the moon, but that doesn't mean your class can't study moon rocks. Using graham crackers as the moon's bedrock and powdered donuts as micrometeorites, young scientists simulate...
Curated OER
NASA Plans Moon Base
Students react to statements about the moon, then read a news article about NASA's plans to build a permanent base on the moon. In this space science and current events lesson plan, the teacher introduces the article with a discussion...
Curated OER
Top 10 Facts About Space
Students create their own Top 10 Facts about any topic related to space. In this space lesson plan, students work in groups to produce a Top Ten List of facts about space and share with their classmates. Groups choose a fact...
PHET
Learning about Space Weather
Is the sun the only celestial body with magnetic fields? A guided discussion on the weather in space is designed with a mix of questions, discussions, explanations, and applications. Additionally, the resouce includes an...
NASA
Tools of the Trade
Did you know every state in the U.S. has at least one observatory? During the lesson, scholars research the cost of building and maintaining an observatory. They must present their information in a proposal to build a new observatory,...
Curated OER
Regolith Formation
Students explain the difference between regolith formation on Earth and the Moon. In this space science lesson, students model the different factors affecting regolith formation on Earth. They identify the different types of weathering.
NASA
Christa's Lost Lesson: Newton’s Laws
How do the laws of motion work in space? Learners explore Newton's laws of motion in different experiments as part of the Christa's Lost Lessons series. They rotate around the room in three stations to experience each law in action using...
PHET
Earth’s Magnetic Field from Space
Feel the pull of science! The final installment of this 18-part series is an application of everything learned in the previous high school lessons. Scholars are given a magnetic field map and must propose an arrangement of magnets that...
NASA
Cosmic Microwave Background
Begin your next class with a BANG! Pupils discuss the formation of our universe and its expansion before proceeding with an activity designed to demonstrate what most likely occurred billions of years ago. They conclude with a discussion...
University of Colorado
Are All Asteroids' Surfaces the Same Age?
Did you know scientists can tell the age of an asteroid by looking closely at its craters? This final lesson of a six-part series focuses on two asteroids, Gaspra and Ida, in order to demonstrate the concept of dating asteroids. Scholars...
NASA
Cosmic Times 2019
NASA is planning a journey to Mars, and current scholars could very well be a part of a future mission. During the unit, pupils research the advances in space exploration and knowledge about the universe. Then they work in groups to...
University of Wyoming
Free Fall…From SPACE!/Nanotechnology in the Classroom
Provide the details about Felix Baumgartner's sky jump from the far reaches of our atmosphere, 39,045 meters up! Then get your physics free fallers to evaluate the factors that played a role in his acceleration, the time to reach maximum...
Curated OER
Behind the Mission to Mercury
Learners read an E-Sheet about the Mission to Mercury. They follow a variety of worksheets and on-line activities that follow the E-Sheet. They discuss several different scenarios regarding space exploration. They analyze one of the...
Curated OER
Life on the Moon
Students study the physical properties of the Moon. In this life on the moon lesson students describe the ways life on the Moon would be different than on Earth.
Curated OER
Systems, UP, Up and Away!
Students discuss rockets and how they work. Students research basic information about the Space Shuttle. Students work in collaborative groups creating "rockets" with empty film canisters. Students launch their "rockets" and record...
Curated OER
Make a Sundial
Students explore space science by conducting a sun experiment in class. In this time telling lesson, students discuss how the sun sits in our sky at exact times each day and how astronomy is based on our perspective of the solar system....
Curated OER
Moon Mining
Go on a moon mining expedition from the safety of your classroom with this space exploration simulation. Using simple models of the moon's surface prepared ahead of time by the teacher, young scientists are challenged with locating and...
Teach Engineering
Six Minutes of Terror
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...
Workforce Solutions
A Colony for Lunar Living
Two lessons explore the possibility of living on the moon. First, scholars read various scenarios to identify which careers would best transfer to life in space. Finally, pupils examine a website to locate items made for outer space,...
Scholastic
Lesson Three: The Earth, Movement in Space
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...