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Article
Reading Rockets

Reading Rockets: Building Background Knowledge

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st Standards
The importance of background knowledge is especially salient in the age of Common Core. This article offers practical classroom strategies to build background knowledge such as using contrasts and comparisons and encouraging...
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Lesson Plan
Science Buddies

Science Buddies: Two Stage Balloon Rocket

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students will build a multi-stage balloon rocket that they can launch across the classroom while learning about real space flight and Newton's laws of motion.
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Activity
PBS

Pbs Kids: Design Squad: Build: Launch It

For Students 3rd - 8th
Use a balloon to build an air-powered rocket and launch it to see if you can hit a target.
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Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: The Optimal Bottle Rocket Launch

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students build rocket models designed for gaining the maximum height. They use a compressed air rocket launcher and 2-liter plastic bottles. They will also use an online simulator to help them make predictions and adjustments to their...
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Interactive
NASA

NASA Kids Club: Rocket Builder

For Students K - 2nd
Students can hone their shape-recognition skills and use the plans to build a fleet of rockets.
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Lesson Plan
BioEd Online

Bio Ed Online: Rockets

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st
In this series of lessons students will learn about engineering and design principles by designing, building, launching, testing and redesigning their own rockets.
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Unit Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Rockets

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
This unit teaches students how and why engineers design satellites to benefit life on Earth as well as allows students an opportunity to explore motion, rockets and rocket motion. Students discover that the motion of all objects...
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Activity
Technovation

Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Build a Stomp Rocket

For Students Pre-K - 1st
With a little engineering, students can design a stomp rocket that is propelled by air pressure to fly at least 10 ft in the air. This website contains tips, a lesson plan, and a place for students to document their engineering design...
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Activity
Technovation

Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Build a Rocket Inspired by Sls

For Students Pre-K - 1st
A website giving a challenge for students to construct a stomp rocket that can carry a ping pong ball and hit a target.
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Professional Doc
Reading Rockets

Reading Rockets: Teaching Reading: Classroom Strategies

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st Standards
A collection of effective, research-based classroom strategies to help build and strengthen literacy skills in print awareness, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and writing.
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Professional Doc
Reading Rockets

Reading Rockets: Looking at Writing: First Grade

For Teachers 1st Standards
First graders write many times a day to express their interests - they are writing with a purpose through stories, letters, and lists. In this section, you'll find writing assessment resources, writing strategies, and additional tip...
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Website
NASA

Beginners Guide to Model Rockets

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource provides numerous links that will give teachers and students an overview of rocketry.
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Activity
NASA

Nasa: The Space Place: Build a Bubble Powered Rocket

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
This site from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration provides fun information on bubble powered rockets. "Build your own rocket using paper and fizzing tablets! Watch it lift off. How high does your rocket go?"
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Article
Washington State University

Washington State University: Ask Dr. Universe: What Materials Would You Use to Make a Rocket?

For Students 3rd - 8th
Dr. Universe explains how many choices there are in building a rocket. A fellow professor at Washington State University helps to understand the basics of rockets.
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Activity
Science Bob Pflugfelder

Science Bob: Make Your Own Balloon Rocket!

For Students 3rd - 7th
This site contains a brief procedure for building (and launching) a balloon powered rocket. Introduces concepts of air pressure and propulsion.
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Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Pop Rockets

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students design and build a paper rocket around a film canister, which is used as the engine. An antacid tablet and water are put into the canister, react to form carbon dioxide gas, and act as the pop rocket's propellant. With the lid...
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Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Learn to Build a Rocket in 5 Days or Your Money Back

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
In this lesson, learners discover the entire process that goes into designing a rocket for any customer. In prior lessons, students learned how rockets work, but now they learn what real-world decisions engineers have to make when...
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Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Balloon Rockets in 1 D

For Teachers 9th - 10th
For this inquiry activity, students solve a 1D motion challenge in groups. Students build their own balloon rocket from the materials provided with little guidance from the instructor. They collect data and use it to prepare a position...
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Website
Reading Rockets

Reading Rockets: Launching Young Readers: Episode 4: Writing and Spelling

For Teachers K - 1st Standards
Hosted by Vivica A. Fox, Writing and Spelling examines the connection between reading and writing and between spelling and composition. The program features successful methods for encouraging children to write and build their...
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Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Hydrogen Oxygen Rockets

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students investigate how to build and launch a simple rocket that uses hydrogen and oxygen gases that will be mixed to propel the rocket. Students learn the principles of combustion reactions, kinetics, stoichiometry of reactions,...
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eBook
Library of Congress

Classic Books: The Rocket Book

For Students Pre-K - 1st
Turn the pages of this scanned copy of The Rocket Book by Peter Newell. Read along with the story and look at the pictures as a rocket is shot off in the basement of an apartment building and travels through twenty-one floors before it...
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Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Rocket Me Into Space

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
One of the exciting challenges for engineers is the idea of exploration. This lesson looks more closely at Spaceman Rohan, Spacewoman Tess, their daughter Maya, and their challenges with getting to space, setting up satellites, and...
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Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Experiencing Newton's 3rd Law With Match Stick Rockets

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students build and launch match-stick rockets in order to experience Newton's Third Law of motion.
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Professional Doc
Reading Rockets

Reading Rockets: Looking at Writing: Third Grade

For Teachers 3rd Standards
In this section, you'll find writing assessment resources, writing strategies, and additional tip sheets for teachers and parents on how to help third graders build strong writing skills. You'll also find videos on teaching writing....