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Sputnik
Young scholars study Sputnik and what it looks like. In this Sputnik lesson students complete several activities while in groups.
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Space Exploration
Students explore the significance of the four space programs: Sputnik, Apollo, Viking, and Voyager. For this space exploration lesson, students view a space exploration slideshow and complete an included chart of space exploration.
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The Kennedy Years
Eighth graders read text and view films about the Kennedy administration. In this preseidential administration lesson, 8th graders interview someone who lived during Sputnik, write summaries of lectures, and create posters demonstrating...
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Memorandum of a Conference with President Eisenhower after Sputnik
Students document and list excerpts from a document that shows how calmly officials reacted to the launching of Sputnik. They research contemporary magazines and newspaper articles of the day as well.
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Just a "Fellow Traveler" in the Human Experience
Young scholars connect the events of early space exploration to their lives today. After viewing a teacher created gallery, they discuss how the launch of Sputnik and how space exploration in general has positively or negatively...
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Space Exploration
Sixth graders identify and interpret the following: What is space?, Space Race, Living in space?, Man on the Moon, Astronaut training; students compare/contrast US and Russia space exploration. Students write a letter of application to...
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Milestones in the Space Program
Students brainstorm names of astronauts from NASA space missions. They are explained that the Cold War was not actually a war but pervasive tension that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union for several decades...
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Milestones in Human Spaceflight
Pupils investigate the history and goals of NASA and human spaceflight. In this space science lesson, students answer questions about one of seven manned space programs and print pictures from the mission. As a class,...
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Words in the News Solar Sail
Bring current events into your classroom! Middle schoolers complete word work activities before reading and discussing an online article. They complete worksheets and an online quiz. They discuss the Solar Sail as radical new idea and...
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Warring Philosophies: The Cold War
Young scholars explain why the Cold War took place and ended. They analyze its significance as a 29th century event. Students identify the differences between the USA and USSR during the Cold War.
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Rocketry
Pupils design and construct a paper rocket that can be launched with a drinking straw. They participate in a lecture and read an article about rocketry and how Newton's Third Law applies to rocket launches. Each student constructs their...
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Flight of the Future/Space Flight
Students explore space science by viewing videos on YouTube. In this moon landing instructional activity, students view clips of Neil Armstrong taking his first step on the moon and discuss the space race between the U.S. and Russia....
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The Cuban Missile Crisis
Students explore facets of the Cold War. In this Cold War history lesson, students research a Cold War event in order to write a news story about the events that features direct quotations and images.
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Men in Space: From Goddard to Armstrong
Students view "Men in Space: From Goddard to Armstrong," taking a examine the the extraordinary lives of the men who conquered space.
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The Space Race in the '50's
Learners explore the impact of the space race. For this 1950's America lesson, students examine newspapers from the time period as well as Apollo mission episodes. Learners then create journals from the perspectives of Apollo astronauts.
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Newspaper Writing on Flight in History
Students read about important events in history through newspaper articles. For this newspaper lesson, students look at different writing styles and author's bias in different articles about the same event. They write their own articles...
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Everyday Heroes
Students research heroes and create their own criteria of what constitutes a hero. They choose a personal hero and create a web page that portrays the individual and their accomplishments. Students create a presentation for the class.
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Satellites
Eighth graders explore the history of space travel and satellites. Through a teacher demonstration, 8th graders observe how a satellite revolves another object. They identify natural and artificial satellites, explore how satellites...
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The Vocabulary of Space
Students build their knowledge and understanding of vocabulary related to space. In this space lesson, students discuss four categories of words and phrases related to space.