Space Exploration Classroom Activities Study
Teachers are invited to participate in a study to gauge students' interest in space science and exploration before and after participating in a variety of related activities. The target is middle school students (about grades 5-8). Activities include researching and designing extraterrestrial communities and designing and testing bottle rockets. If you are a teacher who is interested, please contact Jill Fisher at jill.fisher@wichita.edu or 316-978-6503 to receive more information and the activity plans. Stipends and activity supplies are available for participants.
This study is to take place during the '21-'22 school year. Students will be expected to take an interest survey before and after completion of the activities.
All are welcomed to view and access the following materials from the Space Exploration Teacher Workshop.
YouTube Videos of Workshop Presentations
Space Radiation - Dr. Nickolas Solomey, Physics (WSU Profile)
Introduction to Rocketry - Dr. Roy Myose, Aerospace Engineering (WSU Profile)
Space Exploration Ethics - Dr. James Schwartz
"Out of the Darkness, Into the Light" - Fred Gassert, Chariman of Lake Afton Public Observatory
"Taking the Next Giant Leap" - Nathan Meyer, VP of Education and Strategy of the Cosmosphere
Activity Video: The Paper Challenge - Dr. Roy Myose
Downloadable Materials (all are PDFs)
Space Radiation Presentation Slides (provided by Dr. Solomey)
+ Space Radiation Activity Info Slides (provided by Dr. Solomey)
Introduction to Rocketry Slides (provided by Dr. Myose)
+ Paper Challenge Activity Slides (provided by Dr. Myose)
+ Paper Challenge Activity Template (provided by Dr. Myose)
Space Exploration Ethics Slides (provided by Dr. Schwartz)
Space Exploration Teacher Workshop and Student Camp
When? July 14-16, 2021, 9 am - 12 pm
Who? Students going into grades 6-8 in the 2021-2022 school year
Where? Wichita State University, and a field trip on July 16 (extra time will be needed that Friday for the field trip)
How Much? It's free!
Join us and your friends on July 14-16 for different workshops all about Space Exploration! You'll get to learn about the cosmos, design rockets, and explore what living on another planet would be like. Then, on Friday, July 16, we'll take a field trip to continue experiencing more about the history and innovations in space exploration (destination: Cosmosphere in Hutchinson; ETD of 8 am and ETA of 1 pm).
For more information, contact Jill Fisher at jill.fisher@wichita.edu or 316-978-6503.
Ready to register? Registration is closed.
Deadline to register is July 9, 2021.
This camp is sponsored by the Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and funded in part by the NASA in Kansas Space Grant Consortium.
This material is based upon work supported by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) under Grant No. 80NSSC20M0109 issued through the Kansas Space Grant Consortium. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration nor the Kansas Space Grant Consortium.