This is an activity about the requirements of life. Learners will explore what living things need to survive and thrive by creating and caring for a garden plot (outdoors where appropriate) or a container garden (indoors) at the program facility.... (View More) The garden will be used to beautify the facility with plant life with many planting and landscaping options provided. Children will consider the requirements of living things, compare the surface conditions on Mars to those found on Earth, view images/video of a NASA Astrobiology Institute "garden" where astrobiologists are studying life under extreme conditions, and consider the similarities and differences in the type of life that would be possible on Mars as compared to their garden on Earth. It also includes specific tips for effectively engaging girls in STEM. This is activity 3 in Explore: Life on Mars? that was developed specifically for use in libraries. (View Less)

This is an activity about visual analysis. Learners will create art inspired by planetary images while learning to recognize the geology on planetary surfaces. This presentation and accompanying activity uses the elements of art - shape, line,... (View More) color, texture, value - to make sense of features in NASA images, while honing observation skills and inspiring questions. (View Less)

This is a lesson plan about the surface and geology of Mars. Learners will record detailed observations of a simulated surface and core sample of Mars, analyze a simulated surface and core sample of Mars, compare and contrast an unknown foreign... (View More) object with the surface and interior of Mars, and learn preliminary facts about Mars, its surface, and its place in the solar system. The lesson uses the 5E instructional model and includes: TEKS Details (Texas Standards alignment), Essential Question, Science Notebook, Vocabulary Definitions for Students, Vocabulary Definitions for Teachers, three Vocabulary Cards, and a Mini-Lesson. This is lesson 2 as part of the Mars Rover Celebration Unit, a six week long curriculum. (View Less)

This is a lesson about how to learn about Mars. Learners will explore the features of Mars through a demonstration of Google Earth Mars, gather, and analyze data from multiple sources on the internet as well as print sources, develop and use... (View More) strategies for reading informational text to systematically find information, understand that Earth and Mars have similar geological features. The lesson uses the 5E instructional model and includes: TEKS Details (Texas Standards alignment), Essential Question, Science Notebook, Vocabulary Definitions for Students, Vocabulary Definitions for Teachers, two Vocabulary Cards, and a reading strategy supplement. This is lesson 3 as part of the Mars Rover Celebration Unit, a six week long curriculum. (View Less)

This is a lesson about how to answer a scientific or engineering question. Learners will refine the scientific question they generated in Lesson 5 so that it can be answered by data and/or modeling, brainstorm possible solutions for the scientific... (View More) question chosen, determine reasonableness of solutions, use concept maps to enhance meaningful learning. The lesson uses the 5E instructional model and includes: TEKS Details (Texas Standards alignment), Essential Question, Science Notebook, Vocabulary Definitions for Students, Vocabulary Definitions for Teachers, two Vocabulary Cards, and a concept map supplement. This is lesson 6 as part of the Mars Rover Celebration Unit, a six week long curriculum. (View Less)

This is a lesson plan about the engineering design process. Learners will identify, become familiar with and use the Engineering Design Process, use the Engineering Design Process to sketch a reasonable drawing of the rover that will be built, use... (View More) the steps of the Engineering Design Process to build a Mars Rover prototype, develop a concept map to communicate requirements and features of the rover. The lesson uses the 5E instructional model and includes: TEKS Details (Texas Standards alignment), Essential Question, Science Notebook, Vocabulary Definitions for Students, Vocabulary Definitions for Teachers, three Vocabulary Cards, and a concept map Mini-Lesson. This is lesson 11 as part of the Mars Rover Celebration Unit, a six week long curriculum. (View Less)

This is a lesson about mission presentation. Learners will brainstorm ideas to be developed into a team skit, work cooperatively to assign duties and write a team skit, collaborate with team members to complete the Mars Rover Manual. The lesson uses... (View More) the 5E instructional model and includes: TEKS Details (Texas Standards alignment), Essential Question, Science Notebook, Vocabulary Definitions for Students, Vocabulary Definitions for Teachers, three Vocabulary Cards, the Manual Template, and a presentation writing Mini-Lesson. This is lesson 13 as part of the Mars Rover Celebration Unit, a six week long curriculum. (View Less)

In this concluding activity, children create a scrapbook or poster display documenting their trips to Jupiter. Learners will use their "My Trip to Jupiter" journals and select common craft items to represent the characteristics of each aspect or... (View More) layer and summarize their findings. This activity is part of Explore! Jupiter's Family Secrets, a series designed to engage children in space and planetary science in libraries and informal learning environments. (View Less)