This activity focuses on how the search for life on Mars is portrayed in fiction and videos. Learners will consider depictions of Mars from science fiction books and video clips. As a group, children discuss what they know about Mars and compare... (View More) their ideas with the way Mars and imaginary martians are presented in the science fiction works. They then use what they’ve learned to create their own Mars Science Fiction “Movie Trailer” Zines. It is recommended that this activity is preceded by two or three of the previous activities in the series so that the children will already have an understanding of what life needs and how Mars compares to Earth. This activity may be extended to serve as a tween and/or teen science fiction book club. It also includes specific tips for effectively engaging girls in STEM. This is activity 7 in Explore: Life on Mars? that was developed specifically for use in libraries. (View Less)

Leaners will grow a sugar crystal and learn how this relates to growing protein crystals in space. The lack of gravity allows scientists on the space station to grow big, almost perfect crystals, which are used to help design new medicines. This is... (View More) science activity 2 of 2 found in the ISS L.A.B.S. Educator Resource Guide. (View Less)

This is a detailed historical lesson about comets, distant icy worlds often visible to observers on Earth. Learners will consider the essential question, "What are comets?" They will practice observation skills as they enact a story of comets... (View More) traveling through the solar system and examine images of comets and the current space missions exploring them. This is lesson 10 of 12 in the unit, Exploring Ice in the Solar System. (View Less)

This is a lesson about the formation of glaciers, ice layering and stratigraphy, and the cryosphere and cryobotics. Learners will collect evidence of layering, explore the science story that layering tells, study snow and ice for insights into... (View More) climate change, and learn about the tools used to explore ice layers on Earth and in the solar system. Connections between rings of a tree and rings in an ice core will be made. Activities include small group miming, speaking, drawing, and/or writing. This is lesson 7 of 12 in the unit, Exploring Ice in the Solar System. (View Less)

This is a lesson about detecting ice on the permanently shadowed craters of Mercury and the Moon. Learners will consider what might be in that ice and will examine why the polar regions of Earth, Mercury and the Moon are colder than elsewhere on the... (View More) planets. Activities include small group miming, speaking, drawing, and/or writing. This is the lesson 12 of 12 in the unit, Exploring Ice in the Solar System. (View Less)

This is a detailed lesson about space and how Earth fits in it. Learners will consider the essential question, "What is space?" Activities include small group miming, speaking, drawing, and/or writing about space and the evidence for ice in space.... (View More) Included are detailed games and dialogue. Native stories are shared. This is lesson 9 of 12 in the unit, Exploring Ice in the Solar System. (View Less)

This is a lesson about the field of astrobiology, the study of life in the universe, and ice as a preservative for evidence of life. Learners will consider the relationship between ice and life as they investigate the conditions required for life to... (View More) exist and sustain itself. They will study the impact of freezing on microbes and life processes and will learn about extremophiles, organisms that live in extreme conditions. Activities include small group miming, speaking, drawing, and/or writing. This is lesson 8 of 12 in the unit, Exploring Ice in the Solar System. (View Less)

This is a lesson about how and why ice flows, especially in a large mass such as a glacier. Learners will experience the qualities of viscoelastic materials and view videos of glacial ice flows. They will observe ice flows and materials other than... (View More) ice flowing differently under stress, and will investigate landscape changes as a result of large scale glacial movement. Activities include small group miming, speaking, drawing, and/or writing. This is lesson 5 of 12 in the unit, Exploring Ice in the Solar System. (View Less)