This activity is about planetary rovers. Learners will simulate the challenges in communications that engineers face when driving a rover on Mars. They will particpate as part of a rover team to design and execute a series of commands that will... (View More) guide a rover made of people through an obstacle course simulating the Martian surface. Students will learn the limitations of operating a planetary rover and problem solving solutions by using this simulation. The lesson models the engineering design process using the 5E instructional model and includes teacher notes, vocabulary, student journal and reading. (View Less)

This activity is about rocket shape and performance. Learners will test a rocket model and predict its motion. They will launch their rocket multiple times, make observations and record the distance it traveled. They will have the opportunity to... (View More) answer a research question by collecting and analyzing data related to finding out the best nose cone length and predicting the motion of their model rockets. The lesson models the engineering design process using the 5E instructional model and includes teacher notes, vocabulary, student journal and reading. (View Less)

This lesson is about cleanroom technology. Learners will discover why it is important to observe a certain protocol when in the cleanroom. This will then be related to the scientific process of controlling variables in an environment. Includes a... (View More) teacher's guide and students handouts. Video and audio clips are provided. This lesson 1 of 10 from Dynamic Design: The Cleanroom module. (View Less)

This lesson is about the assembly of the Genesis collector arrays. Learners will work in teams to complete the assembly of the array frame that they began in the "Working Together" lesson (lesson 9 in the module). Includes a teacher's guide and... (View More) students handouts. This lesson is 10 of 10 from the module, titled Dynamic Design: The Cleanroom. (View Less)

This lesson is about the role of planning in spacecraft assembly. Learners will think through all the details that go into assembling the Genesis science cannister by planning for a birthday party. Planning to plan is an important skill that... (View More) students need to learn to become less reactive and more proactive when it comes to different aspects of their lives. Includes a teacher's guide and students handouts. This lesson 8 of 10 from the Dynamic Design: The Cleanroom module. (View Less)

This experiment is about data collection. Learners will map out the actual placement of wafers on the Geneisis array and look at the finished array frames in order to identify patterns of wafer materials. Includes a teacher's guide and students... (View More) handouts. This lesson 6 of 10 from the Dynamic Design: The Cleanroom module. (View Less)

This experiment is about contaminiation. Learners will model the process of verifying clean on a macroscopic level by using a small Secchi (se-key) disk and will read about how the Secchi disk is used in environmental science and compare this with... (View More) the liquid particle counter that is used in the Genesis cleanroom. Includes a teacher's guide and students handouts. This lesson 5 of 10 from the Dynamic Design: The Cleanroom module. (View Less)

This lesson is about the value of teamwork. Learners will model the assembly of the Genesis wafers onto the collector arrays by working in teams. Includes a teacher's guide and students handouts. Video and audio clips are provided. This lesson 9 of... (View More) 10 from the Dynamic Design: The Cleanroom module. (View Less)

This lesson is about data collection. Learners will investigate different methods of sampling in a simulated cleanroom environment. Includes a teacher's guide and students handouts. This lesson 7 of 10 from the Dynamic Design: The Cleanroom module.

This is a lesson about radiation and the use of the scientific method to solve problems of too much radiation. Learners will build snow goggles similar to those used by the Inuit (designed to block unwanted light, while increasing the viewer’s... (View More) ability to see in a bright region) to understand some of the engineering challenges encountered while protecting the solar cells on the Mercury MESSENGER. This is Lesson 2 of 4 at the middle level in the module, Staying Cool. (View Less)