Moon Rocks Come to Wiley Magnet Middle School

It was the day that Moon Rocks, or, more officially, lunar samples came to Wiley Magnet Middle School.

Here is the story from teacher Betty Jo Moore, who worked with teacher Shelly Parsons on the project:  

We did this as a combined class activity. All of our sixth-grade students were involved. Students from sixth-grade science classes toured a series of stations related to their recent studies about the moon, NASA, space exploration and travel to the moon and beyond.

Stations:

* Students had a chance to view lunar samples collected during Apollo 17 and meteorite samples (on loan from NASA/Johnson Space Center)

* Impact craters – The purpose of this activity allowed students to determine the factors affecting the appearance of impact craters and ejecta.

* NASA spinoffs – Teachers created a short video about NASA spinoffs. Students discussed and analyzed which may have the most impact on human life.

* Lunar Surface analysis – Students were able to view a close up picture of the moon. They were then able to compare and contrast that image to Earth’s surface.

* Distance to the moon – through this activity, students were able visualize the distance between Earth and the Moon. They were able to get a better understanding about why scale models play an important role.

* Students were given a scenario about a crash landing on the moon. They worked with partners to determine the list of most critical items needed for survival. They were able to compare their results to the answers provided by NASA engineers and astronauts.

* Twitter – Students were able to “tweet” their feelings about what they would feel as they stood on the moon or at the International Space Station and stared out into space.​