Both Background and Activity Links

Windows to the Universe- www.windows.umich.edu

Best for: K-8 Students and Teachers

General Description: General background and activities about the Universe divided into 3 levels (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced), puzzles, current news stories in science, key terms explained with diagrams and furthur explanatory pages for older students who desire more specifics.

Curriculum Involved: Earth, Solar System, Universe, Missions, Stars, Moons.

Learning Activities: Jupiter's "Monstrous" Magnetosphere, Hearing Galileo's Whisper Across the Solar System, Catch a Wave, and more.

Math Integration: Charts, Graphing, Volume, Models, Calculations.

Research Material: Each section contains descriptions and diagrams to explain the myths, history, and features of the planets and other aspects of the Solar System and is geared to a specific learning group.

Pictures: Explanatory images and photos in the background sections.

Navigation and Hot Spots: Each of the major sections, Teacher's Resources -> Classroom Activities, Kid's Space.

Live from the Sun- passporttoknowledge.com/sun/main.html

Best for: K-8 Students and Teachers

General Description: Basic, simple, and direct background about the Sun, its history, and its role in the Solar System divided into 4 sections, lesson plans given for activities with hints for engaging the students and extending the exercise, games for students.

Curriculum Involved: Sun, Stars, Earth/Sun Connection, History of the Sun and Cosmos.

Learning Activities: Sun Also Sets, Barcode of Cosmos, Noon Shadows.

Math Integration: Calendar, Angles, Length.

Research Material: Four sections with descriptive pages and telescope images about the Sun and Earth.

Pictures: Explanatory images in the description and background information about the Sun/Earth and related astronomical features.

Navigation and Hot Spots: Choose any 4 of the major sections, Sun-Fun, Teachers.

Amazing Space Web-Based Activities- amazing-space.stsci.edu

Best for: K-8 Students and Teachers

General Description: Entertaining internet games for students to become familiar with basic concepts, background questions thoroughly answered for teachers, teacher lesson plans given with goals, the activity, and then follow up including cross-curricular ideas.

Curriculum Involved: Galaxies, Stars, Light (basic Electricity and Magnetism), Space Exploration , Rocks and Ice on Planets.

Learning Activities: Build Our Milky Way, Galaxies Galore, Catch the Waves, Stellar Encounters, and more.

Math Integration: Graphing, Ordering, Modeling, Conversion of Units, Charts, Comparing Values.

Research Material: None except for background information given in the activities.

Pictures: Pictures of the Galileo probe (both real and depicted), images of Jupiter from Galileo (close, distant, detailed, color, and black and white).

Navigation and Hot Spots: Featured Activities, Galileo Team, and the Photo Gallery.

Space Day - www.spaceday.com

Best for: K-5 Students and Teachers

General Description: Fun games for students to perform on the Web plus a brief comparison of the game to real physical phenomena, set of lessons for teachers to download which show the National Science Education Standards met by each activity (Acrobat Reader required), list of astronomy happenings in selected areas.

Curriculum Involved: Our Galaxy and Solar System (very general).

Learning Activities: Voyage of Discovery, Crafts CruisinÆ the Solar System, 101 Reasons to Explore Space, and more.

Math Integration: Prediction of Size/Distance, Comparing Values.

Research Material: None except for the descriptions of the games.

Pictures: 3-D radio images from the surface of planets on various days.

Navigation and Hot Spots: TeacherÆs Space -> Lesson Library, Mission:Fun -> 101 Ways to Embrace Space.

Views of the Solar System- www.solarviews.com/eng/homepage.htm

Best for: K-8 Students and Teachers

General Description: Background page for each planet with description, summary of statistics, animations and movies, images with captions to explain, chronological history of space exploratin, lesson plans for simple activities and demonstrations that include essential vocabulary.

Curriculum Involved: Solar System, Planets, Moons, Space Bodies, Sun, Space Exploration.

Learning Activities: Robots: Like Us!, Kitchen Comets, Cratering in your Classroom, and more.

Math Integration: None

Research Material: Descriptions and pictures of the planets, their features, their history, their missions, and links to clarify technical terms, more advanced reading.

Pictures: Image index compiles all the photos on the site, images of each planet (color, black-and-white, close, distant).

Navigation and Hot Spots: Contents allows you to scan to easilyfind background or activities, Click on the thumbnail of your choice.

Lunar Prospector- lunarprospector.arc.nasa.gov

Best for: K-8 Students and Teachers

General Description: Link to Space Day 1998 with a list of 25 hands-on activities grouped by topic, activities (mostly involving FOOD!) have both student and teacher pages, building a model, other lesson plans grouped in relationship to Apollo mission, extensive information with questions answered about the Moon and its missions.

Curriculum Involved: Solar System, Moon/Earth, Lunar Missions, Geology of the Moon.

Learning Activities: Edible Solar System, Making a Comet in the Classroom, and more.

Math Integration: Sequencing, Size, Models, Patterns.

Research Material: Lengthy descriptions of the missions, geology, phases, and features of the moon unaccompanied by pictures, discusses the history and mythology along with providing a timeline of events, background given in the activities.

Pictures: None

Navigation and Hot Spots: Education -> SpaceDay Home or Lesson Plans-> Activities, Science.

Cassini: Voyage to Saturn- www.jpl.nasa.gov/cassini

Best for: 6-8 Students and Teachers

General Description: Background of Saturn and what is known about it resulting from various space missions, answers the hows and whys of space exploration, movies of the Cassini testing facility.

Curriculum Involved: Saturn, Solar System, Space Exploration.

Learning Activities: None

Math Integration: None

Research Material: Diagrams and descriptions of what each mission has learned about Saturn and a history of our knowledge of the planet.

Pictures: Artwork and images of Saturn from space, pictures of Cassini, its facility, and its launch.

Navigation and Hot Spots: Kid's Page, Images/Video.

Mars Team Online- quest.arc.nasa.gov/mars

Best for: K - 8 Students and Teachers

General Description: Field journals from the missions, description pages with basic facts and images about the Mars missions and Spacecraft, puzzles, riddles, and activities are accompanied by teacherÆs guides.

Curriculum Involved: Mars, Mars Exploration.

Learning Activities: Mission Planning: Geography, Rocket Science101, Roving From Junk, and more.

Math Integration: Graphing, Comparing Values, Calibration, Velocity/TIme/Distance Calculations, Area, Angles, Conversion of Units.

Research Material: Background pages about Mars with a fact sheet, glossary, and more on its missions.

Pictures: Images taken from Hubble and other instruments, photos of the missions and the people involved.

Navigation and Hot Spots: Featured Events -> Learning Resources -> Teacher's Guide, Photo Gallery, Mars Team, Background.

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