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National Astronomy Education Projects: A Catalog

2. Workshops and Trainings for Teachers (College)

American Association of Physics Teachers:

Has an NSF-funded project called TYC21, which brings together regional groups of community college physics and astronomy instructors [see appendix, or consult the web site: http://www.aapt.org/programs/tyc21/tyc.html

American Astronomical Society, Education Office:

sponsors workshops and sessions for college teachers at its semi-annual meetings. [see appendix]

Astronomical Society of the Pacific:

Sponsors Cosmos in the Classroom symposia on college astronomy teaching every 2-3 years. [see appendix]

NASA Space Grant Consortia:

The consortia in many states have outreach programs to help K-12 teachers. Look for the program for your state at their web site http://calspace.ucsd.edu/spacegrant/

National Radio Astronomy Observatory:

Offers a 3 day workshop for undergraduate college professors focusing on Radio Astronomy. Contact: Sue Ann Heatherly, NRAO, P.O. Box 2, Green Bank, WV 24944 (304-456-2209)

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3. Curriculum and Information Materials

Remember this is only a listing of projects, not of all publications.

Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP):

Project ASTRO's The Universe at Your Fingertips: An Astronomy Activity and Resource Notebook, 800+ pages of activities and resources for teachers at all levels, especially grades 4-12. A sampling is available at the web site http://www.astrosociety.org/education/astro/astropubs/universe.html. Available through the ASP's online store, the AstroShop. [see appendix]

Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP):

Provides frequently updated resource guides for educators at all levels, in both print and Web formats. Topics include "Debunking Pseudoscience," "Women in Astronomy," "The Moon," "Science Fiction with Good Astronomy". [see appendix]

Center for Astrophysics (CfA):

Project ARIES is a discovery-based, physical science program built around big themes from astronomy for grades 3-6. Three modules (Time; Light and Color; Astronomy I) are available for purchase from Cobblestone Publishing, Inc., 7 School Street, Peterborough, NH 03458 (800-821-0115) . Five more modules will be available beginning in February, 1998. For more information contact: Bruce Ward (617-495-9798); http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/cfa/sed/ARIES

Center for Astrophysics (CfA):

Project STAR & Project SPICA were NSF-supported programs that developed activity-based curriculum & workbooks for teaching astronomy in secondary schools. Materials can be purchased from Kendall Hunt Publishers, P.O. Box 1840, Dubuque, IA 52004 (1-800-228-0810). (The projects also left a legacy of some 200 trained "astronomy resource agent" teachers around the U.S.)

Challenger Center:

has developed and is developing a wide range of class activities and mini-cuuricula, such as Cosmic EdVentures, Marsville, and Mars City Alpha. [see appendix]

Jet Propulsion Lab:

For those who do not live near a NASA center (see below), it is often possible to get NASA lithographs and booklets by writing to: Teaching Resource Center, CS-530, JPL, 4800 Oak Grove Dr., Pasadena, CA 91109. Write on school stationery and indicate what mission or missions you are interested in.

Lawrence Hall of Science (LHS):

Great Explorations in Math & Science (GEMS), Planetarium Activities for Student Success (PASS) are two series of superb hands-on activity guides for teaching astronomy in grades 3-9. Available from the Eureka store, Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-5200 (510-642-1016); http://www.lhs.berkeley.edu/publications.html

NASA:

A colorful series of booklets, posters, prints & other materials on space astronomy is available through NASA teacher resource centers around the country. Contact a local NASA center or: Education Division, NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546 for current list of centers. The list of available materials changes constantly. (See also NASA CORE in section 4 and Jet Propulsion Lab above.)

National Optical Astronomy Observatories (NOAO):

The new Educational Outreach Office has begun to design a variety of materials and activities for teachers and students, such as "Frequently Asked Questions about Being an Astronomer." See their web site at http://www.noao.edu/outreach or write to them at P.O. Box 26732, Tucson, AZ 85726; (520-318-8230) e-mail: outreach@noao.edu.

National Radio Astronomy Observatory:

To get some high school-level radio astronomy activities developed by teachers, write: Sue Ann Heatherly, NRAO, P.O. Box 2, Green Bank, WV 24944 (304-456-2209)

National Science Teachers Association (NSTA):

Develops and distributes a range of books and activity collections for teaching astronomy in grades K-12. Ask for their catalog. [see appendix]

New Mexico State University:

Dr. Bernard McNamara is devising a series of astronomy exercises and activities that develop model building and critical thinking. Contact him at: Dept. of Astronomy, Box 30001, Dept. 4500, New Mexico State U., Las Cruces, NM 88003

Pacific Science Center:

AstroAdventures Curriculum, a series of astronomy activities for grades 3-12, assembled by respected astronomy educator Dennis Schatz, and supported by a NASA Space Grant. Contact: The Explore More Store, PSC, 200 Second Ave. North, Seattle, WA 98109 (206-443-2870)

SETI Institute:

Life in the Universe Curriculum Project is developing supplementary science curricula and accompanying materials focusing on SETI themes for elementary and middle school students. Contact : SETI, 2035 Landings Dr., Mountain View, CA 94043 (650-961-6633); http://www.seti.org

Space Science Institute:

Provides curriculum materials related to NASA missions or traveling science exhibitions. Materials are available to download on SSI's home page [see appendix].

Stanford Solar Center:

A series of web-based curriculum activities (including images of the Sun from many cultures) at http://solar-center.stanford.edu.

University of Texas McDonald Observatory:

Has posters, activities, CDs of the Star Date radio program, and planetary fact sheets. Contact at RLM 15.308, U. of Texas, Austin, TX 78712 (512-471-5285); http://stardate.utexas.edu

Young Astronauts Program:

Produces simple activities and materials on space science for youngsters; has many local chapters. Contact at 1308 19th St., NW, Washington, DC 20036 (202-682-1984); http://www.yac.org

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