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STEM Resources for Your Tech Toolbox

Spice up your STEM instruction with these space exploration sites! Prepare your class for Space Exploration Day on July 20th and blast off with the curriculum connections shared below. Also, be sure to read the Classroom Use section of each of our reviews for more tech integration ideas!

Grades K-8

Bob the Alien's Tour of the Solar System

Explore peculiar planets, mysterious moons, amazing asteroids, and crazy comets! The Exploration Timeline showcases the history of space exploration. Have students research a space topic on the site and create a presentation for the class.

Grades 6-12

Explore the Cosmos

This site by The Planetary Society offers many ways to engage with the latest space news, images, and experiences related to space and space exploration. Read our full review for engaging tech integration ideas.

Grades 2-9

Be a Martian

Be a Martian enables students to participate as citizen scientists to assist Mars science teams studying about the Red Planet. Visit the Map Room of the Citizen Science Hall, the Crater City Town Hall Polling Place, or the Two Moons Theater.

Grades 4-12

NASA's Curiosity Mars Rover at Namib Dune

Enjoy 360-degree views of Mars, including a portion of Mount Sharp on the horizon. The rover's location is in the dark-sand "Bagnold Dunes" field along the northwestern flank of Mount Sharp. After students view, challenge them to write a news article.

Space Exploration Resources for the Young

Explore these two engaging sites with your elementary students. One site offers the ability to build your own mission as you learn about space. The other site includes videos, interactives, and more. 

Grades K-5

Build Your Own Space Mission

Use this "out of the world" cool tool to create characters and space vehicles with technology. Launch your mission to travel to outer space and learn more about astronomy. Use this clever site with younger students as a starting point for space science.

Grades K-6

Ready Jet Go!

Explore this resource, created by PBS to coincide with their show of the same name. Find video clips, games, and connect live to the Space Station feed. Watch full episodes of the show. Share at a learning station or on your interactive whiteboard.

Curriculum Connections

These three resources connect space to other areas of the curriculum. Find a book list for informational reading. Another site offers biographies about various women at NASA. Encourage writing with the images provided at the final site. 

Grades K-12

CurriConnects Booklist: Solar System and Space

Learn about astronomy and various astronauts with this fabulous book list, compiled by TeachersFirst. Each book suggestion includes a brief description, ISBN number, interest level, ESL reading level, Lexiles, and other information.

Grades 6-12

Women@NASA

Get your girls motivated about STEM, specifically space science! Share the stories with your students. Each includes a biography, story, and video about the woman highlighted. Challenge cooperative learning groups to research these women even further.

Grades 2-12

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Share these stunning images with your students. Each day, NASA offers a daily image explained by a professional astronomer. Share the image on your projector and have students journal about what they see. See additional classroom use ideas in our review.

This week at TeachersFirst

Join us for one of our OK2Ask® virtual workshops this week to explore reading and writing tools. We also have a Twitter Chat on Thursday about STEM — just in time for Space Exploration Day! And, be sure to let us know what books your class reads the most in our weekly poll.