Other resources for educators from NASA and elsewhere

We have another page that lists all the programs we know of that get real astronomy data into the hands of teachers and students. This is a list of opportunities/resources that are maybe one step removed from diving right into FITS files .. these may be more suitable for teachers of K-6 students, for example. Please send us any corrections or additions.

Listing of Listings of Resources

• NASA STEM Engagement (the main NASA education office).
• NASA Center STEM Engagement Offices - contact them to find out about workshops (etc.) near you.
• NASA Wavelength - a central repository of all well-tested NASA curriculum resources... a.k.a. ready-to-use lesson plans! You can search and sort in a variety of ways, and it is updated frequently.
• NASA Science Activation programs - many incredibly rich programs and resources from across all sorts of NASA science.
• AstroEDU, a curriculum repository run by the International Astronomical Union. It has a more international perspective than NASA's effort does (e.g., you may be able to find lessons in Spanish or other languages here).
• GoLabz, another curriculum repository, this one based in Europe.
• Educational Resources from the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias -- many activities in Spanish
• Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) education pages:
  • List of activities to 'learn from' -- ready to use curriculum and online activities and other resources
  • List of activities for educators to 'teach from' -- ready to use curriculum and problem sets and other resources
  • JPL educator workshops
• List of education links from Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD)
• Astronomical Society of the Pacific does a lot of education; see specifically their activities (Universe in the Classroom is ready-to-use battle-tested curriculum).
• Hands-On Universe Activities -- may require some baseline knowledge.
• List of teacher opportunities from Debbie Morgan, NITARP class of 2018.

E-mail lists

(e.g., get a periodic mailing with opportunities and resources)

• NASA Education Express.
• International Astronomical Union Office for Astronomy Outreach; this is the signup page for their mailing list. This has a more international perspective than NASA's effort does (e.g., you may be able to find lessons in Spanish here).

Citizen Science with Ready-to-Use Curriculum

(e.g., web-based interface to data, AND you can pick it up and use it RIGHT NOW without additional training.)

• Zooniverse -- many astronomy projects; each of their projects (not just the astronomy ones) has accompanying educational resources.
• Infiniscope, by NASA and collaborators, focuses on small bodies in the Solar System.

Online activities, labs, etc.

• NASA Space Place
• PhET, from the University of Colorado Boulder. Interactive simulations (much more than just astronomy).

Other resources

(e.g., useful, but may require your own curriculum development)

• Astronomy Picture of the Day - by NASA; includes explanatory text daily.
• AstroBites -- summaries of current research papers written for the undergraduate level.
• Organize your own star party! There are amateur astronomy clubs all over the world. The Night Sky Network has a list of the clubs and their public events. Contact a club near you, and they might be able to bring telescopes to your school for a star party in the evening at your school.

Teacher Workshops

(e.g., training opportunities)

• McDonald Observatory Teacher Workshops
• Jet Propulsion Laboratory educator workshops.
• NASA EPDC (Educator Professional Development Collaborative) - hm. Looks like the NASA part of this has stopped, and the infrastructure has changed to the "LBJ Institute for STEM Education and Research"(?)
• Center for Astronomy Education (CAE)
• The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) has workshops and online resources.
• The American Modeling Teachers Association (AMTA) also has workshops and online resources.
• Edutopia has resources to learn more about inquiry-based learning, data in the classroom, and more.

Beyond just astronomy

(still including astronomy!)

• National Science Teachers Association (NSTA)
• American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT)
• American Modeling Teachers Association (AMTA)
• BioLogos -- Working at the interface between Christianity and science .. "..see the harmony between science and biblical faith as we present an evolutionary understanding of God's creation."