LESSON: Space Shuttle Information

Title: Space Shuttle Information Submitted: May 24, 2008

Author: Sandy Mills-Alford School/Org: AliveTek, Inc
Lesson Overview:
This lesson serves as an intermediate introduction to the Space Shuttle systems Students !ill "e introduced to
key concepts that !ill "e developed further in the #$ASS curriculum The presentation includes deeper
e%planations in the teacher notes area, and there is a variety of readin& documents at "asic and advanced
levels Students should en'oy the fun activities offered as part of this lesson set
Suggested Classroom Time: (20-180 minutes rade Levels: )-(0
!LASS "odule: 2-*rientation To#ic/Console: Shuttle Information
"aterials $eeded:
Activit% &ocuments Other "aterials
1 +ack&round information,
http,--spacefli&ht(nasa&ov-shuttle-reference-"asics-inde%html
http,--spacefli&htnasa&ov-shuttle-reference-shutref-
.emonstration computer !ith
Internet connection, Shuttle
dia&rams, or or"iter model
' /01S2 Space-Shuttle-Infodoc
/01S2 Space-Shuttle-Infoppt
0.32Space-Shuttle-Info-Additional 45older of documents6
.emonstration computer or
student computers !ith Internet
connection and Microsoft
/o!er/oint
( A7T2*r"iter-$a"elin&doc
A7T2Space-Shuttle-7ross!orddoc
A7T2Space-Shuttle-8ordsearchdoc
#192*r"iter-$a"elin&doc
#192Space-Shuttle-7ross!orddoc
#192Space-Shuttle-8ordsearchdoc
8ritin& tools
$ational Standards/Ob)ectives:
&isci#line Standard Ob)ective
Science 1 Science and Technolo&y Students discover the a"ilities of technolo&ical desi&n
Science 3 :istory and ;ature of Science Students e%plore science as a human endeavor
Technolog% Social, ethical, and human issues Students understand the ethical, cultural, and societal
issues related to technolo&y
"ath Measurement Students apply appropriate techni<ues, tools, and
formulas to determine measurements
&esired *esults:
.eveloped "y ;ASA #S7 and funded "y ;ASA S*M. (
8hat is 5reon=
5reon is a chemical that is very &ood at
a"sor"in& heat +ecause of this
property, 5reon has "een used for many
years in air conditionin& units The
do!nside of 5reon is that it is harmful to
the environment +ecause of this, many
air conditionin& companies have turned
to alternative chemicals to use
:o!ever, it is still a very important part
of the space shuttle
avionics, computers and other electronic
systems used to operate and maintain
the or"iter and astronauts durin& fli&ht

Students !ill "e a"le to ans!er these essential <uestions
8hat are the > main systems of the Space Shuttle=
:o! do the Space Shuttle systems !ork to&ether to launch the Shuttle=
Students !ill kno!
The Space Shuttle is the !orld?s first reusa"le spacecraft, and the first spacecraft in history that can carry
lar&e satellites "oth to and from or"it
The Space Shuttle is comprised of various systems that make up each of its three main components
Students !ill "e a"le to
.iscuss the Space Shuttle and the systems that make up each of its three main components
Learning +lan/Activities:
( ,ntroducing the Lesson-
Sho! a dia&ram of the or"iter or pass around a model of the or"iter
Script, @The Space Shuttle is the !orld?s first reusa"le spacecraft, and the first spacecraft in history that can
carry lar&e satellites "oth to and from or"it The Shuttle launches like a rocket, maneuvers in 1arth or"it like
a spacecraft and lands like an airplane There are three Space Shuttle or"iters no! in operation,
.iscovery, Atlantis, and 1ndeavour .urin& this set of learnin& activities that !ill span over several days,
you !ill learn that the Space Shuttle consists of three ma'or components, the or"iter, !hich houses the
cre!A a lar&e e%ternal fuel tank that holds fuel for the main en&inesA and t!o solid rocket "oosters !hich
provide most of the Shuttle?s lift durin& the first t!o minutes of fli&ht All of the components are reused
e%cept for the e%ternal fuel tank, !hich "urns up in the atmosphere after each launchB
2 +resenting and ./#loring ,n0ormation-
To "e&in the lesson, either use the Space Shuttle Information /o!er/oint 4/01S2 Space-Shuttle-Infoppt6
as a presentation or as a student e%ploratory tool 9ou also may !ant to print the slides you plan on
coverin& as notes pa&es, since there are detailed notes em"edded in the presentation
3o throu&h the various readin& documents in the 0.32Space-Shuttle-Info-Additional folder and decide if
and ho! you are &oin& to use them 9ou could print a copy of each and ask students to study different
documents as home!ork .urin& a class session this !eek, you could ask them to report on the details of
the particular topic they !ere asked to study
> .valuating the Lesson-
:ave students complete the Orbiter Labeling 4A7T2*r"iter-$a"elin&doc6, Space Shuttle Crossword
4A7T2Space-Shuttle-7ross!orddoc6, and Space Shuttle Word Search 4A7T2Space-Shuttle-
8ordsearchdoc6 activities
Assessment .vidence:
/erformance Tasks
( 7ollect and evaluate the student !ork from the various Space Shuttle Information activities
2 3ive feed"ack re&ardin& ho! students !orked durin& the class session, and discuss strate&ies used for
findin& the ans!ers
.eveloped "y ;ASA #S7 and funded "y ;ASA S*M. 2

*ther 1vidence
( /erform normal classroom o"servation and assessment of pro&ress and participation
./tensions and oing 1urther *esources:
Csin& the data found in the readin&, implement one or more of the follo!in& activities "ased on the su"'ect and
&rade level
:ave the students dra! and la"el the > parts of the Space Shuttle
:ave the students each !rite > computation pro"lem sets to e%chan&e !ith their peers "ased on the
plethora of statistics that are presented in the information *f course, "efore they can @<uiDB others
Students !ill have to create ans!er keys
:ave a contest to see !ho can create the lon&est list of acronyms and-or the lon&est list of 1n&lish-to-
metric measurements that are presented in the material
:ave the students analyDe trends in the mission data This is a skill that ;ASA en&ineers perform in their
<uest for process and product improvement /ossi"le tools could "e 1%cel, charts, and ta"les or &raphs
:ave students in advanced courses study of the cryo&enics and propellants in more depth
+e sure to check for student opportunities, additional educational resources and more at,
http,--!!!nasa&ov-education
.eveloped "y ;ASA #S7 and funded "y ;ASA S*M. >