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Students can create space exploration timelines in Inspiration (pdf format) or Timeliner (pdf format). They can research all of human space exploration (for more advanced students) or narrow it down to the history of NASA's manned spaceflights. There is also one site to research NASA's robotic exploration of space. You may want to have students work in pairs or small groups and limit the students to 10 or 15 of the most important events in their opinions. You may also want to have them justify why they feel the events they picked were important. Also, pictures from the Internet can be copied and pasted into both of these programs from Internet Explorer.

OR

Have students research one particular mission or event in space history to create a class timeline. Divide students into pairs or small groups to research a particular mission or event in space travel. Students will create a summary sheet (including pictures, mission patch, and description) using either Microsoft Publisher (pdf format) or Microsoft Word (pdf format). Students present their summary sheets to the class and post in chronological order to create a whole-class timeline.

OR

Divide the class into seven groups and have students research one of the space programs: Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, Apollo-Soyuz, Space Shuttle, International Space Station. Have students research to answer these questions:

Encourage students to sketch, or copy and paste from the Internet, images of spacecraft, astronauts, mission patches, and any other pictures from each mission. Drawn pictures can then be scanned into the final product. Groups could create a Publisher brochure or PowerPoint presentation as a final product to show the class.

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Reseach Resources:

History of Robotic Exploration of Solar System - http://sse.jpl.nasa.gov/features/histfeat.html
Click the Mission link on the left, scroll down and click the Chronological link to see the missions in that order.
Star Child: History of Manned Space Travel - http://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/space_level2/travel.html
(An easier version of the StarChild - http://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/space_level1/travel.html)
Chronology - Highlights NASA's First 100 Spaceflights - http://history.nasa.gov/Timeline/100flt.html

NASA Kids News - http://nasakids.com/news/Default.asp?whichpage=13
The collection of NASA Kids News articles - this is page 13 where you can scroll down and click on Expedition One to learn about the launch of the first crew to live on the ISS. Page 14 has an article about the 100th shuttle launch! Each article can be read to the students by clicking on the speaker icon next to the title of the article.
Facts on NASA's First 100 Human Spaceflights - http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/kscpao/factoids/hundred.htm
Chronology of U.S. Astronaut Missions ('61-'72) - http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/chrono_astronaut.html
Space Shuttle Mission Chronology - http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/kscpao/chron/chrontoc.htm
Click on the Shuttle Mission Summary link for the most recent shuttle missions.

NASA Spaceflight Programs History - http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/humansp.html
NASA Spaceflight Programs History - http://www.spaceflight.nasa.gov/history/
Spaceflight Programs - http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/kscpao/history/history.htm

Suggested Timeline Events (for teacher) - this is a Word document
Apollo Timeline example (for teacher) - this is a Timeliner file or pdf file