Our solar system and NASA's search for life on our neighboring planets will be the focus of the NASA Regional Educator Resource Center's free Saturday workshops this winter. On Feb. 10, Island Park Elementary teacher Thelma Ritchie brings the astronomy EALRs alive as she demonstrates her favorite activities for learning about the phases of the moon, as well as the characteristics and distance scale of the planets. Ritchie is active in Project Astro, Opportunity Skyway and the Museum of Flight Teacher Advisory Committee, as well as serving on the science curriculum committee for her district. The workshop is geared to grades 3-8. Workshops take place from 1-4 p.m. at the Washington NASA Space Grant office, Rm. 401, Johnson Hall.
Free parking is available on campus.
Pre-registration is required and clock hours are available. Enrolled teachers work in collaborative groups to tackle problems and can directly use the content in their own classrooms. The course was developed at the Center for Educational Technologies, Wheeling Jesuit University. Several hundred million neutron stars may be found in our galaxy, but NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has captured the one thought to be closest to Earth. The runaway neutron star is believed to be 200 light years away.