NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Even though the STS-118 crew members have returned to Earth, part of their mission continues, and NASA needs the help of educators to make that mission a success!

The STS-118 flight of the space shuttle Endeavour in August 2007 continued the assembly of the International Space Station. But as the first flight of mission specialist and educator astronaut Barbara Morgan, STS-118 represented a spaceflight milestone for the education community. To support this event, NASA and its partners are providing a variety of resources and opportunities to help educators leverage the excitement of spaceflight with their students.

The STS-118 Education Resources Web site allows educators to take advantage of these opportunities and resources, and to be a part of the continuing mission of STS-118.

NASA Engineering Design Challenge: Lunar Plant Growth Chamber
During the 2007-2008 school year, join NASA's Engineering Design Challenge to design, analyze, build and assess plant growth chambers as part of a standards-based activity related to the STS-118 space shuttle mission. Growth chambers, much like the space plant chambers students will design and build, are part of the education payload on STS-118. The first Educator Astronaut, Barbara Morgan, and her fellow crewmates will take up two growth chambers along with 10 million basil seeds. These seeds will be exposed to microgravity and brought back to Earth to be used in classrooms throughout the nation.
>  Engineering Design Challenge Flier
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NASA Fit Explorer Challenge
NASA's Fit Explorer project is a scientific and physical approach to human health and fitness on Earth and in space. Students will learn about The Vision for Space Exploration and the physical fitness requirements of living and working in space. The participants will use standards-based classroom science activities related to the STS-118 shuttle mission and future extended exploration missions. Students will perform physical activities, including Base Station Walk-Back, Do a Spacewalk, Jump for the Moon, Crew Strength Training and Mission: Control.
>  View site
>  Be a Fit Explorer Flier

Pennant Design Challenge
Students' curiosity, creativity and imagination will reach new heights this summer, literally, thanks to the NASA Space Pennant Design Challenge. On the STS-118 mission, the Space Shuttle Endeavour will carry a student-designed pennant created for the challenge. Students created designs, conducted research and wrote essays about the designs' connection to exploration. The submission period has ended, and entries have been reviewed by the judges. The designs selected as finalists appear in an online gallery, and the winner has been selected through online voting.
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>  Pennant Design Winner
>  Space Pennant Puzzle