In Class

So what did we do in class? Each morning I would show NASA’s picture of the day and we would talk about what we saw. In language arts we wrote stories about flight and researched the history of flight. We created rockets and hot air balloons that w e successfully launched during school on the playground. Pictures are available to view at www.slpschools.org/cm by clicking on school information and then clicking on school activities. We created personal mission patches for our school years “Hopes and Dreams” and also created science jobs with space related names. We watched the movie October Sky and talked about not only the space aspect but also the relationships in the video which was a tie to our health classes. Our weekly newsletter called “The Pathfinder” was also in dedication to the Pathfinder Shuttle, a shuttle that was used only to transition the NASA program from the Saturn 5 to the STS shuttle.

Advanced Space Camp

With the passion from the Educators at Space Camp and Cedar Manor Students at Space Camp, I decided to apply for the Advanced Space Camp Program again sponsored by Honeywell. In order to be considered for this opportunity I needed to show how I incorporated what I had learned into the classroom. As it turns out, I was selected among 35 teachers to return to the US Space and Rocket Center and Kennedy Space Center for an in depth - up close tour of the NASA program. These teachers were again from across the globe which truly enhanced the feeling that space travel and exploration promotes positive global interaction! To the right, click “Mr. Rand at Advanced Space Camp,” to see what adventures I went through while attending Advanced Camp. This was a two week program where as the first was a one week. This was an amazing honor that not only benefited myself and the students that I teach but will also benefit all of my students in the future.

So then...

I was so happy with the experience at Space Camp in 2006 I decided to take it a step further. In April of 2007, I decided to take on the task of organizing a trip for 43 students to the US Space and Rocket Center. Organizing a trip to Alabama from Minnesota is no easy task. With administration support, we traveled 17 hours straight to keep cost down and learn aerospace education. The students had amazing time learning, growing, maturing and having fun. I am so proud of their maturity and how well they represented our school. Please visit the blog titled “Cedar Manor Goes to Space Camp” to see pictures of the group and learn more about us as a school! The trip was such a success that I hope that it will continue in the future and show that Cedar Manor School takes education a step further…all of the students and staff gave up their Spring Break to make this trip a reality!

Space Camp Year 1

So the journey began. In June of 2006, I attended my first space camp experience. The experience was one of a lifetime. I was completely emerged in the history of flight, the history of NASA, and the projected future of Space exploration. To the right, click the link “Mr. Rand Goes to Space Camp” to see my first trip to camp. I instantly knew that I would in some way need to get my students involved with what I had learned. Providing the student’s hands on learning and showing how it related to the “real world” and how what they are learning is going to impact their lives is important to me. Showing them that science, math and technology are exciting and challenging careers is the pure joy of being a teacher. Being the one that can provide the opportunities for students is exciting and I do hope that I can inspire my students to enter this field.

Welcome to the “Putting It All Together” Blog of Mr. Rand. I will start be telling you how I got here. As the First Lego League coach of Cedar Manor Intermediate Center I was sent an email stating that middle school teachers were able to apply for an all expense trip to Space Camp! Of course, I thought, who does not want to go to Space Camp! So, I gave it a whirl. I was selected along with 200 teachers from a around the world for Honeywell”s Educators at Space Camp at the US Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama. This was a way to learn aerospace education and how to integrate teaching space into the daily classroom. Our school standards do not require space education in 6th grade so I was dealt with the task to incorporate space into all other aspects of the daily routine. This experience was one of t he best opportunities in my life! So much in fact, I took the experience to the next levels!