Campaign for model rockets in education
I have been embarking on a campaign to hopefully inspire the use of model rockets in the classroom. According to Estes, “Many positive qualities have been associated with the use of model rocketry in the classroom. Educators describe it as an “exciting”, “motivational” and “high energy” teaching tool.” Estes list many reasons for this in their “Guide For Teachers and Youth Group Leaders A Guide to Introduce Educators to the Benefits of Estes Model Rocketry”; I’ll just name a few here;
Provide a high energy “catalyst” that combines units in science with developments in space - bring space into your classroom.
Provide a flexible medium that will engage your students’ creativity in several areas including: social studies, reading, crafts, technology, and science.
Introduce an affordable “technology in miniature” that will acquaint your students with technical concepts, terms and techniques at a time when the lack of technical literacy has become a major educational concern.
Conduct hands-on, inquiry based learning.
(Carroll, 2005)
The list goes on. The Estes manual mentioned lists about 20 reasons for using model rockets in the classroom to teach science, math, social studies, and even language arts. One that deserves further note is that the sport allows for “unique and captivating learning opportunities” (Carroll, 2005).
So far, my meager campaign has included blogs, images, and video. Probably most of all this campaign has allowed me to experiment with YouTube and video editing, as I create these quirky videos that I post online under the hashtag #JROspace. What I expect to gain with this campaign is uncertain now. These videos have led to at least one opportunity with Access Arts of Columbia, MO. “Special guest: John Rozean (a.k.a. Rocket Man) will help campers construct their very own rockets!“ reads the organization’s promotion on their website (Access Arts, 2017). The Access Arts Executive Director Shawna Johnson also mentioned the event on “Radio Friends with Paul Pepper” (Pepper, 2017).
I hope that these efforts will lead to further events like this where students will get a chance to learn about model rockets, and how they can help to expand their minds with real-world examples of math and science.
Access Arts (2017) . summer camp 2017 . retrieved June 22, 2017 from http://www.schoolofservice.org/summercamp.html
Carroll, J. (2005) . Guide For Teachers and Youth Group Leaders A Guide to Introduce Educators to the Benefits of Estes Model Rocketry . Estes Industries . December 2005 . retrieved from http://www2.estesrockets.com/pdf/2814_Teachers_Guide_Teachers_Guide.pdf
Pepper, P (2017) . Paul Pepper: Shawna Johnson, Access Arts, "ArtTastic Summer Camp 2017 . YouTube . June 15, 2017 . retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5J3XH3yh72c&feature=youtu.be
