A fresh start.
Isn’t that what so many want in education? Whether you are a student, parent, teacher, administrator, or community member, we all have our opinions on what school should look like and how it should change.
However, we also know there is SO MUCH GOOD in education right now. Teachers that make a difference. Students that are finding creative opportunities. And a chance to use as education as a bridge to a better life.
Right now, innovation is happening inside the box at schools and inside classrooms around the world. Given the restrictions, regulations, policies, and constraints of an old system, we are doing amazing things in education.
But what if we had a chance to start a school from scratch?
And what if that school wasn’t even on this planet? What if it wasn’t governed by any of our nation states? What if we really had the chance to start over, knowing what we no know about the science of learning and the brain?
Here’s your chance, and better yet, here’s a chance for your students to get in on this and design the school they’d want to go to on Mars!
Over the next couple of days I’ll be blogging about the MARS Challenge: Design a School on Mars
*Update: Here’s the video!
Announcing the MARS Challenge: Design a School on Mars From Scratch
This challenge is open to any teacher and group of students in a K-12 education setting. We provide lesson plans, student notebooks, power point presentation for each lesson, and a framework (the LAUNCH Cycle) for your students to tackle this enormous challenge of starting a school on Mars.
Here are the details:
The big questions are:
1. Should a school even be on Mars?
2. If there was some type of education system on Mars, what would help further the mission of sustainability and prepare students for a future on Mars and beyond?
3. How can we learn from our years of education here on Earth to make school on Mars and even more valuable and fruitful place of learning?
The Design Challenge Overview
You’re going to make something amazing and you’re going to start on it today. It’s going to be something that has never existed before in the history of humanity.
You know how you typically turn in an assignment to your teacher and then you get it back and, well, that’s pretty much it. This is different. Working with your design team, you’re going to create something people will actually see!
The Launch Process
Look all around you. Seriously. Glance around your classroom. You are surrounded by things that people created. Not only did they create these things but they also designed them. The fancy term for this is design thinking. It’s the term professionals use. You’re going to use the LAUNCH Process. It’s a modified version of the design thinking cycle that artists and engineers use in the real world. Here’s how it works:
Look, Listen, and Learn
Ask a Ton of Questions
Understand the Problem or Process
Navigate the Ideas
Create a Prototype
Highlight What’s Working and Fix What’s Failing
Ready to Launch!
Your Challenge: Build a Model School for People Who Colonize Mars
You’re going to design and build a model school for people who colonize MARS.
Consider the following:
- Where will this school be located on MARS? How will you keep the people safe, but also provide a place where learning is as challenging as life on the planet?
- How will you accommodate each person’s unique role in colonizing MARS with what they’ll be learning?
- What will look similar about school here on Earth? What will look new, different, and better?
- What feature of school will you definitely get rid of from our current system?
- What special features will this school have? What kinds of cool gadgets and technology will this school have?
- What will the learning environment/school look like? What architectural style will you use?
- What will you name the school?
Your items will include:
- Cardboard
- Construction Paper
- Duct Tape
- Glue
- Straws
Don’t forget to experiment and make tons of glorious mistakes. Ultimately, your design is going to be awesome, because it’s yours and it’s coming from your creative mind.
The Final Product
Your group will ultimately design a model school using the above materials. In order to share this model school with the world, you will have to make one of the following options below to be in the running for the final prize!
Option 1: Create a digital brochure inviting people going to MARS to join your school.
Option 2: Create a video showing and explaining the school on MARS
Option 3: Create a video advertisement for the school on MARS
How Can I Join?!?
Sign up using the form below. You’ll receive an email with the following items (all FREE):
- Lesson Plans for the MARS Challenge (including connection to the standards and step-by-step instruction for teachers)
- LAUNCH Student Notebook – Students have a notebook handout to fill in, sketch in, and follow throughout the entire challenge
- PowerPoint introducing the Mars Challenge and for every lesson during the Challenge
- Resource list for research on MARS, space travel, school design and much more!
You’ll also be asked to fill in information on your school and classroom to be a part of the official MARS Challenge that will be judged. If you don’t want to participate in the final project judging, no worries, have fun doing it with your class!
I’ll keep you updated in the coming weeks with blog posts and emails, and we will also use the hashtag #MARSchallenge to share out what our students are designing, making, and building this month!
Photo Credit: NASA/Pat Rawlings, SAIC
Join the MARS Challenge
Enter your email below and get the FREE lesson plans, student notebook, PPTs, and much more to get started design a school on Mars!
Thank you for allowing educators access to these materials FOR FREE! I can not stress how difficult it can be to find quality materials that I do not have to pay out of my own pocket for. My kids will be super excited about this challenge!
can’t access your resources. the link to Google Drive doesn’t work!
Great idea using design thinking and the “Undiscovered Country” of Mars to get students and teachers excited and thinking “out-of-the-box”. Thanks!!!
This is great! I can’t wait to do this with two of the grade levels I serve! I do have a question- where are the videos referred to in Lesson 1? I’ve gone through all the materials in the folder, but can’t seem to locate the video. Thanks!
I am wondering this same question! 🙂
Here’s the video! https://youtu.be/_oh-Qar9jps
Thank you so much! My kids and I are LOVING this!
Yes, very inspiring and exciting for my students. I too was unable to find the video. Am I missing a link? Thank you.
Excellent idea to connect different subjects, to do through STEM, to be creative.
I will do it with my students (13 years). Thanks!
Love hearing this Marina, can’t wait to see what they make.
Interested in doing this with my grade 9 science class.
Sharing out your challenge on my blog – and linking back here. May I have permission to use your Mars graphic with the hashtag?
Looking forward to watching the awesome things students come up with…
Yes and yes! Can’t wait to see as well.
We are excited about starting the Mars challenge as well, but also cannot find the video in Lesson One. Thank you!
Video is coming soon!
Thank you, AJ. I think this will enhance our architectural unit for my third grade students; and will align appropriately with our curricular objectives. Thank you for “launching” this project. I look forward to learning more about the contest and judging component.
Awesome, thanks for joining in 🙂
Love this opportunity and can’t wait to start tomorrow! Where is the video for day one? I may have overlooked it, but I can’t find it. Thanks!
Here is the MARS Challenge kick off video: https://youtu.be/_oh-Qar9jps
Hello
Thanks for this Great Idea and for extending it to the students worldwide. We are a school in Dubai following a UK curriculum. I have shared this amazing challenge with my students. and they are very excited and inspired by the same.Would like to know the further process to sign up our team.
Here you go! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSewM3Rrrp9p04L2KR1QZBdCK8M6Xvo5BOJlJ1LAzA5qzXL7Eg/viewform
Thanks for the response for the earlier query. Can a school send in multiple entries for the competition?
I have the same question. I have 16 students working in 5 groups. Can we make 5 entries? Thanks!
So excited to start this! I’m not finding the site to officially register my class for the challenge. Can anyone help?
Here you go! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSewM3Rrrp9p04L2KR1QZBdCK8M6Xvo5BOJlJ1LAzA5qzXL7Eg/viewform
Thank you. I am unable to access the Launch Cycle video for my students
I see that this can be used for K-2. But the notebook seems much more high-level thinking than primary aged kids. Is there something that’s more age appropriate, or am I missing something? thx!
We have registered as a team of 20 .. can we sent multiple entries for the competition
Does anyone have more information about the building materials? How much can be used? etc?
I have the same question! Are the materials flexible? Like straws could be ones with the bend but could also be large. Cardboard could be the kind for boxes (paper, shoe, etc) but could also be those thinner file folder types.
The kids also asked questions like can they decorate it using markers/paints? (Doesn’t affect the structure)?
Is there a limit to the amount of material they can use?
Hi AJ. Two questions. First, can I use the #MARSChallenge graphic you have on this post to use in a blog post for our school to share what our students have done? Second question is where can I tag the video that we have uploaded with who the school/students/etc are? Or is there something I am missing? I can easily send you an email with the YouTube link and info if that is easier. Thanks. Alex
Hello, have the winner been announced for the Mars Challenge? My kids are excited to see the winning projects. Regardless if we win or not, it was a great challenge. We look forward to our next challenge.
Yes we are awaiting any news as well
On the Mars School Challenge!
As much as we would like to know the results we would love to watch all the uploads by students around the world.
AJ,
How did this end up?
Troy
[…] (via Andrew Kauffman) here’s a “Creating a School (on Mars) from Scratch” challenge by A.J. Juliani http://ajjuliani.com/creating-school-mars-scratch/ […]