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Art Cards to Space

Students will learn about space exploration and the International Space Station, then write and illustrate a postcard to an astronaut in space.

Lesson Plan

Supplies Needed

Gather all the supplies needed to bring your craft ideas to life! From paints and markers to glue and scissors, our crafts section has everything to spark creativity and make every project truly special.

  • Cardstock

Steps

  • Step 1

    The International Space Station (ISS) "...brings together international flight crews, multiple launch vehicles, globally distributed launch and flight operations, training, engineering, and development facilities, communications networks, and the international scientific community." Have students investigate this entity that was designed between 1984 and 1993. When was it launched into orbit? What countries contributed to its construction and its renovation? What are its goals? How does its global partnership contribute to global diplomacy, scientific advancement, cultural insights, and other sharing of ideas? For how long has it been continuously inhabited? How many people have been aboard, and how many countries have been represented? Fact check.

  • Step 2

    Ask students to create an artistic card that might be sent to the ISS. They could fold a piece of cardstock and illustrate the front with freehand drawings and/or hand-made image cut-outs. On the inside, have them write about some of the information they've learned as well as what more they want to know about space exploration and the mission of the ISS. 

  • Step 3

    Have students read their cards to the class and discuss the mission of space exploration and the ways data collected from the ISS could benefit life on Earth. They can research Blue Origin's Club for the Future Postcards in Space program and determine if digital images of their cards could be shared with that organization and digitally sent to space.

Standards

SCI: Engage in discussing or writing about evidence, cause, and effect to understand the connections across science domains of: Physical, Life, Earth and Space, and Engineering. 

SS: Global Connections: Become aware of how things that happen in one part of the world impact other parts of the world and the global connections within basic issues and concerns. 

SS: Science, Technology, and Society: Become aware of how science and technologies influence beliefs, knowledge, and people’s daily lives. 

Adaptations

Have students read a book about space exploration, such as "How To Be a Space Explorer" by Mark Brake, "Chasing Space" by Leland Melvin, "Hidden Space Race" by Margot Lee Shetterly and Laura Freeman, or any other.  Ask them to explore the process of becoming an astronaut or having a career in space technology.

Have students write a journal entry as if they were aboard the ISS. What sights might they see out of the 360-degree window? What experiments would they want to conduct? What might it be like to live in microgravity?