Maria's Mélange

I'm busily putting the finishing touches on some stations for tomorrow's nights "SMART" night at my school. I'm the science advocate this year, so I am responsible for creating activities and centers to celebrate science. Astronomy was my first love.  I watched as many of the Space Shuttle launches live in elementary and middle school as I could. While that means that I witnessed the Challenger disaster live (my school had it on the televisions in the hall), the joy and excitement that came from seeing someone launch into space was worth the trauma I experienced that year. My very first book review was about an astronomy title. I have a station where students can view some amazing videos, (some by Lockheed Martin, some by Crash Course Astronomy, and some by NASA's JPL department) do an experiment to create craters, and read some brief information about stars and recent discoveries. Did I just happen to include photos of Maria Mitchel, Mae Jemis...

I've read several great science and science fiction graphic novels over the past few weeks, so I need to start catching up on the posts so that YOU can find out about them! Today's selection is historical fiction - but with a very heavy dose of history. If you haven't learned anything about the Soviet space program from the 50s, I'll need to warn you that this is a "dead dog" book. Laika by   Nick Abadzis Paperback, 208 pages Published September 4th 2007 by First Second (first published September 1st 2007) original title - Laika ISBN 1596431016 (ISBN13: 9781596431010) Goodreads Blurb : Laika was the abandoned puppy destined to become Earth's first space traveler. This is her journey. Nick Abadzis masterfully blends fiction and fact in the intertwined stories of three compelling lives. Along with Laika, there is Korolev, once a political prisoner, now a driven engineer at the top of the Soviet space program, and Yelena, the lab technician ...

Spaceflight finale: To some this may look like a sunset. But it's a new dawn. twitter.com/Cmdr_Hadfield/… — Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield) May 13, 2013 I wasn't going to post today...    my words feel stuck inside my head. They are rattling around in there, but    resist every attempt to be gathered corralled organized or even seen. Hiding in the shadows, they jeer at me. Occasionally jumping out and shouting    a word    a phrase  but disappearing before they can be ensnared. Yet I had to share this.... and I hope that your own words can swirl and flow like the clouds beneath Commander Hadfield as he sings "Space Oddity" from the ISS, shortly before his return to Earth yesterday. May it help to inspire us to see One World - United. May it inspire you, your students, and the whole Earth to pursue exploration. May it inspire us to see our world as beautiful, and fragile, and glorious. Enjoy! I'm participatin...

George's Secret Key to the Universe by Stephen and Lucy Hawking Hardcover, 297 pages Published October 23rd 2007 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (first published January 1st 2007) ISBN 1416954627 (ISBN13: 9781416954620) Goodreads Summary: Stephen Hawking, author of the multi-million copy bestselling A Brief History of Time, and his daughter Lucy explain the universe to readers of all ages. George's parents, who have always been wary of technology, warn him about their new neighbors: Eric is a scientist and his daughter, Annie, seems to be following in his footsteps. But when George befriends them and Cosmos, their super-computer, he finds himself on a wildly fun adventure, while learning about physics, time, and the universe. With Cosmos's help, he can travel to other planets and a black hole. But what would happen if the wrong people got their hands on Cosmos? George, Annie, and Eric aren't about to find out, and what ensues is a funny a...

Every generation has certain moments. The ones that we all ask one another, "Do you remember where you were when....?" This morning, as I got ready to take my children to the bus stop while tweeting about the upcoming ALA awards, I was reminded of one of my moments. January 28, 1986 ~ Challenger exploded and I remember being in Physical Science watching it as it happened. #challengerexplosion — Jennifer Malphy (@jmalphy) January 28, 2013 From NASA.gov   I'm not one to have vivid recollections of the past. I tend to rely on my copious number of photographs of my children to help spark the stories of those little lovely times. This moment? This one I remember in shocking detail. Space and astronomy was one of my passions. Not that I ever thought I'd go into space, mind you, but I loved learning about the immensity of it all. I wrote poetry about the planets, read books about them, and had been doodling aliens and Saturn on my notebooks since I was i...

Welcome back to SciFriday here at the  Mélange . I'm excited to be finding some science fiction titles that work for middle grade readers! If you missed it, check out last week's review of Human.4 ! Cosmic - by Frank Cottrell Boyce Published July 30th 2008 by MacMillan UK Acquired from: my amazing community library.  ( Goodreads Summary )  Liam is too big for his boots. And his football strip. And his school blazer. But being super-sized height-wise has its advantages: he's the only eleven-year-old to ever ride the G-force defying Cosmic rollercoaster - or be offered the chance to drive a Porsche. Long-legged Liam makes a giant leap for boy-kind by competing with a group of adults for the chance to go into space. Is Liam the best boy for the job? Sometimes being big isn't all about being a grown-up. What I thought:  Cosmic is a fun, light, humorous entry into science fiction. Don't let that fool you, though, there is excellent science to be explored in...

Check out the other Slices at Two Writing Teachers! It's been a crazy month for space exploration. The Mars Curiosity landing has me all in a tizzy, and fond memories of Sally Ride linger in the back of my mind. I wasn't alive when Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon, but even the echoes of that step were enough to inspire my childhood passion for space. I cheered for the Curiosity Rover. I look at every picture the twitter feed sends out, and I marveled anew that we have the opportunity to explore our sister world, even though it must be vicariously. I grabbed books about space and started to devour them in preparation for a budding unit I'll share with my students this year. I cried at the death of Sally Ride. I also smiled as I remembered how amazing I felt when I saw a woman heading into space. Then I cried again in memory of the moment I watched the Challenger explode on live television. Humanity dares to explore, but our daring is never without price. ...

As those of you who follow my blog or chat with me on Twitter already know, I adore science fiction. I did a decent amount of science fiction reading this summer, but not nearly enough to slake my thirst for new titles. Since I can't keep calling it #SciFiSummer now that the summer is winding down, I'll have to transition to a new catch phrase. If you have any thoughts, let me know! This past week I have been reading an Urban Fantasy ( The Raven Boys ), so I decided to take this Friday to review some science nonfiction I have been reading. After all, you can't have Science Fiction without Science Fact, right? The recent excitement over the Mars Curiosity Rover has reignited my interest in space exploration. As a little girl, and a not so little teen, I was passionate about science. I watched many of the shuttle launches live. (On television, unfortunately, never in person). My very first book review was about an astronomy book. I got paid actual money for that one! T...