UPDATE: Nov. 27, 2018 – The InSight spacecraft successfully touched down on Mars just before noon on Nov. 26, 2018, marking the eighth time NASA has succeeded in landing a spacecraft on the Red Planet. This story has been updated to reflect the current mission status. For more mission updates, follow along on the InSight Mission Blog, JPL News, as well as Facebook and Twitter (@NASAInSight, @NASAJPL and @NASA).

---

NASA's newest Mars mission, the InSight lander, touched down on the Red Planet just before noon PST on Nov. 26. But there's more work ahead before the mission can get a look into the inner workings of Mars. Get your classroom ready to partake in all the excitement of NASA’s InSight mission with this educator game plan. We’ve got everything you need to engage students in NASA's ongoing exploration of Mars!

Day Before Landing

• Read NASA/JPL Edu’s Teachable Moment, “NASA’s ‘Cyber Monday’ Mars Landing to Deliver Science Firsts,” to get a preview of the engineering and science involved in landing InSight and placing its instruments on Mars. Explore the related activities and resources in the “Teach It” and “Explore More” sections.

Landing Day (Nov. 26)

• Check out The Oatmeal’s webcomic for an explainer of how the InSight mission will land on Mars, what it will do on the planet and what it's hoping to find out.
• Watch these fun, one-minute videos for a quick overview of how landing sites are chosen, how spacecraft get to Mars, and what it takes to land there.
• Have students read about JPL’s “landing-site dude” and his rotating cast of interns, who have helped select seven of NASA’s Mars landing sites – including InSight’s! 
• Have students read the JPL news release “How Will We Know When InSight Touches Down?”
• Watch live commentary as a class and follow along on the InSight Mission Blog, as well as Facebook and Twitter (@NASAInSight, @NASAJPL and @NASA) using #MarsLanding.

Next Day

• Review the Teachable Moment to find out what needs to happen before InSight’s science operations can begin. Then create an instructional plan with these lessons, activities and resources that get students engaged in the science and engineering behind the mission.
• Check out InSight’s first images from Mars, here. (This is also where you can find raw images from InSight throughout the life of the mission.)

Over the Next Month

• Watch these “Mars in a Minute” videos to find out what InSight is hoping to learn on the Red Planet: “What’s Inside Mars?” “Are There Quakes on Mars?” And “How Did Mars Get Such Enormous Mountains?”
• Have students explore NASA’s Experience InSight interactive to learn about InSight’s science instruments and how each will be deployed to the surface of Mars.
• Follow along on the InSight Mission Blog and @NASAInSight social media over the next few weeks as NASA gets to work surveying the landing site and determining where to place each of the instruments.
• Try the lessons and activities below with students to get them doing some of the same science and engineering as InSight:

• 
  Robotic Arm Challenge

  In this challenge, students will use a model robotic arm to move items from one location to another. They will engage in the engineering design process to design, build and operate the arm.

  Grades K-8

  Time 30 mins - 1 hr

• 
  *NEW* Exploring the Colors of Mars

  Students use satellite and rover images to learn about the various features and materials that cause color variation on the surface of Mars, then create their own “Marscape.”

  Grades 2 and 5

  Time 1-2 hrs

• 
  *NEW* Planetary (Egg) Wobble and Newton's First Law

  Students try to determine the interior makeup of an egg (hard-boiled or raw) based on their understanding of center of mass and Newton’s first law of motion.

  Grades 3, 6-8

  Time 30 mins - 1 hr

• 
  Touchdown

  Students design and build a shock-absorbing system that will protect two "astronauts" when they land.

  Grades 3-8

  Time 30 mins - 1 hr

• 
  Mission to Mars Unit

  In this 19-lesson, standards-aligned unit, students learn about Mars, design a mission to explore the planet, build and test model spacecraft and components, and engage in scientific exploration.

  Grades 3-8

  Time Varies

• 
  *NEW* Heat Flow Programming Challenge

  Students use microcontrollers and temperature sensors to measure the flow of heat through a soil sample.

  Grades 5-12

  Time 1-2 hrs

• 
  Quake Quandary

  In this illustrated math problem, students use the mathematical constant pi to identify the timing and location of a seismic event on Mars, called a "marsquake."

  Grades 11-12

  Time Less than 30 mins

Explore More

Follow Along

• Watch Online
• Watch in Person
• Broadcast Schedule
• Social Media

Resources and Activities

• Teachable Moment: NASA InSight Lander to Get First Look at ‘Heart’ of Mars
• InSight Lessons
• Mars Lessons
• Mars Activities for Students

Feature Stories and Podcasts

• InSight Podcast: "On a Mission"
• "The 'Claw Game' on Mars Plays to Win" – Oct 16, 2018
• "NASA's InSight Will Study Mars While Standing Still" – Oct. 24, 2018
• "The Mars InSight Landing Site is Just Plain Perfect" – Nov. 5, 2018

Websites and Interactives

• InSight Mission Website
• Experience InSight Interactive
• NASA Mars Exploration Website

TAGS: InSight, Mars Landing, Educators, K-12, Elementary School, Middle School, High School, Lessons and Activities, Educator Resources, Mars

• 

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  NASA/JPL Edu

  NASA/JPL Edu supports science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education by providing NASA and JPL activities, resources and materials to educators and students in grades K-12 as well as STEM internships and research opportunities to higher education students and faculty.