To catch a childs's imagination: Educational overview of CAN DO G-324

When a public school district is involved in the flight of a GAS package, they have a The desire to produce an serious responsibility, along with an unprecedented opportunity. experiment with real scientific validity must be tempered by the schools' primary mission to make the adventure educationally meaningful to the greatest possible number of students. Such a project can easily become the personal plaything of the select few that are highly scientifically motivated, and technologically gifted. A public school system must, in addition, insure that the resources invested in such a project also reach out to the average student, and those whose interests lie in other directions. Such a broad reach is only possible if the GAS canister is but one part of a comprehensive and ongoing educational effort that involves as many disciplines and levels of student interest as possible.

The total program should include:

1) A background of previous programs which have trained teachers and prepared students to fully utilize special activities as part of the educational process.
2) Direct student involvement in the design of experimental packages to be flown, and in the evaluation of data derived.
3) Supplementary related activities that use a Get Away Special as a motivational catalyst to generate efforts in other disciplines, other schools and other student groups.
4) Future plans to fully exploit and maintain the momentum developed by this one dramatic event.

The one overriding goal of all these activities as articulated by one of our leading classroom teachers:

"TO CHOOSE AND DEVELOP HIGHLY MOTIVATION& ACTIVITIES WHICH WILL CAPTURE THE IMAGINATION AND INTEREST OF STUDENTS, AND TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE "TEACHABLE MOMENT" WHICH IS SO ELUSIVE."