STEM Activities

TASM offers many different hands-on and minds-on educational activities to suit your class’s needs. We link the classroom to aviation and space themes to engage students in an interactive learning environment. You don’t want to miss out on the STEM activities!

STEM activities must be booked in advance of visit. Most activities take no more than 40 minutes per session.

Stomp Rockets

The simple science behind how rockets really work! Introduces very basic physics (Newton’s 3rd Law of motion) and the different parts of a real NASA rocket. Demonstrations involving rockets to further explain Newton’s 3rd law of motion. Students also get to build their own paper stomp rockets and launch them outside, next to our American Airlines MD-80, using air pressure to create upwards thrust.

Recommended grade range:  Pre-K to 5th

Duration: 30m
Capacity: 40 students per session
(Groups 40-80 must book museum as well; groups 80+ must book museum AND planetarium)

Mars Landers

A look into how NASA designs land rovers for other planets such as Mars. Students get to build their own landers and test them as they learn about the engineering design cycle used by NASA engineers to design and operate real life landers.

Recommended grade range: 4th – 8th

Duration: 30-40m
Capacity: 40 students per session
(Groups 40-80 must book museum as well; groups 80+ must book museum AND planetarium)

Physics of Flight

An in-depth look into the science of how aircraft fly! Students will look at the four forces that act on an aircraft in flight and how pilots manipulate those four forces to control their aircraft. After the lesson, students will have the opportunity to try their hand at applying what they’ve learned by designing and building their best paper airplane model!

Recommended grade range: 7th – 12th

Duration: 30-40m
Capacity: 30 students per session
(Groups 30+ must book museum as well; groups 100+ must book museum AND planetarium)

Electricity

Have you ever wondered how electricity works? Students are introduced to the terminology and concepts that power all of our technology, and they even get to build their own circuit. Problem solve to make a functioning light switch, and see how motors create power using a hand crank generator!

Recommended grade range: 3rd – 8th

Duration: 30m
Capacity: 30 students per session
(Groups 30-60 must book museum as well; groups 60+ must book museum AND planetarium)