National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Mars Rover Celebration
Curriculum Module
Week 5: Building and Writing
Lesson 11: Brainstorm and Preliminary Design
Educational Product
Educators & Students
Grades 3-5
www.marsrover.org
Week 5: Building and Writing
LESSON 11:
GRADE LEVEL:
MATERIALS:


BRAINSTORM AND PRELIMINARY DESIGN
3-5
Computer with Internet access; projector and screen
Found materials gathered by the students for rover construction such as:
o Paper plates
o Aluminum foil
o Colored construction paper
o Straws
o Popsicle sticks and/or tongue depressors
o Pipe cleaners
o Styrofoam cups
o Foil tart pans (3" diameter)
o Foam core board or card board
o Small card board tubes (toilet paper roll cores, paper towel cores, etc.)
o Glue
o Brads
o Tape
o Paperclips
o Staples
o Poster paint
o Other found materials that strike the students as useful
Optional Materials:

Solar Rover Kit for each team (or equivalent; not to exceed $15)
o Kelvin Solar Racer Kit
o Kelvin Scientific Economy Solar Racer Kit with Wood Body
o Kelvin Scientific Economy Solar Racer Kit with Plastic Body
o Pitsco SunEzoon Solar Car Kit
o Pitsco SunZoon Lite Solar Car Kit
OR
 Radio Control Kit for each team (or equivalent; not to exceed $15)
o Kelvin Scientific R/C Car Solderless Kit
o Nikko 1:18 Radio Control Hummer H2 Remote Control Car
TEKS/SES:
Science
Grade 3
3.2.A
3.2.E
3.2.F
3.3.A
3.4.A
Grade 4
4.2.A
4.2.E
4.3.A
4.4.A
4.6.C
3.6.B
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Mars Rover Model Celebration – Lesson Plan; Week 1; Lesson3 – Grades 3-5
Grade 5
5.2.C
5.2.E
5.2.F
5.3.A
5.4.A
5.6.B
Full text versions of these TEKS are available at http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/rules/tac/chapter112/ch112a.html
Math
Grade 3
3.11.A 3.14.B
3.14.B
3.14.C
Grade 4
4.14.A 4.14.B
4.14.C
4.14.D 4.15.A
Grade 5
5.14.A 5.14.B
5.14.C
5.14.D 5.15.A
3.14.D 3.15.A
Full text versions of these TEKS are available at http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/rules/tac/chapter111/ch111a.html
Language Arts
Grade 3
3.4.B
3.25.A
3.27
3.31
Grade 4
4.2.A
4.2.B
4.23.A
4.25.A
Grade 5
5.2.A
5.2.B
5.25.A
5.29
4.29
Full text versions of these TEKS are available at http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/rules/tac/chapter110/ch110a.html
NATIONAL STANDARDS
Science
Science As Inquiry
 Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry
 Understandings about scientific inquiry
Science And Technology

Abilities of technological design
 Understandings about science and technology
Personal And Social Perspectives
 Science and technology in societ
Math
Measurement
 Apply appropriate techniques, tools, and formulas to determine measurements.
Problem Solving
 Build new mathematical knowledge through problem solving
 Solve problems that arise in mathematics and in other contexts
 Apply and adapt a variety of appropriate strategies to solve problems
 Monitor and reflect on the process of mathematical problem solving
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Mars Rover Model Celebration – Lesson Plan; Week 1; Lesson3 – Grades 3-5
Communication
 Organize and consolidate their mathematical thinking through communication
 Communicate their mathematical thinking coherently and clearly to peers, teachers, and others
 Analyze and evaluate the mathematical thinking and strategies of others;
 Use the language of mathematics to express mathematical ideas precisely.
Connections
 Recognize and apply mathematics in contexts outside of mathematics
Language Arts

NL-ENG.K-12.7 EVALUATING DATA-Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas
and questions, and by posing problems. They gather, evaluate, and synthesize data from a variety of
sources (e.g., print and nonprint texts, artifacts, people) to communicate their discoveries in ways that
suit their purpose and audience
ESSENTIAL QUESTION:
Which step of the Engineering Design Process was the most difficult for your team? What made this step so
challenging for you?
LESSON OBJECTIVE(S):
Students will be able to:
 Identify, become familiar with and use the Engineering Design Process
 Use the Engineering Design Process to sketch a reasonable drawing of the rover that will be built
 Use the steps of the Engineering Design Process to build a Mars Rover prototype
 Develop a concept map to communicate requirements and features of the rover
ENGAGEMENT
1.
2.
3.
At the beginning of this lesson, and using the attached documents (Appendix), present the Key Vocabulary
and the Essential Question for students to consider during the lesson.
Ask students to think about how a pencil is made and share their ideas. Solicit from students that a
process is involved from first having the idea of a pencil through using one at school.
Show the video clip from Discovery’s How It’s Made on the manufacturing of pencils (Runtime 2:47):
http://science.discovery.com/videos/how-its-made-pencils.html
Note: Prepare this video prior to students arriving to avoid the ad at the beginning.
4.
5.
After watching the video, have students recall that pencils did not always exist. Ask:
 How do you think the pencil was invented?
 Why would we need something like this? (It solves a problem.)
 What process do you think the inventor went through to create the pencil?
After discussing student responses, guide students through the graphic organizer in their Science
Notebooks identifying the steps in the Engineering Design Process of how a pencil was invented. (1. State
the Problem, 2. Generate Ideas, 3. Select a Solution, 4. Build the Item, 5. Evaluate, 6. Present Results) Be
sure to ask students to ponder what happens when they reach Step 6. (The cycle begins again to improve
the product. Once students feel comfortable with the process, provide time for students to answer the
two additional questions with their teams.
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Mars Rover Model Celebration – Lesson Plan; Week 1; Lesson3 – Grades 3-5
EXPLORATION




With students in their teams of 4-5, students should complete the Team Information section of their
Science Notebooks. The teacher should circulate and approve before moving on.
Recalling the steps of the Engineering Design Process (State the Problem, Generate Ideas, Select a
Solution, Build the Item, Evaluate, Present Results), students will begin to focus on building a rover to land
on Mars. Using their Science Notebooks, students will work with their teams to select missions,
determine requirements, and develop features of their Mars rovers.
While teams are working in their Science Notebooks, circulate the room and guide student discussions
when appropriate. Ask students:
o Which step of the Engineering Design Process are you working on?
o Why is this step necessary/important?
o How will this feature fulfill your rover’s mission/requirement?
Once teams have satisfactorily completed this portion, pull students together to demonstrate how to
complete a concept map.
EXPLANATION

Using the Concept Map mini-lesson (Appendix), teachers should guide students through the process of
correctly completing the first section of the concept map together. Students should then work with their
teams complete the remainder of the concept map based on how many missions their team has chosen.
Note: Students should work with their teams to complete the Concept Map (Appendix) and tape the final
copy, into their Science Notebooks when finished. To provide adequate room for brainstorming, students
are encouraged to first draft their concept maps on blank newsprint paper or bulletin board paper.

Once teams have completed the Engagement, Exploration, and Explanation sections of their Science
Notebooks, teams may begin building their prototype rovers. Circulate the room and guide student
discussions when appropriate. Ask students:
o Which step of the Engineering Design Process are you working on?
o Why is this step necessary/important?
o How will this feature fulfill your rover’s mission/requirement?
Note: This rover is a prototype. Students will build their final design rover in lesson 12.

Towards the end of the lesson, students should revisit their Science Notebooks to answer the Essential
Question.
ELABORATION

If time allows, students may compile additional sketches (front view, top view, side view) of their rovers.
Students may also wish to further complete their concept maps be adding more details.
EVALUATION

During this two day lesson, the teacher is encouraged to use formative assessments to determine and
deepen student understanding. Teachers may wish to use the Mars Rover Rubric (Appendix) to assess
team models and/or grade students’ Science Notebooks to establish student understanding.
SUPPLEMENTAL RESOURCES
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Mars Rover Model Celebration – Lesson Plan; Week 1; Lesson3 – Grades 3-5
For Students
http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/best/edp.html
http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/plantgrowth/reference/index.html#1
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/msl/index.html
For Teachers
http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/best/edp.html
http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/codeq/software/ComplexElectronics/l_prelim_design.ht
m
KEY VOCABULARY FOR STUDENTS
evaluate
generate
select
Additional Vocabulary for Students
mock-up
model
prototype
VOCABULARY FOR TEACHERS
avionics
bus
chassis
power system
suspension
systems engineering
telemetry
thermal control system
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Mars Rover Model Celebration – Lesson Plan; Week 1; Lesson3 – Grades 3-5
APPENDIX
TEKS Details
http://marsrover.phys.uh.edu/curriculum/Gr35/Lesson_11/Lesson11_35_TEKS.docx
Essential Question
http://marsrover.phys.uh.edu/curriculum/Gr35/Lesson_11/Lesson11_35_EssentialQuestion.docx
Science Notebook
http://marsrover.phys.uh.edu/curriculum/Gr35/Lesson_11/Lesson11_35_SciNotebook.docx
Vocabulary Definitions for Students
http://marsrover.phys.uh.edu/curriculum/Gr35/Lesson_11/Lesson11_35_Definitions.docx
Vocabulary Definitions for Teachers
http://marsrover.phys.uh.edu/curriculum/Gr35/Lesson_11/Lesson11_35_Teacher_Definitions.docx
Vocabulary Cards
o Generate
http://marsrover.phys.uh.edu/curriculum/Gr35/Lesson_11/Lesson11_35_VocabCard_Generate.
pdf
o Evaluate
http://marsrover.phys.uh.edu/curriculum/Gr35/Lesson_11/Lesson11_35_VocabCard_Evaluate.p
df
o Select
http://marsrover.phys.uh.edu/curriculum/Gr35/Lesson_11/Lesson11_35_VocabCard_Select.pdf
Concept Map
o MiniLesson
http://marsrover.phys.uh.edu/curriculum/Gr35/Lesson_11/Lesson11_ConceptMap_MiniLesson.
pdf
o Examples
http://marsrover.phys.uh.edu/curriculum/Gr35/Lesson_11/Lesson11_ConceptMap_Example.pdf
http://marsrover.phys.uh.edu/curriculum/Gr35/Lesson_11/Lesson11_35 Concept Map.docx
Mars Rover Rubric
http://marsrover.phys.uh.edu/curriculum/Gr35/Lesson_11/Mars Rover Rubric.pdf
Additional NASA Resources for Teachers
http://deepimpact.umd.edu/educ/Collaborative.html
http://marsbound.asu.edu/
http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu/pdf/lesson_14.pdf
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Administration. The remaining photographs and illustrations were purchased through clipart.com. All
elements of the Site, including the Jupiterimages Content, are protected by copyright, trade dress, moral rights,
trademark and other laws relating to the protection of intellectual property.
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