Audience
Educators
Grade Levels
Grades 5-8
Subject
Physical Science, Technology, Matter and Its Properties, Space Station
Type
Lesson Plans / Activities, Videos
Have you ever wondered what it is about water that makes it so important for life? In this episode, NASA astronaut Nicole Mann demonstrates the properties of water that distinguish it from other liquids and explains why water is important to life as we know it. Students will learn about the six properties of water and discover the role water’s solvent properties play aboard the space station. Get an insider look at the Vegetable Production System investigation on station and see how astronauts water vegetables growing in microgravity. In the corresponding classroom connection, students will collaborate to determine how water’s molecular structure relates to its unique properties.
STEMonstrations are short, 3–5-minute educational videos filmed by crewmembers aboard the International Space Station. They use the unique microgravity environment on station to demonstrate popular K-12 STEM topics.
Classroom Connection: Properties of Water
Grade Levels: 6-8
Time Required: 2 class periods
Next Generation Science Standards:
MS-PS1-1. Develop models to describe the atomic composition of simple molecules and extended structures.
MS-PS1-4. Develop a model that predicts and describes changes in particle motion, temperature, and state of a pure substance when thermal energy is added or removed.
MS-PS1-5. Develop and use a model to describe how the total number of atoms does not change in a chemical reaction and thus mass is conserved.