Skymobile | Natural History Museum of Los Angeles

Students studying the similarities between rocks on Earth and rocks on Mars.

Schedule a Mobile Outreach Visit

mobileoutreach@nhm.org
Phone: (213) 763-3271
Fax: (213) 763-3566

Visit Our Earthmobile and Seamobile Pages!

The Earthmobile is a 3rd-5th grade standards-based, cross curricular program focusing on Chumash culture through archaeological investigation. To learn more about the Earthmobile, click here

The Seamobile is a 6th-8th grade standards-based, cross curricular program focusing on marine biology. To learn more about the Seamobile, click here

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Skymobile

Program Details

FREE grant funded program through the generosity of The Maxwell H. Gluck Foundation.
This program is available only to LAUSD schools and takes place at the schools.
Hands-on, standards-based, cross-curricular science outreach program for students in grades 4 and 5. Program may include lower grade levels pending schedule availability.

Curriculum

Focuses on geology and makes comparisons between planets Earth and Mars.
In the Skymobile, students will focus on geology by investigating different rocks that may be found on Mars.
Research will be conducted in a dome-like research lab located on a simulated Mars surface, and students will attempt to understand the history of Mars by studying igneous (volcanic), sedimentary (eroded), and metamorphic (changed) rocks.
Students will be introduced to clues that suggest the presence of water on Mars (both past and present) and why water is so important to the science of astrobiology.
In the classroom, students will focus on the origins of rocks and the stories they tell about the history of the Earth and unlock the mysteries of rocks by investigating the rock cycle, identifying minerals, understanding the evolution of minerals and comparing minerals to objects used in their daily lives.

Connections to CA State Standards

Grade 4 Standards (PDF)
Grade 5 Standards (PDF)

Program Objectives

To emphasize students' understanding of scientific investigation and basic process skills including data collection, classification, and drawing conclusions.
To teach students that, by studying the geology of a planet, including rocks and landforms, we can discover important clues that reveal the planet's history.

Program Resources

Teachers, students, and parents view and download teaching guides, student worksheets, activity sheets, and glossaries.
     Recommended Pre-Visit Activities - excerpted from Teacher
     Guide (PDF)
     Skymobile Teacher Guide (PDF)
     Comet Presentation - 1st-3rd Grade (PDF)
     Meteorite Presentation - 1st-3rd Grade (PDF)
     Planet Scale Presentation 1st-3rd Grade (PDF)
     A Journey Through the Solar System (to be used before or
     after the Skymobile visit or as an independent lesson) (PDF)
     Sky Glossary (PDF)

Schedule a Visit with the Skymobile

Scheduling for July though December, 2012 begins March 1, 2012.
Thank you for your interest in NHM's Mobile Museum Program. Scheduling for the Fall 2012 season began on March 1 and due to the large interest, all available program slots have been filled.
Please mark your calendars and contact us for the Spring, 2013 scheduling season, beginning on September 13, 2012. Continue to visit our website for any program updates and details.

Scheduling for January 13 - June 13, 2013 begins September 13, 2012.

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