Hi folks - I'm developing my first planetary science class this summer and looking for any examples/advice on active learning applied to planetary science topics. I've got resources for physics and geology and they're helpful, but anything more specific would be neat.
If it's helpful - the class is on planetary impacts, so it covers the physics of impacts at all scales, and while I have lectures prepared, notes for sections on derivations, and time allocated for discussion, I'm a little stuck on some good active learning moments to include.
I don’t know if I have it anywhere but I used to do an activity with an image of Mars & an overhead transparency (I got it from a NASA website I think)—I’d ask them to use 3 colors of overhead markers to trace ‘big craters’, ‘small craters’ & water channels, and use that to infer the order of events
There was also a fun interactive display at Meteor Crater that I could imagine turning into an activity for class, where you could choose the velocity, diameter, density & impact angle, and the target object/terrain. It gave a simulated outcome—add a prediction phase & it’s active? The creators:
Models inhibit imagination in most students because they aren’t aware of assumptions in the models. After they know how to use their imaginations, everything works. Depending on the students, expect some frustration at first. ♥️
