The Icy Worlds Companion Course is organized around the guiding question “How can we use experiments, models, and rehearsals here on Earth to understand other solar system objects and plan a successful mission to Icy Worlds?”  

Summary and links for Units and Lesson: Index File for Course

How to Use These Lesson Plans

The curriculum was developed for the ROADS on Icy Worlds Challenge, which ran from October 2021 to April 2022. However, you can still teach the lessons without having students formally participate in the challenge. 

Learn more about the “Icy Worlds” Challenge here: 

• Read the Challenge Manual
• Background reading about icy worlds:  Why Icy Worlds? 

Lesson Organization and Standards Alignment

Each lesson plan is organized around the “5E” instructional model. 

Each lesson also includes standards alignment information for the middle school and high school Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).  Many lessons also include information on alignment opportunities for:

• CCSS Mathematics
• CCSS English
• Washington State Learning Standards in Computer Science
• 21st Century Skills 

Standards alignment information has been summarized in two formats. 

• NGSS Element Checklist
• Standard Summary Document (All Lessons)

Providing Feedback

We welcome your feedback on this work!  Please let us know what worked, what didn’t work, or how you adapted a lesson for your students.  Submit feedback by June 1, 2022, so that we can be sure to include it in next year’s companion course.