per week
( per class)Cosmic Journeys: A Spacetacular Exploration of Cosmology & Astronomy
Completed by 965 learners
Ages 9-14
Live Group Class
Live video meetings
2x per week
1-18 learners per class
55 min
What's included
2 live meetings
1 hrs 50 mins in-class hours per weekClass Experience
US Grade 4 - 7
The Cosmic Journeys Club will meet twice weekly on an ongoing basis. This social club will be a fun, educational, safe, and positive environment for lovers of all things space so they can learn and grow as a group of peers with similar interests. The universe is a vast, beautiful, and strange place, and this our opportunity to share our passion for space together! Every session will be an interactive multi-media exploration of a daily theme/concept. The class experience will be a mix between lecture, discussion, hands-on activities, group-work, use of slide-shows, readings from articles and books, and video clips from documentaries. I will also provide weekly recommendations on outside resources that will help students learn more and find opportunities to participate in challenges and citizen science projects. I will also provide weekly, voluntary, engineering challenges where they can learn about different space probes, vehicles, and telescopes and try to recreate them using the materials of their choice. All students also have free access to a secure server for an Educational Minecraft version called GalacticCraft which allows the students to build rocket ships and create colonies on the Moon and Mars. In addition, there is an extensive database of resources contained in a secure Google Drive that can be accessed at any time. This resource contains books, audiobooks, lectures, articles, images, link databases, and even a spot to highlight student work. I encourage students to bring their own particular astronomical interests/questions to the group whether it be personal stories, books, articles, images, or anything else a student may want to teach/explore/question with the club. Participation and discussion are strongly encouraged and will help make our club an enriching and entertaining environment where we can be passionate about our curiosity. The following is a more detailed look at the first seven weeks and the topics we will cover: Week 1: The Solar System Our first week will begin here at home in our own solar system. We look at the planets, moons, dwarf planets, and of course the sun briefly. In future sessions, we will focus on each of the planets one by one. Week 2: Our Sun & Stars In our second week we will explore our sun in detail; and the characteristics of stars in general. Week 3: The Milkway Galaxy In our third week, we will expand our exploration in a wider context and look at our own galaxy the Milky Way Week 4: Galaxies, Nebulas, & Superclusters In our fourth week will pull out ever wider and look at the vast numbers of galaxies and how they make up larger structures in space called superclusters. Week 5: Black Holes, White Holes, & Pulsars Now that we have looked at our galaxy and the myriad other galaxies outside ours we can now examine those infamous giants known as black holes which are said to lie at the center of every galaxy. We will even explore some strange variations on black holes called pulsars and/or white holes Week 6: When Stars Die-Supernovas What happens when stars die? No, they don't receive stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, but rather they explode into beautiful cosmic firework displays called Supernovas! Week 7: Dark Matter & Dark Energy Even more mind-boggling than the vastness of our universe is the fact that nearly 80% of our universe is invisible and unknown to us. This enigmatic matter is often called dark matter. There is also another invisible and mysterious force at play in the cosmos called dark energy. We will explore these fascinating concepts and try to wrap our heads around the strange, and alien concepts. Forthcoming sessions: Week 8: Multiverse, String Theory, & Parallel Universes Week 9: Comets, Asteroids, and Meteorites Week 10: Space Travel & Colonization Week 11: The Constellations Week 12: Moons Week 13: Colonies on Mars & Moon Week 14: End of the Universe Week 15: Begining of the Universe Week 16: String Theory & M-Theory Week 17: Exoplanets Week 18: Types of Stars Week 19: Types of Galaxies Week 20: Cosmic Mysteries Week 21: Planet X and Planet 9
Other Details
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Meet the teacher
Teacher expertise and credentials
Bachelor's Degree from Ithaca College
I am a friendly, articulate, professional, college-educated teacher, and artist versed in a variety of disciplines, a "Renaissance Man" at heart. As Ben Franklin was quoted: "An investment in knowledge pays the best interest". I'm very patient and dedicated to finding innovative and creative ways to educate those I am teaching. I have both practical experience and theoretical training in the education of individuals with both Learning Disabilities & Developmental Disabilities.
I am an experienced educator with a bachelor's of science from Ithaca College. I'm currently working towards my Master's Degree in Education with over three years of study so far and my dissertation remaining. In addition to that work, as a graduate student, I consistently seek out workshops and webinars that provide additional certifications for educators.
My experience as an educator includes teaching at both public and private schools as well as tutoring students in STEAM subjects including SAT/GRE/ACT/ & AP prep, I have experience and training in teaching individuals with both Learning Disabilities and Developmental Disabilities. I have also volunteered my time in my local community library by organizing workshops on STEAM topics for children.
As an educator, it's my goal to stimulate my student's curiosity and to encourage persistence and determination in achieving their goals. I would like for my students to experience the empowerment of conquering ignorance and the joy in discovery and epiphany. In short, I want to open, stimulate, and expand young minds.
I teach comparative and interdisciplinary courses focused on literature, art, myth folklore, ecology, nature, science, philosophy, and history. These exciting courses will illustrate how these different areas of learning connect, inform, and influence each other. Additionally, I offer "hands-on" workshops in writing (academic/creative), photography, and cinema. This type of class environment consists of group work and active critique of their own work and the work of their peers. And as someone who is fluent in Conversational French (reading, speaking, and writing) I plan to create some simple yet immersive classes in the French Language. If there is sufficient interest I am willing and able to run weekly RPG clubs (not limited to D&D) focusing on learning life skills through roleplaying. Drama and the theater were, and still, are, a large part of both my public and collegiate career.
Outside the classroom, I am a single father of an eleven-year-old girl and our mini-menagerie which consists of "Rosie" the lab/Pitt, "Bill Murray" the Mini-Schnauzer, "Mary Shelly" an African Sideneck Turtle, "Shane Longfellow" the ball python, and "Fry" the dumbo rat. A pack of misfits much like the "Goonies"; odd, yet adventurous and loyal to the end!
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