Plants in Space: STEM At Home Activity
Originally Posted: April 8, 2020
Updated: April 2024
STEM Space At Home Video Challenge
STEM Space At Home is a video series led by an engineer using materials you can find at home. The videos are intended to support elementary and middle school students through fun engineering design challenges with a real-world connection. Find all episodes here.
Educators - Click for the elementary or middle school teacher guide for classroom instruction along with printed and paperless STEM Journals for distance learning.
STEM Space At-Home is brought to you by Vivify STEM and Communities In Schools of San Antonio with funding from the NASA and the WEX Foundation’s “New Worlds Await You” program.
Plants in Space STEM Challenge
Mission: Create a miniature greenhouse to grow plants without soil, then design a device to support your plant as it grows using available materials. Watch the video for the full details.
Materials Needed: Watch the video for ideas of materials to use around the house.
Scissors
Tape
Materials for a miniature greenhouse: must have a sealable sandwich bag, 2 cotton balls, water, seeds (vegetable or flower seeds, dandelion seeds, dried beans that you must first soak overnight, or popcorn kernels)
Materials for a plant support device: such as cereal boxes, paper, disposable cups, water bottles, or sticks
Before starting the video, download the activity guide found in our free resource library
Check out the video of middle school student submissions of the Plants in Space STEM challenge! Students are part of the Space Club program - open to any middle school site. Click here to learn more about Space Club!
Additional Resources:
Plants In Space STEM Distance Learning Guide: Click for the elementary or middle school teacher guide for classroom instruction along with printed and paperless STEM Journals for distance learning.
Global Hero app - free app to teach the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It features 17 mini-games.
Watch the Planetary Plants- Crash Course Kids Video to extend your kids’ knowledge of plants in space and learn more about NASA VEGGIE here.
Good luck engineers! We can’t wait to see your plant devices! Don’t forget to post your design using #𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗠𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲 and tag us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter!
