Orchard Teachers Reach New Heights At Space Camp

The stars aligned for two Orchard teachers as they were granted the opportunity to see NASA operations up close during a teacher’s conference at Kennedy Space Center earlier this month.

Tami Kuhfal and Lisa Cook, teachers at Orchard Public School, had the chance to experience NASA up close during the Space Port Area Conference for Educators (SPACE) at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

The conference, which was made up of three days at Kennedy Space Center experimenting hands-on with NASA technology and meeting astronauts and others behind the scenes of space shuttle flights, was made up of approximately 200 educators from across the nation. Thirty Nebraska teachers, sponsored by the Nebraska Space Ambassadors, were a part of the conference.

Cook said the event showed just how much NASA cares about education in today’s world, and inspired the participants to shoot for the stars.

“NASA is an amazing organization. It was unbelievably well run, it was very professional. NASA is extremely supportive of education and educators. They are all so positive and inspiring, but they aren’t condescending at all. They are very on your level,” Cook said.

Kuhfal said she first heard about the experience while at a conference for Nebraska teachers in the fall.

"They have this group called 'Nebraska Space Ambassadors.' I was talking to them, and they said, 'Hey, we have this thing at the Kennedy Space Center, and if you are interested, put your name down,'" Kuhfal said.

After months of applications and patience, registration opened to be a part of the conference. Kuhfal said she discussed the opportunity with her husband, and he was all for it.

"I talked to my husband about it, and he said ‘Do it, it’s something you have always wanted to do,’” Kuhfal said.

The conference featured keynote speakers by astronauts as well as breakout sessions that each participant picked to attend.

The sessions included activities that the teachers could implement in their classrooms, and ranged from elementary school, middle school and high school, with some being aimed at all and any audiences.

The group activities were designed to inspire thinking and help with the comprehension of more difficult topics using space to help the students relate to the teachings easier.

Following lunch, another breakout session was set up, with many simulations and activities available for educators to participate in.

Kuhfal signed up for ATX, or Astronaut Training Exercise, and the Mars landing. In the ATX simulation, participants were put on their backs and be tethered while changing a box and collecting a dust sample. Instructions were communicated to the participants through headsets
by people viewing them through a computer screen outside of the simulator.

The Mars landing simulator was similar to the ATX in that instructions were communicated through headsets, but in this scenario,
participants were strapped in a simulator with screen and controls in front of them and were given the mission of landing a rover on Mars. A pilot and an engineer had to work together while spinning around in the simulator, simulating the effects of coming into orbit inside the shuttle.

Cook said that the conference overall was executed perfectly, and that they as participants felt catered to. “It was a very well put on, very well thought out, very well run conference...they kind of pampered us!”

Kuhfal, whose father developed engines for the Apollo missions and other shuttles, had the chance to meet Robert Cabana, one of the astronauts that piloted a shuttle that Kuhfal’s father had worked on and that was listed on one of the stickers that Kuhfal had brought with her from her father’s collection. She mentioned the experience during a phone call with her father, and Kuhfal said that he loved hearing about it.

“I told my dad that on the phone, and he isn’t much of a laugher or a giggler, but you could tell he was just tickled.”

Cook said that the highlight of the conference for her was getting the chance to listen to a Wyoming native who is now in charge of planning for flights to the International Space Station.

“My favorite was Ryan Prougy. She grew up in Wyoming, and she decides when the launches to the International Space Station...they send crews up there every four to six months, and she is in charge of all of that.”

While at the conference, Kuhfal also completed her meteorite and lunar certification. Now, Kuhfal will be able to check out acrylic boxes of meteorites and asteroids and other space objects to use in hands-on activities with her students.

The boxes are sent as certified registered mail and have to be signed off on. When using them in the classroom, the objects cannot leave her sight, including when she goes to lunch. At the end of the day, the objects have to be taken to the police evidence locker to be
safe for the night.

Although Kuhfal and her students are grounded to their classroom in Orchard to learn about space, they will still be able to view Earth from orbit thanks to ISS Above. ISS Above is a small computer with a program built in that , when connected to a monitor in the classroom, will display a live view of the International Space Station, and will alert the classroom when the International Space Station is over Orchard.

Kuhfal said that the experience has opened her eyes on how she can make space in general more relevant to her topics in the classroom, and hopes to make a “big bang” in the learning skills of her students.

“It showed me how I can make math relevant to my students through space. We can use mean, median, mode and range. We can use critical thinking skills. Most kids tend to like the idea of space and exploring Mars, so if I can make math and science a little more relevant to my kiddos, I will,” Kuhfal said.