by Jeffrey Bennett, Ph.D.

What you cannot imagine, you cannot do.
- Astronaut Alvin Drew (STS-118, STS-133)

Imagine astronauts on the International Space Station reading stories to the children of Earth as the world rotates below…

Imagine videos of the readings accessible via the web to everyone in the world, along with educational science demonstrations, lesson plans, and activities for teachers and families…

Imagine astronauts, educators, scientists, and artists all working together to make this dream a reality…

Now, imagine no more…it's Story Time from Space!



I'm very honored that the first set of books chosen for this exciting new program happens to be my set of five children's books. It's quite amazing to realize that since their launch in January, these books have already logged some 10 million miles in orbit around orbit Earth. But what does this program mean for you as a parent?

In brief, I believe Story Time From Space will be a great benefit to parents everywhere because it ties together what I call the three tiers of successful education: education, perspective, and inspiration. The education piece is the specific content that we want students to learn. The perspective piece should show them how what they are learning will help them gain perspective on their own lives and on our place in the universe. The inspiration piece should make them care about what they learn, ideally in a way that makes them dream of how much better the world could be if they get an education and become part of the solution for the future.

Only by putting all three pieces together can we achieve educational success. The reason should be clear. If we supply on the education piece, meaning the content, children won't see why they should care about it. They also need the perspective piece to show them how what they learn will affect them personally, and the inspiration piece to motivate them to make the study and effort required for true learning.

Story Time From Space encapsulates this education-perspective-inspiration approach better than any other education program I've ever seen - and it's available to everyone, for free. I hope you'll join us in becoming involved with this exciting new program:

Links and resources:
Dr. Jeffrey Bennett (www.jeffreybennett.com) is the founder of Big Kid Science (bigkidscience.com) and the author of five children's books. He also writes textbooks and books for adults-his most recent being On Teaching Science. He lives in Boulder, Colorado.