Welcome to the Giant Mars Map™ community of learners. This secure portal will provide you with everything you need to know to become a successful map user – from getting started to conducting lessons to letting us see you in action to sharing your feedback.
GETTING STARTED
EDUCATION STANDARDS
The Giant Mars Map activities meet the highest of education standards They are designed to be interdisciplinary and to require communication and collaboration skills. As a result, there are many strategies to effectively use it.
SETTING UP YOUR MARS MAP TOOLS
Below are links to assist you in using your Boxlight-Mimio MyBot robot:
HOW TO TAKE CARE OF YOUR MAP
The maps are made of a vinyl material that is remarkably durable. However, we suggest the following guidelines in caring for a Giant Moon or Mars Map to increase its longevity:
- Map is intended for use indoors
- Before laying the map on the floor, sweep and check the floor for any foreign debris, particularly pebbles or other potentially sharp objects that may poke holes in the map
- Keep the map stored while not in use
- Remove shoes before walking on the map
- Wipe down map and let dry fully before storing
- Fold and roll up map for storage
Many schools have purchased Tupperware-style containers in which to store the map. We typically travel with the map packed in a regular-sized suitcase. The suitcase and map weigh in at about 45 pounds.
While we suggest removing shoes before walking on the map, due to the logistics at conferences we typically allow people to walk on the map with their shoes and the maps we have used at the NSTA conventions show literally no wear.
Curriculum
ACTIVITY DOWNLOAD
Activities listed below include ideas for use of the map in classrooms, at home, in informal learning environments and at afterschool programs. The activities range from overarching, large projects to relatively simple lessons.
Follow Up
GATHERING DATA TO IMPROVE
Help us continually improve the Giant Mars Map program by sharing information with us. There are four areas where we want to collect feedback:
STEAM Pre/Post Test – For use online by each student before and after using the map. We’re striving to quantify how students think about STEAM topics, working as a team, and space exploration.
Giant Mars Map Curriculum Activities Report – For use by teachers to give feedback on number of students who used the map, how you measured the effectiveness of using the map, and your conclusions.
Giant Mars Map Teacher-created Activities Report – Intended to collect data related to the kinds of activities that have been created locally using the map as a resource.
Giant Mars Map Event Report – How the map is being used to support events beyond the classroom.
Map Support
Let us help.
Logistic, technical, or educational question? Just need a little moral support? Please contact our team. We’re happy to help!
Email us
Show us how you map!
We encourage you to participate in discussions on how you’ve been using the map, how your students are interacting with it, new lessons you’ve created or found, questions or issues you’ve come across, etc. Please include videos and pictures, when possible.