Patterns, Functions, and Algebra: Wired for Space. NASA Connect: Program 3 in the 2000-2001 Series.

This teaching unit is designed to help students in grades 5 to 8 explore the concepts of patterns, functions, and algebra in the context of propelling spacecraft. The units in the series have been developed to enhance and enrich mathematics, science, and technology education and to accommodate different teaching and learning styles. Each unit consists of background notes for the teacher, a list of teacher resources, and two activities, one of which is Web-based, complete with blackline masters. Also included are suggestions for extensions to the problems and their relationships to national mathematics, science, and technology standards. In this activity, students learn how patterns, functions, and algebra can help National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) engineers design new ways of propelling spacecraft and how electricity and magnetism are being used to replace the fuel-consuming rocket propulsion commonly used to deliver a push to spacecraft. (MM)