The 2023 and 2024 eclipses offer a learning opportunity, supported by NASA's Infiniscope and Eclipse Soundscapes projects with comprehensive educational resources.
This article discusses a collaboration between NASA's Infiniscope and Eclipse Soundscapes projects to enhance middle school education through the 2023 and 2024 solar eclipses. By providing universally designed, ready-to-use curricular resources, the projects aimed to support diverse classrooms in teaching the Sun-Earth-Moon system. The study evaluates the effectiveness of these resources, offering insights into how real-world events can enhance student engagement and learning in science education.
Eclipses and the relationship between the Sun-Earth-Moon system are key topics for many middle school science classrooms, with a variety of resources available. However, understanding how eclipses happen and developing a mental model of the system in 3-dimensional space is often challenging for middle school students. As such, there is a large and diverse array of schools, teachers, and students who could benefit from innovative, universally designed approaches to teaching this topic. One effective approach is to connect the curriculum to real-world events, like the 2024 total solar eclipse. Linking formal education with out-of-school informal learning in this way can be particularly impactful. In this article, we will describe a collaboration between two NASA Science Activation-funded projects, the Eclipse Soundscapes Project (ES) and Infiniscope, that leveraged the strengths of each team to provide an impactful educational experience.
NASA Science Activation (SciAct) is a portfolio of educational outreach projects funded by NASA’s Science Mission Directorate (NASA, n.d.). Among the more than 50 teams is an enormous range of expertise and a diversity of approaches. In recognition of this fact, the SciAct leadership has placed emphasis on cross-team collaboration. Not only is collaboration an identified priority in the program’s “top-level objectives” (NASA, n.d.), but the meeting and information-sharing structure of the program also provides numerous mechanisms to promote collaboration. This includes monthly meetings for all teams and a week-long annual meeting with time focused on creating collaboration plans. Collaborations are documented and made explicit in the form of collaboration agreements, which can increase accountability. In many ways, the SciAct program functions like a community or practice (Lave and Wenger, 2017), defined by the community it serves, their shared domain of knowledge as a community, and actively engaged in the practice within this domain.
The collaboration between two of these SciAct teams, Infiniscope and Eclipse Soundscapes (ES), was designed to support middle school teachers. These teams equipped teachers with flexible and comprehensive curriculum options for the 2023 and 2024 solar eclipses, addressing the needs of time-pressed teachers working with diverse student groups. The collaboration emphasized Universal Design for Learning (UDL) (Meyer & Rose, 2014) through multiple means of expression—perception, language, and knowledge building—to accommodate a variety of student learning needs. Both groups developed complementary curricula, ensuring a wide array of resources without duplicating efforts. These curricula included detailed lesson plans, activities and all supplementary materials—such as slides, handouts, readings, and videos—offered in differentiated formats or activity modifications to cater to individual learning needs. The Infiniscope curriculum, Kingdom in Peril, was available in English and Spanish, while ES curriculum included additional modified resources for English Learners (EL). The curricula were also flexible, offering traditional classroom lessons, interactive 3D digital modules, observational activities, and opportunities to participate as volunteer scientists. Students of participating teachers were also given NASA solar viewers to engage with the October 14, 2023 annular eclipse or the April 8, 2024 total solar eclipse linking it to real world events.
This article will clarify the concept of comprehensive ready-to-use curriculum that is designed to meet the diverse needs of today’s students, and present findings from a study involving 18 teachers (17 middle school and 1 high school) in 9 different states, on or near the April 8, 2024 total solar eclipse path, who utilized these curricula in 2024 and provided feedback. The goal is to provide a model for developing comprehensive educator resources that effectively address the needs of diverse student populations for real world events and phenomena, such as eclipses.
Infiniscope is a NASA-funded project that designs digital learning experiences for classrooms and cultivates a community of practice with nearly 3000 middle and high school teachers. This community is focused on sparking curiosity, fostering exploration, and delivering digital content and tools that transform the learning experience. Infiniscope develops and delivers Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) designed and aligned digital content that is ready-to-use, browser-based, and classroom-tested. These digital learning experiences and tools leverage place-based education, custom simulations, and real-time adaptive feedback to engage learners of all ages in the process of science and make the wonders of Earth and space science accessible.
The Eclipse Soundscapes Project is an informal participatory science project under NASA’s volunteer science umbrella (formerly known as citizen science.) The Eclipse Soundscapes Project is studying how eclipses affect life on Earth during the October 14, 2023, annular solar eclipse and the April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse. ES revisits an eclipse study from almost 100 years ago that showed that animals and insects are affected by solar eclipses. Like this study from 100 years ago, ES asked for the public’s help. Alongside scientists, volunteers were invited to learn about eclipses as “Apprentices,” observe nature and submit these observations as “Observers,” and/or collect and submit audio data during eclipse week using AudioMoth recorders as “Data Collectors.” The ES Curriculum, designed for use in formal middle school education settings, complements the “ES Observer” volunteer science role by equipping students with the skills necessary to participate.
A Pew Research Study (Lin, Parker, & Menasce Horowitz, 2024) found that over 8 in 10 teachers say there is not enough time in their day to get all of their work done. Teachers spend several hours each week searching for and vetting lesson supplements (McShane, 2022). This falls in tandem with the myriad of other responsibilities in K-12 education. As the NASEM report "Changing Expectations for the K-12 Teacher Workforce” points out, "teachers are being asked to further differentiate instruction, connect learning experiences to the interests and identities of their students, and set up inclusive and welcoming learning environments." Some teachers have called for ready-made curricula as a solution to saving time. Kim Hanley, who is a Title III instructional coach for Capistrano Unified Public School District, an English/language arts reviewer for EdReports, and a consultant for the English Learners Success Forum, wrote in Education Week: “Investing in high-quality curricula” — including “meaningful supports for multilingual learners” — “can also help save teachers hours and hours spent searching online for unvetted supplements. That time can then be redirected toward focusing on the individual needs of students and motivating them through meaningful engagement about their interests and lives” (Hanley, 2022). Each of the curricula used in this study was designed to be usable “out-of-the-box,” minimizing the time teachers would need to spend vetting or adapting the resources. This argument is corroborated in Changing Expectations for the K–12 Teacher Workforce: Policies, Preservice Education, Professional Development, and the Workplace (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2020a), "Compared to a decade ago, students identified as needing special services are slightly more likely to be educated inside a regular education classroom than pulled out and served through a designated special education classroom. ... Another shifting trend associated with students receiving special education services is the number of students who may be categorized with health impairments. ... [T]his can place additional demands on classroom teachers who may not be adequately prepared to meet the unique needs of students who require differentiated supports." (e.g., National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, & Medicine, 2020b).
A critical component of “out-of-the-box” curricula is content explicitly designed and aligned for the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and EL support. Designing with these in mind reduces the cognitive load on teachers seeking high-quality content to use in their classrooms and ensures the curriculum is ready for immediate use in their classrooms.
“Kingdom in Peril” is a suite of three web-based NGSS-aligned lessons that break down eclipses into individual aspects of the solar and lunar eclipse phenomena. In turn, they discuss the arrangement of the three celestial bodies (Earth–Moon–Sun), the importance of orbital inclination, and how/why the size of the shadow differs between a lunar and a solar eclipse. Included is also a short investigation into ways of knowing. Students are asked to evaluate the credibility of arguments provided by an “advisory council” to explain the cause of solar and lunar eclipses based on a variety of ways of knowing.
This lesson suite is designed to be highly interactive and inquiry-driven, leveraging technology that provides students with formative feedback and choice throughout their exploration. These formative feedback and choices use an intelligent tutoring system designed to provide students an opportunity to learn from failure, confront misconceptions, and have agency over their learning. The primary learning activity in these lessons uses a scientifically accurate 3D model, provided through collaboration with NASA’s Eyes on the Solar System. This intelligent tutoring with NASA-embedded technology is enabled by the open-source Torus platform. This platform has been developed by the Infiniscope team in partnership with the Open Learning Initiative of Carnegie Mellon University.
Kingdom in Peril was designed to provide an effective and high-quality learning experience that could meet a wide range of educator needs. The lesson suite includes downloadable NGSS alignment documents that support teachers as they plan for classroom implementation and 5-E inquiry (Bybee, 2015) lesson plans that include narrative descriptions, recording sheets for students, and rubrics for formative and summative assessments. The lesson suite is crafted around the NGSS ESS1 Core Question, "What is the universe and what is Earth’s place in it?" and the Component Question ESS1, which asks, "What are the predictable patterns caused by Earth’s movement in the solar system?" (NGSS, n.d.) The primary instructional objective focuses on guiding students to explain predictable eclipse patterns through the use of models, enabling them to uncover and demonstrate evidence of phenomena at varying scales. In this process, students will engage with key science and engineering practices, such as using models, while also exploring crosscutting concepts like patterns, system models, and scale.
Because of this Torus-enabled intelligent tutoring, students can complete the digital lesson independently. This allows for some hybrid/flipped classroom approaches. Intelligent tutoring can even make it easier for a teacher to support the students during in-person learning since automatic tutoring is designed to support learners across a range of prior knowledge. The division into three discrete lessons adds further flexibility in how they are employed. Finally, these lessons have been fully translated into Spanish to support dual-language or ELL classrooms and schools.
Three in-depth, NGSS aligned lesson plans were co-created with in-service teachers for middle school students: "What and When is Solar Eclipse Maximum?," "Nature During a Solar Eclipse," and "Multi-sensory Observing." These lessons cover the concept of eclipse maximum and how to determine its timing, expected natural responses to an eclipse, and methods for multi-sensory observation during the event. The ES lessons align with NGSS at the middle school level, particularly MS-ESS1-1: Earth’s Place in the Universe (NGSS, n.d.) and is overtly stated for each lesson on each lesson plan. The focus of this standard is for students to develop and use a model of the Earth-sun-moon system to describe the cyclic patterns of lunar phases, eclipses of the sun and moon, and seasons.
ES lessons also align with the World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment (WIDA) ELD Standard 4: Science, which ensures that English learners (ELs) can effectively engage with scientific content. WIDA's English Language Development Standards guide curriculum and instruction to support ELs in accessing and succeeding in academic subjects (WIDA, 2020). ELD Standard 4 focuses on helping ELs develop the language skills needed to understand, discuss, and present scientific concepts. This standard encourages integrating language development with science instruction, so students build both content knowledge and language proficiency. The modifications in these lessons apply best practices by providing teachers with pre-aligned resources and recommendations for supporting students' language needs.
Each ES lesson follows a consistent structure: beginning, middle, and end. The beginning includes an “activator” or “Do Now” that introduces the concept and gets students engaged in academic work independently and immediately upon entering the classroom. The middle section presents the content using the Gradual Release of Responsibility (GRR) method, commonly referred to as “I Do, We Do, You Do,” where teachers provide direct instruction, practice with the students, and then release them to practice on their own or with a partner. The lesson ends with a short formative assessment or “Exit Ticket” to evaluate student understanding (Pearson & Gallagher, 1983).
Being ready-to-use and comprehensive means that in addition to the lesson plan, each of these lessons includes slides, relevant readings, videos, handouts, an assessment activity or resource, as well as modified activity ideas and handouts that align with WIDA best practices. The provided modified handouts and activity suggestions enhance language support without reducing the science content or learning outcomes, offering ways to lower linguistic demands while maintaining the educational value. Additionally, to enhance flexibility, these lessons and resources are provided in Google Docs and Google Slides formats, allowing teachers to easily edit them. The only barrier is setting up a free Gmail account. The resources included in each of the three comprehensive ES lessons are described in Table 1, Table 2, and Table 3 below:
ES LESSON | RESOURCE / ACTIVITY | DESCRIPTION |
What is Solar Eclipse Maximum? This lesson covers the concept of solar eclipse maximum, explaining the phase of the eclipse when the moon covers the sun to its greatest extent. The modified handouts and activity suggestions enhance language support without reducing the science content or learning outcomes, offering ways to lower linguistic demands while maintaining the educational value. | Lesson Plan | Includes lesson topic, NGSS standard, a learning/content/language objective, and detailed lesson implementation instructions |
Slides | Google Slides provide visual aids to accompany all lesson concepts and activities | |
Do Now Activity | A short activity that invites students to jot down their observations or questions about 2 solar eclipse images as they enter the classroom and then come together as a class and discuss. | |
Do Now Activity Handout Modified | Sentence Starters recommendations provided to students: eg. I wonder ___ . I notice ____ . | |
Video | Visual and audio description of solar eclipses, with a focus on what happens during the maximum phase. | |
Reading | Middle school level text that explains the science behind solar eclipses, focusing on the significance of the eclipse maximum. Includes vocabulary words and definitions and images. | |
Research Activity & Graphic Organizer Handout | Helps students organize their online research on solar eclipses types by location by prompting them to record the eclipse type, its location, date, time, visibility, key facts, and a source. | |
Research Activity & Graphic Organizer Handout Modification Suggestions | Suggests pre-filling in some of the information and/or decreasing the number of research locations prioritizing the student’s own eclipse location and/or pairing earlier proficient ELs with later proficient ELs or native English speakers. | |
Speaking / Assessment Activity | Come back together as a class and students share what they found about the location they will be observing the eclipse and information they found about their other locations. | |
Writing / Assessment | Collect Graphic organizer |
ES LESSON | RESOURCE / ACTIVITY | DESCRIPTION |
This lesson explores the ways nature might react to a solar eclipse. The modified versions of the resources provide more language support without detracting from the student’s learning and demonstration of the science concept. | Lesson Plan | Includes lesson topic, NGSS standard, a learning/content/language objective, and detailed lesson implementation instructions |
Slides | Google Slides provide visual aids to accompany all lesson concepts and activities | |
Do Now Activity | Students watch 2 short videos on animal reactions to solar eclipses and jot down ideas for observing animals using different senses and then come together as a class and discuss. | |
Do Now Activity Modified | Sentence Starters recommendations to be written on the board for students: I would look for ___ . I would listen for ____ . | |
Brainstorm/ Discuss with Graphic Organizer Handout | In pairs, students brainstorm and fill out a graphic organizer with animals they might see or hear during a solar eclipse. | |
Brainstorm/ Discuss with Graphic Organizer Handout - Modified | Suggests having students draw and then label pictures of each animal and/or pairing earlier proficient ELs with later proficient ELs or native English speakers. | |
Research & Predict Activity with Handout | Use iNaturalist to find and observe one bird, one amphibian, one mammal, and one insect from your state, review their photos and sounds, and then answer related questions. | |
Research & Predict Activity with Handout - Modified | Provide sentence starters for the answers to each question (e.g. I think it would be easy to see a ___ because _______________ OR I don’t think it would be easy to see a ___ because _____________________ . I think it would be easy to hear a ___ because __________ OR I don’t think it would be easy to hear a ___ because __________ .) | |
Assessment / Exit Ticket (speaking or writing) | Have students write a prediction of which animals they think will change their behavior during the eclipse and why | |
Assessment / Exit Ticket (speaking or writing) Modified | Provide sentence starters: e.g. |
ES LESSON | RESOURCE / ACTIVITY | DESCRIPTION |
This lesson emphasizes the value and importance of multi-sensory scientific observation, encouraging students to use sight, sound, and other senses. The modified versions of the resources provide more language support without detracting from the student’s learning and demonstration of the science concept. | Lesson Plan | Includes lesson topic, NGSS standard, a learning/content/language objective, and detailed lesson implementation instructions |
Slides | Google Slides provide visual aids to accompany all lesson concepts and activities | |
Do Now Activity | Students watch a guess the sound video and jot down guesses and then come together as a class and discuss. | |
Do Now Activity Modified | Sentence Starters recommendations to be written on the board for students: I hear a ___. and/or word bank | |
Video | Visual and audio description of field journals, with a focus on taking observation notes. | |
Sensory Vocabulary Handout | Students review, highlight known words, and choose 5-10 words they would like to practice using during multisensory observation activities. | |
Sensory Vocabulary Handout Modified | Highlight keywords on the Sensory Vocabulary handout for students needing extra support, focusing on familiar words and/or cognates from their native language if possible. | |
Field Journal Handout | Outside or with classroom windows open, the class completes one Observer journal entry together, sharing observations using the Sensory Vocabulary List, writing notes, and making 1-2 drawings in selected categories. Then, each student will independently complete a second Observer journal entry. | |
Writing / Assessment | Collect Field Journal Handout |
Educators and their students were invited to participate in the volunteer science ES Observer role after completing the ES curriculum. As ES Observers, participants collect and submit multi-sensory observation data to be used in NASA Science. Information about this role was shared on the ES website alongside the eclipse lessons as Eclipse Day Volunteer Science activities. Additional resources, such as the Field Notes handouts in both English and Spanish, were provided to support participation. Through this volunteer science opportunity, students were encouraged to record their observations on Eclipse Day using the Field Notes handout and submit them to the project via an online form.
This opportunity was offered to middle school teachers in the Infiniscope teaching network via two email and social media campaigns, one prior to the 2023 annular eclipse and the other before the 2024 total solar eclipse. For the annular and total solar eclipses, 1300 teachers were invited to apply via a community email and social media posts. The application criteria for annular eclipse participation included being a middle school teacher in a Title 1 school located at or above 90% annularity for October 14, 2023. The application criteria for the total solar eclipse included being a middle school teacher at or above 80% of totality for the April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse, with preference, rather than a requirement, for Title 1 schools.
Educator selection for the annular eclipse was limited to teachers who fit the exact demographic criteria. Among the twelve 2023 applicants, two met the application requirements and were invited to participate, while the remaining ten applicants were located along the 2024 path of totality and invited to participate later. Of the two selected, only one partially completed the program. The low annular participation numbers led the team to expand participation criteria. Selection for the 2024 total eclipse cohort gave preference toward Title 1 schools, and the range of totality was expanded to 80% or greater. Educators in 2023 and 2024 were offered a classroom set of solar viewers and additional NASA giveaways, plus a stipend of $250 if they completed all components of the program. In 2024, 26 teachers (Table 4) were invited to participate with 18 accepting. Of the 18 selected, 12 completed the program.
School | State | # of Students | Eclipse Type |
Truman Middle School | NM | 135 | Annular |
St Joan of Arc School | IL | 130 | Total |
Evansville Attendance Center* | IL | 60 | Total |
Reidland Middle School* | KY | 130 | Total |
Brentwood South Middle School* | NY | 75 | Total |
Milton Middle School* | VT | 82 | Total |
Monomoy Middle School | MA | 150 | Total |
Altmar-Parish-Williamstown Junior-Senior High School* | NY | 75 | Total |
Martin Luther King Jr. Academy for Boys* | OH | 140 | Total |
The Founders Academy | NH | 120 | Total |
Central Valley Academy | NY | 83 | Total |
Pittsburgh Langley Prek-8* | PA | 120 | Total |
Pittsburgh Classical Academy 6-8* | PA | 72 | Total |
*Denotes Title 1 or Alternative School
After selection, teachers were asked to attend a kickoff meeting. During this meeting, the Infiniscope team described the Kingdom in Peril series, provided an orientation to resources like lesson plans and alignment documents, completed a walk-through on how to enroll their students, and detailed the requirements of the program to receive the stipend. The ES team provided an overview of the observer curricular materials, expectations for how observations will be recorded by students, and a brief discussion on surveys to complete the program.
Shortly after the kickoff, the Infiniscope team sent a follow up email and began working to develop an article and press release. Included in the follow-up email were the kickoff meeting recording, links to various instructions and resources, details about solar viewer and NASA gear shipment, and a parent letter template that could be used to communicate with parents about the opportunity. An additional request was sent to participants to provide a quote on one of these categories for the press release, (1) what is most exciting to you, (2) what you hope it does for your students, and/or (3) the value of bringing these experiences to your students. These quotes have been included in the interactive map.
In 2024, the ES team collected feedback using two Google Forms surveys. ES required each teacher in the cohort to review the Observer curriculum lessons, teach at least one, and submit responses to both surveys:
Educator: ES Observer Curriculum Feedback Survey
Educator: Eclipse Soundscapes Reflection Survey
The ES Observer Curriculum Feedback Survey was designed to collect detailed feedback from teachers about their experiences using the ES Observer curriculum. 13 teachers completed the survey. The survey includes both checkbox and open-ended questions about the effectiveness and usability of lesson plans, differentiation strategies, and resource utilization. The goal of this survey is to improve future curriculum design based on real-world classroom experiences and teacher use cases.
The ES Observer Curriculum Feedback Survey asked teachers a series of questions about their classrooms, including:
What grade level used the lesson plan?
What number of students participated in the ES Observer curriculum lesson(s)?
What percentage of those students are English Learners (ELs)?
What are the languages spoken by those students?
What percentage of those students identify as having a disability?
Which different disabilities do those students identify as having?
The ES Observer Curriculum Feedback Survey then asked teachers which lesson plans, resources, and differentiation options they used. For each lesson plan, teachers were asked:
If you used any of the differentiation options or resources, which differentiation tips or resources did you find most helpful? For which students? Why?
Were there any modifications that you needed to make to the lesson? What were they and why?
Do you have any additional comments or feedback on the lesson?
Educators were also given the opportunity to respond to the following questions:
Are there any resources or lesson elements that should be added to new future lessons to better support ELs in your classroom?
Are there any resources or lesson elements that should be added to new future lessons to better support students with disabilities in your classroom?
Do you have any additional feedback on the ES Observer curriculum that might help us create better lesson plans in the future?
The second and final ES survey, Eclipse Soundscapes Reflection Survey, asked teachers to further expound on their experiences with the lesson plans through a series of checkbox and open-ended questions. 12 teachers completed the survey. It asked:
On a scale of 1-5, how much more likely are you to seek out and utilize NASA science in the classroom as a result of being a part of the Eclipse 2024 Cohort?
Do you think your students became more knowledgeable about or interested in the scientific Observation process as a result of being ES Observers? Why or why not?
What did you and your students enjoy the most about being a part of the Eclipse Soundscapes Project?
Did your participation in the Eclipse Soundscapes Project make you think about accessibility and inclusion any differently or did it support any already held beliefs in accessibility and inclusion in Science? Please explain.
How could the Eclipse Soundscapes Project be improved?
Should NASA continue to develop and provide lesson plans to support teachers in utilizing NASA science in the classroom? If no, why not? If yes, how would this resource benefit you and your students?
When the Eclipse Soundscapes Data Analyst role becomes available, would you be interested in being contacted and possibly testing those lessons in your classroom?
Neither ES survey was anonymous as completion of both surveys was a requirement and needed to be tracked. Completion was the only requirement and both positive and negative comments were welcomed, but there could be bias as names were required.
In 2024, the Infiniscope team distributed a single survey via QuestionPro to participating teachers at the conclusion of the program. It was not necessary to identify individual survey participants, so this survey was anonymous. This survey contained a mix of closed- and open-ended questions that were designed to elicit feedback about the Infiniscope lessons in particular, as well as the combined ES + Infiniscope experience. As discussed previously, ease of use is very important to teachers. Thus, the survey contains multiple questions on that dimension of the overall Infiniscope experience for both teachers and their students. The questions were as follows:
Approximately how many students of yours participated?
What changes, if any, did you make to your regular eclipse teaching because of your participation in this Eclipse Cohort?
How would you rate the quality of the Infiniscope Eclipse lessons compared to other materials you may use in your teaching? (7-point Likert)
Please tell us more about this rating. What specific factors led to your choice?
How would you rate your students’ interest in the Infiniscope Eclipse lessons? (6-point Likert)
Please tell us more about this rating. What specific factors led to your choice?
How easy were the Infiniscope lessons for your students to use (i.e., accessing the lessons on their computers, understanding the interface)? (6-point Likert)
If your students encountered problems, please briefly describe them.
How easy were the Infiniscope lessons for you to use (i.e., providing access to your students, reviewing the lesson in advance, etc.)? (6-point Likert)
If you encounter problems, please briefly describe them.
Considering the combined impact of the Infiniscope lessons and the Eclipse Soundscape activity, how effective was this program in improving your students’ understanding of eclipses? If appropriate, please compare to other times you have taught eclipses.
How did this program impact students' curiosity or other emotions related to science learning?
Did you observe any student “Aha!” moments? Please share those stories if you are comfortable doing so.
Similarly, across this eclipse unit, were there instances where your students were particularly frustrated with the resources in a way that might be improved in the future? If so, please share those with us.
If you typically teach about eclipses, would you use the Infiniscope lessons next year? (4-point Likert)
Would you recommend the Infiniscope Eclipse lessons to a colleague? (4-point Likert)
Why or why not?
Do you have any comments or suggestions about the support provided by the Infiniscope team or the clarity of instructions for accessing and using the Infiniscope Eclipse lessons? If so, please provide them below.
As described in the methods section, both teams conducted their own evaluation work consistent with their approach to evaluation across their respective projects. In this section, we first summarize findings from the Infiniscope evaluation, then the ES evaluation, and conclude with results that speak directly to the joint impact of the combined Infiniscope + ES curriculum.
Infiniscope received 15 complete responses from participating teachers. Based on self-reported student enrollment, the program reached 1,311 students. Using Torus platform analytics, we can see that 10 instructors used the student enrollment functionality for their students (this accounts for 931 total students). The remaining five instructors’ students accessed the lessons in “guest” mode, which does not allow for reporting individual students’ lesson usage.
On a seven-point scale, all teachers rated the Infiniscope lessons as average or better than average compared to other materials they use in teaching. The most common response, chosen by 7/15 teachers, was "above average" (6 out of 7). Positive feedback included the automatic tutoring, e.g., "Using the Kingdom of Peril lessons, I noticed a higher percentage of student engagement. I also noticed that my students were able to learn and process at their own pace. This is the first time that I felt as though they were having to think about how eclipses occur and why they occurred." Others reported that it was interesting for their students. Negative feedback was reported that the lesson was too difficult or that the lesson was unforgiving in how precise the answers needed to be. The most common criticisms related to technical issues on the teacher's part, such as enrolling their students in the lesson or ensuring that the school's network would permit access.
On a six-point scale, all teachers reported that their students were interested in the lesson, with the most common response, chosen by 7/15 teachers, being "somewhat high" (4 out of 6). Some teachers reported high student interest without reservation, while others had mixed feedback, reporting that some students were very interested but others not all. Here again, teachers noted that technical difficulties impacted the overall experience, such as needing to share computers.
Regarding ease of use, on a six-point scale, teachers were most likely to report that the lessons were "somewhat easy" (7/15 teachers), followed by "easy" and "somewhat difficult" (3/15 each). Explanations for this response pointed again to technical problems related to sign-ups and difficulty with some specific questions. Interestingly, one teacher observed that, while the lesson was challenging for some students, "I had several students help teach their peers how to use it, which is always awesome to see. It was a program that was extremely student-friendly." Teachers were less positive about the ease of use for themselves in setting up the lesson. Here, the most common response was that it was "somewhat difficult" (7/15), followed by "somewhat easy" (5/15). Explanations here were similar to those mentioned already, including the complexity of enrolling students, monitoring student progress, and dealing with school network access policies.
When asked if they were likely to use the Infiniscope lessons in future years, most (9/14) said "probably yes," four said "definitely yes," and only one teacher said, "probably not." Teachers were even more favorably inclined to recommend the Infiniscope lessons to a colleague, with seven (out of 15) saying "definitely yes," seven saying "probably yes," and only one saying "probably not." Teachers reiterated many of their earlier comments in explaining why they would recommend it. For example, "It gave the students a chance to work at their own pace. It was easy to set up. Loved the lesson plan guide. Overall, it was a great learning experience." Another teacher remarked that these lessons were more interesting than the ones that accompanied their textbook. The one teacher who would not recommend it was satisfied with the lessons themselves, but felt that the process for enrolling students and tracking their progress needed to be improved before they could encourage others to use it.
The one middle school teacher who partially completed the program in 2023 did not complete the feedback surveys but participated in a virtual interview with the ES team in November 2023. She mentioned having "students who have never seen an eclipse" and found it "very interesting to see how kids who had never had that experience used these tools to learn about it and how it happens." She described the experience as "very engaging" and highlighted the "hugely beneficial" multi-sensory component. She noted, "I have students who are ESL, some of them this is their first year in this country. Using the multi-sensory tools was amazing because you don’t have to explain in English or in Spanish—they were able to learn on their own." (Perrett, Severino, & Winter, 2024)
The survey received a total of 13 responses from teachers, with 12 teachers teaching grades 5-8 and one teaching high school. The number of students participating per teacher varied, ranging from 29 to 150, with an average of 78 students per teacher. Six out of the 13 teachers reported having multilingual students in their classrooms, with languages spoken including English, Spanish, Arabic, Portuguese, Somali, and Vietnamese. Teachers reported that their students have a range of disabilities, including autism, emotional disturbance, hearing impairment, intellectual disabilities, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairments, other health impairments, specific learning disabilities, speech or language impairments, and/or visual impairments. This variety highlights the diverse needs within each classroom.
Teachers were provided with three in-depth lesson plans, complete with ready-to-go resources such as lesson slides, handouts, and detailed lesson implementation instructions. These lesson plans also included differentiated materials to support learners at different levels and abilities. Among the structured lesson plans, the "What and When is Solar Eclipse Maximum?" lesson was used by 8 out of 13 teachers, the "Nature During a Solar Eclipse" lesson was used by 9 out of 13 teachers, and the "Multi-sensory Observing" lesson was utilized by 9 out of 13 teachers. In contrast, the more open-ended activities, "Home Extension Eclipse Day" and "Post Eclipse Day Data Literacy," were used by 2 and 3 teachers out of 13, respectively. This data indicates that the lesson plans with ready-to-go resources and differentiated materials were more heavily utilized by the teachers.
Each of the 8 teachers who utilized this lesson used at least one lesson resource, with most using multiple resources. However, every teacher utilized a different combination of resources. 4 of these teachers used at least one differentiated resource that was provided as a modified version to support learners at different levels.
Figure 1 highlights that the "Text/Reading" and "Slides" were the most commonly used resources, and all resources were used by half or more of the teachers, demonstrating their value.
The number of teachers utilizing various lesson plan resources for the "What and When is Solar Eclipse Maximum?" lesson. Out of 13 teachers surveyed, 8 used this lesson, with the most utilized resources being the "Text/Reading" and "Slides."
Figure 2 shows the number of teachers who used specific differentiation resources for this lesson plan. Out of 13 teachers, 8 used this lesson, and 4 of these 8 teachers used at least 1 differentiation resource. Like the lesson plan resources, each teacher used a different combination of the provided differentiation resources or strategies.
Differentiation resources used by teachers for the "What and When is Solar Eclipse Maximum?" lesson. Pairing strategy was the most frequently utilized differentiation strategy, with Word Banks and Sentence Starters also commonly used.
Overall, teachers responded positively to the "What and When is Solar Eclipse Maximum" lesson plan. One teacher said, “I absolutely loved the lesson, and my students were engaged.” Another teacher described it as a “well-organized lesson,” and another found it to be a “very good resource.” Additionally, a teacher appreciated the inclusion of sentence starters, saying, “I like sentence starters — I think it helps to give students a starting point.” Overall, the feedback indicates that the lesson plan was well-received and effective in engaging students.
Each of the 9 teachers who utilized the “Nature during a Solar Eclipse” lesson used at least one lesson resource, with most using multiple resources. Again, every teacher utilized a different combination of resources. 5 of these 9 teachers also used at least one differentiated resource that was provided as a modified version to support learners at different levels.
Figure 3 illustrates the number of teachers who used specific resources from this lesson plan. This figure highlights that the "Slides" were the most commonly used resources, followed by the “Do Now” and “Research” activities and then lesson instructions. These 4 resources were used by half or more of the teachers, demonstrating their value.
Lesson plan resources used by teachers for the "Nature During a Solar Eclipse" lesson. Slides were the most frequently used resource, with the Do Now Activity and Research Activity also widely utilized.
Overall, teachers found the "Nature During a Solar Eclipse" lesson to be engaging and adaptable. One teacher said, "We used the slides as a guide to talk about what to do as we collected data for the study" (Figure 4). Another "found that sentence starters work great and were glad they were already included." Teachers also modified the lesson to meet their needs, with one noting, "I edited the Google document to fit my needs and post in my Google Classroom," and another adding, "I modified the research and predict to more of a discussion format." Additional feedback mentioned the integration of external resources and modifications for advanced students. Overall, teachers praised the lesson, calling it a "great lesson" that helped students "begin to think about what to listen and look for [during a solar eclipse]."
The differentiation of resources utilized for the "Nature During a Solar Eclipse" lesson. Out of 13 teachers surveyed, 9 used this lesson and 5 of those 9 used at least 1 differentiation strategy. Do Now word banks and sentence starters were the most used, with some teachers also using a reduced vocabulary list.
9 teachers used the “Multi-sensory Observing” lesson. Every teacher who utilized this lesson used at least two lesson resources, with most using multiple resources (Figure 5). Again, every teacher utilized a different combination of resources. 6 of these 9 teachers also used at least one differentiated resource that was provided as a modified version to support learners at different levels (Figure 6).
Lesson plan resources utilized by teachers for the "Multi-sensory Observing" lesson. The Field Notes Handout was the most frequently used resource, followed by Slides and Lesson Instructions.
This figure illustrates the differentiation resources used by teachers for the "Multi-sensory Observing" lesson. Word banks and sentence starters were the most frequently used differentiation resource, followed by pairing strategies and modified graphic organizers.
Overall, teachers shared positive feedback about the "Multi-sensory Observing" lesson. One teacher said, "I really liked how this gave them the opportunity to think about what kind of observations they will make," highlighting the lesson's ability to engage students in critical thinking. Another teacher described it as "another great lesson," while others appreciated specific resources, noting that "the handout was good for organizing and focusing students." Some modifications were made, such as shortening the lesson due to time constraints and creating digital copies for Google Classroom. Overall, the lesson was well-received and effectively supported student learning.
Two teachers completed the “Eclipse Day Observation Activity” and “Post Eclipse Day - Data Literacy Classroom Activity.” For each of these activities, only two resources were provided, and no modified or differentiated resources were provided. One teacher used both resources: Eclipse Soundscapes Project Info & Participation Roles Info Flyer and the Eclipse Soundscapes Observer Field Notes Handout, while the second teacher only used the Field Notes Handout. “Students seemed very receptive to the information that was given,” one educator commented. Another suggested that it would be beneficial to add a letter or other acknowledgment “for students to really understand that THEY are a part of the research.”
ES Observer Curriculum Feedback Survey Conclusion
The ES Observer Curriculum was well-received by teachers and is adaptable to diverse classroom settings. Teachers appreciated the ready-to-use resources, with feedback such as “Really liked how ready to use these were for my students,” “I thought it was easy to use,” and “I was thrilled that these were there and ready to use.” The utilization of many lesson resources for each lesson demonstrates that teachers value pre-created resources and combine them to meet their students' needs. This support respects teachers' autonomy and skills, empowering them to foster a positive learning environment without spending time sourcing and modifying lessons.
However, there are areas for improvement, particularly in supporting students with disabilities and expanding language support. Future enhancements might include audio recordings for each text, texts offered in Dyslexie Font, and suggestions in the lesson plan on how to break the lesson into smaller chunks. Students have a wide range of needs, and by creating lessons with a variety of resources, teachers can adapt each lesson for their students. Survey results indicated a need for future lessons to incorporate slides, texts/reading, graphic organizers specific to scientific research and field study, as well as word banks, sentence starters, and multileveled activities.
The survey received a total of 12 responses from teachers.
Educators are now more likely to seek out NASA science and resources in the future
All respondents reported that they would be more likely to seek out and utilize NASA science in the classroom in the future as a result of their experience with the Eclipse 2024 cohort. 11/12 respondents reported a 5 on a scale of 1-5 (where 5 is the most likely), and 1/12 respondents reported a 4 on a scale of 1-5.
Real-world, multi-sensory learning experiences offer students opportunities to gain knowledge
11 out of 12 of the teachers surveyed also reported that their students became more knowledgeable about or interested in the scientific observation process as a result of being ES Observers. “Absolutely,” one educator wrote. “[the lessons] created high interest in the subject/topic matter.” “I do think they did,” another educator answered. “I think it was such a powerful educational moment to actually witness the eclipse instead of just talking about it. I also think that because they knew that their observations were going towards a study made it more meaningful.” Other teachers echoed the sentiment that the opportunity to observe the eclipse and contribute to scientific research promoted the feeling that students “were participating in something important and that their data was important.”
Another important theme noted by the teachers was that students became “more aware of using other senses to make observations during an event like an eclipse where most people focus on the visual.” Although one educator answered “maybe” to the question of whether their students become more knowledgeable, they noted, “I think it got them to think about using their other senses to make observations.” This realization helps students understand that learning can be multi-sensory and, therefore, more inclusive of people with disabilities, language, and learning differences.
Students enjoy “being a part of something bigger”
These themes resurfaced in the following question regarding what students enjoyed most about being a part of the Eclipse Soundscapes Project. “Collecting data for NASA was very motivating for them,” one educator wrote. Others responded that their students enjoyed “the opportunity to be part of a scientific study and contribute real scientific data,” and “knowing that our observations were being used for a larger purpose.” Students also reportedly enjoyed “witnessing the event” and “using all of their senses to experience the eclipse.”
Teachers value lessons that support accessibility and inclusion in the classroom
Another open-ended question asked the teachers whether their participation in the Eclipse Soundscapes Project made them think about accessibility and inclusion any differently or if it supported any of their already held beliefs about accessibility and inclusion in science.
4/12 respondents answered that the project supported their already-held beliefs. 4/12 respondents answered that it did not make them think about accessibility and inclusion any differently or support any of their already held beliefs. Other participants said, “I feel that Eclipse Soundscapes did a great job in incorporating all student learners,” “This project made me feel confident as an educator, including our regional room classrooms. I felt like I was able to share and reach more students,” and “I believe that the program did great with the accessibility and inclusion piece.”
25% of teachers offered suggestions for improvement
8 of the 12 teachers surveyed said they did not have any feedback on how the Eclipse Soundscapes Project could be improved. 3 teachers offered suggestions for improvement, including the ability to assign lessons in Google Classroom, more clarity in the instructions for using the lessons, and adding assessments to the lessons or exit slips. It is important to note that all 3 lessons and both activities included assessments/exit tickets, but perhaps those resources needed to be better explained or highlighted.
Educators want more NASA curriculum
100% of the teachers surveyed said they would like NASA to continue to develop and provide lesson plans to support teachers in utilizing NASA science in the classroom. 4 out of 12 respondents answered that they appreciate curricula surrounding real-world events and experiences. “Real-world situations make a huge impact on student's learning,” one educator wrote. “Bringing real-world science into the classroom in as many ways possible is always valuable,” said another. Other answers focused on free NASA materials as a solution to tight budgets. “Curriculum is an expense that is a burden to the coffers of my school,” one educator wrote. “We are constantly looking for ways to supplement that doesn't have to come from my (the teacher's) pocket.”
Educators are interested in continuing Eclipse learning
11 of the 12 teachers surveyed said they would be interested in piloting lessons for the Eclipse Soundscapes Data Analyst role when it becomes available.
ES Reflection Survey Conclusion
The feedback from the ES Reflection Survey confirmed there is a demand for NASA resources and curriculum in the classroom, especially lessons surrounding real-world phenomena that allow students to contribute to a greater body of scientific work. The ES lessons did not have a dramatic impact on how teachers think about accessibility and inclusion in the classroom, but they did, in many cases, seem to support teachers’ existing beliefs. The respondents did not elaborate enough for ES to comment on what those existing beliefs are, but the comments received indicate that the curricula were mostly successful in making the lessons accessible and inclusive to students. The largest impact seems to have been on the students themselves. Comments from teachers indicated that student learning benefited from the opportunity to study a real-life phenomenon and participate in NASA science. Students also enjoyed using all of their senses to experience the eclipse. This approach potentially engaged a diversity of students while helping students understand that learning can be multi-sensory and, therefore more inclusive of people with disabilities, language, and learning differences.
When asked about the combined impact of the ES and Infiniscope curricula, teachers were very positive. Teachers praised both sets of materials but noted that the eclipse itself and the opportunity to collect data during the eclipse was a particular highlight for their students. Leaving aside the unique opportunity of the actual eclipse, teachers mentioned some specific features of the curricula that they found particularly valuable, including how the materials supported self-paced learning and structured group work and how it promoted a strong conceptual understanding of eclipses.
"I believe the most impactful part was that my students were taking roles to complete the lessons. It really captivated them more than me teaching them directly."
"I think it showed them how our ideas about eclipses changed through time. They also liked being able to model eclipses."
"Everything was very effective and allowed students to guide their learning and understand at their own pace. Loved those who could work on their own."
Although no teacher gave a strictly negative answer to this question, one did note that they did not anticipate replacing their existing Eclipse curriculum with these materials in the future. Additionally, as noted above, 11 teachers said that they would be interested in piloting future lessons, such as for Eclipse Soundscapes data analysis, when it becomes available, further demonstrating interest and need for curriculum presented in this format.
The joint experience of ES and Infiniscope was intended to inspire student interest and curiosity about the science as well as teach the content. Thus, the survey also asked teachers to comment on these more emotional outcomes.
When asked about impacts on students' curiosity, nearly all of the teachers reported positive impacts. These impacts were driven significantly by the opportunity to see the eclipse in person and collect data, e.g., "The questions I received from my students were more than I have ever received in any other unit. I truly think it was because they were going to witness it firsthand."
However, we can also see evidence of how the classroom preparation made for an even more positive experience on the day of the eclipse, "After completing these lessons, some of my students were able to be experts to other students and their parents during the eclipse. We watched the eclipse together at a K-8 building and I heard, multiple times, some of my students giving out information to the younger students on what they were observing." Similarly, experiencing the eclipse for themselves helped give new weight to some of the lesson content, "I think the Aha moment came after the eclipse. The students were confused about why people thought a dragon was eating the sun. But when they actually experienced how dark it got, they got it."
The collaboration between the Eclipse Soundscapes Project and Infiniscope provides a model for how groups interested in supporting teachers can create complementary and comprehensive educational resources that allow for easy and effective integration of real-world events into diverse classroom settings, enhancing student engagement and understanding of complex scientific concepts. The emphasis on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in both curricula ensures that lessons are accessible and inclusive, addressing the diverse needs of students, including multilingual learners and those with disabilities. Additionally, offering ready-to-use, NGSS-aligned resources that require minimal preparation from teachers not only saves teachers valuable time but also supports them in delivering high-quality, differentiated instruction. The success of this collaboration also highlights the importance of creating multi-sensory and inquiry-driven learning experiences that connect formal education with out-of-school learning opportunities, which makes abstract scientific phenomena like eclipses more tangible and relatable for students. As such, programs aiming to support teachers in leveraging significant astronomical events to foster deeper student engagement and promote inclusivity in science education should consider developing ready-to-use lesson plans and materials that incorporate UDL principles and provide all of the resources necessary to be immediately utilized within a diverse classroom setting.
Infiniscope is supported by NASA award No. NNX16AD79A
Eclipse Soundscapes: Citizen Science Project is supported by NASA award No. 80NSSC21M0008.