Planning Your Visit with Pre- and Post-Visit Activities
We strongly recommend planning your visit at least six weeks in advance. This gives you time to plan and prepare students for a worthwhile learning experience at McDonald Observatory. You can request a reservation with our online form.
We encourage teachers to think of the Observatory as an informal extension of their classroom and science instruction.
Pre-Visit Package
The following Pre-Visit package indicates which activities are appropriate for various grades. Sample TEKS are indicated.
In addition to these printed materials, the package includes a map locating the Observatory and a DVD about the observatory.
| Required Forms | English | Spanish |
| • Visitor Checklist- With suggested timeline |  |
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| • Behavior Expectations | |
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| • Photo Release Letter | |
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| • Signatures Form for behavior and photo release - Must be filled out by each student and/or their parent/guardian. | |
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| Pre-Visit Activities | ||
| Activities to be done with the class before the visit to the Observatory. • Pre-visit Engagement Activities |
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| Since the Observatory has reflecting telescopes, it is recommended that students complete an activity investigating the Law of Reflection prior to their visit. | ||
| • Reflection Activity | |
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| • Alternative Reflection Activity | |
Post-Visit Package
The post-visit package includes a printed copy of the StarDate/Universo Teacher Guide
| Post-Visit Forms and Activities | English | Spanish |
| Post-Visit Letter | |
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| Post-Visit Activities for grades K-5 | |
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| Post-Visit Activities for grades 6-12 | |
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| Post-Visit Activities for grades 9-12 | |
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| Post-Visit Activity on Telescope Mechanics and Structure | |
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Concept Mapping |
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| Introduction to Concept Maps | |
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| Concept Map | |
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| Concept Map Key | |
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| Extensions to the Concept Map exercise | |
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| Expert Map | |
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Support for HST-ED90234-01 was provided by NASA through a grant from the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by the Association of Universities in Astronomy, Incorporated, under NASA contract NAS5-26555.
