Mrs. Peterson Goes to Space Camp

As the 2022 Oklahoma Teacher of the Year, I have the joy of traveling with and learning from the other State Teachers of the Year in my cohort during five trips throughout the 2023 calendar year. We recently returned from our third trip: Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama.

Rekindling our inner 12-year-old selves, we completed missions, learned about the benefits of space exploration, and worked to solve science challenges.

We listened, utterly captivated, to NASA astronauts who recounted their assignments both on Earth and in space. I came home with a renewed determination to inspire awe and wonder in my students, to promote team activities, and to lean into my students’ big, beautiful questions.

Reflecting on our last night in the planetarium as we sat immersed by breathtaking images from the James Webb Telescope, I wrote these words:

Maybe we’re all twinkling like the stars, twirling like the planets, and expanding like the universe. Perhaps you and I are a microcosm of the cosmos, reflecting the infinite. Let’s keep looking up. ■