Suggested STEM topics for individual research, group discussion, sorted by suggested grade level / Girl Scout level

Grades K-1 | Girl Scout Daisies Grades 2-3 | Girl Scout Brownies Grades 4-5 | Girl Scout Junior

  1. Constellations:
    • Why they were created
    • What we can tell from them
    • Who made them and when
  2. What we see in the sky:
    • Differences between them
    • Where is that light coming from
    • How far away is that light coming from
    • What we can see day vs night
  3. Observing the moon:
    • How it was created
    • How the moon affects earth
    • Why does it follow us
  4. Observing the stars:
    • Names
    • What different stars can tell us
    • North Star
  5. Observing the sun:
    • How we can do so safely
    • How the sun affects earth
    • What is it made of
  6. Solar System:
    • What is it
    • How many planets do we have
    • How big is it
  7. Planets:
    • What is it
    • What are they made of
    • How big are they

  1. Star vs. planet:
    • Temperature, surface, light, energy,
  2. Star maps:
    • different constellations
    • why they were created
  3. Moon:
    • Learn about the phases of the moon
  4. Rotate vs Revolve:
    • What those affect
  5. Planets + Pluto:
    • Size
  6. Gravity:
    • What is it
    • How does it affect us
    • Why is it so important

  1. Navigating by the stars
  2. Seasons:
    • Affected by Solstice and Equinox
  3. Weather:
    • Difference between Weather and Climate
  4. Movement in the Solar system:
    • Earth's Rotation
    • Other Planets and Moons Rotation
  5. Planets + Moons:
    • Why moons follow planets
    • How they affect each other
    • Different moons for each planet (why some have more than 1)
  6. Lunar Topography:
    • How craters were created
  7. Comet vs Asteroid vs Meteor:
    • Difference between them


"Do not look at stars as bright spots only. Try to take in the vastness of the universe." - Maria Mitchell, Astronomer

Grades 6-8 | Girl Scout Cadettes Grades 9-10 | Girl Scout Seniors Grades 11-12 | Girl Scout Ambassadors

  1. Mars: The next frontier
  2. Why teach Astronomy:
    • The history of astronomy
    • What we are learning now
    • Why we should learn about astronomy for the future
  3. Eclipses:
    • Solar
    • Lunar
  4. Navigating by the stars:
    • History of navigation using stars
    • How Astronauts used the stars to navigate to the Moon
  5. Solstice vs Equinox
  6. Black Holes:
    • What are they
    • How are the created
    • What does it affect
  7. Galaxies:
    • What are they
    • How many are there?
    • How big are they
  8. Light and Speed of Light:
    • What is it
    • How light can let us 'see' into the past
  9. The International Space Station
  10. Global Climate Change:
    • Venus, Mars, and Earth's climate history
    • How satellites help monitor climate change

  1. Planets in motion: Prograde and retrograde
  2. Hubble Space Telescope
  3. Astronomy through the years:
    • Ancient
    • Greco-Roman astronomy
    • Astronomy in the Dark Ages
    • 17th Century astronomy
    • 19th Century - today astronomy
  4. Astronomy vs. Astrology:
    • The history of Astrology in society
    • Science vs Pseudoscience
    • Zodiac 'signs'
    • Fact vs Fiction
  5. Laws of motion:
    • Laws of motion and gravity
    • Laws of planetary motion
  6. Telescopes:
    • History of the telescope / spyglass
    • Types of telescopes
    • Star Parties
  7. The Celestial Sphere and the constellations
  8. Space Exploration:
    • History - "Space Race"
    • Human Exploration
    • Robotic Exploration
    • First Human on Mars?
  9. Viewing the Visible and Invisible Universe

  1. Hubble space telescope discoveries
  2. James L Webb Space Telescope: What to expect
  3. Our Sun:
    • History of our Sun
    • Solar Energy - Fission vs Fusion
    • Structure of our Sun and other Stars
    • Role of Sun in our Solar System
  4. Star life cycles - birth to death
  5. Stellar remnants - novas, nebulas, and black holes
  6. Spectroscopy - how to investigate distant stars
  7. Matter and Dark Matter in the Universe
  8. Gravity and Magnetic fields
  9. Theories of Cosmology:
    • Big Bang Theory
    • Multiverses
    • Expansion and collapse of Universe

"Curiosity is probably one of the most important characteristics that people have who go into science, and engineering is about solving problems and creativity." - Elen Ochoa, NASA Astronaut and first Hispanic woman in space