Slide 1

What exactly is a Web chat?

• Real-time, monitored, keyboard conversation between a NASA expert, students, teachers and others
• Opportunity to chat with experts about their jobs

Slide 2

What's the purpose of a Web chat?

• Connect kids to the people at NASA via LIVE interactions!

Slide 3

How you can participate

• Go to home pages, click on "Chat" icon and select chat of interest
• Must RSVP to reserve spot

Slide 4

How you can prepare for a chat

• Read experts' online biographies and any journals they've written by going to URLs listed, for example: http://quest.arc.n asa.gov/mars/team/cook.html
• Review past Web chats http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/shuttle/events/ webchats/ciannilli_chat.html

Slide 5

When are chats held?

• Weekly: various days and times to accommodate west and east coast school hours and to include our friends from around the world

Slide 6

Chat set-up process

• Read biographies/field journals of prospective experts
• Contact potential expert
• (If expert agrees to participate), arrange day/time for chat
• Inform expert of upcoming practice chat session before actual chat
• Develop a summary of expert's career from biography/field journals
• Set up a chat room for expert
• Add expert's chat date to chat schedule
• Open registration for new chat
• Contact expert: Send special chat information Arrange time to practice
• Practice with expert
• Open chat room to public for actual event

Slide 7

Chat software features

• Registration (optional or mandatory):
  • Automated registration for chats
  • Automated confirmation of registration
• Chat rooms:
  • Set up "on demand" by project managers
  • Customized for each chat
  • Expert:
    • Limit number of questions appearing on screen
    • Select questions to respond to
  • Special moderation features available to NASA moderators
• To participate in a chat, visit the home page of any of our projects and click on the "CHAT" icon:
  • Live From Mars http:/quest.arc.nasa.gov/mars
  • Shuttle Team Online http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/shuttle
  • Women of NASA http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women
  • NeurOn (Neurolab Online) http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/neuron
  • Aero Design Team Online (Aero) http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/aero

Slide 1

Participation in a Women of NASA Web Chat

• Identify students who will participate.
• Obtain written permission slips from parent or guardian.
• Arrange transportation.

Slide 2

Preparing students

• Organize a folder for each student.
• Include a Title Page.
• Have each student read the Biography.
• Discuss what students have learned about the person.

Slide 3

Questioning skills.

• List the information you want to know.
• Write a question that will provide that answer.
• Practice asking the questions.
• Role play asking questions.

Slide 4

Women in Non-Traditional Careers

• Learn about the career.
• What decisions do women make in order to pursue that career choice? Why did women chose a non-traditional career?

Slide 5

Computer Skills

• Practice typing questions.
• Improve your keyboarding skills.
• Be familiar with how a computer operates.

Slide 5

Images of Students, Teachers and Parents

• Image One: Muncie Community Schools Planetarium Computer Lab.
• Image Two: Teacher guiding a student through their first Web chat.
• Image Three: Two students participating in a chat.
• Image Four: Parents and students waiting for a print-out of the chat.
• Image Five: Reading a print-out of a chat archive.