The wonderful thing about giving teachers space to "geek out" about texts is that it respects them as thinkers and learners and lovers of the written word.*.*
Mirkin worked on the concept for a long time, basing the story on NASA's Teacher in Space Project scheme to send ordinary civilians into space in order to spark interest amongst the general public.
Mirkin had worked on the idea for the episode for a long time, basing the story on NASA's Teacher in Space Project scheme to send ordinary civilians into space in order to spark interest amongst the general public.
Mrs. Morgan, 51, was the backup for Christa McAuliffe, who was to have been the first teacher in space when she died in the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger in January 1986.
Its seven-person crew perished; among them was schoolteacher Christa McAuliffe, on board as the first teacher in space.
"Christa was, is, and always will be our 'Teacher in Space,' our first teacher to fly," she said in a NASA interview.
After the Challenger broke apart during launching and its crew of seven died, NASA named her the teacher in space designee.
Ms. Morgan had been selected as the backup "teacher in space" for Christa McAuliffe for the January 1986 flight of the shuttle Challenger.
Later, as director of shuttle operations, the NASA official briefed a group of candidates for the "teacher in space" program about the risks they were facing.
But the agency liked the concept of a teacher in space and in 1998 hit upon the idea of training teachers to be real astronauts, just as it trains scientists and other professionals to be mission specialists.
The flight will also fulfill a dream deferred from January 1986, when the shuttle Challenger blew up during takeoff, killing a crew that included the first designated teacher in space, Christa McAuliffe, Ms. Morgan's friend.
