For High School: Solar Sail Pitch Slam (aka Shark Tank)
In groups, have students generate a question they believe a solar sail mission might explore and design "pitches" to potential investors to convince them to invest in an expedition into space. Each pitch should include the following information:

• What will your mission do?
• How will your mission contribute to the field of solar sailing?
• What will happen if you fail?
• What is the "return" to investors (not just money, can include ideas and knowledge)?

Consider the February 7 SpaceX launch of the Falcon Heavy rocket and this New York Times article as background material.

Hold a pitch slam in class. Each team gets two minutes to "pitch" their idea. Have a panel of "judges" pick the winning pitch.

Citizen Science
The Planetary Society is citizen-funded, meaning people rather than the government pay for its efforts. Read this article about various citizen science efforts around the world.

Ask students to choose one of the projects listed that interest them and describe the project to the rest of the class by arguing how the goal of the study will benefit people.