“It’s really exciting for them to see the connection between the novel and the science they’re learning,” said Denise Clemens, a science teacher at Northwestern. In a science class at Northwestern High School in Mellette, S.D., sophomores are using the novel as a jumping-off point for some hands-on experiments, like splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen.
In physics class, students will build miniature solar-powered cars, and during astronomy next month, they will try to grow potatoes as Watney did, using a chamber modeled on NASA’s Lunar Plant Growth Chamber.Įighth graders at Oak Middle School in Los Alamitos, Calif., are following a yearlong curriculum based on “The Martian,” with lesson plans that use dramatic moments in the narrative to illustrate concepts like Newton’s laws of motion, chemical reactions and spacecraft engineering. Weir said there were “occasional squabbles” when he tried to lobby the censors to keep some of the less offensive swear words in.) A kid-friendly version came out last year, and it is now being used to help teach science in classrooms around the country.Īt Synergy Quantum Academy, a public charter high school in South Los Angeles, students are conducting experiments based on the novel. The novel was pretty easy to amend, by simply replacing the foul language with tamer words like “screwed,” “jerk” and “crap” (Mr. Weir, who describes himself as “a lifelong space nerd,” asked his publisher, Crown, if they could release a cleaned-up edition of the book. (The Washington Post called the novel “an advertisement for the importance of STEM education.”)Īfter getting dozens of inquiries from teachers, Mr. It’s a gripping survival story that hinges on the hero’s ability to solve a series of complex problems, using his knowledge of physics, chemistry, astronomy and math, in order to stay alive on a hostile planet. Apart from the four-letter words, “The Martian” is a science teacher’s dream text.
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