NASA, Honeywell Bring Hip-Hop Education Show to 10 Midwest States

News provided by

Sep 14, 2015, 05:17 ET

WASHINGTON, Sept. 14, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA and Honeywell are starting the 11th year of their "FMA Live! Forces in Motion" show with a fall 2015 tour designed to ignite students' interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

FMA Live! is a high-energy, live stage show that features actors, hip-hop dance, music videos, interactive scientific demonstrations and video interviews with NASA scientists to teach Sir Isaac Newton's three laws of motion and universal laws of gravity. The name of the show comes from Newton's second law of motion: force = mass x acceleration.

"Each child needs to understand that a solid foundation in STEM can open doors they may not have known existed. Getting them excited is the first step – from there, the career possibilities are endless," said Dr. Donald James, associate administrator for NASA's Office of Education. "This has been a great collaboration between NASA and Honeywell, and I'm proud of how many schools and students we've engaged through FMA Live!"

Research shows interactive, experiential learning is the most effective way to engage students in STEM studies. A major goal of FMA Live! is to encourage middle school students to pursue STEM academic coursework and ultimately seek careers in STEM-related fields.

Since its creation in 2004, FMA Live! has reached more than 415,000 middle school students across the United States, as well as students in Canada and Mexico.

During the course of the next 10 weeks, the show, under the direction of Honeywell Hometown Solutions, will travel to more than 40 public, private and Department of Defense-affiliated middle schools in 10 states: Minneapolis, Wisconsin, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina. FMA Live! will travel to the west coast of the United States in spring 2016.

"Today's students are tomorrow's engineers and scientists," said Mike Bennett, president, Honeywell Hometown Solutions, the company's global corporate citizenship initiative. "We know that STEM learning teaches students critical-thinking and problem-solving skills that are applicable in nearly every career field. We hope when students are exposed to programs such as FMA Live! Forces in Motion, it will pique their interest in pursuing STEM education and career paths in the future."

NASA is committed to using the agency's unique assets, programs and facilities to inspire students to pursue STEM studies and careers. NASA's Office of Education collaborates with a wide variety of organizations from academia, industry and government to reach learners and educators across the United States.

To learn more about FMA Live! and the 2015 tour, visit:

http://fmalive.honeywell.com

To learn more about NASA's educations program, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/education

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO

SOURCE NASA