Today’s Excerpt:

Watch “Building Curiosity” (2-min video) from PBS to see a stop-motion construction of the Curiosity rover made from LEGOs.

Discuss:

• Did you know that the real Curiosity rover is on Mars and has explored the planet for years?

Here’s a photo of the Curiosity rover on Mars:

Explain that the name for the rover was chosen based on an essay contest, where the winner, Clara Ma, who was 12 years old at the time, made the case for naming after the virtue of curiosity. She wrote that curiosity “makes me get out of bed in the morning and wonder what surprises life will throw at me that day.” She added that “curiosity is such a powerful force. Without it, we wouldn’t be who we are today. Curiosity is the passion that drives us through our everyday lives. We have become explorers and scientists with our need to ask questions and to wonder.”

Here is a photo of Clara Ma winning the essay contest:

• Do you feel this same need to ask questions and to wonder in your life? What do you like to explore?
• In the video of the LEGO version of the Curiosity rover, there’s a quote from a popular educator Hank Green, who says, “Curiosity in some ways is like the opposite of judgment. You can’t hate something if you’re curious about it, and, really, you can be curious about everything.” What do you think of this quote? Do you think curiosity is the opposite of judgment? How does curiosity feel?
• Another quote is from the British scientist Jane Goodall, who says that curiosity is about “asking questions, not getting the right answer, deciding to find out for yourself, making a mistake, not giving up, and learning patience.” How do you feel when you don’t initially get the right answer? Do you feel frustrated or curious? What happens when you feel curiosity?

Just like we can be curious about the outer world — including exploring outer space — we can be curious about our inner world.

In the age-specific sections of the lesson, you’ll spend time getting curious about yourself and discovering more about who you are. Note that these exercises pair well with our foundational lesson on strengths.