What's the first major news event that you remember hearing about as a child? Where did you learn about it? How did it impact your world view?
the space shuttle challenger disaster. not only did we watch it on tv in my class, but our school was super into that whole flight because one of the most beloved science teachers at our school had been in the running to be the first teacher in space (he was disqualified in the last round because of a history of asthma, but he had been training and was involved in the program up to the end). so to have the explosion happen, and to watch it on tv, we were all so emotionally caught up in the whole thing, and it definitely stuck in my mind. that day had been specifically scheduled so that children's classrooms all over the country could watch live (first teacher in space, remember) so afterwards they called the parents and we were all let out early because everyone was so upset.
rip astronauts and first teacher in space
