"Three, two, one, lift-off!" Last spring's rocket launch in Fran O'Rourke's Bothell Washington, classroom may have been a simulation, but to O'Rourke's third, fourth, and fifth graders, it was very real. At Cedar Wood Elementary, Launch 93 was underway.

Inside the space vehicle--actually a life sized model of a real NASA space rocket--were six appropriately dresses student "astronauts". For the next 24 hours, these kids lived in the model they'd built, performing experiments they and other students had designed.

Outside the deck station was the mission control area, staffed by 10 students. Their job: keep in contact with the astronauts and brief the press.

The press corps--10 more students--produced a newsletter for the school and community.

Each student had sought a chosen role by submitting a resume, including an essay on why the student was qualified for a certain position, and a letter of recommendation from a parent. The latter was a great self-esteem booster, notes O'Rourke.

Launch '93 was the culmination of a six-month, in-depth class study of the NASA launch process. During the semester, students had done everything from visiting a NASA research center to trying out elements of actual astronaut training to building their own miniature rockets and firing them under the guidance of an aerospace specialist.

O'Rourke had been chosen by the National Science Teachers Association to participate in two weeks of in-depth study at NASA Ames Research Center. It was this experience that motivated her to develop the space project. She credits much of the project's success to grants from the University of Washington and to NASA and to donations of money, supplies, and guidance from Boeing and others.

What does O'Rourke hope the kids will learn? More than information, she says: "An excitement about learning."