Hidden Figures WebQuest

Our world is full of connections—between people, places, and events. In this webquest,
you will find activities that uncover some important connections—in aerospace
engineering, math, computer science, and history — between Hidden Figures and our
world.

Directions: Explore the different topics of human computers, civil rights, the space
race, and the landing on the moon. These topics are weaved into the historical story of
Hidden Figures.
Explore and respond to the reflection questions below. Please be thoughtful and
thorough in your answers and answer in complete sentences.

Human Computers
 We use modern computers constantly in our everyday lives. We talk on the phone, play
video games, navigate our way to a new place, all with the help of these devices and the
constant calculations that they make. However, before these computers were invented,
scientists and engineers relied on humans to make calculations. Many of the “human
computers” at the NACA/NASA were women. In Hidden Figures, we learn about a few
of these amazing female mathematicians.
Click the links below to explore even more about other female computers who advanced
scientific innovation from the 1930’s to the 1970's.

Activities
1. Read more about female human computers from NASA.

2. Discover the contributions of the female computers at the NACA/ NASA from
1935 to the 1970’s in this short video.

3. Watch a video about Katherine Johnson, her life and accomplishments.

4. Investigate primary resources from the West Computer area at Langley using
this interactive map.

5. Explore a timeline of computer history that shows how the digital computer
evolved over time.

Reflection Questions
1. What are human computers?
2. Why is it important for people to learn about the accomplishments of
female computers?
3. What is new learning about or
surprised you about human
computers?

Civil Rights
As the women of Hidden Figures broke racial boundaries at Langley, many African
Americans around the country were working to create a more equal society through the
civil rights movement.
Explore the resources below to better understand the important events of the civil
rights movement that were occurring at the same time as the lives of the women in the
book.

Activities
1. Watch a short video about A. Philip Randolph, the early civil rights leader who
inspired many of the women in the book.

2. Read an article about the Brown v. Board of Education court case and ruling that
eventually integrated schools in the United States.

3. Learn more about the integration of schools in Farmville, Virginia, the town
where Dorothy Vaughan taught and raised her children until she came to
Langley.

4. Read and watch a video about NASA’s real “Hidden Figures”

5. Learn more about the Civil Rights and explore the timeline and videos.

Reflection Questions
1. How did the civil rights movement affect the everyday lives of the women in the
book?
2. In what ways were you surprised about how these women were treated? Be
specific.
3. How might the careers of these women have been different if segregation had not
existed during that time?
The Space Race
The Space Race was a pivotal
moment in advancements for the
United States.
Explore the resources below to better
understand the important events of
the space race that were occurring at
the same time as the lives of the
women in the book.

Activities
1. Read an article about the
Space Race.

2. Visit the National Air and

Space Museum Smithsonian.

3. Watch a video on Sputnik’s Launch Begins the Space Race - Chasing the Moon

Reflection Questions
1. What was the Space Race?
2. How did space and technological advancements change and impact the world?

Landing on the
Moon
On May 26, 1961,
President John F.
Kennedy spoke to
Congress and said, “I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal,
before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to
Earth” (History.com 2016). This speech gave NASA and all the workers at Langley,
including the female computers, a clear mission. Eight years later they achieved this
mission and changed history forever.
Activities
1. Read facts about the first moon landing.

2. Explore the surface of the Earth’s moon with this interactive activity.

3. Watch a video of Charlie Duke, the astronaut who worked in mission control
during the Apollo 11 mission and was the direct communicator (CAPCOM)
between the spacecraft and the earth.

4. Read about JoAnn Morgan an instrument controller, who was the only woman in
the control
room during the Apollo 11 Mission.

Reflection Questions
1. How has the science of flight and space exploration been important to our history
as a country?
2. How would the 1940s through the 1960s have been different if the NACA had
not been created?