The University of Hawaii's Institute for Astronomy (IfA) and Interstellar Studios, the producers of the PBS special 400 Years of the Telescope, have created a unique learning opportunity for your students.

Starting in April 2009, log your students into an Astronomer in the Classroom online conference room for dynamic interactions with astronomers and technicians of the world's leading observatories.

Each half-hour session will begin with a 5-10 minute presentation including imagery, PowerPoint slides and video followed by a question and answer period where your students and you get to pose your questions directly to the presenters.

Hundreds of scientists around the world are volunteering to participate in this exciting and rewarding International Year of Astronomy activity. The best thing about it: you choose in which of the daily presentations your classroom will participate.

Daily sessions will be held to allow each of the North American time zones and various class levels to participate. As an educator, all you need to do is select the astronomers' presentations and times that work best with your curriculum and schedule. This is also an excellent activity for libraries and science centers. Using the Adobe Acrobat Connect™ web conferencing solution, an unlimited number of classrooms can join in on the lectures.