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Roberta Bondar Fletcher Facts & Worksheets

Roberta Bondar was the first neurologist and the first female Canadian astronaut who traveled in space.

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At a young age, Roberta Bondar had started having dreams of becoming an astronaut. She was the first neurologist and the first female Canadian astronaut who traveled in space.

See the fact file below for more information on Roberta Bondar or alternatively, you can download our 25-page Roberta Bondar worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

Early Life

  • Roberta Lynn Bondar was born on December 4, 1945, in Sault Saint Marie, Ontario, Canada.  
  • It is a city on St. Mary’s River in Ontario, Canada, and the third-largest city in northern Ontario that caters to the Algoma District. 
  • Her parents were Edward Bondar and Mildred Bondar.
  • Her father was of Ukrainian descent and used to work at the Sault Ste. Marie Public Utilities Commissions while her mother, of English descent, was an educator.  
  • Roberta Bondar has an older sister named Barbara Bondar.
  • Ever since she was little, Roberta Bondar loved science and dreamt of being an astronaut. 
  • Edward Bondar, her father, built her a lab in their basement where she could freely conduct her experiments.
  • She went to Sir James Dunn High School in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. 
  • Roberta Bondar graduated from the University of Guelph with a degree in Bachelor in Science in zoology and agriculture in 1968. 
  • In 1971, she received a Master of Science in Experimental Pathology from the University of Western Ontario. 
  • In 1974, Roberta Bondar was awarded a Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience from the University of Toronto and received a Doctor of Medicine from McMaster University three years later.
  • She continued her postgraduate medical training in neurology and neuro-ophthalmology.  
  • Soon after, she was admitted as a fellow in neurology to the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada in 1981.
  • For her undergraduate research, she also worked with the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Forestry.
  • Roberta Bondar was also recognized for her excellent work in space medicine research, fine art photography, and environment education.
  • In 1983, Roberta Bondar was chosen as one of the first six members of the Canadian Astronaut Corps.
  • In 1984, she began her training as an astronaut.
  • Roberta Bondar was assigned as a Payload Specialist for the first International Microgravity Laboratory Mission (IML-1) in 1992.
  • IML-1, a crewed Spacelab module, aims to explore the various effects on the weightlessness of living organisms and materials processing.
  • During the STS-42 Mission, Roberta Bondar’s team boarded the NASA Space Shuttle Discovery on January 22, 1992, and returned to earth on January 30, 1992. 
  • On the eight-day mission, her team conducted several experiments in the first International Microgravity Laboratory, the predecessor to the International Space Station.
  • Their experiments mainly focused on the ability of the human nervous system to adapt to low gravity and to analyze microgravity effects on other living organisms.
  • Roberta Bondar was also a researcher. 
  • In September 1992, she left the Canadian Space Agency  (CSA) to focus on her research interests. 
  • For 10 years, she headed an international research team in NASA working on neurological symptoms seen after spaceflight and their connections to neurological diseases on Earth.
  • Roberta Bondar further pursued her interests in photography, and her work focused on natural environments. 
  • She studied Professional Nature Photography at the Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, California, and was an honor student.
  • She wrote four best-selling books namely Canada: A Landscape of Dreams, Passionate Vision: Discovering Canada’s  National Parks, The Arid Edge of Earth, and Touching the Earth, which all featured her writing and photography.
  • Roberta Bondar continues to use photography to explore and show the Earth’s natural environment and through the eyes of a medical doctor, scientist, photographer, astronaut, and writer.
  • Roberta Bondar is also a skydiver, underwater diver, and private pilot. 
  • She is also an adviser and speaker for different organizations.

Awards, Recognitions, and Tributes

  • Roberta Bondar has been invited to interviews on TV and radio and played a role in the movie Destiny in Space. 
  • She was a consultant for some programs dealing with topics about the space shuttle. 
  • Roberta Bondar has received many awards and was appointed as a Companion of the Order of Canada and received the Order of Ontario.
  • She also received the NASA Space Flight Medal and was proclaimed into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame.
  • She was included in the International Women’s Forum Hall of Fame, was awarded a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame, and received 28 honorary doctorates from Canadian and American universities.
  • She served two terms as the Chancellor of Trent from 2003-2009. 
  • In 2009, Roberta Bondar was also awarded the prestigious Loyola Medal from Concordia University.
  • The Royal Canadian Mint released a limited edition 25th anniversary $25 coin with the title “A View of Canada from Space” in 2017.
  • Thebacha and Wood Buffalo Astronomical Society observatory were renamed the Dr. Roberta Bondar Northern Observatory in 2018, and six other Canadian schools were named after her.
  • Roberta Bondar was a Specially Elected Fellow of The Royal Society of Canada.
  • She was also an Honorary Fellow and Honorary Vice-President of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.

Roberta Bondar Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle that includes everything you need to know about Roberta Bondar across 25in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Roberta Bondar who was the first neurologist and the first female Canadian astronaut who traveled in space.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Roberta Bondar Facts
  • Identification
  • True or False?
  • Multiple Choice
  • Qualities
  • Wall of Fame
  • Author
  • Space Shuttle
  • Speech
  • Dream
  • In Twenty Years…

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Link will appear as Roberta Bondar Fletcher Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, September 29, 2021

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.