JESSUP, Maryland USA — More than 100 eighth-graders at Patuxent Valley Middle School stared eagerly as they watched the smoky trail left by a model rocket as it ascended hundreds of feet into the sky and then headed back to earth.

"Ooh! ... Ahh!" the students exclaimed as a small yellow-and-black marker trailed the rocket on its decent.

SLIDESHOW: Scenes at class launch.

The students spent three hours Monday launching model rockets that they designed in science class. Launch day was the culmination of weeks of lessons that included Newton's laws of gravity and forces. The students watched October Sky - a 1999 film about West Virginia teens in the 1950s who built rockets - minutes before launching their own.

The lesson is a favorite of students, say educators at the school.

"It gets them to take that extra step and make them focus," Principal Robert Motley said. "This creates that spark in the classroom."

"It's a great way to jump-start science in eighth grade," said Dafnette Jones, a science teacher at the school who has taught the lesson for the past four years. "It's hands-on. Many of them wouldn't have the opportunity to do this otherwise. It's an experiment that they will remember until the end of the year."

Ashleigh Evans, 12, basked in the accomplishment of her rocket's ascent of 85 meters - about 279 feet.

"We got to have a new experience," she said as she cradled her rocket, which had been adorned with multiple colors.

Duane Echols, 13, was quick to point out that his rocket reached 90 meters, or about 295 feet.

"This is way better because we get to do more hands-on things," he said.

Daniel Agee, 13, didn't care that his rocket didn't soar higher than those launched by Ashleigh and Duane.

"I had a lot of fun," he said. "My rocket went higher than the school and higher than the highest tree. I had fun. The good thing is you don't have any homework."

Copyright © 2007, The Baltimore Sun.