Hipparcos data supporting the IB school curriculum

The Hipparcos and Tycho catalogues are ideal data sources for classwork since they provide real data illustrating fundamental astronomical concepts in a simple and easy to manipulate format. In this poster we describe how some of this data is used as support material within the International Baccalaureate (IB) science curriculum. The preparation and deployment of a series of Teacher Notes, specifically constructed to support the IB but applicable to other curricula, is described. Specific attention is given to the Teacher Notes on Stellar Distances which employs data from the Hipparcos and Tycho catalogues.