Navigate your first National NSTA Conference with ease! Join our session for an orientation to the conference, tips on selecting sessions, and an opportunity to meet other first-time attendees. We will share a few insider tips from experienced conference attendees and give an overview of the conference app. This session will help you discover why you belong at NSTA and how to make the most of your experience.

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn how to get the most out of your conference experience in addition to becoming an engaged learner.

SPEAKERS:
Dr. Alicia Conerly

Join us for an opening reception to mark the start of NSTA MINN25! We’ll keep it casual—enjoy beverages and small bites while networking with old and new friends. The event is complimentary and open to all registered conference attendees.

Navigate your first National NSTA Conference with ease! Join our session for an orientation to the conference, tips on selecting sessions, and an opportunity to meet other first-time attendees. We will share a few insider tips from experienced conference attendees and give an overview of the conference app. This session will help you discover why you belong at NSTA and how to make the most of your experience.

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn how to get the most out of your conference experience in addition to becoming an engaged learner.

This session will delve into a district-led initiative focused on the continuous curriculum improvement process (CCIP) in secondary biology education. Participants will gain insights into a collaborative framework that empowers teacher fellows to define, evaluate, and pilot curriculum resources aligned with a shared vision for inclusive, phenomena-driven learning. The presentation will highlight the key stages of this process, including the development of a biology vision statement emphasizing diverse sense-making, curiosity, critical thinking, real-world connections, and ethical solutions.

TAKEAWAYS:
This session offers a practical roadmap for districts and schools seeking to engage educators in a meaningful and impactful curriculum improvement journey from the teachers' perspectives.

SPEAKERS:
Betsy Barent

Sponsoring Company: Vernier Science Education

Chemistry teachers! Guide your students through a forensic investigation of a bottle rocket launch failure. Use gas pressure sensors to explore Avogadro’s law for various gases, and model how real-world data can support sensemaking and 3D learning in your classroom or lab.

SPEAKERS:
Nüsret Hisim

Learn how robust safety programs, driven by district leadership, are crucial for preventing science activity injuries. A public safety official presents a real-world case study of an experiment gone wrong, highlighting the vital role of comprehensive policies and procedures in ensuring a safe learning environment and avoiding emergency response scenarios.

TAKEAWAYS:
Equip your district with vital safety program knowledge to prevent science experiment incidents and ensure a secure learning environment.

SPEAKERS:
Michael Cassidy

This session will focus on a large-scale bioplastics investigation that has now spanned multiple years and become a school-wide topic of discussion outside of the chemistry lab. Students are extending the project to determine if the shells of invasive snails in the campus pond can be used to create bioplastics. These projects can deepen learning and instill a sense of rightful presence as students learn to see themselves as scientific researchers. They develop key skills and communicate their work through scientific writing, graphic design, and even video production. This session will share this and other field-tested project-based learning experiences, large and small, including local water quality analysis, electroplating, corrosion, soapmaking, water treatment, and more. Open-ended investigations and real-world chemistry applications do NOT have to conflict with the push to cover a substantial range of topics and maintain a level of rigor in accelerated chemistry courses.

TAKEAWAYS:
It is possible to increase student engagement with project-based chemistry explorations while still maintaining content and rigor. Tackling real-world chemistry problems can create a model environment for students and faculty to learn alongside one another while fostering key 21st-century skills.

SPEAKERS:
Hannah Sullivan

Sponsoring Company: Flinn Scientific, Inc.

Transform your classroom with exciting, easy-to-perform demonstrations that illustrate core chemistry and physical science concepts. This fast-paced, hands-on session emphasizes immediately usable demos that engage students and reinforce content. Handouts and door prizes provided.

SPEAKERS:
Mike Marvel, Ph.D.

Science education has a key role to play in supporting a just transition to the climate crisis. Participants will learn about 20 priority areas associated with climate and environmental justice—and explore educational approaches, resources, and groups related to these areas.

TAKEAWAYS:
Working towards climate justice involves a multifaceted set of issues and priorities. Teachers will identify which priority areas relate to their goals and context and learn about related resources. A climate justice framework will help teachers learn about different dimensions of climate justice.

SPEAKERS:
Deb Morrison, Nancy Price, Kelsie Fowler, Philip Bell

Science is a social endeavor! Gain strategies to transform your classroom into a community of learners in which students and teachers actively try to make sense of the natural and built worlds.

TAKEAWAYS:
Leave with strategies for developing classroom norms in collaboration with your students.

SPEAKERS:
Emily Mathews, Kristen Moorhead

NSTA’s Elementary Extravaganza is a dedicated learning and connecting space for elementary school educators. Explore discipline-specific sessions, relax in our community space outfitted with cell phone charging stations and connect with other educators.

Sponsoring Company: miniPCR bio

This authentic case study analyzes microbial DNA from the International Space Station. Available as a hands-on gel electrophoresis experiment or a free virtual lab. This session will also feature Genes in Space, a free experimental design competition that sends student experiments to space!

SPEAKERS:
Emily Gleason

Sponsoring Company: Edvotek, Inc.

Explore the world of forensic science with these fun and exciting escape room activities! Try forensic blood detection and agarose gel electrophoresis experiments, decipher clues, and solve puzzles. Learn to design your own escape room to have students unravel the evidence and free the innocent.

SPEAKERS:
Maria Dayton

Come learn a set of activities that engage students in real-world agricultural problems. Participants will explore challenges like food shortages, climate change and crop sustainability, while using strategies like selective breeding, GMOs, and innovations to develop potential solutions.

TAKEAWAYS:
Session emphasizes the importance of understanding modern agriculture, providing educators with resources to engage students in discussions about sustainable practices and genetic technologies. Participants will leave with activities about selective breeding, GMOs, and the development of short corn.

SPEAKERS:
JESSICA JONES, Megan Sprague

Communication, critical thinking, and problem solving are essential skills to student success when they enter the workforce, head off to post secondary education, or choose military service. Most of those skills are developed and fostered in STEM classrooms through hands-on projects and challenges. Why can other classes not also be working on these skills? This presentation will show and model simple projects that all teachers can do in their classrooms to continue building those skills even if they don't take a STEM class.

TAKEAWAYS:
One or two day hands-on problem-solving projects that can be done in ANY classroom using items found in a teacher's cabinet to foster communication, problem-solving, and critical thinking!

SPEAKERS:
DAVID PADILLA, Michelle Hendrick

Sponsoring Company: Switch Classroom

Attendees will leave equipped with a student-tested wind energy lesson, incorporating hands-on activities and collaborative learning, adaptable for grades 4-12, fostering a deeper understanding of renewable energy concepts aligned with NGSS standards.

SPEAKERS:
Lynn Kistler

Support your students in demonstrating their three dimensional learning! Many high-quality curricula use transfer tasks, phenomenon-based assessments where students demonstrate their three dimensional understanding while exploring novel phenomena. In this session, educators will be introduced to the research that led to this kind of assessment and how these assessments are designed. They will work through an example of a transfer task, analyzing the alignment to the three dimensions of the NGSS. Then, they will work through an activity structure that apprentices students into this new assessment practice, by breaking it down into smaller pieces, discussing in small groups, and participating in peer review. Finally, they will review scoring and feedback guidance to support student learning. Educators will leave knowing how and why to use transfer tasks in their own classrooms.

TAKEAWAYS:
Many high-quality curricula use transfer tasks, phenomenon-based assessments where students demonstrate their three dimensional understanding while exploring a novel scenario. In this session, educators will work through an example of a transfer task and an activity structure that helps students lea

SPEAKERS:
Kate Henson

NSTA’s High School Haven is a dedicated learning and connecting space for high school educators. Explore discipline-specific sessions, relax in our community space outfitted with cell phone charging stations and refuel with daily afternoon snacks.

SPEAKERS:
Jessica Eaton

In this interactive workshop, participants will step into the role of students by examining videos of lab procedures that may or may not involve chemical reactions. Working collaboratively, they will make observations, generate investigative questions, and identify what information is necessary to determine if a chemical change has occurred—modeling key NGSS Science and Engineering Practices. The second half of the session transitions to a class lab focused on the concept of limiting reactants. Participants will analyze provided experimental data from a reaction between antacid tablets, vinegar, and water. After completing calculations, participants will enter their data into a shared spreadsheet to generate a collective class graph. Small groups will analyze the results, pose new questions, and engage in a discussion that leads to an introduction to the concept of limiting reactants. A brief outline of the subsequent lessons following each of these activities will be provided.

TAKEAWAYS:
Experience student-centered, inquiry-based approaches that engage learners in collaborative data analysis and question generation to support deep thinking about chemical reactions in the chemistry classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Heather Johnson, ChrisAnn Johnson

NSTA’s Meet Me in the Middle is a dedicated learning and connecting space for middle school educators. Explore discipline-specific sessions, relax in our community space outfitted with cell phone charging stations and connect with other educators.

Sponsoring Company: InnerOrbit

We'll dive into how NGSS assessments can drive sensemaking and 3D performance in the classroom. We’ll explore practical strategies for using these assessments to support students’ growth and engagement in science.

SPEAKERS:
Brendan Finch

Receive a classroom ready math-based lesson in which students use electricity usage monitors and everyday household appliances to calculate electrical consumption and cost. This lesson supports students in distinguishing between watts, kilowatts, kilowatt hours, and power. Understanding how to teach students about electrical power, energy consumption, and cost is becoming increasingly important in today’s energy-conscious world. This lesson is designed for educators who want to empower students with the knowledge and tools to interpret electricity usage in their homes through the use of affordable electricity usage monitors.

TAKEAWAYS:
Tools that enable students to calculate home energy use makes learning about Power (Voltage × Current) both personal and meaningful.

SPEAKERS:
Shannon Oesch

Explore how leaders can use the new BSCS Anchored Inquiry Learning (AIL) instructional model to support teachers in creating learning experiences that motivate students with significant, real world phenomena and problems! Learn how AIL cycles of inquiry and sensemaking culminate in student agency! The BSCS Anchored Inquiry Learning instructional model succeeds the 5Es and utilizes authentic phenomena/problems to anchor multiple cycles of inquiry and sensemaking, culminating with student explanations/design solutions. The research-based AIL model emphasizes coherence from students’ perspective. In this session, participants will consider how AIL integrates elements of the 5E instructional model, NextGen Science storylines, and problem-based learning instructional models, the role of an instructional model in high quality instructional materials, and their own education contexts and how they can apply AIL to design meaningful learning experiences to support their teachers.

TAKEAWAYS:
The research-based BSCS Anchored Inquiry Learning instructional model succeeds the 5Es as the basis for implementing HQIM. Leaders leverage this model to support teachers in developing a shared vision of effective science teaching and learning and creating a student-centered classroom for all.

SPEAKERS:
Cynthia Gay

What happens when general biology students choose the lens through which they learn biology? In this session, we present a flexible, phenomenon-based curriculum where learners explore core biology concepts through themed “lenses” such as medical, sustainability, animal science, and forensics. These lenses give context to content, deepen engagement, and empower students to drive their own learning. Rooted in NGSS and sensemaking strategies, the curriculum uses anchoring phenomena, real-world problems, and student inquiry to connect life science to future careers and personal interests. We’ll share classroom-tested units, student work, and tools that support choice, equity, and relevance in the biology classroom. Participants will leave with ready-to-use resources and ideas for integrating themed pathways that shift the focus from memorization to meaning-making.

TAKEAWAYS:
Students engage deeply in biology by choosing a personalized pathway through themed lenses—medical, sustainability, animal science, or forensics. This lens-based approach supports sensemaking, increases relevance, and empowers student-driven, inquiry-based learning.

SPEAKERS:
Caroline Milne

Sponsoring Company: Biozone Corp.

Take the stress out of lesson planning and enhance student engagement with BIOZONE WORLD, BIOZONE’s powerful digital learning platform. Discover how BIOZONE WORLD supports seamless lesson delivery with ready-to-use resources, including interactive activities, presentation slides, engaging videos, and immersive 3D models. Discover how the platform’s integrated translation tool supports multilingual learners and how easy it is to plan, assign, and mark work within the system. Whether you're teaching in-person, hybrid, or fully online, BIOZONE WORLD empowers educators to streamline instruction while making science more accessible and interactive. Join us to see how BIOZONE can streamline and elevate your teaching experience!

SPEAKERS:
Debi Wilson

This session explores the pivotal role teacher beliefs play in shaping students' attitudes, understanding, and actions related to climate change mitigation. Drawing on current research and classroom practice, we will examine how educators' personal and professional beliefs about climate science, environmental responsibility, and pedagogical approaches can directly influence student engagement, critical thinking, and climate-positive behaviors.

TAKEAWAYS:
Whether you're a classroom teacher, curriculum developer, or education leader, this session will provide insights into how cultivating informed and reflective teaching practices can inspire the next generation of climate stewards.

SPEAKERS:
Hannah Luna

This interdisciplinary session will focus on putting climate science in a social perspective, first by examining the trends over the past 200 years that correlate to climate change (population growth, fossil fuel use and changing land use) and then by examining the relative vulnerability of different countries to climate change impacts (sea level rise, severe weather and agricultural loss) After a brief introduction, participants will engage in a global simulation activity to determine how countries differ in terms of amount of carbon emitted and vulnerability to several climate-related risks. Small groups will then analyze sets of visual data (graphs, infographics, articles and satellite imagery) to identify relationships between human activities, greenhouse gas emissions, temperature rise, ice melt and sea level rise. The group will discuss paths to a sustainable future. Participants will receive lesson plans aligned to NGSS.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will be able to create and implement interdisciplinary lesson plans that explore how climate trends relate to human activities, and how climate change is affecting different communities, and paths to a sustainable future.

SPEAKERS:
Tim Buttles

How do we truly know what a student understands? In this interactive workshop, participants will engage from a student’s perspective as they experience a set of creative science questions that move beyond rote recall. These questions are crafted to deepen understanding, spark curiosity, and promote critical thinking. Participants will analyze question types—such as productive struggle prompts, error analysis, counterfactuals, and curiosity-builders—and learn how to embed them into any science lesson. This session is ideal for educators seeking ways to enhance formative assessment, differentiate instruction, and elevate student voice. Walk away with a toolkit of versatile question stems and strategies that help reveal what students really know.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to craft and use powerful science questions that deepen learning, promote critical thinking, and reveal student understanding.

SPEAKERS:
Jonte' Lee

Sponsoring Company: Flinn Scientific, Inc.

Explore Flinn’s new line of AP Chemistry labs, fully aligned to the 2024 College Board Course and Exam Description and watch your students refine key lab skills. This session features hands-on demonstrations of inquiry-based activities, digital integration, and classroom-ready resources to support student success. Handouts included.

SPEAKERS:
Mike Marvel, Ph.D.

Sponsoring Company: miniPCR bio

Use PCR to perform genetic testing for cystic fibrosis. Make connections across the biology curriculum, from genes and proteins to human health and genetic disease. This robust experiment makes it easy to bring PCR to your classroom!

SPEAKERS:
Emily Gleason

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Come experience a hands-on model lesson from OpenSciEd for High School and discover how the new Carolina Certified Edition enhanced these high-quality instructional materials, making them more accessible, user-friendly, and safer for classroom use. Engage in the featured Serengeti board game from the Biology 1 unit. Participants will walk away with valuable resources to take back to the classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Meredith Currie

Sponsoring Company: Switch Classroom

This presentation will showcase best practices to address that “all forms of energy production” have “risks as well as benefits.” The free, online Switch Classroom provides non-partisan content in this critical area of NGSS instruction. Adaptable for grades 4-12.

SPEAKERS:
Lynn Kistler

Sponsoring Company: Activate Learning

A shift to three-dimensional assessments provides opportunities for students to demonstrate their use of science practices, application of crosscutting concepts, and understanding of science content. Participants will learn about the elements of three-dimensional assessments, analyze assessments with student work, and become familiar with the OSE Assessment System and OSE Grading Planning Tool.

SPEAKERS:
Brian Klaft, Michelle Tindall

Sponsoring Company: Edvotek, Inc.

Wildlife conservators often return captive-bred animals to their native habitats to rewild the area. In this interactive workshop, we’ll explore the use of RFLP analysis and phylogenetics in conservation biology to analyze the DNA samples of two lions. Can we return them to their ancestral home?

SPEAKERS:
Maria Dayton

Sponsoring Company: InnerOrbit

Join us as we dig into real district case studies showing how performance on summative assessments can predict and support readiness for state science tests. We’ll explore key findings, insights, and practical takeaways to help you align your assessments and boost student success.

SPEAKERS:
Emily Miller

Sponsoring Company: Vernier Science Education

Why are some coral and fish species disappearing? In this 3D lesson, biology and environmental science students use real-time data to explore how excess CO2 in water affects the pH. Using their findings, students can model how these changes impact interdependent relationships in ocean ecosystems.

SPEAKERS:
Sara Tallarovic

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Assume the role of a crime scene investigator to solve a realistic crime scenario. Students use fingerprint, hair analysis, tire track impressions, blood typing, forensic entomology, and a police log review to identify a primary suspect from a pool of 6 alleged perpetrators.

SPEAKERS:
Laurie Nixon

Sponsoring Company: Stile Education

Every great coach needs a go-to recipe for success – Stile Academy is yours! Taste-test our easy-to-use and evidence-based framework, packed full of strategies and ready to use resources crafted specifically for science coaches that drive real change. You’ll leave this hands-on session with a full plate of ideas to support teacher growth, cook up collaboration, and season your school with lasting instructional impact.

SPEAKERS:
Clayton Forest

I am incorporating the assessment "Better Bioreactors" to a unit called "What is killing life in the Gulf?" Students are determining what is causing dead zones and then adding bioreactors will help students to think about solutions to the problem. This gathers student thinking and ends with students modeling their learning and thoughts. I will compare their final thoughts with their initial answer to the question. I think this fits into several of the strands, however I chose climate science and sustainability because it specifically looks at an environmental issue that is impacted by human choices. I am hoping to see my students thinking grow and develop around this issue as I scaffold the learning. I will highlight the student models and their evidence journaling.

TAKEAWAYS:
Educators will discover that having students investigate the phenomenon by scaffolding with real-world problems leads to higher engagement and deeper thinking for the students.

SPEAKERS:
Julio Villa

There are many issues that farmers and ranchers face that the typical high school students may not be aware of. We rely on them for our food but there is a lot to learn regarding how they support the world’s food needs. There are many things to consider as a farmer/rancher that includes production, land use, and environmental concerns to name a few. I will use the lesson: "Monday, Tuesday, Happy Gazing" is a lesson where students analyze data regarding cattle continuously grazing in one pasture and rotational grazing in several pastures. Students will not only look at production and cost but also impact on the biodiversity of the area. Within the lesson we will explore the different career paths that are available to help support the work of putting food on our table.

TAKEAWAYS:
A STEM lesson that highlights the real-world complexity of agriculture and ranching fields, “Monday, Tuesday, Happy Grazing” was used in my Earth Science class. Attendees will leave with ideas for incorporating career exploration tied to agriculture, environmental science, and sustainable land use.

SPEAKERS:
Brenda Walsh

Reform-based science instruction, as outlined in the Framework for K-12 Science Education (NRC, 2012) integrates science content, practices and concepts. This paradigm shift requires professional development (PD) for teachers. Since "systems" can be used as a unifying framework, we hypothesize that longitudinal PD rooted in systems will allow teachers to revamp and align their existing instructional units with the purpose of The Framework. Further, we propose that longitudinal professional learning cohorts will support teacher implementation of these changes. We ask: What challenges do high school biology teachers experience in using a systems-based lens to transform existing instructional units into units aligned with The Framework?

TAKEAWAYS:
Systems-centered professional development changed teachers lesson design and planning and empowered teachers to move to content parsimony.

SPEAKERS:
Steve Bennett, Sara Wyse

The OSF STEAM Medical Career Immersion Program offered high school seniors a unique, hands-on introduction to diverse health care careers through mentorship, real-world experiences, and direct collaboration with professionals. Students explored clinical and innovation roles, deepened their understanding of medical pathways, and built confidence in their future career choices. By combining education with immersive practice, the program helped bridge gaps in exposure and access—empowering students from all backgrounds to envision and pursue meaningful roles in health care. This model serves as a scalable blueprint for cultivating future scientists and health leaders.

TAKEAWAYS:
The OSF STEAM Medical Career Immersion Program gave high school seniors hands-on experience, mentorship, and exposure to diverse health careers—building confidence and creating a scalable model for inspiring future health leaders and innovators.

SPEAKERS:
Shannon Egli, Katherine Smith

This poster presentation will highlight a National Science Foundation Noyce Track 3 project that aims to cultivate STEM teacher leadership by leveraging makerspace technology within the context of developing Justice-Centered STEM Curricula. Two of the project’s Master Teacher Fellows will describe and highlight lessons they created and implemented in their elementary and high school STEM courses. Both will detail how makerspace technology was leveraged in the lessons and how the lessons required transdisciplinary approaches that aimed to solve or address social justice STEM issues within their local context.

TAKEAWAYS:
One main takeaway from this presentation is how makerspace technology and social justice STEM issues can pique students' interests and set the stage for STEM learning.

SPEAKERS:
Benora Mccain, ANGELA WHITAKER, Vanessa Dodo Seriki

How could cow burps be influencing change? Media Mayhem- Module 2- Lesson 9 with Formative Assessment In Lesson 9, students were asked to revisit models developed in Lesson 7 and incorporate information accumulated in Lesson 8’s three simulations and graphs to reflect the new evidence surrounding greenhouse gases and how the Earth’s temperature rises (MOD-H3). Students identify missing components. Carbon dioxide and its role have been added to the “burping cow” model (ESS2.D-H3). Energy flow into and within the Earth’s system would also need to be updated (EM-H2) to give a more complete model. The revised student models provide a formative assessment opportunity. The lesson plan provides a rubric referencing the NGSS standards to look for. The class then develops a class consensus model. New questions are identified and added to the driving question board. Questions to look for are outlined in the Lesson plan.

TAKEAWAYS:
Media Mayhem Lessons 7-9, supported by Fields of STEM, were incorporated into the curriculum with little effort. Lesson 9 is an example of student growth. The HQIM materials include: lesson plans (cross-referenced to NGSS), student handouts (with keys), and links to videos, images, and sims.

SPEAKERS:
Deanna Keeney

Modeling is a powerful strategy to promote student sensemaking in science. NGSS emphasizes the importance of students using models to explain and predict phenomena. When students take ownership of creating and revising models, understanding is deeper. This work demonstrates modeling is a process of making thinking visible and revisable. When used intentionally, it helps students connect knowledge to new evidence, engage with core ideas, and develop science and engineering practices. A high-quality instructional assessment task, More Cheese, Please (HS), is used with an epigenetics unit to help increase student sensemaking about how enzymes work in our digestive system. A progression of using whiteboards to model this process is used to increase understanding of what happens in the intestines of a lactose intolerant person. This poster illustrates how students develop, revise, and use multiple models to deepen their understanding of how lactose intolerance affects the digestive system.

TAKEAWAYS:
Modeling transforms learning from passive observation to active sensemaking. This illustrates how intentional modeling helps students connect knowledge to new evidence, revise thinking, and construct deeper understanding of complex phenomena.

SPEAKERS:
Jill Francis

How does shifting from teacher-led instruction to student-driven "figuring out" impact student engagement, attitudes, and content knowledge relevance? This poster illustrates the implementation of high-quality instructional materials (HQIM's) as a way to revamp a lackluster unit on macromolecules. Students utilized components of a Food and Ag unit called “Postgame Analysis,” where they discovered how milk can be used as a workout recovery beverage. Students work to figure out the components of milk and how their human bodies utilize those components to build new cells. This poster highlights strategies for transforming a teacher-driven unit into an authentic sensemaking experience for students.

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn how to transform teacher-led activities into sensemaking experiences for your students where students’ curiosity and questions are authentically driving their learning.

SPEAKERS:
Ally Bowers

We will share the 2.0 version of the project-based learning that helps students design, implement and scale a passion project for community impact. Participants will receive our ready-to-implement toolkit and see various student projects. Our student projects highlight how our students take on the most challenging and complex issues that exist in our community and make a positive impact through interdisciplinary research and project-based learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how students use STEM knowledge and skills such as analyzing big data, creating computer applications, building 3-D models and developing computer simulations to predict trends for tackling systemic inequities.

SPEAKERS:
Jim Birdsong, Sushma Bana, Kavita Gupta

I am planning on implementing the high school formative assessment "More Cheese, Please." I will be addressing the problem of practice of supporting learning for English Language Learners, as there is a high ELL population at the high school I work at. I will be adapting the assessment for ELLs at WLHS in the community of Little Village, Chicago. The adaptations and modifications I am planning to implement will hopefully help my students relate more to the topics they are learning about and make it more relevant for them, as it will connect to their community. I plan on implementing and modifying the assessment to support 3D teaching and learning of ELLs. Through my implementation of the modified & adapted formative assessment, I plan to increase my students' interest in the material & to make it more impactful for them by increasing the relevance of the material to their lives & community. I anticipate highlighting student work samples as evidence of their engagement and learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
A main takeaway that I would like attendees to be able to walk away with is increased knowledge of strategies that can be utilized to help improve the engagement and learning of English Language Learners.

SPEAKERS:
Jamilah Hassan

Concerns for water quality of lakes, rivers & groundwater are increasing. Water testing & monitoring is costly. Studies are always trying to find reliable & accurate procedures that will reduce monitoring costs. Common duckweed (Lemna minor) is a possible candidate for being a pollution indicator species - a plant or animal that responds to a specific condition. When animals or plants are used to test toxicity, it is called a bioassay. Duckweed doesn't identify or measure the amount of contaminant, it just indicates that a pollutant has affected the water. It tells scientists that water quality tests need to be done. Duckweed, because of its broad range of sensitivity, can be used as an indicator species to test water quality. Using the scientific method, complete a bioassay using duckweed as the indicator organism and a substance that may affect the duckweed. You will work individually but compare data with your class.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will walk away with a lesson plan ready to implement in their classroom along with a grading rubric.

SPEAKERS:
Jenny Janssen

From Undies to Understanding: The Intriguing Role of Soil in Education Immerse yourself in a unique intersection where soil health and science education collide in an unexpected way designed to pique your curiosity! This approach reveals the unexpected connection between healthy soil and the mysterious vanishing act of cotton undies. Tailored to reflect our local culture and community’s socioeconomic issues, this perspective on how soil’s magic can engage students by empowering them to grow their own food. We are not only sowing seeds of belonging but also fostering a passion for STEM. Embark on this thrilling adventure to see how these local twists spark curiosity and transform classrooms, seamlessly weaving cultural charm with scientific sleuthing!

TAKEAWAYS:
Walk away with key insights that soil health is a fundamental driver of plant growth and environmental sustainability, and it can be creatively assessed through innovative methods, such as the "cotton underwear" test. Empower individuals to make informed decisions in their environmental stewardship.

SPEAKERS:
Melanie Hansel

Explore how a single STEM lesson can be used to connect different elements of student interest, life experiences, career paths. Showcase multiple career paths and hands-on activities through visuals. Show that sense-making is a way to help our students connect with what they are learning and use that knowledge in other areas of their lives outside of the classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
By connecting this lesson directly to students' activities and career opportunities, students will help direct their own learning and be invested in the outcome in a deeper way than they are with much of their education. Sensemaking, real-world situations, and career paths are all brought together.

SPEAKERS:
Catrina Butler

I am incorporating the assessment "Better Bioreactors" to a unit called "What is killing life in the Gulf?" Students are determining what is causing dead zones and then adding bioreactors will help students to think about solutions to the problem. This gathers student thinking and ends with students modeling their learning and thoughts.

TAKEAWAYS:
Educators will discover that having students investigate the phenomenon by scaffolding with real-world problems leads to higher engagement and deeper thinking for the students.

SPEAKERS:
Katie Wiedrich

We show how instructional materials can be adapted for local contexts—and how to elevate issues of climate justice and ethical responses to the climate crisis. Participants will learn about how a high school physics unit from OpenSciEd was adapted to attend to Indigenous land rights and sovereignty.

TAKEAWAYS:
In relation to science and engineering projects in society (e.g., associated with the energy transition, ecological restoration, urban development), teachers will learn how to engage students in exploring moral and ethical dimensions of trade-offs in project approaches.

SPEAKERS:
Kelsie Fowler, Philip Bell

Leaders will share their purpose for joining this session and then engage in a simulation as a “common experience” and use that experience to consider how key lessons about change played out in the simulation and how the lessons play out in their work. Leaders will read and discuss the Change Management text from The Elements: Transforming Teaching through Curriculum-based Professional Learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Join other leaders to consider key lessons from change and dig into Change Management from The Elements: Transforming Teaching through Curriculum-based Professional Learning.

SPEAKERS:
Jody Bintz

An essential scientific and engineering practice is having students develop and use scientific models, but it can be challenging to facilitate modeling to ensure students’ effective engagement and sensemaking. This workshop will demonstrate how to model with students in different formats and for various purposes. Modeling can be utilized in the classroom to assist students in making their learning visual and communicating scientific information. Engaging in modeling can also enhance student engagement and sense-making. The modeling process can also serve as a formative or summative assessment. During the workshop, teachers will engage in various types of modeling that they can implement in their classrooms. All information presented is based on research. This is listed as a 9-12 Earth and Space Science session since most examples will be from this area. Yet, the activities and information could also be utilized in middle school and other secondary disciplines.

TAKEAWAYS:
Educators will experience a variety of methods of modeling to utilize in their classroom that allow student learning of science concepts to be visualized. Leave this workshop with activities and pedological moves related to modeling that you can implement in your class immediately.

SPEAKERS:
Missie Olson, Haley Kalina

Sponsoring Company: Switch Classroom

Prepare your students for success on the AP Enviro exam with expert tips for tackling multiple-choice and free-response questions. Learn strategies to enhance critical thinking and test-taking skills, helping your students achieve their best scores.

SPEAKERS:
Lynn Kistler

This presentation will explore the intersection of 3D learning applied to support sense-making around climate science and global change, emphasizing how integrated, hands-on approaches can enhance understanding of human and non-human influences on complex environmental systems. It will highlight crosscutting concepts, science and engineering practices, and disciplinary core ideas within the context of climate-change and related global change phenomena. Through models and real-world data, the presentation will demonstrate how students can engage in evidence-based reasoning about global change, climate impacts, and sustainability solutions. The goal is to foster critical thinking and informed action on pressing environmental challenges.

TAKEAWAYS:
The Understanding Global Change conceptual framework uses 3D learning to empower student sense-making around climate change, global change, and sustainability, by connecting scientific practices, core ideas, and real-world data to inform critical thinking and evidence-based action.

SPEAKERS:
Joseph Levine

The Summer Research Academy is a series of two-week research opportunities for students in grades 7-12, developed as a collaboration between our school and a local college with sessions co-lead by faculty from both institutions. We’ve developed a model for engaging students in the research process by introducing accessible topics and techniques, and facilitating the research process in an developmentally-appropriate manner. This includes developing research questions and experiments that can be answered in our limited time together. As students work through the experimental design and data collection process, they learn that science is not a linear process, continually revisit their hypothesis, and modify their experiment. The week ends with a research symposium where results are shared with their families and the community. SRA sessions have included a range of topics, such as: water quality of the local watershed, biodesign, astrophysics, zebrafish physiology, and microbiology.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to scaffold authentic science research experiences across a range of disciplines. We will present a model to help students develop research questions, design experiments, collect and analyze data, and present results - all in a two-week period.

SPEAKERS:
Rachael Lancor

Sponsoring Company: Edvotek, Inc.

Explore CRISPR-Cas gene editing in our hands-on electrophoresis workshop! The Nobel-winning biotechnology breakthrough is making dramatic changes to human health TODAY. Dive into CRISPR biology with quick experiments modeling cures for genetic diseases like Sickle Cell Anemia and Cystic Fibrosis.

SPEAKERS:
Maria Dayton

Sponsoring Company: miniPCR bio

Explore how genetic testing can assess hereditary cancer risk. Students use gel electrophoresis and pedigree analysis to test family members for Lynch syndrome. Plus, engage with the medical and bioethical implications of genetic testing through a role-play activity!

SPEAKERS:
Alexandra Dainis

As part of its STEM-on-the-Go Mobile Digital Fabrication Van Program, funded by the Defense STEM Education Consortium, TIES has developed a set of standards-based activities to engage students in Digital Fabrication-inspired Design Challenges. One of the curricula activities, focused on electric circuits, includes the design and construction of an LED Lantern. During this presentation, participants will learn how to integrate a lantern project into their high school physical science curriculum. Educators will construct a parallel circuit using an LED, coin-cell battery, and wires, and will take home a functioning lantern. When this project is introduced in a school with digital fabrication machines, students will also have the opportunity to design the lantern “housing” and fabricate it on a laser cutter/engraver. All participants will receive a template for the lantern design and the standards-based activity guide for the project.

TAKEAWAYS:
During this workshop, participants will learn how to integrate a lantern project into their high school physical science curriculum. Educators will construct a parallel circuit using an LED, coin-cell battery, and wires, and will take home a functioning lantern.

SPEAKERS:
Toby Bothel

Utilize updated computer modeling with students to test assumptions, play, and build an intuition of how complex earth and human systems interact. Pair this with a lesson sequence that explores published fiction using a simple journaling and class discussion technique. The sequence results in students creating dispatches from these futures to meld their climate understandings with creative narratives. These students will go on to build the future - they should have some practice creating better ones.

TAKEAWAYS:
Build confidence in helping students personalize what climate modeling means for their own life.

SPEAKERS:
Luke Gliddon

In this dynamic, hands-on session, participants will explore how drone technology can be integrated into inquiry-based STEM learning to engage students in meaningful, real-world investigations. Through interactive activities, educators will experience student-centered lessons that combine drone flight, authentic data collection and analysis. Participants will explore relationships by collecting data using drones and analyze their findings to draw conclusions. The session will also cover beginner-friendly drone programming tools and strategies for scaffolding coding skills to support students at different levels. Emphasis will be placed on aligning activities with science and math concepts, promoting student agency, and using technology to foster critical thinking, collaboration, and creativity.

TAKEAWAYS:
Drones should not be seen as supplementary tools but as essential resources in teaching math and science. By integrating drones into lessons, educators can create immersive, inquiry-driven learning experiences that deepen student understanding and bring core concepts to life.

SPEAKERS:
Adam Pennell

Sponsoring Company: Activate Learning

Classroom communities make sense of what’s being investigated through discussions; it’s key to ensuring all students’ ideas are shared and valued. This session focuses on discussion types used to help draw out student ideas, negotiate and refine them, and support communicating in scientific ways.

SPEAKERS:
Michelle Tindall

Sponsoring Company: Vernier Science Education

From coffee to cola, many of your students’ favorite beverages contain acid! Help them investigate the acid concentrations in different drinks using pH sensors and a simple acid/base titration. Walk away with a go-to experiment and tips to connect key chemistry concepts to real-world food science.

SPEAKERS:
Nüsret Hisim

My Taiwan Fulbright-Hays experience inspired me to incorporate the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in all my courses (Environmental Science, Biology, Anatomy & Physiology). The SDGs help to teach our students through the lens of interdisciplinary challenges that are part of all our lives. This session will include examples of how I have integrated the SDGs and Climate Action into the standard curriculum for grades 9-12.

TAKEAWAYS:
Examples will be provided as to how to incorporate the UN SDGs into a high school science class, including elective courses (Environmental Science, Anatomy & Physiology) as well as core science classes with a more stringent curriculum (Biology, Anatomy & Physiology).

SPEAKERS:
Kristina Hayda

Sponsoring Company: PhET Interactive Simulations

Be empowered with PhET Studio, PhET’s first customization tool for teachers! Learn how to create unique sim experiences that fit your lessons and inspire students like never before. Join us to see Studio in action and start a FREE trial. Don’t miss this exclusive opportunity!

SPEAKERS:
Linda Stegemann

Step into a world where creativity meets chaos—in the best way possible. In this hands-on workshop, educators will explore the power of project-based learning using an unpredictable mix of discarded, unused, and everyday items. With access to a wide array of "junkyard" materials, participants will be guided through the Human-Centered Design process—empathizing, defining, ideating, prototyping, and testing—to transform forgotten objects into functional, meaningful creations. By the end of the session, each team will present a unique design that showcases both ingenuity and intentionality. This workshop is a celebration of creativity, sustainability, and student-driven learning, equipping teachers with tools and inspiration to bring innovation into their classrooms using what others leave behind.

TAKEAWAYS:
Transform discarded materials into purposeful creations through a ready-to-use, flexible STEM activity that brings hands-on design and innovation into any classroom setting.

SPEAKERS:
Heather Lambert

Join us to explore how to leverage students' communication tools in the high school science classroom. This session will focus on strategies and approaches integrated into the OpenSciEd Chemical Reactions unit which challenges students to investigate chemical processes impacting oyster populations.

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn how to guide students in articulating their ideas, collaborating effectively, and constructing evidence-based explanations while encouraging the use of their own language and perspectives to make sense of complex scientific concepts and connect them to pressing environmental issues.

SPEAKERS:
Kristin Rademaker, Kristin Rademaker

Good data begins with accurate measurements. Students often struggle with science data due to a lack of facility with the International System of Units (SI). A series of engaging, hands-on measurement activities can empower students to be successful using SI in the practices of computational thinking and arguing from evidence. A Concrete to Representational to Abstract approach is used during the exploration lab on finding volume by displacement. This technique boosts the confidence of students who may struggle with written communication. The crosscutting concept of scale, proportion, and quantity is the focus of concept development activities where students estimate values before measuring them. The series culminates in a formative lab assessment where students argue from indirect evidence they gathered regarding the density of water. Appropriate levels of scaffolding for the computational thinking required by this activity will be discussed. Walk away with 3 great measurement labs!

TAKEAWAYS:
Students need to be proficient with various measurement techniques. They also need to be adept at reading, recording, and comprehending data in System International units. Find engaging lessons that incorporate literary and computational skills into explaining phenomena with measurements.

SPEAKERS:
James Duff

Use demos to talk about resources and environmental sustainability, with copper as a specific example and a focus on the impact of resource acquisition and resources to highlight the depth and complexity of these issues. Participants will observe a copper vein set up they could use in class. This single replacement reaction has some interesting steps and the chemistry that occurs will be discussed. Then the decomposition of malachite will be discussed along with extracting copper by smelting and an analysis of energy used. These reactions give an opportunity to discuss chemistry, geology and environmental science. The idea of the “rock footprint” and how much raw material is needed will be explored. The Berkeley Pit (in Butte) will be one reference point. Resources provided will help students understand the challenges faced when balancing competing interests. The timeline and impact of mining in various areas will be discussed.

TAKEAWAYS:
Environmental impacts of mining from raw material acquisition to processing energy to site clean-up, with an emphasis on the chemistry and sustainability of current practices. Leave with several labs, a classroom activity to highlight the physical impacts of mining, and enthusiasm for recycling.

SPEAKERS:
Briana Richardson

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Participants will make and use alginate beads containing algae and alginate beads containing yeast. They will learn how the beads can be used to model the processes of photosynthesis and cellular respiration.

SPEAKERS:
Julie Stubbs

Sponsoring Company: Flinn Scientific, Inc.

Experience Process-Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) for yourself in this interactive, hands-on session. Learn how this student-centered strategy builds critical thinking, teamwork, and conceptual understanding through guided inquiry.

Come discover how free, NSF-funded simulations and curricula from The Concord Consortium can add all three dimensions of the NGSS to your earth and environmental science teaching, with a special emphasis on the Science and Engineering Practices. Take away free tips and resources that you can use immediately to bring NGSS to life in your classroom! This session will demonstrate a wide variety of materials using free simulations and resources developed by The Concord Consortium over decades of NSF funding. Participants will explore free, open source interactive earth and environmental models and learn how they can be used to enhance use of three-dimensional learning in the classroom, with a particular emphasis on use of the Science Practices. Examples and hands-on interaction will engage participants in using models and simulations for powerful NGSS-aligned teaching and learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how free, NSF-funded simulations and curricula from The Concord Consortium can add all three dimensions of the NGSS to their earth and environmental science teaching, with a special emphasis on the Science and Engineering Practices.

SPEAKERS:
Chad Dorsey

Teachers are essential in supporting students as they engage in experimentation, scientific research, and engineering design. The overarching aim is to help students communicate the knowledge they gain with the broader community. This session will highlight best practices for organizing science fairs ranging from small school-based events to larger regional competitions. We will also explore the distinct goals of science fairs compared to symposia and various formats will be presented. Learn how to empower students to confidently present their STEM research or projects through either platform.

TAKEAWAYS:
Educators will leave with best practices for successfully planning and executing a science fair or symposium in which all students are encouraged to confidently share their STEM experiment or research findings.

SPEAKERS:
Dianna Gobler, Dana Schaefer, Mary Kroll

Engaging students in phenomenon-based 3D science learning is challenging; when students are absent, it can feel impossible. In this session, participants will take away strategies for supporting absent students in staying engaged in learning when they miss classroom instruction.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will take away strategies for supporting absent students in staying engaged in learning when they miss classroom instruction.

SPEAKERS:
Sarah Delaney

Learn strategies to support all students, including MultiLingual Learners (MLLs), in developing disciplinary-specific language through embedded peer-to-peer discussion routines, informed by research, that promote collaborative sensemaking and language acquisition.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will experience instructional routines, through an immersive activity, designed to support the development of disciplinary-specific language and collaborative sensemaking in science classrooms.

SPEAKERS:
Elizabeth Chatham, John Salazar

Sponsoring Company: Vernier Science Education

What do whale songs and elk calls have in common? In this cross-disciplinary workshop, use sound and motion sensors to explore wave properties through biological sound patterns. Get hands-on with FFT analysis and learn how to connect physics and biology through real-world phenomena.

SPEAKERS:
Frances Poodry

Participants will take part in a simple beam lab using weights to determine the deflection of the beam material. Groups will have different beams and varying results will help support understanding of the graphs created. The results will then be graphed as a load-deflection curve and shared. Stress is the amount loaded onto the beam (analogous to load). Strain (similar to deflection) is the amount of deformation that occurs. The resulting curve and slope (Young’s Modulus) give information about the stiffness and elasticity of the material. Different beam results will clearly demonstrate the meaning of Young’s Modulus and interpretation of stress-strain curves. Challenges of stress-strain curve understanding (both variables are dependent, for instance) will be discussed and clarified. How to use stress-strain curves with a bridge project extension will be shared.

TAKEAWAYS:
A hands-on beam lab produces graphs critical to understanding properties for engineering. With focus on making, interpreting, & teaching the graphs. Real-world uses & applications of stress-strain curves in engineering will be shared and help to illustrate the importance of this type of graph.

SPEAKERS:
Scott Spohler

Sponsoring Company: Flinn Scientific, Inc.

Engage your biology students with hands-on activities and collaborative games that bring evolution, genetics, biochemistry, and more to life. This session features classroom-tested, inquiry-based resources that make biology memorable and meaningful. Handouts included.

SPEAKERS:
Elizabeth Cambron, M.S.

Sponsoring Company: Activate Learning

Come and participate with the author of the book, Arthur Eisenkraft, for a close-up look at a new Physical Science book. Experience a fun, take-home lab and learn more about this super curriculum from Activate Learning.

SPEAKERS:
Gary Curts, Arthur Eisenkraft

In this session, participants will explore how to build a Content Storyline to support coherent, discipline-rich, and equitable STEM project-based learning (PBL). Just as phenomena are used to anchor conceptual development in 3D science instruction, we’ll highlight how meaningful end products can serve as anchoring experiences in PBL—driving student sensemaking, surfacing key standards, and promoting authentic engagement with disciplinary practices. Participants will be introduced to a PBL planning framework designed to center science content and equity, analyze a completed Content Storyline to trace how learning builds and spirals across a project, and explore tools to begin developing their own. The session will support teachers in ensuring that their PBL units are grounded in rigorous, student-centered science learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
The PBL Project Planning Pyramid Framework highlights Content Storylining as a key element and an effective structure to ensure rigorous discipline-rich PBL projects. Let’s consider the project end product in parallel to a phenomenon and explore Content Storylining for STEM PBL.

SPEAKERS:
Sarah DiMaria

Corn is the most important food crop grown in the U.S., yet climate change threatens our ability to improve yields to continue meeting rising human demand. Solving this global problem requires knowledge of science, technology, engineering, and math. In this session, we will bring real-world STEM to life through modern agriculture. This hands-on session reveals how agriculture extends far beyond traditional farming as we dive into authentic storylines that connect students to pressing global challenges. Framed around the journey of corn’s artificial selection and the real-world problem of feeding our growing population can spark critical thinking and problem-solving skills among students. You’ll leave with activities and strategies that can be easily implemented that showcase cutting-edge technology and engineering in food production. Join us to see how agriculture offers powerful, real-world STEM career pathways that are accessible for all students.

TAKEAWAYS:
Explore how food can provide relatable entry points for students using STEM skills to solve real world problems. Engage in several activities from a new storyline unit that challenges students in figuring out how to solve this food production challenge as they engage in 3-dimensional learning.

SPEAKERS:
Rachel Skelton, Alicia Burge, Chris Embry Mohr, Kristin Rademaker, Jessica Holman

Sponsoring Company: miniPCR bio

Track the inheritance of the sickle cell allele in a fictional family using gel electrophoresis. Available as a hands-on lab or virtual simulation, this case study teaches Mendelian genetics, inheritance patterns, and the molecular basis of sickle cell disease.

SPEAKERS:
Ally Huang

Sponsoring Company: Rayn Growing Systems

EdRack is the latest in horticultural ed systems designed to bridge all STEM categories through interactive labs. This hydroponic growing system brings industry standard cultivation methods to the classroom. We built in NGSS alignment to ensure compatibility with your educational requirements.

SPEAKERS:
Hannah Ball, Jarred Joffe

Methane is a potent greenhouse gas that increases global warming. Agriculture is the top source of methane emissions, and enteric methane production from livestock accounts for a significant amount of agricultural methane. The objective of this study is to identify plants that could be added as feed additives in a cow’s diet to reduce enteric methane emissions. There is an effect on methane emissions with plants containing compounds like lipids, polyphenols, and tannins. One part of the study was running in vitro trials to determine how much total gas and methane is produced. The other part was running sequential fibers to determine the digestibility of these plants. We found that some plants reduce methane production, and others do not. White willow and peanut skins were the most effective in reducing enteric methane. With further testing and trials, the most effective plants in this in vitro study could be used as dietary supplements and help reduce methane emissions from dairy.

TAKEAWAYS:
The aim of this presentation is to discuss the issue of methane emissions from enteric fermentation process of dairy animals and discuss ways to reduce them through dietary supplements and feed additives made from locally available plant sources. These supplements also help keep the animals healthy.

SPEAKERS:
Ivanka Sonkusare

AI is already shaping the future our students will live and work in—but how can science classrooms harness AI tools today to deepen 3D learning? In this session, explore practical, classroom-tested strategies for using AI to support scientific inquiry, creativity, and personalized learning without losing rigor or equity. Learn how AI can enhance phenomenon-based investigations, model development, and data analysis, while helping students ask better questions, communicate their thinking, and engage critically with technology. We'll highlight free or accessible AI tools that align with real NGSS practices and provide examples of how students can use AI ethically to extend their scientific curiosity and voice. Walk away with sample prompts, lesson ideas, and a vision for integrating AI thoughtfully and powerfully into your science teaching.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn practical ways to integrate AI tools into 3D science learning to support inquiry, data analysis, modeling, and critical thinking, while keeping student creativity, rigor, and ethical use at the center.

SPEAKERS:
Elizabeth Radday

Youth need opportunities to learn about green colonialism and how Native Science and Indigenous sovereignty are fundamental to addressing the climate emergency. Workshop participants will engage in talk activities designed to support non-Indigenous youth in learning and processing these topics.

TAKEAWAYS:
This session will support educators in understanding that climate experts across the globe are calling for the broad recognition of Indigenous sovereignty and climate expertise as fundamental to mitigating climate change and building a just future.

SPEAKERS:
Deb Morrison, Kelsie Fowler, Philip Bell

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Rockets zoom and race cars zip through hands-on activities that engage your middle and high school students. Apply creative problem-solving skills and engineering practices to chemistry and physical science challenges. Experience how Carolina makes it easy to incorporate STEM into your classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Laurie Nixon

We know two things: 1) the purchase of new instructional materials represents a significant district investment and 2) effective classroom use of high-quality instructional materials improves student learning. NextGen TIME can help districts ensure investment in the best possible instructional materials and provide them to teachers prepared to use them effectively. NextGen TIME is a suite of tools and processes to support districts in evaluating, selecting, and implementing instructional materials designed for the NGSS. NextGen TIME is also designed as a professional learning experience for teachers to deepen their understanding of NGSS as they analyze instructional materials. It addresses the needs of states, districts, and schools for a deep understanding of the NGSS to make selection decisions for instructional materials, plan for implementation of those materials, and provide teacher professional learning that enables effective implementation of NGSS‐aligned teaching and learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn how NextGen TIME supports the evaluation of current instructional materials to strengthen their design for NGSS and how NextGen TIME tools and processes can serve as critical components of curriculum-based professional learning. You’ll walk away with free access to NextGen TIME resources.

SPEAKERS:
Jenine Cotton-Proby

Explore how the dazzling birds-of-paradise can transform your teaching of evolution and natural selection. These extraordinary birds, known for their vibrant plumage and fascinating behaviors, provide an engaging lens through which students can investigate adaptation, sexual selection, behavior, and the science process. In this hands-on workshop, we’ll immerse you in Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s “Evolution in Paradise” science lessons that are based on a real-world research project led by evolutionary biologist Ed Scholes and wildlife photographer Tim Laman. The lessons help middle and high school teachers meet NGSS standards and are available as a free download complemented by rich online resources. These unique birds can also serve as a jumping-off point into observing and learning about the birds in their own neighborhoods. We will highlight activities from the lessons, the project website and videos, and discuss application strategies for the classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
Bring evolution and the science process to life in your classroom with real-world science, incredible videos, rich data resources, and hands-on activities inspired by some of the planet’s most spectacular birds, the birds-of-paradise.

SPEAKERS:
Susan Licher

Hands-on neuroscience demonstrations facilitate connections between education and neuroscience research. This session will explore hands-on learning experiences in K-12 communities; although ideally suited for high school classes, many of the demos can be adapted to other grade levels. During this presentation, we will engage in neuroscience activities using a variety of resources available from online educational materials. Some examples include electroencephalograms, super tasters/genetic exploration, electrical stimulators, and a range of other devices and techniques. We can show educators how to apply what they learn in class to advancements in neuroscience. These demonstrations in classrooms will help students bridge classroom knowledge with real-world experiences. By the end of the session, educators will gain insight into the various resources available for engagement in education and explore the fundamentals of neuroscience as related to the devices.

TAKEAWAYS:
Using affordable demonstrations, participants will explore how to bring hands-on neuroscience into K-12 classrooms, primarily suited for grades 9-12. The session focuses on engagement, allowing educators to connect classroom knowledge, use the tools, and expand to the community if they desire.

SPEAKERS:
Adam Steiner

HQIM must support students' increasing depth and sophistication with the three dimensions of the NGSS. Addressing the challenge of many HS students entering with underdeveloped SEPs, this session uses a unit from a free HS biology course designed to build SEP proficiency across the academic year. Each unit features a carefully crafted learning progression for a specific SEP, explicitly identifying and building upon prior student learning, fostering growth from guided practice to independent application. This session explores the intentional learning progression of the Modeling SEP within an EQuIP-reviewed, storyline-based unit on homeostasis. Participants will engage with key components of this progression, using a compelling phenomenon of a marathon runner falling into a coma as a context for modeling. The session concludes with a discussion of strategies for implementing intentional SEP progressions to ensure all HS students develop proficiency in these essential practices.

TAKEAWAYS:
Designing HQIM for the NGSS requires an emphasis on building progressions across the three dimensions. See how students develop their use of the Modeling SEP over time to reach high school proficiency in this EQuIP-reviewed homeostasis unit.

SPEAKERS:
Jonathan Tam

How can we assess the quality of sampling and variability of the data to help us in decision-making? The various metals and alloys used in the minting of the penny over the years will provide for rich explorations, which are part of the chemistry curriculum. We will highlight the important cross-disciplinary aspect, linking the science content (mass/chemical composition) to the mathematical models outlined in the NGSS section on Systems and Models to show how to use it to simulate systems and interactions. Through hands-on activities and the use of technology, participants will explore a variety of data sets and use this knowledge to better understand and use statistics to make accurate and fair arguments related to everyday topics and explore how the sample mean varies from sample to sample to get a better understanding of quality control.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will use real data to develop mathematical models and learn how to test your hypothesis by performing an experiment and analyzing the results, combining chemical analysis with statistical sampling for a cross-curricular approach.

SPEAKERS:
Karlheinz Haas

Phenomena, from wireless charging and chemical reactions to climate change and population growth, involve energy transfers. Most students, unfortunately, find it challenging to understand the flow of energy in systems. Our research indicates that students can best explain phenomena and see how energy is conserved by tracking energy transfers within and between systems. We will demonstrate to teachers how to use energy transfer diagrams (ETDs) to support students’ understanding of learning goals linked to the NGSS performance expectations. ETDs use a systems approach, allowing learners to follow the flow of energy within and between systems that make up familiar phenomena. Activities in this workshop are linked to physical science NGSS Performance Expectations, but participants can adapt the approach to the biological sciences, chemistry and earth and space science. In the workshop, teachers will develop plans for using ETDs in your classrooms.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers learn the energy-systems transfer approach and how to construct energy transfer diagrams (ETDs) to support students in tracking the flow of energy within and between systems. ETDs provide an approach for tracking energy flows that occur in phenomena that students experience in their lives.

SPEAKERS:
Erin Lewis, Joseph Krajcik, Weiwei He

Sponsoring Company: Switch Classroom

Create and test Play-Doh electrical circuits to explore conductivity, resistance, and circuit design. This fun, hands-on lab provides an engaging way to teach foundational electricity concepts and energy science, making complex ideas accessible for students of all ages.

SPEAKERS:
Lynn Kistler

In this workshop you will explore the physics of sound waves. We will investigate how waves interfere and how resonance works. We will make small sound canons to feel sound and then explore resonance in slinkies, boom-a-wackers, singing rods and tuning forks. Finally, we will use sound to wiggle a glass plate at its resonant frequency to break it (safely). This workshop has lots of activities so come prepared to interact with other participants and resonate with sound!

TAKEAWAYS:
Explore sound waves and resonant effects. Everything has a resonant frequency - from a swing, your stomach and a wine glass. If we use sound to push a glass plate at its resonant frequency it will break.

SPEAKERS:
Isaac Skalsky, Steve Lindaas

This workshop aims to provide insight into how scientists answer biology's most fundamental questions, “Who is there and what are they doing?” During this workshop, participants will engage in hands-on activities to explore innovative ways to obtain this critical information through environmental DNA (eDNA). The activities presented are developed to ensure students understand how eDNA can be used to assess a species’ presence or absence through DNA barcoding. Learners will consider the possibility of sampling spiderwebs to monitor terrestrial vertebrates to demonstrate innovative methods for obtaining airborne DNA while exploring how eDNA is gathered and measured, the importance of sampling, value of multiple lines of evidence in allowing scientists to draw conclusions while acknowledging potential problems that could occur. Participants will receive access to all the materials presented and a structured framework to be modified or extended to serve their practice.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will explore how spider webs' physical properties allow them to capture airborne DNA from nearby organisms, making them a potential tool for securing eDNA to monitor biodiversity.

SPEAKERS:
Robyn Embry, Claire Lannoye-Hall, Jocelyn Miller

You have a coherent phenomenon-based learning plan for your students, and midway through, you get sick or jury duty - now what?!? This session will highlight approaches to substitute plans that are flexible, easy to implement, and support student learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
When students are tasked with sensemaking and figuring out day in and day out, it is easier to have that happen without the teacher present. Utilizing a quality curriculum that supports student coherence and phenomenon-based learning is the best tool to make that a reality.

SPEAKERS:
Sarah Delaney

Environmental Literacy refers to the knowledge, skills, and dispositions needed to address and resolve environmental issues—individually and collectively—in ways that support ecological, economic, and social sustainability. This thematic instructional approach offers an authentic framework for guiding three-dimensional learning, creating engaging and continuous experiences that scaffold effectively from kindergarten through high school science. For successful and systematic integration of environmental literacy concepts, skills, and practices into a school or district’s curriculum, a structured curriculum framework—such as an Environmental Literacy Plan (ELP)—is essential. Using an environmental theme is a powerful strategy for teaching both disciplinary and crosscutting concepts. It provides a meaningful context for developing science and engineering practices, and through authentic, place-based experiences, it can also introduce students to a wide range of career opportunities

TAKEAWAYS:
Education leaders will learn how an environmental literacy plan can enhance teaching and learning; examine the main elements of an ELP, review example ELPs from several different states, and use templates to draft an ELP for their school or school division.

SPEAKERS:
Dat Le

Although wildfires can be caused by natural events and provide many valuable ecological services, changes in the environment related to climate change are fueling the growth of large, destructive megafires. In this workshop, participants will explore how the HHMI Resources The Science of Climate Change film and the activity The Impacts of Wildfires can help students understand these changes. This fast-paced workshop will provide a complete lesson to teach about the science of climate change using a variety of pedagogical strategies and stressing science and engineering practices such as Asking Questions and Defining Problems, Analyzing and Interpreting Data, and Designing Solutions. Participants will use three different scientific studies, including data in graphs, that help explain patterns in wildfire data. We will use small group work and a jigsaw strategy to compile all the evidence from the data to develop a Claim, Evidence, Reasoning (CER) to explain patterns in wildfire

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will discover how to use phenomena to engage students in the science of climate change, explore evidence to support human causes of climate change, and develop a scientific claim supported by evidence and reasoning for why recent wildfires are burning more forest area.

SPEAKERS:
Amy Fassler

Popular science books are written to engage a wide variety of readers who are interested in learning about science topics. These books are especially important in today’s world as they address scientific misconceptions, explain how science is done, and make connections between science and our society. This session will share how I implemented popular science books into science courses with both high school students and undergraduates. Topics explored will include how books were evaluated for connections to NGSS disciplinary core ideas, how student learning of science content was evaluated while reading, how connections were made to literacy standards, and how students demonstrated their learning through the construction of a mini zine. Participants will have a chance to make their own mini-zine, which can be easily reproduced, and brainstorm classroom ideas with peers. Sample zines by students will be shared along with templates and rubrics.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will leave with the tools to facilitate the implementation of science books in their own classrooms while also guiding students in the construction of mini-zines to assess learning. Sample zines, templates, and rubrics will be provided.

SPEAKERS:
Carrie Sharitt

Sponsoring Company: Edvotek, Inc.

Unlock biology's mysteries with model organisms! Learn to culture and study C. elegans in your classroom laboratory. Explore chemotaxis with a simple locomotion assay. Integrate STEM concepts, data collection, and statistics for an enriching learning experience. Meets standards for AP Bio Lab 11.

SPEAKERS:
Maria Dayton

How can we begin to understand the Next Generation Science Standards, and design instructional and assessment materials aligned to three-dimensional learning? In this workshop we will use the framework of "learning progressions" to simultaneously unpack NGSS standards for the teacher, and create a sequence of learning toward mastery for the student. A learning progression is a standard broken down into steps; it communicates a path from a simple to a more complex understanding of a particular standard. In this workshop, participants will design a learning progression for an NGSS performance expectation of their choice in the form of "I can" statements. Throughout the design process they will consider how mastery of their standard is distinct from simpler levels of understanding. Furthermore, participants will brainstorm ways that learning progressions can facilitate metacognitive thinking, assessment design, differentiation, and targeted support.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn how to use "learning progressions" as a device to assist in their understanding of an NGSS standard, and as road map for supporting their design of lessons and assessments.

SPEAKERS:
Ronnie Almonte

This interactive session models how to launch and sustain a 3-dimensional storyline curriculum using the real-world phenomenon that is place based for Florida’s disappearing manatee population. Participants will experience key moments from a high school biology unit aligned to NGSS and grounded in equity-based, student-driven inquiry. The unit integrates disciplinary core ideas (e.g., ecosystems and human impact), science and engineering practices (e.g., data analysis, modeling), and crosscutting concepts (e.g., cause and effect; systems) to build coherence and relevance.  Educators will collaborate in small groups, like students, to learn how to embed each layer of the 3-dimensional teaching and use strategies for diverse learners, and co-construct sensemaking opportunities that are meaningful and accessible. You'll leave with adaptable resources and a plan for building or revising your own storyline unit anchored in local, authentic phenomena.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to design and implement a phenomenon-driven, NGSS-aligned storyline that supports 3D learning and engages all students—especially in Title I schools—through equity-focused strategies and local relevance.

SPEAKERS:
Nicole Holman

Food waste is more than an environmental issue—it's a matter of equity and justice. This session delves into the intersection of waste management, food systems, and climate justice, emphasizing how addressing food waste can reduce greenhouse gas emissions while promoting social and environmental equity. Participants will explore the systemic causes of food waste, from production to consumption, and examine how waste disproportionately affects marginalized communities. Through interactive discussions, real-world case studies, and practical strategies, this session will highlight how schools, communities, and individuals can implement sustainable waste practices that support both planetary health and social justice.

TAKEAWAYS:
By connecting waste reduction to broader movements for climate and food justice, this session empowers educators, activists, and community leaders to drive meaningful change—transforming waste into a pathway for equity and sustainability.

SPEAKERS:
Hannah Luna

Sponsoring Company: PASCO Scientific

Join us to explore the OpenSciEd Certified PASCO version Biology curriculum. First discover a unit's storyline through a tour of PASCO Portal, our online platform for organizing and distributing teacher and student OpenSciEd resources. Then dive into the unit's first lesson to experience the anchoring phenomenon, used to elicit student questions that they'll work to answer throughout the unit. Finally participate in a hands-on activity from a subsequent lesson, using PASCO technology to develop an evidence-based response to one of those student questions. In this lesson, you will use our Wireless CO2 and Temperature sensors to investigate what affects the rate of decomposition and cellular respiration.

SPEAKERS:
Shelly Riley

Learn how to leverage the power of social media to break down student misconceptions, rather than build them. Teachers will engage in an activity finding and combatting fake news on social media, then discussing how adapt the activity for their own classrooms.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will experience an engaging activity designed to help students directly confront misinformation they encounter on social media. By having students confront their own misconceptions about hot topics, we empower them to be more responsible consumers of information in the future.

SPEAKERS:
Jessica Dobrin

One of the first special education teachers I ever worked with said something to me that will stick forever; “ You modify assessments, not children.” Modifying assessments in a way that changes how students communicate rather than what they learn has become an essential part of my classroom. By taking a 3D approach to assessment, it's much easier to be responsive to student needs without diluting the content you expect them to know. I've successfully integrated several 3D assessments into my classrooms and would love to share my process, tips, and initial pitfalls (to help you avoid them).

TAKEAWAYS:
In this session, you will learn several techniques and strategies for writing and modifying assessments that adjust how students communicate their knowledge rather than lowering expectations for student learning.

SPEAKERS:
Anneliese Johnson

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Join the excitement, escape the rat-race, and experience the superior quality of Carolina's Perfect Solution® specimens with our preserved rat dissection! During this hands-on guided dissection, each participant explores the rat’s external anatomy, internal body systems, and individual organs. We also discuss the relationship between structure and function, as well as the interdependence between systems. These specimens are economical, simple to dissect, and great mammalian models for your next lab!

SPEAKERS:
Laurie Nixon

This workshop presents an instructional tool developed through ongoing research on scientific modeling resources. It aims to elicit students' initial conceptions of phenomena via visual and written modalities, facilitating science engagement across diverse learners. Participants engage in a two-part modeling activity that employs model-based inquiry principles. Part one involves documenting direct observations through written descriptions and drawings. Part two centers on articulating inferred explanations for the phenomenon's cause or process, utilizing writing and drawing to represent underlying mechanisms. This structured approach helps learners differentiate between observation and interpretation, providing educators with valuable insights into student cognition. The session highlights practical techniques, exemplified by this tool, for encouraging participation and surfacing student ideas.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will practice using the Observation and Inference Tool to model phenomena and learn to analyze the resulting student visual and written work to gain insights into their initial scientific ideas.

SPEAKERS:
Jaclyn Murray

Sponsoring Company: Edvotek, Inc.

Transforming bacteria with vibrant colored proteins is an unforgettable way to teach the central dogma of molecular biology. Take it further by creating bio-art with your students! In this workshop, we’ll share transformation tips, explore microbial creativity, and even award our favorite designs!

SPEAKERS:
Maria Dayton

Corn is the most important food crop grown in the U.S., yet climate change threatens our ability to improve yields to continue meeting rising human demand. Solving this global problem requires knowledge of science, technology, engineering, and math. In this session, we will bring real-world STEM to life through modern agriculture. This hands-on session reveals how agriculture extends far beyond traditional farming as we dive into authentic storylines that connect students to pressing global challenges. Framed around the journey of corn’s artificial selection and the real-world problem of feeding our growing population can spark critical thinking and problem-solving skills among students. You’ll leave with activities and strategies that can be easily implemented that showcase cutting-edge technology and engineering in food production. Join us to see how agriculture offers powerful, real-world STEM career pathways that are accessible for all students.

TAKEAWAYS:
Explore how food can provide relatable entry points for students using STEM skills to solve real world problems. Engage in several activities from a new storyline unit that challenges students in figuring out how to solve this food production challenge as they engage in 3-dimensional learning.

SPEAKERS:
Rachel Skelton, Alicia Burge, Chris Embry Mohr

Learn about and apply lessons learned from Saint Paul Public Schools and BSCS Science Learning’s partnership to customize high quality instructional materials to align with state-specific 3D standards and local contexts.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn what considerations are important for developing a well-crafted plan for implementing and customizing high quality instructional materials for use in local contexts. Leaders will review examples of customized units that are aligned with the MN Academic Standards for Science.

SPEAKERS:
Molly Leifeld, Abraham Lo

Learn how to support your students in connecting phenomena based on genetics and epigenetics to their own lives and communities through engineering practices using a free, EQuIP-reviewed unit designed for HS NGSS.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn how to use engineering practices to teach genetics and epigenetics while facilitating a classroom environment that privileges connecting phenomena to their own lives and communities through engaging in a design-based challenge to recommend modifications to their school.

SPEAKERS:
Elizabeth Chatham

Sponsoring Company: Activate Learning

Get the first look at the newly revised EarthComm book, 4th edition earth science book. Experience a great take home lab and learn how to infuse United Nations Sustainable Developmental Goals (SDGs) into instruction, plus see all the changes that were made to this classroom resource!

SPEAKERS:
Gary Curts

Explore a hands-on lesson answering utilization of soil, water, and land use data to make decisions. Put on your student hat and see how they will analyze data to construct a solution for a relevant land use concern. Then, switch over to teacher mode and discuss ways to apply in our classrooms.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will leave with experience in a versatile lesson that can be applied as an assessment tool, an engagement tool, or both. These tools are phenomenon based and use science and engineering practices.

SPEAKERS:
JESSICA JONES, Megan Sprague

This interactive session will introduce participants to the science and practice of tree-ring research (dendrochronology) as told through a place-based project in a secondary Field Ecology course. The project challenges students to design and implement a procedure to collect and interpret data from the local tree community to understand forest dynamics and the human interaction and influence on the land. Participants will have the opportunity to engage with physical and digital data from trees and tree rings to help interpret changes in climate, the physical environment, and the unique history of each tree as an individual. This project is a collaboration between Mahtomedi High School and the University of Minnesota.

TAKEAWAYS:
Trees are important storytellers in the environment. The science of dendrochronology is an easily accessible and equitable method of building empathy toward the land and engaging students with a local connection to place and context as they explore data.

SPEAKERS:
Daniel Griffin, Jim Lane

This session will focus on how using peer feedback in classrooms can drive students' ability to collaborate, evaluate phenomena, and deepen their skills of modeling and constructing explanations based on evidence. Emphasis will be on how collaboration through feedback creates an environment that allows students to enhance their growth mindset through the feed up, feed back, and feed forward framework. This method provides all students an opportunity to develop life skills through scientific practices. In this session, participants will observe classroom examples of how to implement the feed up, feed back, and feed forward framework supported by examples of students' work. Participants of this session will leave with adaptable tools that can be implemented with ease into their classrooms and strategies to help them create equitable learning environments driven by classroom collaboration.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave this session with adaptable tools and strategies on how to use peer feedback to empower students to take charge of their learning.

SPEAKERS:
Danielle Hoenig

Sponsoring Company: JoVE

Join our hands-on workshop to learn how to use AI tools and JoVE videos to create interactive STEM lessons & rubrics for middle and high school. Explore real-world applications, tailor activities for diverse learners, and leave with resources to transform your classroom into an engaging STEM hub! Bring your laptop or tablet.

SPEAKERS:
Shauna Carlson

Educators need supports to create climate learning for their students. Now is the time to explore how to broaden climate learning across your school, district, region, or state. This session will provide pragmatic tools and design advice on how to best engage in this work for your specific context.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will come away from this session with an action plan and the tools they need to begin to collaboratively design systemic climate learning efforts in their own contexts, sensitive to their particular local phenomena, socio-political norms, and educator capacities.

SPEAKERS:
Kimberly Talarico-Wolff, Deb Morrison

This workshop focuses on how STEM learning experiences, like simulations, can be adapted to learner needs and preferences using PhET's Inclusive Features as an exemplar. These features – across audio, visuals, and various inputs – address a multitude of common access barriers for learners and empower all science learners to interact, discover, and learn with their peers. We will explore sample sims and collaboratively determine access challenges learners with disabilities may face when interacting with the sims. The presenters will introduce the work and scope of PhET’s Inclusive Design process and introduce participants to the features that are available in PhET’s suite of sims. Participants will determine how to make appropriate modifications to their lesson or activity to meet diverse needs in multiple scenarios. Emphasis will be placed on increasing learners’ interaction time with the sim and allow for both collaborative and independent self-discovery of the 3D learning targets.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will gain insight into PhET’s approach to inclusive design, find PhET Sims with Inclusive Features, and adapt lesson plans to leverage any or all features of PhET Sims to adapt to the needs and preferences of learners in diverse classrooms.

SPEAKERS:
Brett Fiedler

Modeling activities can sometimes seem like a burden to teachers and students alike. Large phenomena, taking several days or weeks to cover, can feel abstract and disconnected. But "not all phenomena need to be phenomenal." We will show teachers how to quickly but effectively design smaller modeling activities to maximize student understanding in minimal class time. We will showcase how to select everyday phenomena and simple hands on activities. We will then help teachers in understanding the design process of the activity itself, showing that, with a little bit of prep and foresight, teachers can design incredibly impactful modeling activities. The goal is for all in attendance to leave with the ability to design short meaningful modeling activities with maximum impact to their students' learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendess will leave with the ability to design a Mini Model of their own. All attendees will learn the thought and design process behind these efficient learning activities.

SPEAKERS:
Patrick Reidy, Kevin Wessler

Place-based science teaching positions aspects of place–geographic location, geologic time, identity and community–at the forefront of science practices. This session will focus on the opportunities for place-based learning and teaching to explore our own locations: schoolyards and communities. Examples from the recently released book, Place-Based Science Teaching: Connecting Students to Curriculum, Community, and Caring for our Planet will be highlighted.

TAKEAWAYS:
Place-based learning honors the lived experiences of students and the living beings that form a community. Participants will learn how to implement a NGSS-aligned, place-based science lesson in their own space: schoolyard or community.

SPEAKERS:
Whitney Aragaki

We promote teacher leadership by offering teachers paid opportunities to present our resources. We'll introduce teachers to ScienceSaves and show how our lessons can be used to teach content and skills, such as graphing, data analysis, and correlation vs causation. The session will share our scholarship opportunity for high school seniors ($15,000/yr) and include a cursory look at our science lessons. Examples: Do We Take Our Health for Granted? Students will work on graphing skills using a graph on child mortality data from 1800-2020, and learn the difference between causation and correlation in data. The Savior of Mothers Students will learn about Dr. Semmelweis, the first person to promote the idea of handwashing, and will design an experiment to test his hypothesis. The Scientist Who Saved A Billion Lives Students will interpret 2 graphs of the astounding agricultural advancements of Norman Borlaug. Each lesson includes standards and a modifiable lesson plan document.

TAKEAWAYS:
Recognize that scientists who make contributions to scientific knowledge come from all kinds of backgrounds and possess varied talents, interests, and goals.

SPEAKERS:
Kathlyn Van Hoeck

Introduce your students to biotechnology through expression and purification of Taq DNA polymerase in this hands-on 60-minute workshop. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR), a technique for copying DNA, lets scientists produce billions of copies of a target DNA segment. PCR can be used to analyze genetic information, test for the presence of pathogens, identify species, prepare DNA for engineering applications, and much more. The PCR reaction happens using cycles of heating and cooling, requiring a special heat-tolerant enzyme for DNA replication – from the thermophilic bacterium Thermus aquaticus (Taq). In this workshop session, participants will be introduced to the Taq DNA polymerase enzyme and will purify the enzyme – that they can take back to school with them! Educators will also learn how to test and use the newly-purified enzymes, as well as a few fun labs students can do using the PCR reaction – from engineering to human evolution and migration.

TAKEAWAYS:
Purify Taq DNA polymerase from bacteria that you can use for PCR reactions in the classroom. Leave with your own enzyme sample and ideas for fun PCR labs you can do to explore human biology or taxonomic identification with your students.

SPEAKERS:
Arie Kaz, Kelsie Anson

Sponsoring Company: Switch Classroom

Design, construct, and test a waterwheel to demonstrate the conversion of water power into mechanical power, capable of lifting several pennies. This lab will reinforce the concepts of renewable energy and energy transformation.

SPEAKERS:
Lynn Kistler

In this workshop, participants will experience a part of the Student Experience Improvement Cycle (SEIC), a teacher-team based approach to using evidence of the quality of student experience formatively to make OpenSciEd classrooms more equitable. The SEIC begins by a teacher team setting a goal for improvement in one of three aspects of student experience: coherence, relevance, and contribution. Then teachers review, adapt, and test research-based strategies for improving the quality of student experience overall and for students from systemically marginalized groups and communities. In this workshop, we’ll practice gathering and interpreting data using the digital Science SEET and explore strategies that other teachers have tested and found to be effective in promoting more equitable participation in OpenSciEd classrooms. Teachers will leave with research briefs they can use in their teacher teams and an understanding of how to lead the SEIC with their colleagues.

TAKEAWAYS:
How do we know which students of our students are figuring things out that they care about? Which students are contributing to knowledge-building in small groups? Join us to learn about a simple approach to using data from exit tickets with research-based strategies to promote more equitable partici

SPEAKERS:
Melissa Campanella

Sponsoring Company: miniPCR bio

Tired of textbook diagrams showing DNA to RNA to protein? Bring the central dogma to life with a hands-on experiment to visualize transcription and translation using low-cost tools. Or dive into a virtual activity to explore real gene expression data, with no lab needed.

SPEAKERS:
Ally Huang

Sponsoring Company: Vernier Science Education

Biology and environmental science teachers! Learn to use hands-on sensors to explore dissolved O2, pH, and conductivity with students. From chemistry basics to watershed ecology, get ideas for real-world learning and how to simulate pond water in class. Plus, try our new wireless turbidity sensor!

SPEAKERS:
Nüsret Hisim

Polymers are characterized as thermoplastic or thermoset; natural or synthetic; or as being formed by addition or condensation reactions. The amount of cross-linking in polymers also affects their properties. Activities will be shared that highlight and explain the categorization of polymers. We will investigate polymer powders to infer the amount of crosslinking when they are exposed to water. PVA slime also can show crosslinking. Thermoplastics can be reshaped after heating so are recyclable. Thermosets are the result of a heat-producing chemical reaction and are non-recyclable. We will do activities with each, investigating properties and uses. Our clothing is made up of a variety of polymers, some natural, a growing percentage synthetic. We will share some observational tasks using materials to discuss the benefits of each type of polymer in clothing. The environmental impact of polymers will be discussed and activities related to biopolymers and recycling will also be shared.

TAKEAWAYS:
We will present an overview of polymers - different ways of categorizing, difficulties with recycling, and the variety of properties. We will provide hands-on activities to be done in the classroom, exploring cross-linking, reactions to heat and water, and natural vs synthetic polymers in clothing to name a few.

SPEAKERS:
Scott Spohler

“Ecology isn’t rocket science— it’s much harder” (Hilborn and Ludwig, 1993). Natural resource management provides rich, meaningful phenomena for classrooms that support students in the complex science- and data-driven decision-making that all students will face, regardless of their ultimate career trajectories. This presentation will showcase a unit that, through a natural resource management and decision-making lens, provides students with rich learning about complex ecosystem dynamics through a 3D lens grounded in student interests. This phenomenon-based unit progression compares ecosystem dynamics between two local reservoirs. I will share the methods students used to integrate multiple real-time data sources to predict and model food webs and trophic structures. Students confirm their predictions and models by engaging in a fish dissection and stomach-content analysis, and interpretation of stable fish isotope data to make management decisions about our two local reservoirs.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will take away a unit progression for ecosystem dynamics, practical implementation resources to support and engage all students, tools for students to collect and critically analyze data, and assessment ideas.

SPEAKERS:
Jenny Edwards

Discover how non-Earth & Space Science licensed educators are effectively teaching Earth & Space Science by leveraging NGSS SEPs. This interactive workshop addresses the educator shortage, shares compelling statistics, and offers firsthand experiences from teachers instructing outside their licensure. Engage in a hands-on, inquiry-based lesson centered on a selected NGSS science and engineering practice, and leave equipped with practical resources to confidently teach Earth & Space Science aligned with NGSS standards.​ This workshop aims to:​ Introduce the NGSS framework with a focus on Earth & Space Science, present data and statistics underscoring the current licensure landscape, facilitate a hands-on, inquiry-based lesson exemplifying a specific NGSS SEP (TBD), share personal narratives from educators teaching outside their licensure, detailing challenges faced and strategies employed, and provide a list of resources to support effective Earth & Space Science instruction.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will understand the implications of NGSS on Earth & Space Science education, recognize the challenges and opportunities for educators teaching outside their licensure, implement NGSS Science and Engineering Practices in Earth & Space Science lessons, and access and utilize resources.

SPEAKERS:
Eva Nelson, Sara Fabel, Ashley Fetch

Sponsoring Company: PLTW

What happens when students see themselves as future healthcare professionals—before graduation? In this workshop, engage in a hands-on activity from PLTW’s Biomedical Science program: a classroom-ready lung model demonstration drawn from the “Take a Breath” unit. Discover how this four-course high school program builds career awareness and student motivation through real-world lab experiences and ethical case studies. You’ll explore how BMS supports CTE and science standards while preparing students for industry certifications, postsecondary success, and high-wage careers in healthcare. From HOSA integration to skill-building in collaboration and communication, PLTW BMS gives educators the tools to deliver rigorous, equitable, and inspiring STEM learning—right now, in every school.

SPEAKERS:
Andy Sarbacker

Sponsoring Company: Lab-Aids

The carbon cycle plays a crucial role in life and in Earth's systems. Why is carbon dioxide discussed as a driver of climate change? In this hands-on lesson, we will model the molecular structure of gases in our atmosphere and analyze data about carbon sources and sinks to understand the role of carbon in climate change. This activity is from Lab-Aids' EDC Earth Science, an NSF-supported high school earth science program that uses an active, data-oriented approach to the student of earth science and earth systems, but can also be used as an individual kit to support climate change instruction in other courses.

SPEAKERS:
Stephanie Wallace

This workshop shares a curriculum that empowers students to become 21st century energy leaders. Participants will engage in a climate action simulation as different stakeholder groups and explore how their decision impact global temperature change, as well as the social impacts of these actions.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to use the climate action simulation to engage their students in understanding climate action from an individual and global perspective.

SPEAKERS:
Gillian Roehrig

NSTA’s Elementary Extravaganza is a dedicated learning and connecting space for elementary school educators. Explore discipline-specific sessions, relax in our community space outfitted with cell phone charging stations and connect with other educators.

Experience how embedding literacy supports for reading, writing, and academic discourse in 3D teaching and learning promotes sensemaking and science understanding for ALL learners! Learn how the BSCS Anchored Inquiry Learning (AIL) instructional model succeeds the 5Es and embeds literacy supports throughout cycles of inquiry.

The NGSS calls for 3D learning grounded in real world phenomena to ensure science learning is equitable and relevant to all students. The SEPs and CCCs require sensemaking of complex texts and data as well as communicating explanations and arguments and engaging in scientific discourse.

In this session, participants will experience literacy strategies that support student engagement in the SEPs and CCCs, consider how these strategies support all students, particularly below grade-level readers and EMLs, in sensemaking, and consider how embedding these strategies in assessments allows all students to demonstrate their learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
The research-based BSCS Anchored Inquiry Learning instructional model succeeds the 5Es and embeds literacy supports for reading, writing, and academic discourse in conjunction with science and engineering practices and crosscutting concepts to promote students in figuring out key science ideas.

SPEAKERS:
Cynthia Gay

This session will bring together ESTEP participants and instructors with the purpose of sharing experiences, strategies, resources and phenomena! Come learn more about our program, and how participants have changed their approach to be student focused!

TAKEAWAYS:
ESTEP participants are leaders in Minnesota science education - come see what they are doing and how you can do it too!

SPEAKERS:
Dana Smith, Haley Kalina

Empower students for tomorrow! This workshop highlights the pivotal role of counselors in K-12 computing education. Learn to advise on future tech-related career trends and champion early exposure, CTE, and dual-enrollment pathways in computing. Equip yourself to advocate for these vital opportunities and boost student career readiness.

TAKEAWAYS:
Counselors are key to unlocking future-ready pathways in computing for all K-12 students through early exposure, CTE, and dual enrollment advocacy

SPEAKERS:
MaKenzie Johnson

NSTA’s High School Haven is a dedicated learning and connecting space for high school educators. Explore discipline-specific sessions, relax in our community space outfitted with cell phone charging stations and refuel with daily afternoon snacks.

The presentation introduces attendees to some cheap and easy lab activities – and accompanying resources – that will help them have the confidence to tackle STEAM activities in their classrooms. Participants will work with metals, plastics, and an engineering challenge using composites. Heat-treated steel samples will be provided so that participants can feel the treatment’s effects and will know how to prepare their own samples. Participants will also have a chance to practice measurement (and art skills) with shrinking plastic. Finally, a honeycomb composite will be made in small groups and tested by applying weights to it. Each activity includes a write up, student worksheets, and possible modifications to differentiate for a particular class. Attendees will experience various ways of presenting group work: independent work with plastics; small group collaboration on the composite build; and, large group discussion and consensus building with the metal samples.

TAKEAWAYS:
Test some heat-treated metal samples; practice your math skills and artistry with a STEAM activity; work in groups for an engineering challenge! There’s a little something for everyone and we won’t judge you for wanting to be hot and cheap in the classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Briana Richardson

Sponsoring Company: Bio-Rad Laboratories

Explore quorum sensing and cell signaling pathways in this hands-on workshop. Investigate bioluminescence in Vibrio campbellii through engaging, classroom-ready experiments.

SPEAKERS:
Marisol Gabriel

Explore the intersection of climate and energy while learning about microgrids and their role in fostering energy resilience. During this hands-on session, participants will make models of a microgrid that includes solar power and battery storage and learn how microgrids supported community resilience during Hurricane Helene in Western North Carolina. We’ll discuss opportunities to integrate this topic into instruction to offer a relevant context for learning about electricity and energy resilience to climate impacts as well as engaging students in learning that mirrors the work of professionals in the energy sector.

TAKEAWAYS:
Updating instruction to include learning about and modeling microgrids introduces students to a real-world energy challenge, a timely and relevant solution, and related career opportunities.

SPEAKERS:
Dana Haine, Shannon Oesch

Many students struggle with the challenging literacy demands of science, including complex texts and specialized vocabulary. In this interactive session, participants will engage with an array of evidence-based literacy strategies specifically tailored to support science instruction at the secondary level. These strategies were thoughtfully developed and implemented through a partnership between science teachers and their literacy coaches. Attendees will explore practical approaches for integrating literacy practices into science curricula, with the goals of fostering equity, increasing deep student understanding, promoting inquiry-based learning, and enhancing classroom engagement. The session will highlight how embedding literacy within scientific contexts aligns with the NGSS strands of Asking Questions and Defining Problems, and Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communication Ideas. Participants will leave with concrete examples to integrate literacy with science in their own schools.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will leave with concrete, NGSS-aligned literacy strategies they can immediately apply to make science instruction more engaging, equitable, and inquiry-driven.

SPEAKERS:
Jeremy Parker, Jodi Baker

Sponsoring Company: Vernier Science Education

Get started with Vernier! Explore our top sensors for chemistry, biology, and physics and learn how to integrate real-time data collection into your curriculum. Support student-led science learning with hands-on, sensor-based investigations that help students make sense of the world around them!

SPEAKERS:
Tom Smith

Teachers and students face a substantial amount of learning as outlined in the NGSS and Common Core standards. But content isn't the only focus in these guiding documents. What are SEPs and SMPs? How can we transform these essential practices from feeling like "one more thing" into valuable opportunities for students to build knowledge in math and science? In this session, we'll explore the crossover between these vital practices and how recognizing them can enhance learning. We'll share activities and discuss how to implement these practices in both math and science settings. Come ready to engage in strategies that promote science and mathematical practices, including ways to assess them and make students aware of the vital skills they're using. By the end of the session, we'll demonstrate how promoting these practices aligns with social-emotional competencies, as it IS all connected.

TAKEAWAYS:
By the conclusion of this session, attendees will have gained an understanding of how the NGSS SEPs and Common Core SMPs intersect and complement each other. Along with that knowledge, they will learn how these practices can be applied in math and science settings to support student learning.

SPEAKERS:
Rachel Coulter, Kathryn Borton

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Take a tour through the mammalian heart and trace the path of a blood cell on its journey to oxygenation. Participants take blood pressure readings. Then dissect a preserved sheep heart to model blood flow and connect BP to heart anatomy. Don’t skip a beat - it’s going to be hands-on fun!

SPEAKERS:
Laurie Nixon

Join us for an engaging workshop that brings cutting-edge particle physics into your classroom. Explore how scientists at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN tackle fundamental questions about the universe—and how their discoveries connect to high school science. Through hands-on activities from the NSF-supported QuarkNet program, you'll experience ways to integrate real data, current research, and core physics concepts into your curriculum, all aligned with national science standards.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with examples of standards-based classroom activities that link cutting-edge physics research to core concepts taught in high school physics and physical science.

SPEAKERS:
Michael Plucinski, Shane Wood

Learn how we integrate digital mapping tools of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in student-driven, interdisciplinary projects on sustainability. Participants in this workshop will get out of the building, as we engage in a process of data collection, comparison, and analysis. We will collect data through student-created surveys outside the conference center, then learn the process we use with students to analyze quantitative and spatial results using spreadsheets, graphs, and maps - as you compare your own findings to what our students saw. Following data analysis, you will learn how we support our students in constructing evidence-based arguments from those data. Examples of student projects we’ll share include water quality in local ponds, student-developed sustainability indicators for cities, and forest ecology data on relationships between populations and the environment. You’ll walk away ready with concrete ideas on how to add these tools to your own classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
Digital mapping tools are increasingly accessible for teachers and students to use to collect and analyze authentic data in unique projects. You’ll learn how to easily incorporate spatial data collection and mapping into different environmental science units.

SPEAKERS:
Billy Koenig, Liz Dengate

This session will engage participants in authentic conservation decision-making practices to empower learners to evaluate biodiversity distribution, protected areas, human impacts, and a detailed framework for student communication, consensus, and peer review. Workshop attendees will participate in a hands-on mapping design challenge using authentic data to make data-driven. These evidence-based biodiversity conservation decisions reflect current efforts in science and policy. Using large data sets and visual maps, learners are challenged to consider current land use, the conservation status and range of vertebrate species, and the distribution of cities, agriculture, and protected areas. Finally, participants will apply the data to identify the best places to preserve biodiversity while ensuring humans can thrive. Balancing human and ecological needs reflects real-world conservation decisions and practices and challenges learners to reflect, debate, and dig into the evidence.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn to access and use publicly available data to evaluate human impacts on Earth's systems and develop solutions to maintain biodiversity through responsible management practices.

SPEAKERS:
Missie Olson, Jocelyn Miller

NSTA’s Meet Me in the Middle is a dedicated learning and connecting space for middle school educators. Explore discipline-specific sessions, relax in our community space outfitted with cell phone charging stations and connect with other educators.

Sponsoring Company: Edvotek, Inc.

Bring inquiry into your lab with food science! Start by extracting food dyes from candy to analyze using gel electrophoresis and paper chromatography. From there, expand the exploration to different foods, encouraging students to design and test hypotheses, and use STEM techniques to analyze data.

SPEAKERS:
Maria Dayton

NSTA has revised and updated its position 2018 position statement on climate science, strengthening its commitment to high quality education on the teaching of the science of climate change. This presentation outlines the changes to the position statement and the rationale for the changes.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will become equipped with the rationale and tools necessary for teaching the science of climate change, as well as the talking points necessary for engaging with the range of constituencies that have voice in or impact upon science education in general.

SPEAKERS:
Eric Pyle

This presentation weaves together the interdisciplinary perspectives of evolutionary theory, immunology, and epidemiology with insights from the humanities to examine the complex threats posed by the problem of pandemics and strategies to develop solutions to mitigate those threats. It explores how pathogens evolve, how the immune system responds to novel threats, and how disease spreads through populations. In addition, drawing from historical and cultural perspectives, it highlights the societal impacts of past pandemics and the contemporary human behaviors and public health policies that influence disease outcomes. By integrating science with ethics, communication, and public policy, the presentation offers a holistic, transdisciplinary framework for understanding and addressing current and future global health crises.

TAKEAWAYS:
Understanding and responding to pandemics requires a transdisciplinary approach combining knowledge and skills from multiple biological fields and humanities to reveal how diseases emerge and spread, and develop strategies for sensemaking and management through science, policy, and societal action.

SPEAKERS:
Joseph Levine

Sponsoring Company: 3D Molecular Designs

This interactive modeling session will engage participants to ask questions and identify patterns to build confidence and understanding of the three-dimensional nature of protein structure and function.

SPEAKERS:
Jim Lane

Sponsoring Company: miniPCR bio

In 1483, two English princes vanished; now, their remains may have been found! Students use DNA analysis based on the FBI CODIS system to determine if the remains might belong to the lost princes. This gel electrophoresis activity makes it easy to add hands-on DNA analysis to your forensics class!

SPEAKERS:
Ally Huang

Project-Based Learning is a powerful tool, but implementing it can feel overwhelming. We’ll show you how to leverage AI coupled with our PBL framework and your expertise to plan discipline-rich projects efficiently. Learn strategies to integrate AI tools, save time, and best support your students.

TAKEAWAYS:
Leverage AI, our Project Planning Framework, and the expertise of educators to plan effective, engaging, discipline-rich Project-Based Learning projects. Identify entry points to designing and implementing PBL using AI, and then personalize and improve the project for your learners’ experience.

SPEAKERS:
Sarah DiMaria

Sponsoring Company: Rayn Growing Systems

Explore hydroponics with a hands-on, scalable activity linking light, sustainability, and plant biology. Use Foldscopes to view plant cells and take home NGSS-aligned lessons; receive free classroom-kit templates, posters, and product discounts from RAYN Growing Systems and the National STEM Honor Society (NSTEM). Attendees are eligible to win a RAYN EdRack system and an NSTEM Chapter package. Ideal for K–college educators integrating STEM with real-world applications.

SPEAKERS:
Hannah Ball, Eric Magers

Sponsoring Company: Flinn Scientific, Inc.

Learn the essential practices and protocols every science teacher needs to ensure a safe lab environment. This session covers hazard analysis, GHS labeling, PPE, and risk mitigation—critical tools for protecting your students and yourself.

SPEAKERS:
Mike Marvel, Ph.D.

All students have the right to develop a deep understanding of how the world works in ways that support their personal goals and the interests of their community. Come explore how instruction can more equitably support science learning that is consequential to your students and their communities.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will develop an understanding of an equity project framework for science education for supporting professional learning and implementation projects. They will learn how open education resources (http://stemteachingtools.org/) can help them develop equitable approaches to science teaching.

SPEAKERS:
Philip Bell

Explore how UDL principles are integrated into the OpenSciEd Natural Selection unit. This session will focus on using high quality instructional materials that meet the needs of all learners, ensuring accessibility and engagement for diverse student populations.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will gain practical strategies for scaffolding complex concepts, providing multiple means of representation and expression, and fostering student agency in collaborative, real-world problem-solving.

SPEAKERS:
Kristin Rademaker

Community and place-based science gives students a sense of purpose as they collect data that contributes to scientific knowledge about their own communities. Too often, however, instruction ends once the data is submitted, missing an opportunity to engage students in rich mathematical and computational thinking. In this workshop, participants will explore how to take community-based science a step further. Participants will upload data from Minnesota into a free data, graphing, and statistics tool called Tuva. We’ll examine how middle school and Algebra I/II math skills can support data analysis and interpretation in the science classroom. We’ll spend time reviewing data visualizations frequently underutilized in science classrooms despite exposure to them in math class. Participants will have the opportunity to practice creating and interpreting various types of data visualizations so they are ready to help students do the same.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to extend community science experiences by integrating math practices into data exploration. They'll use Tuva to analyze real-world data, practice creating underutilized visualizations, and consider how to apply middle and high school math in science instruction.

SPEAKERS:
Jocelyn Foran

Sponsoring Company: PASCO Scientific

Join us to explore the OpenSciEd Certified PASCO version Chemistry curriculum. First discover a unit's storyline through a tour of PASCO Portal, our online platform for organizing and distributing teacher and student OpenSciEd resources. Then dive into the unit's first lesson to experience the anchoring phenomenon, used to elicit student questions that they'll work to answer throughout the unit. Finally participate in a hands-on activity from a subsequent lesson, using PASCO technology to develop an evidence-based response to one of those student questions. In this lesson, you will use our Wireless Current Sensor to figure out how increasing the concentration of salt in water affects the rate of charges flowing through it.

SPEAKERS:
Shelly Riley

Sponsoring Company: Lab-Aids

Ever wonder why we don’t see an eclipse every month? Join us for a hands-on session where you’ll explore this puzzling phenomenon using a dynamic modeling activity that reveals the relationship between the Earth’s and Moon’s orbital planes. Discover how simple models can unlock deep understanding—and leave with your own Lab-Aids Orbital Plane model to bring back to your classroom!

SPEAKERS:
Virginia Rehberg

Sponsoring Company: Anatomy in Clay