Explore how human activities have affected marine ecosystems, including the Gulf Coast, since the Industrial Revolution. Engage in hands-on simulations, interactive stories, and demonstrations.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will: 1. learn ways to incorporate hands-on activities related to marine ecosystems around the NGSS Middle School topic of Human Impacts; 2. acquire ideas and techniques for helping students deepen their understanding of the connections between population trends, land use, natural resource use, and environmental impacts through simulations, interactive stories, and labs; and 3. be able to identify how the presented hands-on activities meet the NGSS Disciplinary Core Ideas, Crosscutting Concepts, and Science and Engineering Practices; and how the activities can be used to reach all kinds of learners.

SPEAKERS:
Donna Torres (INFINITY Science Center: Pearlington, MS)

Leverage how people learn from data to teach data skills alongside content with these beginning strategies to build students literacy in science, math, and technology.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. A framework for thinking about how people learn from data and what are the steps along the progression from being a novice to expert user of data to do science, math, and use technology; 2. Strategies and resources to use in our teaching in any unit to better set students up for success as they build their mastery of data skills to become more data and science literate; and 3. a suite of tips and tricks to integrate into our current curricula across different disciplines that enhance how students work with data to learn their science and math content as well as critical evaluate claims in the world.

SPEAKERS:
Kristin Hunter-Thomson (Dataspire Education & Evaluation, LLC)