Discover how to engage students in science using three-dimensional learning with engineering projects and computational thinking. Free access to grades 3–5 lessons.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Explore real-world phenomena to motivate students and guide learning; 2. Learn practical tips for reaching all three dimensions of the science standards; and 3. Understand how to guide students in conducting online research and analyzing authentic data.

SPEAKERS:
Brittany Pike (CYBER.ORG: Bossier City, LA), Laurie Salvail (CYBER.ORG: Bossier City, LA)

Across the globe, dogs snoop on poop to save endangered species. By studying the stories in scat, students learn mapping, literacy and data interpretation skills.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. The science of scat and the detection dog methodology offer engrossing strategies to engage students with STEM; 2. Scientific fields depend on scientists from diverse backgrounds with diverse skill sets; and 3. Strategies and visuals help students understand, collect, map, and interpret data responsibly.

SPEAKERS:
Heather Montgomery (Science Author: Ardmore, TN)

Learn how to use your existing science kit materials to support your students with NGSS, based on experiences from the Elementary Science Olympiad program.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn: 1. how to modify "instructional kits" available to them to allow for authentic student inquiry; 2. how to structure instruction to allow for cycles of failure and feedback; and 3. how hands-on science supports implementation of the NGSS.

SPEAKERS:
John Loehr (Science Olympiad: Oakbrook Terrace, IL), Shari Haug (Science Olympiad: Oakbrook Terrace, IL)

STEAM-integrated activities are for all learners, including those in an early childhood setting. Participate in a series of play-based STEAM activities that promote three-dimensional learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Early childhood students will engage in scientific investigation and inquiry through student-centered activities that promote curiosity, creativity, and innovation; 2. Kindergarten Readiness Math skills are developed through STEAM-integrated investigations highlighting number sense, measurement, and data; and 3. Activities will develop executive functioning skills through play and open exploration.

SPEAKERS:
Lindsey Herlehy (Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy: Aurora, IL), Cassandra Armstrong (Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy: Aurora, IL)

Learn how to engage preK–2 students in light and shadow concepts as they engineer light sources, materials, and screens to produce a desired effect.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Identify meaningful contexts for exploring light and shadow phenomena that already exist in the young child's world; 2. Engage in strategies that enable young learners to explore how properties of materials interact with light, and then use their understanding of light and properties of materials to engineer effects on a screen to communicate with peers; and 3. Recognize multiple paths to conceptual understanding contingent on each child's unique backgrounds and experiences.

SPEAKERS:
Beth Dykstra VanMeeteren (University of Northern Iowa: Cedar Falls, IA)

Join me for a hands-on, engaging, meaningful engineering project that can be immediately applied in any classroom, whether it be remote or in-person.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. This session will give attendees the confidence and desire to teach engineering in their classrooms; 2. Participants will understand that teaching engineering does not require purchasing expensive materials, and a quality project can even be done in a remote setting; and 3. Everyone will leave the session with a ready-to-go project that can be implemented immediately.

SPEAKERS:
Danielle King (Barstow Unified School District: Bartsow, CA)

Need a simple and creative way to engage students? Create a green screen area in your classroom. This workshop will demonstrate a simple way to make creative videos with a green screen.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. How to use a chroma key with different apps and programs; 2. Simple video editing techniques; and 3. Using different objects for green screen props.

SPEAKERS:
Jennifer Crane (Randolph Academy: No City, No State)

This session presents interactive “Cricket Challenges” to engage students in nature-based activities designed to encourage curiosity and to make cross-curricular STEM connections to literature.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Innovative ways to engage readers to use fiction as a springboard to explore their natural world and make text-to-real-world connections; 2. Handouts including instructions for activities such as “An Outdoor Challenge for Every Season," ”Creating a Nature Wonder Hour,” “Nature Scavenger Hunts,” “Creating a Nature Journal from the Point of View of the Main Character in the Book You’re Studying,” and “Bloom Bingo”; and 3. Writing prompts educators can use to encourage students to analyze and explore their natural world.

SPEAKERS:
Jo Watson Hackl (Author: Asheville, NC)

Experience an engineering design challenge that engages all students in the design process,  building critical mindsets around collaboration, perseverance, and critical thinking. Take away facilitation resources for implementing NGSS-connected, real-world challenges in one session or over several months.

TAKEAWAYS:
By the end of this session, participants will come away with: 1. a clear understanding of the Engineering Design Process and strategies for integrating this process into their instruction; 2. confidence to engage all learners as they implement design challenges in their learning settings; and 3. knowledge of the connections between design challenges and NGSS K–12 engineering progression.

SPEAKERS:
Erica Barrueto (The Bowers Institute at The Tech: San Jose, CA), Amy Bucher (The Tech Interactive: San Jose, CA)

Historical issues create rich opportunities to utilize Science, Social Studies, and ELA disciplinary skills—through STEM—to increase student engagement and a deep understanding of complex problems.

TAKEAWAYS:
Session attendees will learn both pedagogical concepts and history as they work to understand and solve perplexing problems that faced Japanese-Americans interned at Topaz. Using the Topaz Japanese internment camp as the backdrop, session participants will: 1. learn how to pair both fiction and informational texts (including primary source documents); 2. discover ways to integrate NGSS standards, Social Studies, ELA, and STEM through lessons and problem-solving activities; and 3. focus on the 5Es and 3-D learning.

SPEAKERS:
Julie Siebach (Retired Teacher: Cedar Hills, UT), Deborah Draper (Cedar Ridge Elementary School: Cedar Hills, UT)

Learn about Argument-Driven Engineering and how to give students opportunities to use core ideas and practices from science, engineering, and math to figure out solutions.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. How to use the ADE instructional model, or way of teaching, to give students an opportunity to learn how to use core ideas and practices from science, engineering, and mathematics to design a solution to an authentic and meaningful problem that will make the world a better place; 2. How to give students an opportunity to talk, read, and write in the service of sensemaking; and 3. Ways to support ongoing changes in student thinking as they learn to use core ideas and practices from science, engineering, and mathematics to figure out solutions to problems.

SPEAKERS:
Victor Sampson (The University of Texas at Austin: Austin, TX)

Roadkill is a phenomena to engage every student. Teachers integrate STEM and English, challenging students to design, build, and sell a wildlife crossing to City Council.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Innovative instructional sequences rooted in an everyday phenomena students care about; 2. Lessons that integrate science skills, critical reading, and meaningful design practices; and 3. Grade-appropriate resources (data, images, texts) for engaging students, regardless of culture or background, with authentic citizens science.

SPEAKERS:
Heather Montgomery (Science Author: Ardmore, TN), Lauren Avant (Richmond Hill Middle School: Richmond Hill, GA), Ann Vitello (Richmond Hill Middle School: Richmond Hill, GA)

Dive into an engaging hands-on design challenge! Walk away with more than 60 lessons and strategies for implementation as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will: 1. create a design-based learning artifact; 2. receive a virtual toolkit of 60+ STEM activities; and 3. co-examine the strategies we have used to update our lessons to amplify the culturally relevant and anti-racist stances in our activities.

SPEAKERS:
Antoineta Meekins (ExpandED Schools: New York, NY), Fran Agnone (ExpandED Schools: New York, NY)

Learn about Argument-Driven Engineering and how to give students opportunities to use core ideas and practices from science, engineering, and math to design solutions.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. How to use this instructional model, or way of teaching, to give students an opportunity to learn how to use core ideas and practices from science, engineering, and mathematics to design a solution to an authentic problem that will help make the world a better place; 2. How to give students an opportunity to talk, read, and write in the service of sensemaking; and 3. Ways to support students as they learn to use core ideas and practices from multiple disciplines so design challenges are more than just tinkering until something works.

SPEAKERS:
Victor Sampson (The University of Texas at Austin: Austin, TX)

This workshop explores the connection between the NGSS, STEM identity, and project-based learning (PBL) through a series of culturally responsive activities for virtual learning environments.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will: 1. critically consider their own STEM identity and the STEM identities of their students to inform PBL in online and in-class learning environments; 2. respond to students’ needs and interests to plan PBL that develops their STEM identities; and 3. learn instructional strategies that engage students in PBL and the Scientific and Engineering Practices within the Next Generation Science Standards.

SPEAKERS:
Alicia Lane (University of the District of Columbia: Washington, DC)

There is a need to introduce engineering to high school students but there are not a lot of resources available. Through this session, educators will learn how to engage their students in building instrumentation to observe their environment, including a weather station and water quality sensor following student-created design manuals.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Assembly manuals for weather station and water sensor; 2. Opportunities for students to build one of the models; and 3. Communicate with engineering professors and students and provide engineering students feedback on their manuals.

SPEAKERS:
Janet Struble (The University of Toledo: Toledo, OH), Kevin Czajkowski (The University of Toledo: Toledo, OH), Caleb Farny (Boston University: Boston, MA), Glenn Lipscomb (The University of Toledo: Toledo, OH)

Keep your pets safe from being left in hot cars by using automatic sensors to design an alarm that could save their lives.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Solve a real-work problem with coding and engineering design, no prior experience needed; 2. Learn about inputs from sensors (temperature) and if-then-else decision logic to control an output (sound or color LED) based on the sensor readings; and 3. Gain exposure to possible STEM careers in automobile design features.

SPEAKERS:
Jessica Kohout (Independent Contractor: Ellicott City, MD), Stacy Thibodeaux (Southside High School: Youngsville, LA)

This workshop introduces strategies and digital tools to help students develop high-quality STEM presentations and posters in online and in-class learning environments.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will: 1. embody the role of a student conducting a scientific/engineering investigation leading to a STEM presentation; 2. be able to create a digital STEM visual using presentation applications; and 3. learn instructional strategies that engage students in developing high-quality presentations and Scientific and Engineering Practices within the Next Generation Science Standards.

SPEAKERS:
Alicia Lane (University of the District of Columbia: Washington, DC)

This session focuses on the role CubeSats are playing as a disruptive technology in our space program and how to introduce precollege students to these future opportunities.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Design a relatively inexpensive CubeSat; 2. Build a CubeSat data collection device; and 3. Learn how NASA is using CubeSats.

SPEAKERS:
Michael Jabot (SUNY Fredonia: Fredonia, NY), Kevin Czajkowski (The University of Toledo: Toledo, OH), John Moore (Executive Director: Laurel Springs, NJ), Maxwell Friedman (Burlington County Institute of Technology: Palmyra, NJ)

This session will explore the ways educators can expand STEM affinity among diverse populations by using placed-based lessons through the cultural lens of lessons on weather and climate.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Theme one is that community-based learning has been shown to positively impact indigenous science and STEM learners. Central to this theme is the belief that to promote science and STEM affinity, pedagogies and curricula should leverage diversity, languages, culture, practices, and epistemologies. (Gutierrez, Baquedano‐López, & Tejeda, 1999); 2. Theme two is a predicate of community orientation. This presentation will posit that STEM fluency is dependent on cultural relevant initiatives and will show significant promise in closing achievement gaps and improving science academic performance (Brayboy & Castagno 2008); and 3. Theme three is that culturally relevant curricula and pedagogies help to embody and mobilize community leaders and STEM advocates with in-school and after-school programs.

SPEAKERS:
Corydon Strawser (Lake Nona Middle School: Orlando, FL)

Explore family engagement events that provide fun, hands-on experiences and an opportunity to teach parents strategies to support their children's academic vocabulary at home.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Engage in both virtual and in-person family engagement events that expand classroom learning that families with members of all ages can participate in; 2. Learn strategies to support linguistically diverse students in the STEMSS (STEM + Social Studies with an emphasis on real-world, cross-curricular learning) classroom; and 3. Develop a plan to integrate these strategies into your family engagement events to help parents learn how to support academic vocabulary at home and to bridge the home-school connections to increase opportunities for language learners.

SPEAKERS:
Margarita Jimenez-Silva (University of California, Davis: Davis, CA), Karen Guerrero (Arizona State University: Tempe, AZ)

The global pandemic forced many educators to pivot to virtual or hybrid learning. In this session, you will learn tips and tricks to keep quality STEM education alive in any setting.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will: 1. see an example of how an in-person, integrated STEM learning experience can be changed to work in a virtual or hybrid setting; 2. be provided with resources to promote inclusive and equitable practices that increase student collaboration and engagement in a virtual, hybrid or face-to-face setting; and 3. leave with an existing STEM unit that can be completed in their own classroom, whether it be virtual, in-person, or hybrid.

SPEAKERS:
Theresa Goltermann (Tabb Middle School: Yorktown, VA), Vonceil Anderson (Baltimore City Public Schools: Baltimore, MD), Laura Drager (Montgomery County Educational Service Center: Dayton, OH), Rebecca Stanley (DoD STEM/RTI International: Durham, NC)