Sponsoring Company: STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning

Join us to empower students' autonomous learning. We will explore a backward design strategy that helps you create a clear path of learning intentions through all your lessons, encouraging students to track their progress and decide how their time is spent preparing for the unit assessment.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Model a variety of formative assessments; 2. discuss how the results guide instruction; and 3. use student reflection to enhance student ownership.

SPEAKERS:
Kristan Buckman (STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning: Houston, TX)

Sponsoring Company: Savvas Learning Co.

Science provides one of the best opportunities for teachers to offer equitable learning experiences for all students. By using science phenomena to anchor instruction, and by centering the anchoring phenomena around the students' locality and culture, all students have a voice and are represented. Join us to learn how to create a lesson plan centered around local phenomena that also engages students in STEM, modeling, inquiry, and much more!

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Recognize the importance of using local phenomena to engage all learners; 2. use local phenomena to create phenomenal STEM lesson plans, including modeling and inquiry; and 3. provide exemplar resources to use in teachers' classrooms to promote phenomena and STEM.

SPEAKERS:
Monica Wadler (Savvas Learning Co.: Paramus, NJ)

Sponsoring Company: Amplify

Cultivate curiosity and value student voices while utilizing the structures and content from phenomena-based, NGSS-focused curricula.

TAKEAWAYS:
All attendees will learn: 1. strategies on how to cultivate curiosity and value student voices; 2. how an NGSS-focused curriculum can support deeper learning and understanding; and 3. how to elevate science implementation by establishing a culture of figuring out.

SPEAKERS:
Rebecca Abbott (The Lawrence Hall of Science: Berkeley, CA)

Using inquiry-based activities, we will investigate how our lives are connected to the ocean and how we impact it through climate change, pollution, and overfishing.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Learn how to introduce phenomena-based activities about climate science to students, including global warming, ocean acidification, coral bleaching, and plastic pollution; 2. Increase ocean awareness and inspire community involvement that leads to changes in the status quo; and 3. Suggest ideas for preparing students as future leaders to think globally about the ocean as it impacts food supplies, jobs, and populations on the move to escape sea level rise and crop failure.

SPEAKERS:
Patricia Newman (Children's Book Author & Speaker: Carmichael, CA)

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)

Co-teaching or have lots of mainstreamed SPED students? Pick up some useful strategies and clever tools to help bridge the anxiety gap here!

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Co-teaching best practices; 2. Mainstreaming with SPED students made more comprehensible and easier to do; and 3. Online teaching, grading for SPED students and more addressed.

SPEAKERS:
Julie A. Smith (Lennox Middle School: Lennox, CA)

Students and teachers can learn about STEM in an immersive and risk-friendly environment? A regional student competition was developed to accomplish this feat.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Students will take risks in learning when they are set up for success; 2. Teachers and students can learn together; and 3. Professional Development does not have to be lecture in format.

SPEAKERS:
Patrice Semicek (Montgomery County Intermediate Unit 23: Norristown, PA), Ben DeSantis (Montgomery County Intermediate Unit 23: Norristown, PA)

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)

The Dallas Arboretum and Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD will share the process and results of their collaborative STEM hydroponics program.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will: 1. explore the development process of the hydroponics collaborative; 2. view sample before-and-after lesson plans as a result of the curriculum redesign; and 3. learn about lessons learned and opportunities for growth, including adjustments due to distance learning.

SPEAKERS:
Dustin Miller (Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden: Dallas, TX), Christy McClain (Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD: Carrollton, TX)

In this session, we will illustrate how educators created integrated STEM activities through real-world sustainability design challenges.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Sustainability issues engage students with real-world local and global problems; 2. Adapting a "Shark Tank-like" format into a "Rethink Tank" provides key questions and criteria to help students use entrepreneurial thinking to create innovative solutions to problems; and 3. Sustainability topics allow for not only STEM integration, but connections to English Language Arts, Social Studies, Career Education, and the Arts.

SPEAKERS:
Deborah Kozdras (University of South Florida: Tampa, FL), Christine Angel Danger (Hillsborough County Public Schools: Tampa, FL)

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)

Design thinking enhances student engagement and performance across the curriculum. Come try the DT process and explore resources to help you get started!

TAKEAWAYS:
1. The design thinking process (empathize, define, ideate, prototype, test) is used by schools and corporations around the world to solve problems and create products; 2. The design thinking process can be applied in any content area to promote critical thinking and student engagement; and 3. Many free strategies and resources are available to teachers, and implementation can be as simple as routinely having students ask certain questions.

SPEAKERS:
Ashley Townsend (Oak Grove Primary School: Prairieville, LA)

Sponsoring Company: STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning

Come learn how to use effective literacy strategies so that students can better understand science content. Help students successfully analyze, discuss, and summarize science text. Student understanding and critical-thinking skills will improve with these techniques. Join our constructivist approach that promotes literacy in the science classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will; 1. learn and practice vocabulary structures and strategies that are effective for all learners; 2. experience the effectiveness of student notebooking and graphic organizers to reinforce reading and writing skills and strengthen science understanding; and 3. gain an understanding of how to effectively integrate literacy, writing, and discourse into the science classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Amber Gunner (STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning: Houston, TX)

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)

An Out Teach instructional coach gives teachers the information, inspiration, and practical everyday tips they need to head outdoors to lead hands-on real-world cross-curricular experiences proven to build science skills and get students deeply engaged in science practice. Presenters will provide specific strategies for elementary teachers to engage students in science and engineering practices anchored in outdoor phenomena—whether students are remote or in-person.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. To put equitable outcomes at the center of all we do, students need opportunities to make decisions about their own learning and space to bring their own experiences and background to the classroom in ways that connect meaningfully to content. This highly sought after, student-centered approach can be kick-started through outdoor experiential learning in Science; 2. Many teachers struggle with 3-D science instruction, which requires that we not only teach students content but give them ample opportunities to think and work like scientists. The outdoor classroom is a powerful instructional tool for authentic scientific practice, developing a scientific mindset and a love of learning; and 3. Outdoor experiences are a great equalizer, improving student-directed learning, SEL, and 21st-century skills during remote, hybrid, and in-person instruction.

SPEAKERS:
Wendy Kelly (Out Teach: Dallas, TX), Allie Graybeal (Out Teach: Fort Worth, TX)

Can you think like a bird? That is what these NGSS-focused activities ask of students in an engineering challenge to create shelter for local birds.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Fun, authentic, NGSS-focused activities that promote students' application of science concepts in the engineering design process; 2. Simple strategies to engage students in place-based outdoor learning experiences that are adaptable for in-person instruction, virtual learning, or at-home projects; and 3. Ideas for modifying your existing life science activities to fit the time of year.

SPEAKERS:
Rebecca Krall (University of Kentucky: Lexington, KY), Sagan Goodpaster (University of Kentucky: Lexington, KY)

Let’s make a foldable solar system scroll. Come learn how to apply ratios to create a scale model of the planets based on your height.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. With a properly scaled solar system scroll, participants will identify inner and outer planets and readily SEE why they are named as such; 2. Understanding the concept of rations and fractions, part-to-whole, participants will leave being able to create a proportional solar system in their classroom, on a football field, or across their state; and 3. This activity can be used at any grade level.

SPEAKERS:
Barbie Buckner (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center: Greenbelt, MD)

If we treat content areas as silos, we will never find time for science! Discover how to create authentic, cross-curricular learning experiences that increase engagement and thinking.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Determine characteristics of authentic learning experiences; 2. Explore two projects, lesson by lesson, making connections to your science content; and 3. Discover a process for creating your own project-based learning units.

SPEAKERS:
Terra Tarango (Van Andel Education Institute: Grand Rapids, MI)

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 interactive session will guide you through a process of identifying community “grand challenges” and using multicultural children’s literature to create empowering STEM learning experiences.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will: 1. learn to guide students through the process of identifying and defining relevant, investigable issues in their communities; 2. recognize the power of children's literature for promoting equitable access to STEM learning opportunities for diverse students; and 3. leave with a framework for empowering students to use STEM skills and knowledge to enact meaningful change in their community.

SPEAKERS:
Sara Donaldson (Wheaton College: Norton, MA)

Explore the NASA Elementary GLOBE storybook the “Scoop on Soils.” Engage students with a dynamic experiment on soil permeability.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. NASA Elementary GLOBE has free storybooks with three or more STEM activities each integrating the Core Standards with the Science standards. The materials are translated into five languages; 2. All students will relate to the climate issues of the availability of fresh water and soil needed to grow food; and 3. Exploring the environment with backyard soils engages students in real-world problem solving.

SPEAKERS:
Susan Kohler (NASA Glenn Research Center: Cleveland, OH)

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)

Are you thinking about incorporating coding and robotics at the elementary level? Come try it yourself and learn about funding, resources, and preparing for success!

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Coding and robotics can improve students’ algorithmic and critical thinking, which helps with math and reading as well as creativity, communication, and collaboration; 2. When seeking funding for robotics, start with what is manageable and connect your project with math, science, and ELA standards; and 3. Focus on how students are thinking to get the most out of their experiences with coding and robotics.

SPEAKERS:
Ashley Townsend (Oak Grove Primary School: Prairieville, LA)

We discuss a number of considerations for virtual science instruction and highlight how the five practices take shape in an online STEM experience. We further suggest ways by which teachers can maximize an online learning platform for equitable participation.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. The Five Practices remind us that discourse and equitable participation in the science classroom require more than discipline-based knowledge or simply providing experiences with phenomena and materials; 2. As teachers prepare to engage students in virtual science experiences, utilizing strategies that promote effective discourse is essential. It is not the teacher alone who creates effective discourse; however, the teacher’s careful construction of explicit guidance for students through discourse strategies while investigating science phenomena is crucial; and 3. Virtual classroom instruction can be designed in ways that enhance motivation, support productive participation, and deliver interactive learning experiences in science.

SPEAKERS:
Cathrine Maiorca (California State University, Long Beach: Long Beach, CA), L. Octavia Tripp (Auburn University: Auburn University, AL), Sahar Alameh (University of Kentucky: Lexington, KY), Margaret Mohr-Schroeder (University of Kentucky: Lexington, KY), Kristin Cook (Bellarmine University: Louisville, KY)

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)

Sponsoring Company: PAEMST

Come learn about the highest recognition for STEM educators in the U.S. We will discuss eligibility criteria as well as the nomination, application, and review process for the awards. Awardees receive a certificate; a $10,000 award; a trip to Washington, DC, for a recognition event; and access to over 5,100 award-winning teachers.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. How you can win $10,000; 2. how you can apply for this prestigious award from the U.S. Government; and 3. the benefits of applying for this award.

SPEAKERS:
Robert Mayes (National Science Foundation: Alexandria, VA)

Sponsoring Company: Savvas Learning Co.

Take on the role of a consultant for NASA to design a system to model a rocket launcher while highlighting tools you can use to support gender equity, economically disadvantaged youth, English Learners, students with disabilities, and advanced and gifted learners. This really is rocket science, but ensuring equity doesn't have to be!

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn: 1. strategies to modify engineering challenges to meet the needs of diverse learners; 2. how to create lessons and assessment rubrics that provide equitable access to rigorous science standards; and 3. strategies to help create more time and opportunity to incorporate STEM and engineering challenges in the classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Erin Horner (Savvas Learning Co.: Paramus, NJ)

Learn about ways to reach elementary students and increase interest in computer science with engaging contexts and multiple entry points.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Recruiting elementary students to CS is a strategy for increasing the diversity of students in advanced CS classes in the future; 2. The context of CS activities is important for student interest and engagement; and 3. Confidence in implementing strategies that broaden the context for CS learning.

SPEAKERS:
Lorri Coates (Museum of Science, Boston: Boston, MA), Brianna Wilkinson (Museum of Science, Boston: Boston, MA)

Join us on your STEM journey and learn how to incorporate STEM and PBL into your K–5 curriculum. Receive ideas for program development, grants and funding, and inexpensive or free field trips. Teaching STEM digitally with coding and computer programming apps.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Incorporating STEM curriculum and PBL's into the K–5 curriculum requirements and incorporating Digital Coding and computer programs to use with virtual teaching; 2. Finding and scheduling in-house free and inexpensive field trips, guest speakers, and virtual experiences for all students at your school; and 3. Funding and grant writing information and sources to fund your STEM program.

SPEAKERS:
Johanna Disney (McKendree Elementary School: Lawrenceville, GA), Julie Wilkerson (McKendree Elementary School: Lawrenceville, GA)

Get ready for STEM and the NGSS by sequencing instruction to promote your students’ long-lasting understanding with a simple yet powerful approach: Explore-Before-Explain.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will: 1. participate in two explore-before-explain STEM activities; 2. identify the benefits of guiding students to construct explanations based on personal observations and data analysis; and 3. collaboratively brainstorm ways they can tweak one of their existing STEM activities following the explore-before-explain instructional strategy to meet the vision of the NGSS.

SPEAKERS:
Anne Fayen (Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden: Dallas, TX), Patrick Brown (Fort Zumwalt School District R-II: O'Fallon, MO)

A team of Outstanding Science Trade/ Best STEM Books authors introduces the STEM Tuesday blog, a free resource that celebrates STEM books and connects classrooms via STEM and literacy activities.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Find out what STEM Tuesday is and how to use it in middle level classrooms; 2. Leave with activities, book lists, resources, and suggestions from STEM Tuesday's FREE website to use in the classroom; and 3. Interact and provide feedback among authors and science teachers on STEM literacy and needed books.

SPEAKERS:
Jennifer Swanson (Author/Teacher: Jacksonville, FL), Heather Montgomery (Science Author: Ardmore, TN), Patricia Newman (Children's Book Author & Speaker: Carmichael, CA), Nancy Castaldo (Author: Boston, MA)

This interactive session provides experiences that model how anchoring phenomena and engaging scenarios help students develop an understanding of three-dimensional learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will: 1. understand the importance of anchoring phenomena tied to scenarios to drive student learning; 2. leave with example STEM units aligned to industries and careers that can be implemented in the classroom; and 3. share a model template for creating their own STEM units.

SPEAKERS:
Jo Anne Vasquez (NSTA President 96-97: , AZ), Michael Comer (Savvas Learning Co.: Paramus, NJ)

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)

The goal of this presentation is to share resources and best practices that will aid instructors in developing an innovative cross-curricular STEM instructional setting.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will leave with the following: 1. a list of resources that can be used to implement STEM objectives across all subject areas; 2. specific examples of how to develop a cross-curricular STEM unit based on a literary text; 3. a template to guide them in developing cross-curricular STEM activities; and 4. a cross-curricular unit they will design during the session.

SPEAKERS:
Lynn Dunn (NTID Regional STEM Center: Talladega, AL)

Sponsoring Company: STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning

Come engage in strategies that can help your English Learners (ELs) make sense of science concepts and apply their science knowledge to real-world applications. In this session, we will explore a variety of strategies for differentiating instruction so that ELs within the classroom can build their ability to communicate science concepts effectively.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Navigate the 5-E Model of Instruction through the lens of a ESL teacher; 2. show strategies that support English Learners as they learn content and acquire English; and 3. identify supports for ELs embedded in STEMscopes.

SPEAKERS:
Veronica Burnett (STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning: Houston, TX)

Sponsoring Company: Amplify

How can we create a learning environment that taps into students’ natural curiosity about engineering design and supports them in doing the authentic design work of an engineer?

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn: 1. how design thinking and technological solutions will continue to increase in importance as we work to address the challenges that confront our modern world in areas such as agriculture, human health, and the environment; 2. why providing students a foundation in engineering design allows them to better engage in and aspire to solve the major societal and environmental challenges they will face in the decades ahead; and 3. how to create a learning environment that taps into students’ natural curiosity about engineering design and supports them in doing the authentic design work of an engineer.

SPEAKERS:
Rebecca Abbott (The Lawrence Hall of Science: Berkeley, CA)