Explore using the SEPs to make remote STE instruction inquiry based. Participate in a remote hands-on investigation. Receive a toolkit of resources, strategies, and instructional tools.

Materials needed:

• Markers or crayons
• Large sheet of heavy weight paper (11x17 or 8.5 x14)
• 4–6 ice cubes all about the same size
• 4 paper cups big enough to hold 2 ice cubes
• Cooler or access to freezer to keep ice frozen
• Aluminum tray
• Black or white tray (take-out container will work)

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Leave with a toolkit of distance-learning practices and investigations to enhance students’ use of the SEPs; 2. Learn about distance-learning tools that support the engagement of all students in STE; and 3. Develop new ideas for performance-based assessments using distance-learning strategies.

SPEAKERS:
Rosemary Rak (Wade Institute for Science Education: Quincy, MA), Angela Damery (Wade Institute for Science Education: Quincy, MA), Sandra Ryack-Bell (Wade Institute for Science Education: Quincy, MA), Margaret Brumsted (Education Specialist: Riverside, RI)

My NASA Data will model interactive resources for students learning in-person and via virtual environments that feature short activities, lessons, and access to NASA data.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will: 1. walk away with access to NASA resources for their Earth science classrooms that can be linked directly to their learning management systems; 2. learn of interactive strategies for using these resources with students in a variety of learning environments; and 3. learn of an Earth science data visualization tool that enables students/educators to access and visualize NASA data for a particular region or time period.

SPEAKERS:
Elizabeth Joyner (NASA Langley Research Center: Hampton, VA), Angela Rizzi (NASA Langley Research Center/ Science Systems and Applications, Inc. (SSAI): Hampton, VA)

Participate in an energy delivery–themed virtual escape room activity. Solve puzzles and pursue clues to discover the origin of a cascading blackout.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. The U.S. power grid is the system of producers and consumers of electricity. It includes power generators, switches that control the flow of electricity, substations, miles of power lines, and millions of transformers; 2. Nearly all electricity is used the moment it is generated. The power grid is continually evolving as we integrate alternative power resources and invent technologies; and 3. This challenging process allows us to deliver energy to homes and businesses in cleaner, more efficient ways and makes the system more resilient to disruption.

SPEAKERS:
Jana Sebestik (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: Champaign, IL), Logan Marlow (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: Urbana, IL), Michael McKelvey (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: Urbana, IL), Christina Tran (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: Urbana, IL)

My NASA Data will model interactive resources for students learning in-person and via virtual environments that feature short activities, lessons, and access to NASA data.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will: 1. walk away with access to NASA resources for their Earth science classrooms that can be linked directly to their learning management systems; 2. learn of interactive strategies for using these resources with students in a variety of learning environments; and 3. learn of an Earth science data visualization tool that enables students/educators to access and visualize NASA data for a particular region or time period.

SPEAKERS:
Angela Rizzi (NASA Langley Research Center/ Science Systems and Applications, Inc. (SSAI): Hampton, VA), Elizabeth Joyner (NASA Langley Research Center: Hampton, VA)

Engage in a lesson from NOAA’s Data in the Classroom to explore some effective engagement and assessment tools and technologies for the post-COVID classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Keep experimenting with EdTech inside and outside of your classrooms; 2. Utilize EdTech for assessment and engagement of all learners in the classroom; and 3. Access scientific data from NOAA to help students evaluate claims, construct arguments, and better understand the world around them.

SPEAKERS:
Amy Dean (Jewish Community High School of the Bay: San Francisco, CA)

We will share the strategies and activities that made our first virtual STEM institute an engaging and educational experience for diverse upper elementary and middle level youth.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will: 1. identify best practices for engaging youth in informal STEM experiences, including an end-of-summer celebration; 2. learn how we delivered programming in STEM with multiple grade-level bands; and 3. gain a list of valuable resources we used to teach scientific concepts, including how we created and distributed kits.

SPEAKERS:
Demetrice Smith-Mutegi (Old Dominion University: Norfolk, VA)