Join us to explore the free online student notebook and facilitator’s guide, make your own mosquito larvae trap, and do NASA citizen science.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Students will learn where, how, and when to safely find mosquito larvae, and how to identify three medically important mosquito genera; 2. Mosquitoes and the diseases they spread are everywhere; students will learn how to reduce the number of mosquito breeding sites in their local community and contribute their citizen science data; and 3. Facilitators will learn about the insights, answers, recommendations, background information, applications, and supplements (games and book lists) found in the Facilitator’s Guide.

SPEAKERS:
Liz Burck (Institute for Global Environmental Strategies: Arlington, VA), Cassie Soeffing (Institute for Global Environmental Strategies: Arlington, VA)

My NASA Data will present the wealth of NGSS-focused NASA resources that promote learning in flexible Earth science classroom spaces such as hybrid, in-person, and virtual environments.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Test out the newly updated Data Literacy Cubes to scaffold Earth science data exploration for a variety of learners; 2. Explore a wealth of three-dimensional resources that support teaching and learning with NASA Earth data; and 3. Navigate through the My NASA Data offerings to locate resources that support your teaching and learning goals.

SPEAKERS:
Desiray Wilson (Science Systems and Applications, Inc.: Hampton, VA), Janet Struble (: Toledo, OH), Jessica Taylor (NASA Langley Research Center: Hampton, VA)

This session focuses on the core messages of the book Crosscutting Concepts: Strengthening Science and Engineering Learning, published by NSTA Press in 2021.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. The power of crosscutting concepts is most fully realized when they are used in conjunction with science and engineering practices and disciplinary core ideas; 2. Crosscutting concepts serve as lenses on phenomena, supporting all students in question-asking and sensemaking; and 3. Teacher leadership is critical to realizing the power of crosscutting concepts in practice.

SPEAKERS:
Jeff Nordine (The University of Iowa: Iowa City, IA), Okhee Lee (New York University: New York, NY)

Connect your school with local colleges and STEM employers using relevant, standards-based, hands-on activities that spark interest in science and STEM careers. Sample activity included.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. How to identify and reach out to potential community and industry partners; 2. How to build a program or event that meets the needs of all stakeholders; and 3. How to develop authentic learning experiences to impact student perspectives of locally available STEM careers.

SPEAKERS:
Bethany Kenyon (BioNetwork: Greenville, NC)

This session introduces a way to create in-person and remote learning experiences that give all students a chance to learn how to use the DCIs, CCS, and SEPs to make sense of the world around them.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. How to make in-person and remote learnings experience more meaningful, relevant, and equitable for students; 2. How to give students an opportunity to use their own ideas along with the DCIs, CCs, and SEPs in the service of sensemaking; and 3. How embedded formative assessment during an investigation can be used to examine student sensemaking.

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

We are awash in assessment data, but often it’s overwhelming to make sense of it. Join us to learn tips and strategies for wrangling data.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Explore new ways to organize data collection and raw data to aid in exploring the data for stories after it is collected; 2. Acquire skills in tying questions, data types, and data visualizations to enhance your ability to make sense of your assessment data; and 3. Identify next steps to better utilize and leverage your assessment data to help you measure students’ learning and know what steps to consider next.

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

Learn how to apply for NMLSTA’s Classroom Teacher Awards and Hurd Award. This interactive workshop will provide information and an opportunity to begin an application.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. NMLSTA Classroom Teachers awards provide up to $200 to support science in your classroom and has a quick and easy application. 2. The Hurd Award is for exemplary science teaching performance including leadership in sharing these ideas and a great way to showcase what you are doing in science education. 3. This workshop will cover eligibility, requirements, and timelines along with how to write a successful application, an opportunity to brainstorm ideas and start an application.

SPEAKERS:
Alison Seymour (Science Teacher: Winchester, 0)

Come find out how to involve your students in learning how AI and ML can be taught to your students, how it can be used to promote equity in the classroom, and how it can make YOUR teaching job easier! If you can, bring a data set and computer.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. AI and ML can help equitize the science classroom by allowing students to participate in learning; 2. AI and ML can be taught to students in the classroom and is an excellent 21st-century skill for all students; and 3. AI and ML hold the possibility to make the science teacher's job easier.

SPEAKERS:
Holly Amerman (University of Georgia: Athens, GA), Anna Herdliska (Gwinnett County Public Schools: Suwanee, GA)

The James Webb Space Telescope will be the most advanced astronomical space observatory ever launched. Learn how to bring the JWST into your classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. What infrared makes visible—cool stars and warm planets; 2. Galaxies and Star Life Cycles; and 3. Spectroscopy to study celestial bodies.

SPEAKERS:
Melissa Sleeper (Storm Grove Middle School: Vero Beach, FL)

Learn how using NextGen TIME can help you get the best possible science instructional materials into the hands of teachers prepared to use them.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. NextGen TIME is a suite of tools and processes that support district leaders in: a. preparing to evaluate instructional materials; b. evaluating instructional materials for their quality and design for next generation science; and c. planning for next steps including customization to improve student outcomes and effective implementation in classrooms throughout the district; 2. NextGen TIME is a collaborative, evidence based suite of tools and processes for professional learning that helps teachers and others operationalize the characteristics of high-quality instructional materials designed for next generation science; and 3. Using NextGen TIME represents an investment in curriculum-based professional learning to increase the likelihood that all students and teachers have access to the best possible materials for the local context.

SPEAKERS:
Jody Bintz (BSCS Science Learning: Colorado Springs, CO), Jenine Cotton-Proby (BSCS Science Learning: Colorado Springs, CO)

Explore inexpensive hands-on demonstrations and interactive models to build conceptual understanding of Earth’s elasticity, structure, plate motions, and more.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will be able to: 1. describe a suite of hands-on models, evaluating their merits and limitations; 2. differentiate between mental models and expressed models, linking multiple types of models to phenomena (to express the unviewable); and 3. support explanations by analyzing and interpreting data generated by physical models.

SPEAKERS:
Michael Hubenthal (IRIS | Earthscope Consortium: Washington, DC)

Can you land on Mars? Join us for a hands-on engineering design challenge that explores shock absorption and air resistance while making connections to careers and real-world experiences.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Understand NGSS engineering practices about design, testing, and developing models and solutions for elementary and middle school students; 2. Learn effective teaching strategies to engage students in engineering practices that promote critical thinking, problem solving, and creativity; and 3. Learn how to motivate students with space exploration, including exciting current events and careers.

SPEAKERS:
Natasha Wilkerson (Texas A&M University: College Station, TX)

Engage in a variety of activities, collect information and resources, and network with middle level leaders from NSTA and NMLSTA. Discover new ideas and materials that you can use next week.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will: 1. have networking opportunities with other middle level science educators; 2. discover resources to help them in all aspects of their teaching; and 3. engage in a variety of new activities to use with their students.

SPEAKERS:
Mary Lou Lipscomb (National Middle Level Science Teachers Association: Naperville, IL), Rebecca Kurson (Collegiate School: New York, NY), Wendy Abshire (American Meteorological Society: Washington, DC), Alison Seymour (Science Teacher: Winchester, 0), Bruce Boehne (Zion Lutheran School: Dallas, TX), Marissa Nalley (The Algae Foundation: Midland, TX), Abigail Stimach (American Meteorological Society: Washington, DC), Kylie Wynaker (The Algae Foundation: Midland, TX), Amanda Clapp (The Catamount School: Sylva, NC), Covey Denton (Greenfield School: No City, No State), Katy Garvey (The Source for Learning, Inc.: Reston, VA), Edralin Pagarigan (Golden Ring Middle School: Rosedale, MD), Emily Ong (Girls Who Code: New York, NY)

Join us for a hands-on experience and discussion about modeling! It will feature quick-start guides, student work examples, and modeling assessment strategies.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will: 1. learn how to use a model with a given natural phenomenon; 2. learn how to scaffold models for all diverse learners; and 3. be given ready-to-use resources to start modeling in their classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Brittany Blair (Charles H. Barrows STEM Academy: North Windham, CT), Nicole Vitello Lowell (Charles H. Barrows STEM Academy: North Windham, CT)

Use everyday materials to construct models demonstrating the size and scale of atoms, planets, the solar system, number of stars in our universe, and more.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. The universe at various scales can only be truly appreciated with an understanding and utilization of scientific notation; 2. “Scale” is important to grasping the bigness and smallness of various objects, events, and concepts in the universe; and 3. “Modeling” allows humans to literally “grasp” the various scales inherent of and in the universe.

SPEAKERS:
Elizabeth Strong (SMARTCenter: Wheeling, WV), Robert Strong (SMARTCenter: Wheeling, WV)

July 2021–highest temperatures recorded on Earth! Get your students to collect and upload surface temperature data to study the urban heat island in your area.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Activities to introduce Urban Heat Island Effect to your students; 2. Resources to help your students to do inquiry-based student research projects; and 3. My NASA Data activities aligned to NGSS.

SPEAKERS:
Janet Struble (: Toledo, OH), Susan James (St. Peter's School: Mansfield, OH)

WaterViz lesson plans allow all learners to equally engage with real scientific water cycle data uniquely represented as art, music, and scientific graphs.

TAKEAWAYS:
Students will: 1. learn about weather and the water cycle; 2. be able to predict relationships between components of the water cycle, analyze data, and use evidence to support their claims; and 3. learn about STEAM and that data can be explored in many creative forms.

SPEAKERS:
Mariella Mannino (Science Teacher: Brooklyn, NY)

Join us for engaging data sets and hands-on labs that will generate data for students to graph and interpret. You'll love seeing your students draw real conclusions from simple real-world data. Handouts!

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Practice interpreting and representing data; 2. Participate in a lab to collect, graph, and interpret data; and 3. Receive data sets and lesson plans to use with students.

SPEAKERS:
Katie Busch (The University of Alabama at Birmingham: Birimingham, AL)

Inspiring the next generation of space explorers is our mission. Creating the next generation of space leaders, entrepreneurs, and explorers takes time. It is nurtured over many years. We believe in igniting a passion for STEM within the hearts and minds of the youngest of students all the way through college—giving them tools and access to knowledge and opportunities at each stage of their lives. PCG is proud to partner with the Aldrin Family Foundation to bring exciting virtual and hands-on STEM-based Space Programs to you.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will take away: 1. knowledge of Project Artemis and the first AA Female Astronaut to walk on Mars; 2. understanding of how Space, Moon, and Mars education can inspire students of all race and ethnicity; and 3. knowledge of a complete educational robotics system that teaches coding, STEM, rover construction, and operations on GIANT Aldrin Family Foundation Mars Maps.

SPEAKERS:
Jim Christensen (The Aldrin Family Foundation: Melbourne, FL)

Democratic STEM Teaching (DST) centers student voice, creating inclusive classrooms where all students can thrive. Explore how human-centered design thinking turns DST principles into practice.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will: 1. understand the DST principles and describe practical examples of student voice, shared authority, and STEM criticality; 2. develop ideas of how to use DST principles in their own classrooms in order to create a more inclusive classroom; and 3. use the design thinking approach and protocols to identify a focus area in the classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Kelly Houston (STEM Ed Innovators: Saratoga, CA)

Get ready for the 2023 and 2024 solar eclipses. See how learning activities about Earth, Moon, and Sun provide three-dimensional learning experiences that connect to these events that will be more spectacular than the 2017 eclipse.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will: 1. have a better understanding of what is meant by three-dimensional learning; 2. see how 3-D learning can lead to knowing what causes lunar phases and eclipses; and 3. be prepared to enjoy the solar eclipses in 2023 and 2024.

SPEAKERS:
Dennis Schatz (Institute for Learning Innovation: Beaverton, OR)

Explore new ways to teach climate change science and discover strategies and resources to engage and empower students in the defining issue affecting their future.

TAKEAWAYS:
Examine how climate change impacts the planet and people, especially people in marginalized communities, and how to explore the inequitable distribution of impact; 2. Learn about resources, activities, and ideas to implement climate change in your curriculum, including a free e-book you can use with your students; and 3. Compare and contrast individual, local, national, and global climate change solutions, and how you, your students, and school might participate and how you, as a science teacher, can inspire action.

SPEAKERS:
Alyson Mike (Presidio Graduate School: San Francisco, CA)

This workshop will focus in using real time data from a trusted site such as NOAA to predict weather patterns. The use of these visual models help the students understand more complex items that are found on weather maps such as isobars, high pressure, low pressure, cold fronts, ect. The participants will be creating their own maps to take home with them and a more detailed map given out by the presenter.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Weather map construction is a model; 2. Weather maps help with using one of CCC prediction and SEP creating models; and 3. Data is not boring.

SPEAKERS:
Kelly Mulligan (Bridgeport Public School: Bridgeport, NE)

Discover resources and tools to aid in crafting 3-D assessments. Bring your own assessment for peer feedback or explore OERs to adapt to your setting.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Best practices in 3-D assessment design; 2. Strategies for adapting existing assessments; and 3. Resources for identifying engaging phenomena.

SPEAKERS:
Becky McDowell (Independent Contractor: Springfield, PA)

FREE IRIS and UNAVCO resources explore how the earthquake system behaves across long and short time scales using observations; evidence; and simple, interactive physical models.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will be able to: 1. use evidence and reasoning to construct an explanation for earthquake occurrence at varying timescales; 2. model energy inputs and outputs to the earthquake cycle using a simple mechanical model; and 3. describe how the moment magnitude is calculated for an earthquake and how this relates to basic physical science principles.

SPEAKERS:
John Taber (IRIS | Earthscope Consortium: Chevy Chase, MD)

Discover an engaging, hands-on experience for your students that focuses on middle school science concepts using breakout and interactive games with puzzles and clues.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn: 1. how to create their own breakout room or interactive game tailored to specific student needs; 2. the benefits of using games that require the use of multiple learning styles to master content for the grade 8 science assessment; and 3. learn how to use games in the science classroom to increase scientific literacy by using thinking, reading, writing, and discourse strategies to deepen the understanding of the content.

SPEAKERS:
Jonathan Kramer (Dallas ISD: Dallas, TX)

STEM classrooms can be exclusive if teachers do not identify the lack of prior learning opportunities and misconceptions early in the year. Come learn how one teacher uses coding to bridge the gap in her STEM classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. STEM inclusion activities; 2. Coding in the classroom; and 3. STEM project ideas.

SPEAKERS:
Stacy Thibodeaux (Southside High School: Youngsville, LA)