Explore the properties of light with hands-on activities. Build a spectrometer, make an LED saber, “see” sound with a laser light show, reflect/refract and absorb light in an obstacle course and more! Easily and cheaply bring back to your classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn about light and the properties of light through engaging and fun, hands-on activities they can easily and cheaply take back to their classrooms.

SPEAKERS:
Betty Bigney (Blue Creek Elementary School: Jacksonville, NC), Holly Mentillo (Ocean Breeze Elementary School: Indian Harbour beach, FL)

Participants will learn how to choose a picture book as a basis for an engineering unit, examine examples of several books that we have turned into engineering units, follow our journey to construct a force and motion unit, and participate in the Engineering Challenge to build a better race car.

TAKEAWAYS:
The participants will understand how to select a picture book to support a science standard, as well as be able to construct an engineering unit based on the chosen book. Participants will also receive a copy of our force and motion unit based on to use in their classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Jenna Henkel (Georgia Youth Science and Technology Centers, Inc.: Kennesaw, GA), Pamela Parks (Georgia Youth Science and Technology Centers, Inc.)

We will share a model of science home/school partnership, focused on families of young multilingual learners (MLs) that fuels their science and language learning across contexts, sparks their interest and self-efficacy in science, and can be leveraged to support their school science learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with concrete strategies, tools, and resources for building science partnerships with families of MLs that support language-enriched science experiences at home and mutually reinforce children's NGSS-aligned science and language experiences at school.

SPEAKERS:
Mandell Academy (Connecticut Science Center: Hartford, CT), Rachel Shurick (Connecticut Science Center: Hartford, CT), Becky Fahey (Connecticut Science Center: Hartford, CT), Cindy Hoisington (Education Development Center, Inc.: Holbrook, MA)

Many states are adopting policy that promotes the use of high-quality standards-aligned curriculum for all grade levels. However, educators may question the accessibility of these units for all students. In the Science Curriculum Adaptation Project for Special Educators (SCAPE) program, science specialists from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education worked with special educators to adapt the NYU SAIL “Garbage” unit for students with moderate to severe disabilities. Science specialists provided learning activities around the structures and routines in the unit and guided teachers through key lessons. Teachers then identified barriers and used Universal Design for Learning (UDL) to adapt the unit for their students to access ideas and SEPs in the unit. Each teacher participant left with an adapted unit to pilot with students. In this presentation we will outline the program and share examples of adaptations made for students with disabilities.

TAKEAWAYS:
Session attendees will learn about a MA program designed to support special education teachers in using the high quality “Garbage” unit with their students. Attendees will also see examples of UDL-based adaptations that can be used with science students with moderate to severe disabilities.

SPEAKERS:
Angela Palo (Horace Mann School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing: Boston, MA), Casandra Gonzalez (Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education: Malden, MA)

Learn how to use the Uncovering Student Ideas probes in an explore-before-explain instructional sequence to support a classroom where all students' ideas matter!

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn about a resource for formative assessment and explore-before-explain teaching.

SPEAKERS:
Page Keeley (NSTA Past President: No City, No State), Patrick Brown (Fort Zumwalt School District R-II: O'Fallon, MO)

This session will demonstrate drag, gravity, thrust and lift and how those forces are integrated into a unit that uses paper airplanes to explore science and engineering practices and disciplinary literacy techniques in reading and writing with Amelia Earhart, aviator & champion of women’s rights.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will come away from this session with concrete resources on how key concepts in physical science can be embedded within an engaging unit using airplanes that also support student learning in the practices of science and engineering.

SPEAKERS:
Michele Koomen (Research Professor: No City, No State)

Looking for more interactive grade 3-5 physical science curriculum? Students will engage with robot SaM-1’s videos and hands on activities while exploring physical science at an animal conservatory and on vacation at the beach! Free access will be given to use this curriculum in your class.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will be given access to a physical science curriculum in grades 3-5 that provides instructional content via videos, hands on lesson and labs, bulletin board ideas and coding. The curriculum is meant to transform elementary science classrooms from using workbooks to real science!

SPEAKERS:
Jim Reynolds (STEM coordinator: Tallahassee, FL), Carrie Meyers (Curriculum Coordinator: No City, No State)

This session will introduce NSTA's phenomenon-driven, three-dimensional instructional materials designed for elementary classrooms. These lessons and units provide opportunities for all students to engage in science learning meaningful to them.

TAKEAWAYS:
Phenomenon-driven, three-dimensional lessons and units provide students opportunities to actively try to figure out how the world works or design solutions to problems (sensemaking).

SPEAKERS:
Patrice Scinta (NSTA: Arlington, VA)