Executive function deficits are common in students and impact achievement. Come learn what executive functioning is and strategies to make your classroom executive function friendly.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will gain a deeper understanding of what executive functioning is and how problems with executive functioning can impact student engagement in the classroom. Through hands-on activities, participants will walk away with ready to implement strategies and ideas to reach all learners.

SPEAKERS:
Melissa Thomas (F. A. Day Middle School: No City, No State)

Students are going to talk anyway. Learn to make talk productive with student-led talk circles. Use this powerful strategy tomorrow to build students’ scientific literacy!

TAKEAWAYS:
Talk Circles enable educators to uncover student ideas and misconceptions as well as reveal students’ understanding to pave the way for further investigation.

SPEAKERS:
Patricia McMahon (Charles H. Barrows STEM Academy: North Windham, CT), Sheri Geitner (Charles H. Barrows STEM Academy: North Windham, CT), Nicole Bay (Charles H. Barrows STEM Academy: North Windham, CT)

Learn how to blend career-connected learning with STEM learning using a suite of career awareness and exploration resources featuring diverse STEM professionals and workplaces. These freely available resources work well in both formal & informal settings for students in 3rd grade through college!

TAKEAWAYS:
ISB has free online videos & resources for career-connected learning. These can be used in formal classrooms & extracurricular programs to highlight nontraditional STEM careers & fields. They also help build systems thinking skills that are applicable and important for student success in any field.

SPEAKERS:
Sara Calder (Preservice Teacher: Seattle, WA), Miranda Johnson (Systems Thinkers in STEM Coordinator)

Join this session to explore effective and practical student discourse strategies that promote inclusive and productive classroom discourse. In this session, you will have the opportunity to engage in a few strategies as a learner to better equip you with implementing these with your students!

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will leave with a deeper understanding of shifts in classroom talk patterns, like moving away from the I-R-E talk pattern and towards Productive Talk. Attendees will engage with practical and effective discourse strategies that promote inclusive and productive classroom discourse.

SPEAKERS:
Rebecca Garelli (Arizona Science Teachers Association)

Learn how to integrate the engineering design process and environmental education to engage students in this unit designed for upper elementary students! Participants will complete the Ocean Cleanup Challenge from the perspective of a student and learn about the Trashion Fashion Challenge.

TAKEAWAYS:
In this session, participants will learn how to increase student awareness of ocean and land pollution through hands-on STEM challenges. They will also learn how to connect relevant, real world topics that matter to promote student voice.

SPEAKERS:
Meghan Marrero (Mercy University, Dobbs Ferry Campus: No City, No State), Johanna Vasquez (Trinity Elementary School: New Rochelle, NY), Terri Agravat (Trinity Elementary School: New Rochelle, NY)

Inspired by recent space launches? Wondering how to capture the excitement with your students? Join us to learn how we use rocketry and avionics to teach data analysis and system engineering. This course allows exploration of Newton’s 2nd Law through guided modules that develop knowledge and skills.

TAKEAWAYS:
Educators will explore the phenomena of rocketry through a hands-on activity focused on hardware and flight. They will then formulate how predictive and actual data tell the whole story of the rocket's flight. The session culminates with the supports to make rocketry accessible in their classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Heather Arnett (STEM Coordinator: Champaign, IL)

Empower our students to be solutionary thinkers with “think local, act global” as an important theme in student centered instruction. Create engaging 3D, phenomenon-based opportunities through a social justice lens and harness local and global community partnerships to deepen student learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Create a solutionary approach to lesson planning connecting local and global environmental issues in California and Africa, while enhancing SEL. Using the 3D5E DO-KNOW-THINK Learning Sequence, teachers create STEAM-centered lessons for engagement, interdisciplinary active learning, and empathy.

SPEAKERS:
Marie Gorman (STEM 4 Real: San Francisco, CA), Jacqueline Lafitte (Teacher: Hayward, CA), Leena Bakshi (STEM4Real: No City, No State)

Why do many students struggle with data? We will explore strategies for finding high quality datasets and discuss different approaches of building data skills by integrating real-time data into our teaching. Data as our instructional hook can result in changes for all of our students' data skills.

TAKEAWAYS:
Review ways to leverage real-world data -- including personalized or daily data -- to enhance all students’ ability to access and make sense of data as parts of our instructional practices and/or adjust the curriculum you have.

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

We will explore the what, why, and how of integrated science and language teaching. We will describe, illustrate, and model research-based strategies, tools, and resources teachers can use to support inquiry, sense-making, and language development with their young multilingual learners (MLs)

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with some research-based strategies, tools, and resources to support planning and facilitation of language-enriched and inclusive science experiences that leverage science as a context for language and for building skills across the developmental domains with a focus on MLs

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)

Explore how engineering benefits English learners as you engage in lessons designed to foster engineering, science, and language learning for elementary students.

TAKEAWAYS:
Engineering activities can offer multimodal experiences for English learners that encourage their participation and contributions to the engineering classroom community and engage them in purposeful uses of language.

SPEAKERS:
Christine Cunningham (Museum of Science, Boston: Boston, MA)

BRIDGES is a new initiative through the U.S. Department of Energy Bioenergy Technologies Office, Idaho National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory to bridge the awareness and learning gaps for rural and urban communities as well as students from underrepresented groups. In this session, we will introduce our four new educational case studies in bioenergy that place students in collaborative and decision-making roles. Through the cases, students learn how bioenergy is important in our lives and is also being used to solve real environmental and economic challenges. Students will also discover career options for both non-technical and technical skills that can be used in the government, national laboratories, as well as private industry. Scientific practice skills such as developing and using models and obtaining, analyzing and interpreting data are featured in the cases.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will be introduced to four newly developed case study curricular resources that feature cutting edge science in sustainable aviation fuel, waste to energy, plastics upcycling, and biofuel feedstocks. After working one of the case studies, they will leave prepared to use it in the classroom

SPEAKERS:
Jennifer Jackson (Precollege and Early Workforce Development Manager: , ID), Kelly Sturner (Argonne National Labaratory: Lemont, IL)

Inclusive Community Science Workshops in schools, libraries, and communities fosters STEM learning, creativity, innovation, and identity through play, making, and positive social interactions.

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn about instructional innovations, resources, and ideas for enhancing STEM learning and teaching.

SPEAKERS:
Jerry Valadez (Fresno State and SAM Academy CSW)

Teaching Biology to ESL students sitting in our science classrooms can be challenging. In this session we will dive into Macromolecules with hands-on activities using toys as manipulatives and concluding with a mini investigation comparing macromolecule nutrients in cow's milk with nondairy milk.

TAKEAWAYS:
Macromolecules can be overwhelming to ESL students who have limited English and Biology vocabulary skills. In this session we will break down a difficult topic into hands-on activities and a mini investigation that will bring Macromolecules to life.

SPEAKERS:
Sarida Hoy (Dalton High School: No City, No State)

This project was funded by a National Science Foundation grant to expose high school students to geoscience within their required science curriculum. A collateral benefit is integrating key concepts in other sciences. In Biology, natural selection requires eons (“deep time”) to create Earth’s biodiversity. In project-based learning using fossil-bearing rocks of multiple ages, students experience deep time concretely. A barrier to hands-on fossil study is the expense of specimens good enough for university students to systematically learn fossil taxa. However, imperfect samples can connect anyone to deep time. Ironically, some such samples are simply dumped when teachers return from professional development field trips. This presentation reveals a path to making use of such ordinary material by 1) circling fossils in ink, 2) creating a picture guide from circled fossils, 3) building a PBL unit uniting those fossils with a biodiversity-though-time graphic known as a Tree of Life diagram.

TAKEAWAYS:
Might students better master evolution standards, especially extinction and adaptation, by encountering fossils through "deep time"? Teacher-collected samples, with fossils circled in ink, a picture guide made from the set, and a detailed Tree of Life diagram form foundations for PBL exploration.

SPEAKERS:
Katty Mobasher (Professor of Geology and GIS: , GA), Adrianna Rajkumar (Lecturer), Bill Witherspoon (geologist/educator: Decatur, GA)

Come join the fun! During this session you will create tools you can use to differentiate your science instruction and provide for the diversity of your students’ needs. Strategies necessary to teach diverse learners science are provided. Participants will actively engage in hands-on activities.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will actively engage in hands-on activities modeled to deliver instruction using a multi-sensory approach. Materials and handouts are provided.

SPEAKERS:
Marianne Phillips (Texas A&M University-San Antonio: San Antonio, TX)

In this session, participants will work on hands-on activities and test a prototype to learn about forces using the engineering design model and translanguaging for elementary grades.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to teach about forces for elementary grade level using an engineering activity and translanguaging (English/Spanish).

SPEAKERS:
Brianna Ricker (Student: No City, No State), Max Vazquez Dominguez (University of North Georgia: Dahlonega, GA)

In this session, participants will work on hands-on activities and test a prototype to learn about genetics using the engineering design model and translanguaging for middle grades.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to teach about genetics for middle grade level using an engineering activity and translanguaging (English/Spanish).

SPEAKERS:
Maggie Lewis (Student: Dawsonville, GA), Lorraine Ramirez Villarin (University of North Georgia: Dahlonega, GA), Victoria Hunter (Student), Max Vazquez Dominguez (University of North Georgia: Dahlonega, GA)

This interactive session will explore scaffolded, NGSS aligned, three-dimensional Earth science resources for all students including multilingual learners. The My NASA Data Literacy Cubes support data literacy using authentic data from scientific research.

TAKEAWAYS:
Implementation strategies for a flexible resource which can be used with multiple Earth System Science DCIs, support numerous science and engineering practices related to questions, evidence, models and data, and CCCs for patterns, scale, proportion and quantity, and stability and change.

SPEAKERS:
Desiray Wilson (Science Systems and Applications, Inc.: Hampton, VA), Natalie Macke (Pascack Hills High School: Montvale, NJ), Angela Rizzi (NASA Langley Research Center/ADNET: No City, No State)

Empowering students to make science-based decisions requires acknowledgment and dialogue around the injustices marginalized communities have endured within scientific fields. We will engage in meaningful talk around race, vaccinations, and applications within a sample lesson for science classrooms.

TAKEAWAYS:
Create opportunities to acknowledge and validate students’ personal experiences even when it might be divergent from our own personal experiences or larger data sets.

SPEAKERS:
Justin Betzelberger (UCLA Science Project: Los Angeles, CA), Richard Huynh (Science Coach: No City, No State), Zachary Cue (UCLA STEM+C3 and Science Project)

This session will pair seemingly odd ideas (roleplaying and buffers) together for a dynamic activity that increases student engagement. Roleplaying is an effective instructional strategy that supports ELL learners and those who need harder concepts broken down.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn a differentiated approach to introducing buffers, one of the most challenging topics in AP Chemistry, in a creative and fun activity where ELL and students of all levels will learn about buffers.

SPEAKERS:
Permeil Dass (: Tyrone, GA)

Engage multilingual learners with human ecology activities scaffolded for different levels of English proficiency. Participate in hands-on lessons (simulations and group problem solving) that promote 3D learning while building language skills.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn strategies to adapt science activities for the middle school classroom to be more inclusive for English language learners. Shared activities explore “Human Impacts on Earth’s Systems” and “Natural Resources” (ESS3).

SPEAKERS:
Abby Watkins (Population Connection: Washington, DC)

Teaching reproduction and puberty can be challenging for early middle schoolers. We have created a fun, engaging, and inquiry-based curriculum that gets even the most hesitant student excited about sexual health!

TAKEAWAYS:
Teaching reproduction and puberty for middle schoolers can be engaging and fun!

SPEAKERS:
Laura Doyle (MYP Science Teacher: Atlanta, GA), Kyla Corelli (Atlanta International School: Atlanta, GA)

Learn to make cardboard mechanisms and structures, create a mechanism that looks like a letter, and mount it to make a structure. Students in pre-K classrooms in Brooklyn, NY have learned to identify mechanisms and structures by engaging in these activities.

TAKEAWAYS:
Mechanisms and structures are all around us! Mechanisms have independent moving parts, while structures do not. Increasing the number of fasteners can turn a mechanism into a structure while removing fasteners can turn it back into a mechanism.

SPEAKERS:
Jazlyn Mena (Castle Bridge School: New York, NY), Jody Hilton (P.S. 44 Marcus Garvey Magnet School of Engineering and Design and The City College of New York), Lacey Samsoe (Teacher: Brooklyn, NY)

New science curricula use effective pedagogy to provide young people opportunities to explore the prevalence and impacts of plastics, learn about emerging work on sustainable bioplastics, and plan authentic projects to help mitigate environmental impacts in their communities.

TAKEAWAYS:
How to use this new peer-reviewed curriculum to engage youth in environmental science and civic engagement.

SPEAKERS:
Martin Smith (University of California, Davis: Davis, CA)

Attendees will engage in hands-on activities focused on force and motion concepts. Activities are easy set-ups using low-cost household materials that promote inclusivity of all students.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will be engaged in multiple activities that promote learning and inclusivity of all students. Necessary materials and best teaching practices will be shared so that attendees can immediately incorporate knowledge and activities into their own classrooms.

SPEAKERS:
Andrea Starks (Houston Middle School: Germantown, TN)

Adopting curriculums is a top priority for many schools across the nation. While curriculums are useful, they often have shortcomings. One shortcoming we often see in schools is a lack of engagement between the students and the content. In this session, we will explore strategies that align with the 5E Instructional Cycle and UDL that can be easily implemented with the curriculums adopted by schools and provide opportunities for students to engage with science and engineering practices. The strategies can be implemented immediately in the classroom setting. Each strategy presented can be leveled up or leveled down for varied grade levels, including differentiated supports in class to support the varied learners in a classroom. Engage strategies include Observations and Questions and Four Corners. Both are low stakes and engage learning with phenomena immediately. The Explain strategy leverages reading in science and makes it accessible through targeted questions and scaffolding.

TAKEAWAYS:
Small shifts in the curriculum can make large shifts to develop an inclusive classroom environment. Science should be accessible for all and by taking prescribed curriculum and making a few adjustments, all students can engage in science learning.

SPEAKERS:
Whitney McCormick (Alliance College Ready Public Schools: Los Angeles, CA), Sheena Velasquez (Alliance College-Ready Public Schools: Los Angeles, CA)

This workshop will be integrating Game Based Learning strategies into hands on experience for participants. The focus will be looking at crosscutting concepts and the science and engineering practices to make science come alive thru game play.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will come away with a model and their own lesson as well as ideas on game based learning integrated through the Next Generation Science Standards.

SPEAKERS:
Tammie Schrader (NorthEast Washington ESD 101: Spokane, WA)

With increasing diversity in student populations and continued focus on STEM education, new approaches are needed to increase student interest and literacy in science. Student success in the science classroom requires that they be authentically engaged as they investigate and communicate their understanding of scientific phenomena. In this session, participants will receive 30+ classroom-ready strategies, activities, games, templates, and resources that will help engage all learners and increase student achievement in various domains of science. The resources and strategies provided will help participants teaching grade 6 and higher motivate even the most unengaged students. Resources and strategies target areas of the 5- E Model of instruction. Many activities can be used as formative assessments to assess student learning. Participants may modify the activities based on the content they teach and the academic level of student groups and individual students.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will explore resources including activities, templates, games, etc. they can use to increase the scientific literacy and engagement of all students. These can be used “as is” or modified to include other content based on the needs of the learners.

SPEAKERS:
Iris Mudd (Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools: Winston Salem, NC)

Physical computing allows students to design and create interactive objects that emphasize computational thinking skills. Participants will engage in activities designed for middle school students.

TAKEAWAYS:
Microcontrollers are small computers that come with several integrated sensors. Their functionality makes them useful for both investigations and engineering projects. We will focus in how engineering tasks using microcontrollers provide opportunities for student sensemaking.

SPEAKERS:
G. Michael Bowen (Mount Saint Vincent University: Halifax, NS), Susan German (Hallsville Middle School: Hallsville, MO)

The sky belongs to everyone - including middle-school age youth. Learn how to join the Youth Astronomy Network (YouthAstroNet) of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, where your students can tell their own star stories using images they capture from real robotic telescopes.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn YouthAstroNet’s strategies for engaging students from culturally diverse backgrounds in accessible, relevant and meaningful exploration of their place in the cosmos and find out how they can join the YouthAstroNet online community, supported by the National Science Foundation

SPEAKERS:
Erika Wright (Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian: Cambridge, MA), Mary Dussault (Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian: Cambridge, MA)