Join us to learn how OpenSciEd materials can help you build science learning experiences anchored in compelling phenomena and meaningful community and global problems. This PLI will introduce you to the first unit in the OpenSciEd High School physics course. You will experience firsthand how the unit is driven by student questions, you will put on your “student hat” to feel what it’s like to be a student whose thoughts and questions help drive learning forward in the unit, and reflect on coherence in the unit by unpacking the unit storyline. You also will gain a birds-eye view of the structure of units for all three courses of OpenSciEd– biology, chemistry, and physics– and discuss the routines and resources that promote equitable science learning in high school. Additional follow-up sessions throughout the conference will dig deeper into other courses in OpenSciEd and provide practical strategies for implementing OpenSciEd in your classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
You will experience firsthand how the unit is driven by student questions, you will put on your “student hat” to feel what it’s like to be a student whose thoughts and questions help drive learning forward in the unit, and reflect on coherence in the unit by unpacking the unit storyline.

SPEAKERS:
Zoe Buck Bracey (Senior Science Educator and Director of Design for Justice: Colorado Springs, CO), Kate Henson (University of Colorado Boulder: Boulder, CO)

Come join us to see how OpenSciEd’s materials can help you reveal your students’ brilliance. The first full day of the professional learning institute (PLI) will simultaneously prepare you to teach the first unit in the OpenSciEd middle school program and provide the support you need to advance your practice so that learning is both driven by student questions and leads to the foundational science learning they need to be successful. To do this, this session will put teachers in the student’s seat so they can feel what it's like to be a student whose thoughts and questions are valued in the drive to figure out puzzling phenomena. We actually do science together with the facilitator acting as the "teacher" and then dig in to help you see the coherence across the program and the details in the first units you will be teaching.

TAKEAWAYS:
How OpenSciEd's free and publicly available instructional materials and professional learning can make my vision for science education a reality.

SPEAKERS:
Whitney Mills (BSCS Science Learning: Colorado Springs, CO), Thomas Clayton (K-5 STEAM Specialist: Berkeley Heights, NJ)

This full day course will introduce and immerse participants in the Next Generation Science Assessment (NGSA) design approach including unpacking dimensions, developing integrated dimension maps, articulating learning performances, identifying phenomena, and designing tasks.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn the steps for designing 3-dimensional tasks that align with NGSS performance expectations, take into consideration students’ diverse backgrounds, and create their own tasks at the grade level and science topic of their choice.

SPEAKERS:
Joseph Krajcik (CREATE for STEM Institute, Michigan State University: East Lansing, MI), Christopher Harris (WestEd)

Join us at the Kansas City Convention Center for an opening reception to mark the start of NSTA Kansas City23! We’ll keep it casual—enjoy beverages and small bites while networking with old and new friends. The event is complimentary and open to all registered conference attendees.

Grab a cup of coffee (or tea) and join us for an informal get-together with your peers. Each day of the conference will feature a morning coffee chat with opportunities to share ideas and experiences, expand your network, and connect with colleagues and friends from around the country.

In pre-NGSS approaches to science teaching, units were often sequenced based on how experts understand the relationship among concepts. This means that it typically requires an understanding of the concepts being taught to understand why a unit is sequenced the way it is. The result is that the sequence of activities may make sense to a teacher, but doesn’t necessarily make sense to the students. The shift to phenomena-based 3D learning brings the student to the center of the learning and uses their life experiences and approaches to sensemaking to drive the learning. This session will highlight how powerful this shift is for student ownership of learning and general engagement. Additionally, we will describe HOW to make this a reality in classrooms and provide participants with resources and supports to bring this learning to life in their classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
The shift to phenomena-based 3D learning brings the student to the center of the learning and uses their life experiences and approaches to sensemaking to drive the learning forward.

SPEAKERS:
Matt Krehbiel (OpenSciEd: New York, NY)

Participants will experience using dialogue structures and literacy skills in the science classroom. Research shows that when students are engaged with the content and are allowed the chance to make sense of it for themselves, they will learn more. Participants will experience mini lessons that incorporate phenomena and showcase research-proven structures. Participants will be actively learning strategies that can be implemented in classrooms to increase visual literacy amongst students. Strategies include reading, writing, speaking, and graphing skills. Science examples will be modeled. There will be collaborative discussions on how these strategies can be incorporated into a variety of grade levels. Throughout these strategies, we will focus on the dialogue structures set in place to encourage all students to participate and use the academic language. Each of these structures focuses on the teacher being the facilitator of the learning, rather than leading the discussions.

TAKEAWAYS:
Takeaways include: 1. Identify how literacy and dialogue are an integral part in sensemaking; 2. Engage in examples of activities that integrate speaking, listening, and reading into the science classroom; and 3. Pick up tips to promote retention of vocabulary through scaffolding.

SPEAKERS:
Molly Niedens (Tays Junior High School: Katy, TX)

Data is key to NGSS. Yet many students struggle to make sense of it. Leaving many of us baffled by what our students do with data and/or confused by the claims they make from graphs. What can we do? Leverage classroom-ready strategies based on what research says about how younger students learn from data! Join us to discuss the data skills our young learners need and try strategies to integrate these skills into whatever your curriculum or platforms. We will explore how such strategies foster science learning for all students and increase students' interest in working with data (from Pre-K to 8th). We will discuss how novices and experts interact with data differently and what that means for our teaching. As we explore classroom-ready resources around data, data visualizations, and instructional strategies to enhance our current K-8 science content instruction and increase our toolkits. Let’s set ourselves and our students up for success by building strong foundations!

TAKEAWAYS:
Acquire skills and resources to unpack strategies for K-8 students to use when interpreting science data and visualizations in our existing curriculum for building data skills.

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

According to recent studies, teaching elementary reading, writing, and math in isolation is not the most effective way for students to learn. We will show how it is possible to develop integrated learning opportunities using all of the subjects as attendees work together to analyze data and primary sources from the 1930's regarding the Dust Bowl in Kansas. Using a jigsaw method, attendees will first be divided into specialties: Horticulturist, Biologist, Geologist, Climatologist, Government employee, Native American, and a monoculture farmer to work together, from their discipline's unique perspective, to investigate how the Dust Bowl could have been avoided. They will analyze soil samples, graphs, charts, weather patterns, etc. and come to conclusions. Each member of the group will then be assigned a new group that includes one member from each discipline to present and share their perspectives with others in order to design a solution for the droughts being experienced in the 21st century.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn how to integrate historical problems, primary source analysis, and STEM practices in engaging and meaningful ways to reinforce student learning as they work together to explore and debate possible solutions from multiple perspectives to prevent another Dust Bowl like the 1930's.

SPEAKERS:
Deborah Draper (Cedar Ridge Elementary School: Cedar Hills, UT), Julie Siebach (Retired Teacher: Cedar Hills, UT)

Participants in this session will learn about NASA’s Heliophysics Big Year (Oct 23-Dec 24), including an annual eclipse, a total eclipse, and the culmination of the Parker Solar Probe Project. Learn the basic mechanics of how and why eclipses occur while engaging in low-cost and hands-on activities such as Sun Paper, UV Beads and Solar Radiation, and how to make a cereal box viewer. Attendees will enjoy engaging activities while learning about the next total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024. A total solar eclipse happens when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth and completely blocks the face of the Sun. Those in the path of totality will experience a total eclipse and the sky will become very dark as if it were dawn or dusk. If the skies are clear, people can even see the Sun’s outer atmosphere, the corona, with their own eyes. Learn about these solar eclipses as well as NASA’s Solar Eclipse Toolkit, including lesson plans, activities, safety guides, videos, and so much more!

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn about the upcoming solar eclipse, explore resources within NASA STEM’s Solar Eclipse Toolkit, learn how to view the eclipse safely with their students, and walk away with standards-aligned hands-on activities that can be shared with students in both formal and informal settings.

SPEAKERS:
Dr. Sagirah Wheeler (NASA Education Specialist: No City, No State), Monica Uribe (NASA Education Specialist)

As third grade teachers in a STEAM school, we continuously work to create, plan, improve our science curriculum. Teachers who join us will learn how we apply the three-dimensions to our science planning while actively participating in our natural disaster unit. We will lead a discussion on how we breakdown and integrate the 3-dimensions of NGSS science in our unit plan. We will then showcase core instructional practices by completing an activity from our unit. During this time, participants will grow in their understanding through hands-on learning and journaling. They will leave with the natural disaster unit, along with materials to recreate this in their own classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will walk away with a better understanding of the three-dimensions of the NGSS. We will break apart each of the three dimensions to see what they are, how they guide us, and how they make science more attainable within our classrooms.

SPEAKERS:
Olivia Witherspoon (3rd Grade Teacher: Nixa, MO), Amanda Fenley (5th Grade Teacher: NIXA, MO), Daesha Parks (3rd Grade Teacher: Nixa, MO)

Learn a design process for creating three-dimensional assessment tasks that support instruction and student learning. Participants will be introduced to each phase: unpacking dimensions, developing integrated dimension maps, articulating learning performances, identifying phenomena, and designing tasks.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn the steps of a systematic process for designing three-dimensional tasks that align with NGSS performance expectations, take into consideration students’ diverse backgrounds, and can be used in classrooms to provide information to teachers and students to improve learning.

SPEAKERS:
Joseph Krajcik (CREATE for STEM Institute, Michigan State University: East Lansing, MI)

NGSS emphasize the integration of disciplinary core ideas, crosscutting concepts, and science and engineering practices in ways that reflect real-world practices. Integration has shown to enhance students' interest in multiple content areas, improve their attitudes toward the discipline, and develop life-long learning skills. Integration can be challenging without proper support and resources. The Task Analysis Tool (TAT) is a graphic organizer tool and a practical process that supports the meaningful, intentional, and purposeful integration of content and skills within a lesson. The TAT has proven to be beneficial for designing student-centered lessons, identifying integration points, and collaborating with others. This 60-minute workshop proposal aims to provide participants with an opportunity to learn about the TAT, its significance, related research, potential applications, and to interact with the tool by applying it to their personal lesson or activity.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants in this workshop will gain knowledge of the TAT; how it can be used and applied in their personal contexts. In addition, participants will be given digital and physical resources, including their own adaptable TAT that they can take with them and use immediately in their own classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Britt Miller (George Mason University)

The Nature of Science and Scientific Inquiry are important topics that should be explicitly taught to students, because research tells us that students do not implicitly pick up on the ideas of NOS through just engaging in science. They must engage in direct conversations and activities that address what Science is and how it operates. These conversations should be grounded in accessible phenomena and activities so every student has the opportunity to develop their understanding. The NOS is foundational to being able to engage effectively in science and understanding science at is most basic and conceptual level, as emphasized by the K-12 Framework and NGSS. This session will share some simple activities through rotation stations that can quickly be used throughout the course of a science class to help students discuss and engage in ideas about the Nature of Science.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. It is important to explicitly teach the nature of science to students; 2. The nature of science should be presented in an accessible way to all students; and 3. Attendees will walk away with activities they can use in their class immediately to teach the NOS.

SPEAKERS:
Kelly Moore (Tennessee Tech: Cookeville, TN)

The claim, evidence, reasoning method is a well-researched and effective tool in helping students engage in argumentation. However, in our work with teachers, we find that the method is often not well understood or implemented. In practice, especially in elementary classrooms, teachers are using claim to replace the word hypothesis, leading to the incorrect use of the method. Teachers are also starting by having students make a claim and then evaluating the evidence shown as to provide reasoning. A better way of using the method is to evaluate the evidence, then make a claim, and finally use reasoning to support the claim. We want to help teachers understand the research and how to use the method in their classrooms. Once the background is understood, the teachers will practice the method themselves by gathering evidence from the provided visualizations, writing a claim based on the evidence, and using the evidence along with their own background knowledge as their reasoning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn where and how to use the claim, evidence, reasoning method and practice using it to make their own reasoned claims based on evidence.

SPEAKERS:
Susan Licher (Cornell Lab of Ornithology: Ithaca, NY)

Join us to see how OpenSciEd’s materials can help build science learning experiences anchored in compelling phenomena and in important community and global problems. OpenSciEd high school uses a storyline approach that emphasizes coherence from the student perspective. Participants will explore the curricular routines, discourse strategies, and comprehensive assessment system that support equitable participation

TAKEAWAYS:
OpenSciEd HS's storyline approach, curricular routines, student discourse strategies, and assessment systems work together to help students build equitable science learning experiences.

SPEAKERS:
Zoe Buck Bracey (Senior Science Educator and Director of Design for Justice: Colorado Springs, CO), Michael Novak (Northwestern University: Evanston, IL), Kate Henson (University of Colorado Boulder: Boulder, CO)

It's difficult for educators at the primary level to imagine creating “additional time” for science, but when we understand strong language skills provide greater success in reading and writing, we see that science isn't just "one more thing." Science and critical thinking creates opportunities for students to have authentic conversations–which allows us to guide student language in a way that's unmatched! We will include a brief review of SEPs, standards for spoken/written language, and examples for using NGSS DCIs to facilitate student conversations. Ideas for explicitly teaching conversational language skills and behaviors will be shared. Participants will learn ways to combine the use of guided student language and current best practices in literacy instruction along with other ideas that can be used immediately. The session will end with participants developing plans for scientific conversations in their own classrooms, and ideas for how they might guide & build student language.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will be provided with ideas for engaging students in scientific conversations, ideas for guiding student language within those conversations, and ideas for using language to facilitate literacy instruction.

SPEAKERS:
Paige Garrett (Teacher: Nixa, MO), Courtney Mills (John Thomas School of Discovery Partner School: Nixa, MO), Shannon Winkler (John Thomas School of Discovery Partner School: Nixa, MO)

There is a growing call for both making early field experiences more impactful for preservice teachers and developing a stronger connection between methods courses and field experiences. The development of core practices is rooted in K-12 classroom instruction and is intended to serve as an answer to this call for a stronger connection (Windschitl et al, 2012). The goal of this research study was to collect feedback from preservice secondary science teachers in an early field experience, the methods instructors, and the cooperating teachers to design a tool based on a few select core practices that would be used to help create a more focused and insightful observational experience in the secondary science classroom. Attendees to the session will have an opportunity to develop their understanding of core practices and learn how this tool can be used in the secondary classroom to frame the experiences of a preservice teacher who is observing the teacher in action.

TAKEAWAYS:
During this session, you will learn how this observational tool can be used by preservice teachers as a means to guide their early field experience, as well as how you can use this tool to highlight your pedagogical practices, or as a basis for feedback you give to students you host in your classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Kraig Kitts (Graduate student: , IN)

In this session, teachers will explore the concept of wonder and how it can be applied to teaching and learning. Through activities and discussion, teachers will gain an understanding of the importance of wonder in the classroom. Educators will also learn how to embed wonder into their lessons through creative strategies, such as using hands-on activities, engaging visuals, and technology-based activities, focusing deeply on making space for student sensemaking and exploration. Additionally, teachers will explore how to connect wonder to curricular standards and create lesson templates that promote exploration and discovery. Teachers will also reflect on what they have learned and brainstorm ways to implement a culture of wonder in their classrooms. AND HAVE A GOOD TIME DOIN' IT

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will leave the session understanding how sensemaking is supported through our NGSS standards. They will have time to explore and understand methods that inspire student thinking and wonder.

SPEAKERS:
Jacey Suda (John Thomas School of Discovery Partner School: Nixa, MO), Hannah Buckner (John Thomas School of Discovery Partner School: Nixa, MO)

The purpose of this session is to engage participants as learners in the process of making sense of a phenomenon through engaging in scientific practices. The modeled lesson provides attendees with a shared learning experience similar to that of a typical science classroom, seeded with instructional strategies designed to support their sensemaking before, during, and after an investigation. Attendees will be introduced to a phenomenon, provided materials to carry out an investigation, given a model scaffold to record their thinking, and a talk tool to support equitable idea sharing and listening. They will reflect on their experience as learners, debriefing sensemaking strategies, and using the four attributes of sensemaking (phenomena, science and engineering practices, student ideas, and science ideas) to reflect on the model lesson and their classrooms.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will walk away with a greater understanding of how key science practices work in tandem to support student sensemaking and will experience tools like model scaffolds, driving question boards, and talk tools designed to support learners in explaining phenomena.

SPEAKERS:
Alex Gerber (Instructional Specialist: University City, MO), Heather Milo (Washington University in St. Louis: St. Louis, MO)

Sponsoring Company: Amplify

Learn how multimodal instruction and embedded language scaffolds, such as language frames, vocabulary routines, and writing supports create a learning environment that help Multilingual Learners – and all learners – successfully access science instruction.

Sponsoring Company: STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning

Let’s explore several intervention strategies to help struggling students in STEM. Let's move beyond differentiation & scaffolding. Come learn proven intervention techniques to help students. Let’s modify our traditional outreach to connect with students so that they gain greater understanding.

SPEAKERS:
Margo Dye (Accelerate Learning Inc.: Houston, TX)

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Experience how science lessons can be structured using teacher instructional slides, where students work in groups, with specific roles, to develop claims [about how motion energy moves and changes] based on evidence observed through hands-on experiences. Leave with classroom resources.

SPEAKERS:
Hoover Herrera (Carolina Biological Supply Co.: Burlington, NC)

In today’s fast-paced world, chronic stress is common, but your mind and body can pay a high price. Learn to recognize overwhelming stress—and what you can do about it. Most importantly, learn how to use the power of your senses to relieve stress on the spot and stay calm, productive, and focused—no matter what life throws at you.

TAKEAWAYS:
Tips on how to manage stress.

SPEAKERS:
Michelle Phillips (NSTA: Arlington, VA), Azra Chughtai (NSTA: Arlington, VA)

Sponsoring Company: BIOZONE Corporation

BIOZONE's innovative, interactive worktext approach is a departure from traditional textbook learning; providing flexible, engaging, student-centered resources. Teacher Toolkit helps teachers plan, deliver, and assess. Attendees receive a FREE print copy and a 1-year ebook license.

Sponsoring Company: Amplify

Elementary students deserve science! Experience a research-based approach to teaching science that leverages the mutually supportive aspects of phenomena-based science instruction and literacy. Explore how this approach can help you increase instructional time for science while making ELA gains.

Sponsoring Company: STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning

N/A

SPEAKERS:
Leslie Spaeny (STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning: Houston, TX)

Sponsoring Company: Vernier Science Education

Spark your students’ curiosity and prepare them for high school–and the world beyond. Learn how to introduce concepts to your students using the Go Direct Temperature Probe to measure the temperature of the palm of their hand, discover the reflectivity of various colors with the Go Direct Light and Color, measure sliding friction with the Go Direct Force & Acceleration Sensor, and determine the power of their grip with the Go Direct Gas Pressure.

SPEAKERS:
David Carter (Vernier Science Education: Beaverton, OR)

Incorporating social studies and history into STEM education doesn’t have to be difficult. Situations and events from the past can be used to present phenomena to students. Explore how you can use real world events and situations from World War II to engage your students with observable phenomena. In this workshop session led by an educator from The National WWII Museum, educators will explore how to incorporate a story, situation, or event from WWII into a phenomenon that meets NGSS standards. All of the activities also have a reading to accompany them for an added literacy component. The stories and activities will all come from our free curriculums: Little Engineers and Real World Science. Attendees will receive a hard copy of each curriculum. During this workshop, the activities demonstrated will feature Victory Gardens (parts of plants, growing seeds) and Earn Your Wings (engineering challenge with paper airplanes) activities.

TAKEAWAYS:
Incorporating social studies and history into STEM education doesn’t have to be difficult; situations and events from the past can be used to present phenomena to students.

SPEAKERS:
Kelly Goodner (Assistant Director of K-12 Programs: New Orleans, LA)

Digitized versions of Thomas Jefferson’s weather journal, Robert Hooke’s first drawings of cells, photographs from the Dust Bowl, and historic newspaper accounts of electric cars all provide opportunities to understand how scientists and engineers think, practice, and apply scientific principles in the real world; how scientific ideas evolve over time; and how science and engineering are related to society. The Library of Congress has millions of free primary sources online. This workshop will focus on how analyzing such sources can help K-12 teachers meet standards and teaching goals, particularly around the nature of science, practices of scientists, and how science, technology, and society interact. Library education experts will facilitate hands-on activities using primary sources and share ways teachers nationwide have used them. Participants will also leave with strategies for using primary sources to develop critical thinking skills and highlight interdisciplinary connections.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to access millions of free digitized primary sources and practice hands-on strategies for using them to promote critical thinking skills and a deeper understanding of real-world scientific practices, the nature of science, and connections between science and society.

SPEAKERS:
Kelsey Beeghly (Einstein Fellow: Altamonte Springs, FL), Michael Apfeldorf (Library of Congress: Washington, DC)

Data literacy is integral to students engaging in real-world science and NGSS practices. However, it can be challenging to design data experiences that help students to develop deep understanding of data. The Building Blocks for Data Literacy (Hunter-Thomson & Schauffler, 2021) offers a developmental approach to the design of data experiences: Get Data, Explore Data, and Infer Meaning From Data. Each realm is further broken down into the functions that students should be encouraged to do with data. Session participants will experience a typical path through the data journey, including the opportunity to see how the decisions that we make as educators can shape what students take away from the data experience. Our focus in this session will be at the elementary grade level, but the Building Blocks are a continuum across the K-12 grade span. This work complements the ADVizE grant project (NSF #2142692), which supports the integration of data skills into preservice STEM Methods courses.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will gain an understanding of the way data literacy can be developed developmentally across the realms of Getting Data, Exploring Data and Inferring Meaning from Data.

SPEAKERS:
Kristin Hunter-Thomson (Dataspire Education & Evaluation, LLC), Michael Jabot (SUNY Fredonia: Fredonia, NY)

Mi-STAR is a program at Michigan Technological University dedicated to quality NGSS-aligned curriculum since 2015. We listen carefully to teachers and respond with support. One of the struggles teachers mention most often is in scaffolding students to write CERs and arguments. In our presentation, we propose an addition to the traditional template: the scientific principles, which are then combined with evidence in the reasoning statement. Later, we add another part: a space for using persuasive writing to construct an argument. We model activities from our 5E lesson throughout. Teachers collaborate to create CERs, and to evaluate arguments written by others. Then, they construct their own arguments using a productive talk routine and persuasive language prompts. Participants gain confidence in supporting students to construct explanations and arguments, as well as get first-hand experience with a lesson, tools, and activities they can take back to their classroom for immediate use.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with clear and concise definitions of reasoning, explanations, and argumentation, along with a lesson plan, activities, and templates to help students define and construct all three in the science classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Jenne VandePanne (Michigan Technological University/Newaygo Public Schools: Newaygo, MI), Chris Geerer (Mi-STAR: , MI)

Participants will learn about forms of energy and their transformations by experimenting through six stations. Stations cover potential and kinetic energy, endothermic and exothermic processes, radiant energy, thermal and motion energy, chemical energy, and electrical energy. Within each, there are multiple activities to showcase the energy transformations occurring. The stations will be set up with materials needed, a hypothesis prompt, procedure list, and a station guide for recording data. For example, a yo-yo stores gravitational potential energy when it is in your hand until it drops. When it drops, the yo-yo transforms the potential energy into motion. At the end of experimenting, participants will review a “What’s Happening” sheet that explains what form of energy and energy transformation occurred in that station, as well as how it’s tied to the real-world applications. NEED activities are free and easily differentiated at the elementary, intermediate, and secondary level.

TAKEAWAYS:
How to help students master forms of energy and their transformations and how it can be visualized in the world around them.

SPEAKERS:
Don Pruett, Jr. (Washington Science Teachers Association: Everett, WA)

What started as a silly experiment in a hotel parking lot Parking Lot Science has become a staple in K-6 exploration at John Thomas School of Discovery. Teachers who attend this session will participate in a cooperative, hands-on learning experience that will help showcase the importance of science in elementary education. The session will involve hands-on exploration and simple phenomena to implement in your everyday teaching. The session will then look at how creating a culture of science leads to a larger picture of student exploration and learning. Participants will have an open discussion about the state of science in their schools and the hurdles they face. We will brainstorm ways participants can create a “wonder” week or showcase of science at their school to highlight student learning throughout the year. The session will have singing, dancing, science, wonder, and a whole lot of laughter. Come join in on the learning experience and see what we can do with the power of wonder!

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will learn different unique ways to expose students to wonder, receive ideas to create a culture of learning within their classroom, and participate in hands-on explorations that can be used all year long.

SPEAKERS:
Ryan Mahn (John Thomas School of Discovery Partner School: Nixa, MO), Joe Shaughnessy (John Thomas School of Discovery Partner School: Nixa, MO)

This is session #2 in the NSTA Professional Learning Committee's CCCs Conference Course and is designed to support K-12. Attendees will explore the Framework progression documents to understand what is appropriate for their grade level. They will learn about and engage in hands-on activities paired with talk strategies and protocols that focus classroom talk on making sense of observations and data using the Crosscutting Concepts. Attendees will have the chance to talk with fellow participants about how they might use these strategies and tools in their classroom or role and how they can be differentiated to be used at different grade levels. Participants will leave with a virtual toolbox of resources they can take home and apply right away in their sphere.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with discussion strategies and tools they can implement right away in classrooms to support student discourse and sensemaking anchored in the Crosscutting Concepts.

SPEAKERS:
Rebecca Garelli (Arizona Science Teachers Association), Kimberley Astle (Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction: Olympia, WA)

Participants will become knowledgeable about the plethora of digital resources available on NSTA’s website, about the live events, member benefits, and the professional learning community that can help them enhance their knowledge and improve their teaching practices. Numerous live events are offered to educators of science every month to enhance and extend their content and pedagogical knowledge -- many of them free to NSTA members and guest users of the NSTA website. Participants will also learn how to engage with other educators of science and grow their network of like-minded individuals. Join us and learn about NSTA's discussion forums and profile page. NSTA staff will be available to answer questions.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will become knowledgeable about the plethora of digital resources available on NSTA’s website, about the live events, member benefits, and the professional learning community that can help them enhance their knowledge and improve their teaching practices.

SPEAKERS:
Michelle Phillips (NSTA: Arlington, VA), Flavio Mendez (NSTA: Arlington, VA)

Participants will discover how argumentation can support the vision of inclusive instructional strategies across the curriculum. This session will anchor in learning theory and focus on student work examples, including graphic organizers and transcripts, that tell the story of an instructional sequence about pollinators. How the routines of science support learning for literacy and math will be investigated and made explicit. We’ll pull apart the underlying instructional practices evident in the student work for how to plan for engagement, elicit student ideas, support changes in student ideas, and press for complete explanations through argumentation.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will come away with an example of how to structure argumentation in the 4th grade classroom through observing student data organization and student discourse.

SPEAKERS:
Lindsey Roy (Science and Digital Learning Coordinator: Lincoln, NE), Miranda Orellana (Elementary Teacher: Lincoln, NE), Betsy Barent (Lincoln Public Schools: No City, No State)

Elementary Science Olympiad for All (ESO for All) provides K-6 students of all ability levels with a dynamic, engaging STEM experience. Many elementary classrooms and schools today are fully inclusive, so Science Olympiad created activity plans for students with disabilities that include individualized accommodations tailored to the following needs: Academic, Communication, Health, Vision/Hearing, Motor (Small and Large), Functional, and Social/Emotional. Come learn how 10 classic Elementary Science Olympiad events we use as a base for the activity plans touch every letter in STEM, are fully aligned to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and complement any school’s science curriculum. Bugs, rocks, catapults, planes, and towers will spark imagination and creativity; providing opportunities for teamwork, collaboration, and shared successes. You’ll learn insightful advice, like outlining shapes on Monster Cards with glue so that students with sight impairment can use their tactile senses.

TAKEAWAYS:
Join us for a fun-filled look at how classic science activities can be modified to meet all learners whether they are a core part of your instruction, an enhancement (such as a family science night or school science day), after-school club, or a community-engaging STEM competition.

SPEAKERS:
Shari Haug (Science Olympiad: Oakbrook Terrace, IL), John Loehr (Science Olympiad: Oakbrook Terrace, IL)

Introductions[5min] Meet the presenters and share with neighbors to establish networking for discussion and exploration Do Now (5min) Review session objectives and set personal goals The Role of Phenomena in Science Education (5min) Investigate examples of phenomena that lend themselves to strong Science lesson The Importance of Interdisciplinary Units in Science Education (5min) Explore purposeful pairing of learning objectives from a range of content areas Exploration of The Water Princess Unit Plan (30min) Learn about the elements of the unit and the accompanying resources that support strong instruction Identify opportunities for customization and differentiation based on their unique teaching and learning environments and students Science Notebooks - features and strategies (10min) See examples of science notebooks and discuss their impact on student learning Call to Action and Closing Comments (5min) Anchor their session take-aways with the personal goals they set during the Do

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will receive a richly-developed, phenomenon-based unit plan paired with the ‘how to’ of unit planning, strategies for science notebooks, interdisciplinary learning objectives, KLEWS, notice-and-wonder, graphic organizers, and assessment models.

SPEAKERS:
Wendy Amato (UVA | Teaching Channel: No City, No State)

Homeothermic, or warm-blooded, animals have several game-changing advantages compared to ectothermic, or cold-blooded creatures. Yet in the real world of Nature, nothing is free, and a price must be paid for these advantages. In order to supply all cells with oxygen and fuel, warm-blooded animals require an enormous blood supply and an efficient circulatory system with a 4-chambered heart at the center of it all. In this session, participants will work with research-generated data to build a mathematical model that allows them to estimate their own blood volumes. In addition, we will look at metabolic data comparing warm and cold-blooded animals, and the oxygen requirements of each. Finally, we will evaluate the food input requirements of warm-blooded animals in cold environments compared to warm environments.

TAKEAWAYS:
Being "warm-blooded" brings both good news and bad news for an animal. In this session, attendees will calculate their blood volume, why a 4-chambered heart is needed to move all that blood around, and how the circulatory system is the key to unlock all of these physiological phenomena!

SPEAKERS:
Jeffrey Lukens (Retired Science Teacher: Sioux Falls, SD)

One of the most powerful skills we can develop in our students to practice scientific literacy when they leave our classroom is the skill of critically evaluating information. This is particularly pertinent today with an uncharted landscape of misinformation and social media. We will share our experience as high school science teachers of explicitly incorporating the NGSS Scientific Practice of Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating information (SEP8) into our classrooms with proficiency-based assessment. We will share the research that influenced our work, resources that include scaffolds, activities, and assessments, and lastly, reflections and strategies after having explicitly taught and assessed evaluating information. After our first year teaching this scientific practice, we asked ourselves, "How had we not taught this skill before!?"

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will be provided with a framework and resources to help students engage in arguably the most important skill needed for them to continue to develop their scientific literacy outside of and after school -- to critically evaluate information for themselves and for a functioning democracy.

SPEAKERS:
Brett Erdmann (Adlai E. Stevenson High School: Lincolnshire, IL), Thomas Wolfe (Adlai E. Stevenson High School: Lincolnshire, IL)

Sponsoring Company: Amplify

High-quality instructional materials are essential for equitable access to science, but materials are only the start of the instructional journey! Examine the importance of YOUR role as a teacher in leveraging NGSS-designed curriculum to inspire your students to figure out phenomena.

Sponsoring Company: Stile Education

Join our session to learn strategies for teaching data analysis and modeling in line with the NGSS. Empower your students to analyze real-world data, create accurate models, and apply their knowledge with easy-to-implement techniques. Participate in and win CHARTY PARTY while enhancing your toolkit!

SPEAKERS:
Hailey Vogel (Head of Teaching and Learning: Los Angeles, CA)

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Come experience a model lesson from OpenSciEd for Middle School and see how the new Carolina Certified Edition makes these high-quality instructional materials even better! Leave with classroom resources.

SPEAKERS:
Cory Ort (Carolina Biological Supply Co.: Burlington, NC)

A collaborative team of teachers and researchers share results from a research project aimed at leveraging compelling and equitable phenomena in NGSS-designed instruction with multilingual learners (MLs). Using our yearlong fifth-grade curriculum, we share our approach to selecting phenomena from both science and equity perspectives. From a science perspective, we ensured that a unit anchoring phenomenon (a) promotes deep science and engineering understanding, (b) integrates science disciplines, (c) sustains a 9-week unit, and (d) raises awareness of societal concerns. From an equity perspective, we ensured that a unit anchoring phenomenon (a) creates relevance for all students, (b) utilizes funds of knowledge, (c) provides context for language, and (d) promotes participation of all students. We focus on the impact of using compelling and equitable phenomena with MLs and present case studies of two teachers who implemented such phenomena across four units over one school year.

TAKEAWAYS:
By using phenomena and problems that meet both science and equity criteria, teachers ensure that all students, especially MLs, have agency to make connections to the world around them, see science as relevant to their lives and future careers, and see themselves as scientists and engineers.

SPEAKERS:
Iovanna Williams (Science Teacher: , NY), Adriana Romanzo (Elementary Science Teacher: New York, NY), Abigail Schwenger (Research Associate)

In order for teachers to support the three-dimensional learning of their students, they need high-quality professional learning (PL). This presentation outlines a PL approach that focuses on Ambitious Science Teaching (Windschitl, M. Thompson, J., & Braaten, M., 2018) as an approach to support teacher and student three-dimensional science learning. The PL model includes 4 PL sessions followed by 3 action periods to “try-on” strategies in their classrooms. During the PL sessions teachers experienced ambitious strategies as learners, connected theory to practice, collaborated meaningfully with colleagues, and reflected on their implementation of strategies. The sessions led to a change in teacher practice that was evident through the artifacts they collected. Teachers also made cross-curricular connections with many of the introduced strategies. This presentation provides suggestions for supporting teachers in implementing ambitious science teaching strategies.

TAKEAWAYS:
The audience will walk away with a model for high-quality professional learning for teachers that supports student growth in three-dimensional science learning. The model can be implemented at the school, district, or cross-district level.

SPEAKERS:
Heather Milo (Washington University in St. Louis: St. Louis, MO), Alex Gerber (Instructional Specialist: University City, MO)

As teachers, it is important for us to understand how the brain works when students are learning. Brain science research has not been easy to transfer to the classroom setting. We are beginning to bridge the gap with real-world, classroom research. By joining this session, you will uncover some of the newest neuroscience/learning research and ways to use the information in your classroom. Retrieval practice, interleaving, spaced practice, and elaborate encoding are a few of the topics we will learn about. In addition, you will leave with plenty of short 5-minute tools you can use right away in your classroom, as well as a deeper understanding of the pros and cons of neuroscience research and classroom settings.

TAKEAWAYS:
Not all research is equal, especially when it comes to classroom teaching. This session will help you understand the research, it's strengths and limitations, and provide you with usable tools to start using right away.

SPEAKERS:
Kirsten Landry (Kent Denver School: Englewood, CO)

Students learn and develop at different speeds and in different ways. How can we meet them where they are and move them forward? Enrichment, Practice and Remediation are lessons designed to focus on a science concept (or cluster of concepts) for students to actively engage in accessible learning. EPRs include active learning experiences designed to support students continuing to learn based on their needs. Some students will be ready to dig deeper into the concept, while others might need a little more time for mastery. Experience your own learning by looking at an example score, becoming a student, and joining others as you learn through an enrichment, practice, or remediation activity

TAKEAWAYS:
Enrichment, Practice, and Remediation allows us to meet students where they are and move them in their science knowledge. EPR will help supervisors, coaches, and teachers understand, visualize, and experience what differentiated learning in science looks like and how simple it can be.

SPEAKERS:
Kristin Squires (The School District of Osceola County: St Cloud, FL)

This session is geared towards new teachers and veteran teachers alike, who are interested in supporting their students with literacy strategies. Students can struggle to access information from nonfiction text, however, with the right tools they can not only learn science, but be able to use that knowledge in the classroom without the instructor lecturing on that information. By developing their skills in pre, during and post reading they will become more confident in their science literacy and be able to use it as evidence in their daily practices. Some of the strategies in the presentation include: anticipation guides, vocabulary front loading, chunking, annotating, gist statements and vocabulary connections. The audience will learn about several strategies, as well as experience a lesson from a student’s point of view. There will also be time allotted to create a classroom ready lesson from text with support from the presenters.

TAKEAWAYS:
The main takeaways from our session are ready to use pre, during, and post reading strategies that work for a variety of grade levels and with a variety of texts.

SPEAKERS:
Deanna Warkins (Adlai E. Stevenson High School: Lincolnshire, IL), Kellie Dean (Adlai E. Stevenson High School: Lincolnshire, IL)

Finding causes, treatments, and cures for diseases is “STEM on the front-lines.” Without all four components of the STEM model firmly set in place, any serious medical research is destined to fail. Sanford Research in Sioux Falls, SD has formed an “all-star research team” that is committed to finding a cure for Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) and Breast Cancer. In this session, we will highlight the progress that is being made in solving the T1D and Breast Cancer puzzles. Using interactive virtual activities, participants will develop an understanding of the difference between a body that is functioning normally and one that has developed T1D or Breast Cancer. We will wrap up the session with a discussion of the paths that Sanford Research is taking in their quest to help cure the disease. All discussion of human anatomy and physiology will be at a gentle introductory level.

TAKEAWAYS:
Using real case studies, attendees will follow the journeys of a breast cancer survivor and a teenage Type I Diabetic, from diagnosis through treatment.

SPEAKERS:
Jeffrey Lukens (Retired Science Teacher: Sioux Falls, SD)

Sponsoring Company: NSTA - Shell Science Teaching Awards and Competitions

In this hands on workshop you will begin your application for one of three programs sponsored by Shell USA, Inc. You will learn key components to creating a strong application, and strengthen your chances to win for your students, school. Prizes and gift cards will be given in a drawing.

SPEAKERS:
Adrine Williams (Jackson State University: Jackson, MS), Amanda Upton (NSTA: Arlington, VA)

Sponsoring Company: STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning

Looking for ways to increase student ideas in the development of investigative phenomena? We will work in collaborative teams to develop a driving question board. Let’s discuss the types of phenomena and how they can be used effectively in the STEM classroom. Bring relevancy to students’ lives!

SPEAKERS:
Laurie Thompson (Accelerate Learning, Inc.: Houston, TX)

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Discover new ways to help students think & work like scientists and engineers. We will model instruction and resources that support 3-dimensional teaching and learning including teacher instructional slides, student friendly materials, simulations, and student investigation sheets.

SPEAKERS:
Hoover Herrera (Carolina Biological Supply Co.: Burlington, NC)

Opportunities abound for young people to learn about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in a range of settings outside of the classroom. They can engage with STEM in summer camps, after-school programs, Boys & Girls Clubs, and even trendy birthday parties. Numerous studies document the benefits of effective out-of-school STEM learning—e.g., increased interest in STEM, enriched knowledge of STEM ideas, enhanced confidence, and a sense of accomplishment. Given the benefits of out-of-school STEM learning and to increase access to high-quality STEM experiences for our middle schoolers, we developed an after-school program for them to enjoy STEM in engaging, authentic, and relevant ways. We will (1) share the framework/commitments that guided the design of our “Out-of-School and Into STEM” club, (2) model an abbreviated club session, and (3) provide resources for participants that may be helpful in designing their own out-of-school STEM experiences for students.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will be provided with a framework and resources to guide the design of an out-of-school STEM Club and participate in a design-based club activity.

SPEAKERS:
Raven Brzeszkiewicz (Student: , IN), Jared Simoneaux (Science Teacher: , IN), Megan Johnson (Science Teacher), Lynn Bryan (Purdue University: West Lafayette, IN)

This is session #3 in the PL Committee CCCs Pathway and is designed to support K-12. Participants will explore the Framework progression documents to understand what is appropriate for their grade level in relation to the Crosscutting Concept of Patterns. They will learn about and engage with a few effective instructional strategies, including the I2 Strategy from BSCS (Identify and Interpret), and how to use a “slow reveal” approach to help students make sense of data and graphs. Attendees will also have the opportunity to explore a variety of online sources for obtaining data for students to analyze and interpret. Participants will leave with a virtual toolbox of resources they can take home and immediately apply in their classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will leave with sensemaking strategies for engaging students in the Science and Engineering Practice of Analyzing and Interpreting Data, through the lens of the Crosscutting Concept of Patterns, that can immediately be implemented with students!

SPEAKERS:
Kimberley Astle (Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction: Olympia, WA), Rebecca Garelli (Arizona Science Teachers Association)

Are science journals getting in the way of your students learning? Are they becoming just "another" thing we have students do in their everyday routine? Time to spice up those science journals! Join us as we explore the science behind journals and notebooks, discuss best practices for science journaling, and highlight resources that work. Don't let journaling get in the way. Embrace student's writing and learn how to make science journals work for you. Participants will learn how to set up science journals at the beginning of the year, do different experiments and activities to show how to use science journals, and review best strategies to use for student learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
How do you introduce journals, organize, maintain, scafforld, etc., while teaching students to use it as their own personal tool? Teachers would walk away with a better understanding of how to make journals meaningful to students and help me see/understand their learning.

SPEAKERS:
Joe Shaughnessy (John Thomas School of Discovery Partner School: Nixa, MO)

Slides with diagrams of the anatomy of the larynx are shown with the parts & functions being described to participants. As the anatomy is being taught there will be breaks for participants to talk to each other while feeling their throats, chest, nose, mouth, jaw, etc to feel the vibrations & notice how damping the vibrations changes how participants sound to themselves & others. Next, videos of an opera singer in an MRI machine are shown to see the anatomy in action. After this whistles, & recorders will be passed out for participants to play the same note but hear the difference in sound. A visualizer showing the relative amplitude of each frequency is used as participants play so they can see that each instrument creates its own unique set of waves in addition to the fundamental tone that is being played. The process is repeated for multiple singers that are singing the same note.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will be able to use direct instruction, demonstrations, and short activities to explain the basics of how human voices are able to produce sound, why each person/instrument has a unique sound, and why your voice sounds different to you than it does on recordings.

SPEAKERS:
Brendan Emig (Middle/Upper School Choral Director: Houston, TX), Clark Ellis (The Kinkaid School)

How do populations fluctuate in the Hudson River ecosystem, and how do these changes affect the larger ecological community? Using data and hands-on investigations, we will explore how food webs and the abiotic resources have changed in response to the zebra mussel invasion. Teachers will get a lesson explaining how the zebra mussel invasion affected the food web of the Hudson River and be able to explain at least two connections within the food web that were affected using evidence from provided data. Data will include charts and graphs that depict organisms commonly found in the Hudson. When utilizing this lesson in the classroom, students will know what lives in the Hudson River, and will be able to create & study a food web drawing to represent the organisms living in the river. They will also know that the Hudson River food web is changing in response to the zebra mussel invasion, and will be able to make predictions about how native organisms will be affected by this invasion.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will get a lesson explaining how the zebra mussel invasion affected the food web of the Hudson River and be able to explain at least two connections within the food web that were affected using evidence from provided data.

SPEAKERS:
Karen Pennywell (Cardiff Junior High School: Katy, TX), Sandra Rodriguez (Katy ISD: Katy, TX)

This presentation will discuss the importance of home-to-school connections in fostering early science opportunities through everyday activities. We explore research on family-school partnerships and the value of incorporating families' experiential knowledge into the curriculum to promote equity and inclusivity in early childhood. The Early Science Framework, an infant, toddler, and preschool adaptation of the Framework for K-12 Science Education, provides a research-based approach to early science learning that connects science to children's everyday lives. We will discuss how teachers can use this framework to create a more dynamic curriculum. Practical resources and ideas for teacher professional development will be provided to support culturally responsive preschool science engagement. By promoting family-school partnerships and bringing research into practice, we can create a more engaging learning environment for children and stronger partnerships between families and schools.

TAKEAWAYS:
We provide resources and examples incorporating experiential knowledge from families into the classroom, connecting children’s learning to their everyday lives. These home-to-school connections provide culturally relevant and equity-informed opportunities for high-quality teaching and learning.

SPEAKERS:
Daryl Greenfield (University of Miami: Miami, FL), Chabely Figuereo (Graduate Student: Coral Gables, FL)

It is often thought that a makerspace activity is something that is nice to do with students, but not a necessity. Yet when makerspace activities are integrated into daily instruction, it can open many avenues that promote an inclusive classroom. This workshop will focus on strategies and ways to use makerspace to promote student voice and choice for areas of concept development, empathy-driven problem solving, and assessment. Participants will explore the key elements of makerspace and examine ways to use makerspace challenges to support sense-making. The discussion will also focus on the idea that makerspace activities can nudge all students to consider multiple ways of solving problems, thus enhancing their “out of the box” thinking. As part of this session, participants will explore different strategies in using makerspace to introduce a phenomenon, model a phenomenon, and assess students' understanding on three different dimensions of learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Explore makerspace challenges and activities as a means to provide student voice and choice in how they make sense of a phenomenon, a solution to a problem, and core ideas while demonstrating their understanding of core ideas as a means of assessment.

SPEAKERS:
Michele Detwiler (Gary Adult High School: Tampa, FL)

Crosscutting Concepts, the links between different science disciplines, can be challenging to use as an anchoring storyline activity. However, it can be one of the best ways to engage students, as they can make personal connections between different domains. Teachers will begin by becoming familiar with the NGSS Appendix G Systems and System Models progression, identifying essential learning by grade. Then, they will investigate how this CCC has been built into a storyline anchor, extending this concept from the initial activity (involving video games) into a different aspect of science–climate modeling. Teachers leave prepared to utilize this storyline in the classroom. Upon completion, students will be able to identify the factors used in climate models and create a model that depicts the flow of energy/matter in a climate system. They will also be able to express the reliability and validity of climate models. Resources: https://ncse.ngo/supporting-teachers/classroom-resources

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will walk away with a better understanding of how to use the Systems and Systems Modeling Crosscutting Concept to help students analyze the precision and reliability limitations of past and present climate models, dispelling major misconceptions about climate science along the way.

SPEAKERS:
Blake Touchet (National Center for Science Education: Oakland, CA), Michael Lowry (McCallie School: Chattanooga, TN), Lin Andrews (National Center for Science Education: Oakland, CA)

A meta-learning experience of Claim Evidence Reasoning for participants to experience best practices first hand. Intro Activity: Reflect and share their level of knowledge with CER Explore the CER framework and the importance of each component Guiding Question: How can we deeply incorporate CER throughout an entire concept? Claim What is a claim? Benefits of teaching CER? How do we support students in stating claims? Activity: Make your claim about the guiding question after they explore an engaging phenomena. Observations to Evidence What is evidence? Why is it important? How do we build students' muscles to collect quality evidence? Activity: Explore several examples of evidence and use a rubric to determine the quality of evidence. Reasoning and closing Share criteria for a strong reasoning and how students can differentiate evidence from reasoning Activity: Look through reasoning examples, highlight key components based on the criteria. Close out with a 3-2-1 reflection

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to improve evidence-based writing skills and communicate scientific knowledge exploring each component of CER. Specifically, how students can construct clear claims, select appropriate evidence to support their claims, and how reasoning ties together claim and evidence.

SPEAKERS:
Brooke Bouldry-Morrison (Standards Alignment Specialist), Anna Meyer (Pickerington Local School District: Pickerington, OH)

eCYBERMISSION is a free online STEM competition for students in grades 6-9 that promotes teamwork, self-discovery, and real-life applications of STEM. The competition’s phenomenon-based learning approach encourages students to investigate challenges in their community while developing critical thinking and problem-solving. We’ll discuss how you can utilize the standards-aligned resources, grants and student awards worth thousands of dollars to engage students. We’ll also form teams to compete in our own mini-eCYBERMISSION competition. You’ll choose a community challenge, develop a plan to explore it and apply STEM concepts throughout the process. The winning team will even walk away with a special prize! This session is aimed at STEM educators who are looking for innovative ways to engage their students. Join us as we discover how eCYBERMISSION can enhance your students' learning experience! eCYBERMISSION is part of the Army Educational Outreach Program and administered by NSTA.

TAKEAWAYS:
eCYBERMISSION is a free, virtual STEM competition for grades 6-9 that is supported by a wealth of standards-aligned resources. Attendees will discover strategies to utilize student-chosen local phenomena as the basis for long-term projects while participating in a rewarding STEM competition.

SPEAKERS:
Carey Dieleman (National Science Teaching Association: No City, No State), Brian Kutsch (National Science Teaching Association, eCYBERMISSION)

Science does not exist in a vacuum. From environmental policy, to public health issues, to the regulation of food, drugs, and dangerous materials, addressing socio-scientific challenges requires an understanding of both scientific concepts and social contexts. Analyzing historical primary sources from the Library of Congress – including photographs, political cartoons, newspapers, maps and more – can provide students with an opportunity to reflect on this interplay between science and society and offer insights into how citizens and scientists have contributed to social change. The Library has millions of primary sources free online. In this workshop, Library education experts will facilitate hands-on activities using select primary sources and share ways that teachers have used them with students. Participants will leave with concrete strategies for engaging students in primary source analysis to build critical thinking skills and deepen their understanding of socio-scientific issues.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to access millions of free digitized primary sources and practice hands-on strategies to help students gain critical thinking skills while they reflect on the connections between science, society, and social change through authentic historical examples.

SPEAKERS:
Kelsey Beeghly (Einstein Fellow: Altamonte Springs, FL), Michael Apfeldorf (Library of Congress: Washington, DC)

If the ultimate goal is for students to understand from experiences, we must carefully consider our professional practices. While hands-on learning can naturally be engaging for students, the experiences must be carefully woven into the flow of instruction to produce the desired outcomes. An important finding from America’s Lab report is that many students view science as a “false dichotomy,” meaning that students think that the hands-on, “doing” part of science is separate from content (Singer, Hilton, and Schweingruber 2006). As a result, the desired outcomes are for students to discard incorrect ideas, accept the most accurate scientific explanations, and for students to learn the nature by which these scientific explanations are generated. Explore-before-explain teaching allows teachers to meet these goals by providing students with immediate experiences to form accurate understandings; and connecting students’ claims to scientifically accepted explanations.

TAKEAWAYS:
An overview of essential planning considerations covers becoming an “explore-before-explain” teacher and designing lessons that use the assets all students bring to learning science.

SPEAKERS:
Patrick Brown (Fort Zumwalt School District R-II: O'Fallon, MO), Anne Green (Fort Zumwalt School District R-II: OFallon, MO)

The hexagonal thinking strategy stems from a business background and made its way into the secondary education realm in the past five years. It has not been utilized in the elementary setting, so I joined with a local 4th grade classroom teacher to determine the best way to implement the activity with younger students. The strategy is simple: the teacher creates a set of hexagons for each group with vocabulary and concepts. The students work together to determine connections and how everything is interrelated. It is then glued to a large paper and annotated with students' thoughts about the connections. At the same time, the most important aspect is the conversation among students throughout the activity. We conducted six classroom sessions over the course of 3 months to find what worked and what did not. We also collected student work, quotes, and videos with feedback from students. Although the focus was on science , we included a variety of topics and cross-curricular sessions.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will experience the strategy from a student POV and learn the process of implementation for a variety of settings (traditional and digital) and materials. Examples of student work will also be shown.

SPEAKERS:
Jeff Thomas (University of Southern Indiana: Evansville, IN), Simone Nance (University of Southern Indiana: Evansville, IN)

The workshop will provide participants with the following information and learning experiences: 1.) Where and when the solar eclipse will be visible, including how to find what will specifically happen in their location. 2.) Three-Dimensional learning strategies to use with their students to understand what causes both lunar and solar eclipses, including what causes lunar phases and how knowing what causes lunar phases is key to knowing when eclipses occur. 3.) How to safely observe the eclipse using a variety of observing strategies. 4.) Suggestions for how to make the most of the eclipse as a school and/or community-wide event. 5.) What overall resources that NSTA has to help them make the most of this celestial event.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will come away with 3-D teaching strategies for students to understand the science behind eclipses, plus safe viewing strategies and ways to make the event a school-wide experience.

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

More than 10,000 observers submitted data to GLOBE collecting more than 20,000 cloud observations with 60,000 photos and 80,000 air temperature measurements using the GLOBE Observer app during the Total Solar Eclipse on August 21st, 2017. The data was used by scientists around the world. Educators will learn how to upload data to GLOBE as citizen scientists in the GLOBE Observer App. The latest updates from NASA will be shared including these current sites on the solar eclipse. The NASA data provides teachers with lesson plans written in 5-E format and activities for students to do. Educators will receive a brief introduction on the protocols used. As a citizen scientist, educators can enter data without going through the GLOBE trainings. Examples of student research projects on the 2017 Solar Eclipse will illustrate the work that can be done by students. Supports NGSS Science and Engineering Practices and following NGSS standards: MS-ESS1-1 and HS-ESS1-1.

TAKEAWAYS:
Contribute to a citizen science database used by scientists to study the effects of eclipses on the atmosphere. Learn how to access NASA resources including teacher lesson plans to use in your classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Janet Struble (: Toledo, OH)

Presenters will start by highlighting place based-learning and how to create experiences through hands-on learning using NGSS standards. Then, the presentation will focus heavily on open discussions to answer questions on how we have successfully created STEAM-based projects that integrate all learning areas. Participants will then start creating their own learning experiences for their classroom by focusing on the four major questions of a Professional Learning Community: What will students do? How will they do it? How will we know they've learned it? What will we do if they don't? Last, the focus on how to bridge the gap between passion and standards will help us move forward in the creation of STEAM-based units. Participants will walk away with gained knowledge in NGSS standards, unit creation/template, and a better understanding of place-based and STEAM-based projects.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will collaborate with educators to form learning experiences they can apply in their classrooms, receive a unit template to help organize thoughts, and discuss ways to break out of the traditional mold of education.

SPEAKERS:
Joe Shaughnessy (John Thomas School of Discovery Partner School: Nixa, MO)

Mi-STAR, now also known outside of Michigan as Anchored Science, is a program at Michigan Technological University dedicated to quality NGSS-aligned curriculum since 2015. We listen carefully to teachers and respond with support. Consistently we’ve heard teachers request materials that will help them promote literacy in their science classrooms. In response, we’ve worked with West Ed's Reading Apprenticeship specialists and classroom teachers to develop both integrated instructional practices and optional reading support materials. Our literacy activities are designed with strategies to promote metacognition and model the text interactions of skilled readers for students of all reading levels. We’d like to share our journey, and also share some examples and templates for teachers to use in their own classrooms. Come see how this approach can promote literacy and equity in science.

TAKEAWAYS:
A selection of Anchored Science by Mi-STAR examples and templates for scaffolded literacy supports will be provided. Use them with your own texts in your classroom next week!

SPEAKERS:
Jenne VandePanne (Michigan Technological University/Newaygo Public Schools: Newaygo, MI), Chris Geerer (Mi-STAR: , MI)

The presenters will share the development of an elementary science lesson that incorporates art into science as a meaningful tool, not a fun supplemental activity. Participants will then complete the example activity that involves developing a solution to a real-world problem using a combination of science and art knowledge and skills. At the conclusion of the example activity, the presenters will provide information on the development of the activity and participants will have the opportunity to begin developing their own science and art-infused lessons.

TAKEAWAYS:
Art does not have to only be a supplemental activity that is added after a science lesson, it can be an integral part of a STEAM lesson.

SPEAKERS:
Amber Mintert (Associate Professor of Art: Joplin, MO), Laura Schisler (Missouri Southern State University: Joplin, MO)

Live-streaming wildlife cams give students an intimate view into the amazing and diverse world of animals and allow teachers to engage all students in inquiry- and phenomena-based learning as nature unfolds in real-time and with unknown outcomes. Wildlife cams encourage questioning and curiosity, build connections to wildlife and nature, and are interesting to teachers and students alike. Cams engage students who have fewer opportunities to be immersed in nature, including those in urban settings, with mobility challenges, and in remote learning environments. I will guide teachers through a series of questions to help them determine good live-streaming cams to use in their classrooms. I’ll discuss different ways to use cameras within the classroom, including active and passive usage. I’ll share how we use cams to make observations and they will draw their own comics as we watch a live-streaming cam.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will discover a variety of wildlife cams from around the world, explore how they can be used to effectively develop student science practices, and discover free resources to support science learning through wildlife cams.

SPEAKERS:
Susan Licher (Cornell Lab of Ornithology: Ithaca, NY)

The NGSS is very complicated. The Institute for Quality Science Teaching at the Museum of Science and Industry provides professional learning opportunities for science teachers in Chicagoland and surrounding areas. Our approach is to ground everything we do in the NGSS and take a deep dive into all the elements of 3-dimensional learning. The professional learning programs at MSI are invested in helping teachers understand how to teach science effectively using these standards. This presentation will review the basics of the NGSS, the 3 dimensions, how they’re combined in Performance Expectations, and the basics of how to enact the NGSS in the classroom. If you need a refresher, just want a review, or still don’t have all those acronyms straight in your head, this is the presentation for you.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will leave with a basic understanding of the structures of the Next Generation Science Standards and how they inform three-dimensional standards and three-dimensional science teaching.

SPEAKERS:
Garrett Gray (Sr. Educator, School and Teacher Programs: Chicago, IL), Tara Flett (Sr. Educator IQST: Chicago, IL)

Participants will explore the Authentic Literacy and Language (ALL) for Science curriculum framework and discover how the combination of guided science investigations, mini-lessons on science-based disciplinary literacy, and science inquiry circles can increase learner performance. They will receive and be guided through a sample lesson and a template they can use to develop their own lessons using this framework. Teachers who used lessons using this curriculum framework reported that children demonstrated increased engagement with lessons and improved their language skills as they began to read, write, and think like scientists. They also found that children performed better overall on assessments of science concepts, attributing the use of collaborative learning teams that build a community of science practice as a factor. Participants will receive access to the ALL for Science website where they can download FREE curriculum resources aligned with NGSS standards.

TAKEAWAYS:
Educators will explore how they can create their own lessons unifying science investigations with science-specific disciplinary literacy using the ALLS framework to engage learners in the practices of science. Participants will receive the framework template and access to free resources.

SPEAKERS:
Jimmie Thomas (Baylor College of Medicine)

Understanding the nature and process of science is critical to scientific literacy. When students engage in the practices of science, they are more likely to integrate science as part of their own identities (Gee, 2007). To do this successfully, students must reflect on what they are doing and why, along with comparing their strategies to those of professional scientists (NRC, 2011). In this session, participants will examine their own conceptions of the nature and process of science, make connections to pedagogical frameworks (NGSS SEPs & CCCs), engage as students to use the Flowchart Mapping tool from the Understanding Science project to trace their approach to figuring out a biological phenomenon about why blue whales are so big, compare their process to that of the scientists investigating the phenomenon, and reflect on how they might use this tool and strategy in their own classrooms with other phenomena or lessons.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to use the Science Flowchart interactive journaling tool to illuminate the dynamic nature and process of science, and how to apply the tool to any phenomenon or lesson in their classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Lindsey Roy (Science and Digital Learning Coordinator: Lincoln, NE), Betsy Barent (Lincoln Public Schools: No City, No State)

Sponsoring Company: STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning

If you're using STEMscopes (or wanna-be), this session is for you. Come see the most popular digital curriculum during this session. Discover assessment packages, streaming videos with activities, coding with app building, hands-on engineering projects, STEM teacher certification, and much more.

SPEAKERS:
Angela Campana (Accelerate Learning, Inc.: Houston, TX)

Sponsoring Company: hand2mind

Discover how to effectively use STEM Bins® as a foundational, developmentally appropriate form of engineering for elementary students. Learn simple ways to implement STEM Bins® for early finishers, enrichment, morning work, centers, makerspaces, and literacy and math extensions.

SPEAKERS:
Brooke Brown (Roosevelt Elementary School: Norman, OK)

Sponsoring Company: Aidmics Biotechnology

This workshop supports teachers to implement inquiry-based science learning and helps students to develop meaningful scientifically literate views of the world by using the uHandy Microscope that acts as your second pair of eyes, which ignites your curiosity and your genuine passion for science!

SPEAKERS:
Jolanda Hsu (Aidmics Biotechnology: Taipei City, Taipei City)

Grab a cup of coffee (or tea) and join us for an informal get-together with your peers. Each day of the conference will feature a morning coffee chat, providing you an opportunity to share ideas and experiences, expand your network, and connect with colleagues and friends from around the country.

No one disputes the need for effective daily science instructions for elementary children, yet, only 20% of K-3 students and 35% of grades 4-6 students have access to daily science instruction, according to Cafarell, et.al. (2017). Elementary teachers are challenged to get in daily meaningful science instruction. There is a need to design science lessons that are powerful in impacting student learning and economize the curriculum time. The purpose of this session is to explore the “Workshop Model” instructional layout as a means to deliver meaningful science experiences. This model of instruction has a “tried-and-true” history in literacy and mathematics. The instructional model segments the time into 3 areas: opening, work session, and closing. The session will use a lesson on Earth’s Systems where students open the unit by observing a phenomenon, then move into stations or work sessions, and use student lead closing so students can formalize their understanding of the phenomenon.

TAKEAWAYS:
The workshop model isn’t just for math and literacy—elementary teachers can use this instructional approach to fit effective, engaging, hands-on science lessons into their daily instructional routine.

SPEAKERS:
Kelly Bodner (Cobb County Schools & GSTA Board of Directors)

Students learn and develop at different speeds and in different ways. How can we meet them where they are and move them forward? Enrichment, Practice and Remediation are lessons designed to focus on a science concept (or cluster of concepts) for students to actively engage in accessible learning. EPRs include active learning experiences designed to support students continuing to learn based on their needs. Some students will be ready to dig deeper into the concept, while others might need a little more time for mastery. Experience your own learning by looking at an example score, becoming a student, and joining others as you learn through an enrichment, practice, or remediation activity.

TAKEAWAYS:
Enrichment, Practice, and Remediation allows us to meet students where they are and move them in their science knowledge. EPR will help supervisors, coaches, and teachers understand, visualize, and experience what differentiated learning in science looks like and how simple it can be.

SPEAKERS:
Kristin Squires (The School District of Osceola County: St Cloud, FL)

Research shows that when students are typically engaged in science class discussions, the teacher asks a question, one student responds, the teacher gives feedback, and the cycle continues. The teacher then only knows about the understanding of science of one student. But what are the other students able to make sense of? This presentation will share with attendees research that was conducted through a dissertation, explicitly looking at talk moves developed by Sarah Michaels and Cathy O'Connor, and how they increased engagement with female students. This presentation will also provide teachers with these talk moves, and tips and tricks on how they can be used in a middle school science classroom, and how they better help students make sense of science phenomena.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will takeaway with tips and tricks that will get middle school students engaging in sensemaking discussions. Teachers will be provided with a set of talk moves that can be implemented Monday with students!

SPEAKERS:
Betsy Lawrence (Summit Trail Middle School: Olathe, KS)

Explore the comprehensive assessment system that accompanies the OpenSciEd high school program. This comprehensive system includes opportunities for formative, summative, self, and peer assessment. The session will guide participants through the multiple assessment types and will explore in depth electronic exit tickets and transfer tasks. Electronic exit tickets give teachers an opportunity to formatively assess students' three dimensional thinking at key points in each unit. Transfer tasks are summative assessment opportunities that give students an opportunity to transfer what they have learned in the unit to a novel scenario. Both of these assessment opportunities include teacher and student routines to support student thinking and instructional action.

TAKEAWAYS:
In OpenSciEd HS, the assessment system is structured to support teachers in assessing all three dimensions of the NGSS through formative, summative, peer, and self assessment opportunities.

SPEAKERS:
Zoe Buck Bracey (Senior Science Educator and Director of Design for Justice: Colorado Springs, CO), Michael Novak (Northwestern University: Evanston, IL), Kate Henson (University of Colorado Boulder: Boulder, CO)

Too often teachers spend valuable time creating performance tasks in science to encourage sensemaking in their students and to make student thinking more visible. This session will highlight available OER resources that have been compiled across multiple sites. Using these tasks as a starting point, participants will explore ways to adapt these tasks to meet the needs of their classroom. Participants will learn strategies for increasing rigor, providing different levels of support, and providing opportunities to increase student engagement through student voice and choice.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants in this session will leave with an understanding of the OER tasks available for classroom use and strategies to adapt these tasks for their classroom. Strategies will include examples of support for scaffolding, giving meaningful feedback, and increasing student voice and choice.

SPEAKERS:
Kelley Aitken (Winchester Public Schools: Winchester, VA)

Look across the Essential Elements of Leadership, Resources, and Coherence, to identify enabling conditions for curriculum-based professional learning to ensure that ALL teachers are prepared to leverage high-quality materials as they provide meaningful learning experiences for ALL students.

TAKEAWAYS:
Gain concrete ideas about how you, as a leader, can plan for effective curriculum-based professional learning.

SPEAKERS:
Nancy Hopkins-Evans (BSCS Science Learning: Colorado Springs, CO)

Sponsoring Company: BIOZONE Corporation

Discover BIOZONE WORLD - a new platform bringing all our digital resources together for easy access and delivery. Incorporating BIOZONE’s eBooks with our rich collection of presentation slides, 3D models & curated videos, it provides powerful options for delivering your high school science programs.

SPEAKERS:
Richard Allan (BIOZONE International Ltd.: Hamilton, New Zealand)

Sponsoring Company: STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning

N/A

SPEAKERS:
Leslie Spaeny (STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning: Houston, TX)

Sponsoring Company: Savvas Learning Company

N/A

SPEAKERS:
Christopher Moore (University of Nebraska Omaha: Omaha, NE)

(This workshop is geared toward classrooms of all grade levels with minimal technology available.) Teachers will experience what it is like to be a student in a unique and engaging modern classroom that uses innovative methods that place students in the center of their learning. Their assignments will be to view examples from science classrooms currently using the model, and create components of a modern classroom using content from their own courses or provided samples. By completing this workshop, teachers will have a better understanding of how to use technology with blended instruction, mastery learning, and self-paced structures that incorporate collaboration, projects, and hands-on learning into a modern classroom to effectively reach the needs of every student, and receive valuable next steps to begin transforming their teaching and create a Classroom of the Future.

TAKEAWAYS:
​​Participants will experience this model as students as they explore low-tech blended instruction, self-pacing, and mastery-based grading. They will then begin to apply these concepts to their own lessons and units using the toolbox of samples, templates, and resources.

SPEAKERS:
Sumala Paidi (Teacher: , TX), Julie Gastler (Hickman High School: Columbia, MO)

Authentic learning (AL) in the classroom is not new, however it is underutilized in the science classroom. We will present current research on the topic of authentic science learning and its efficacy in developing scientific literacy. Through this presentation we will inspire teachers to provide more real-world scientific experiences and interactions with real scientists to their students. We will also provide educators with ready-to-use materials to use in the classroom. The presentation will include the definition of authentic learning and what types of teaching strategies qualify as 'authentic' with a focus on project-based, inquiry-based, and problem-based teaching methods. Also included in the presentation are the interwoven connections between authentic learning opportunities, socio-scientific issues and citizen science, and the natural connection between AL and NGSS Science and Engineering Practices.

TAKEAWAYS:
Educators will walk away with an understanding of Authentic Learning and what authentic learning opportunities look like in the science classroom. Attendees will have access to pre-made activities to use immediately with minimal preparation.

SPEAKERS:
Kristen Benton (Kenesaw Public Schools: Kenesaw, NE), Bailey Johnson (Hastings Public Schools: Hastings, NE)

In this session, participants will consider three alternatives to traditional multiple-choice pre-assessments: modeling, self-documentation, and class discussions. We will discuss the purpose of pre-assessments as a critical data point for instructional planning, especially with many schools moving towards PLC structures around data cycles. We will see examples of these three alternative strategies for pre-assessment (which can also be used as formative assessment structures). For each assessment structure, we will discuss how to collect and use data. Authentic examples will be provided from the presenter’s middle school and high school classrooms.The session will synthesize and apply ideas from the following ACESSE Stem Teaching Tools: Modeling #8 / self-documentation #31 / class discussions #6, #35 / using pre-assessments #15, #18, #25, #34, #37. These STEM teaching tools will be shared with participants to continue their learning beyond the 60-minute session.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to use different assessment formats to collect data without relying on multiple-choice questions. The assessment formats allow students to use knowledge & experiences of a phenomenon or science idea while providing meaningful information to guide instructional choices.

SPEAKERS:
Stephanie Alderman-Oler (Washington High School: Kansas City, KS)

Building classroom culture is essential for students to collectively make sense of phenomena. Students need to buy into the idea that each of their ideas is crucial for pushing the class forward. In this session, we highlight strategies for co-creating community agreements. We also report on challenges we have encountered in our classrooms, which strategies we have found to be successful, and which tend to turn students off. We highlight how, as culture challenges arise throughout the year, we can return to these community agreements to reground our classroom. The facilitator will begin the session with a brief overview of OpenSciEd’s view of the teacher's role in instruction and community-building, which will then be followed with a guided panel featuring experienced teachers in using storylines, and finally open Q&A.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will understand how community agreements and other strategies are used in OpenSciEd and other high school classrooms to support collective and equitable sensemaking.

SPEAKERS:
Dan Voss (Northwestern University: Evanston, IL), Kerri Wingert (Good Question Research: Boulder, CO), Rachel Patton (Denver Public Schools), Nina Blanton (Educator: , MO), Calvin Atkins (Bellingham High School: Bellingham, WA), Sarah Evans (Olathe South High School: Olathe, KS)

Students learn and develop at different speeds and in different ways. How can we meet them where they are and move them forward? Enrichment, Practice and Remediation are lessons designed to focus on a science concept (or cluster of concepts) for students to actively engage in accessible learning. EPRs include active learning experiences designed to support students continuing to learn based on their needs. Some students will be ready to dig deeper into the concept, while others might need a little more time for mastery. Experience your own learning by looking at an example score, becoming a student, and joining others as you learn through an enrichment, practice, or remediation activity

TAKEAWAYS:
Enrichment, Practice, and Remediation allows us to meet students where they are and move them in their science knowledge. EPR will help supervisors, coaches, and teachers understand, visualize, and experience what differentiated learning in science looks like and how simple it can be.

SPEAKERS:
Kristin Squires (The School District of Osceola County: St Cloud, FL)

This course is designed to introduce participants to the Next Generation Science Assessment (NGSA) design approach including unpacking dimensions, developing integrated dimension maps, articulating learning performances, identifying phenomena, and designing tasks.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn the steps of a systematic process for designing 3-dimensional tasks that align with NGSS performance expectations, take into consideration students’ diverse backgrounds, and can be used in classrooms to provide information to teachers and students to improve learning.

SPEAKERS:
Joseph Krajcik (CREATE for STEM Institute, Michigan State University: East Lansing, MI), Christopher Harris (WestEd)

Participants learn hands-on how to engage students in a STEM design challenge. They discover the importance of research through experimentation while investigating 4 variables that affect a straw rocket’s flight. They’ll create a series of straw rockets, testing each variable through launching. Participants will learn strategies to teach students measurement and data collection skills with any experimental design process for any level; whether that is beginning measurement in Pre-K and K to the importance of significant figures in measurement with high school. Teachers will experience strategies for classroom data analysis and use this in their ultimate challenge: designing and engineering the ideal straw rocket to test in a distance competition. Teachers will learn strategies to differentiate this concept in any K-12 classroom and see testimonials on this from the Air Camp Programming and Teacher Air Camp alumni.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn hands-on strategies to help students develop measurement, data collection, and analysis skills they can apply in engineering design lessons. You will learn methods to differentiate this in any K-12 setting and leave with free resources for your classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Jennifer Stormer (3-6 STEM Teacher/ Elementary and Teacher Curriculum Specialist, Air Camp USA: Union, OH), Christina Davis (Air Camp USA, Inc.: Dayton, OH)

As a nonfiction author, I always start where my readers are—hooking them in by grounding them in what they already know, then expanding on that knowledge. Teaching is no different, and incorporating nonfiction books into the curriculum can allow teachers to address standards across different disciplines while building their students’ understanding of a topic. This session will look at two books that can do this, one on that addresses interdependent relationships in ecosystems and one that examines natural hazards and the history of the planet. How do scientists use evidence to support their arguments, and how can we model those steps when teaching students how to develop their arguments in writing? Scientific research isn’t all that different from text-dependent analysis, and this presentation will discuss how to address both using true, jaw-dropping examples straight from our own backyards.

TAKEAWAYS:
We can use nonfiction books to ground learning, making information more accessible as students encounter information in a variety of ways across the curriculum.

SPEAKERS:
Alison Pearce Stevens (nonfiction author)

As educators shift their teaching practice to align with the Framework for K-12 Science and the NGSS, they face various challenges and barriers. One pressing challenge is how to align their new approach to teaching and learning with existing assessment and grading systems. In this session, we will provide examples of 3D assessments and associated scoring guidance. Participants will review student work for these sample assessments and identify evidence of understanding. They will collaborate with others in the session and determine how they would give grades based on set criteria. The second part of the session will highlight different approaches to grading based on local grading expectations (e.g., standards-based grading, daily grade requirements, or 100 point-based systems). Participants will leave the session with approaches to assessment and grading that support student sensemaking and honor the diverse resources students bring to the classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
The process of giving feedback and assigning grades is easier when there are strong materials and assessments to build from, and technology can help make it faster without decreasing effectiveness for students.

SPEAKERS:
Matt Krehbiel (OpenSciEd: New York, NY)

The NSTA Atlas of the Three Dimensions maps out learning progressions based on the Framework for K–12 Science Education and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). The 62 maps in the Atlas organize all of the elements from standards on a particular topic (e.g., modeling, patterns, or definitions of energy) on a single page. The elements from grades K–2 are at the bottom of the page, and those from grades 9–12 are at the top. Arrows connect elements to indicate how ideas in a particular topic build on each other and how elements in different topics connect to one another. Studying the maps in the Atlas and the additional resources in the appendixes can provide educators with new insights about the standards. This session will provide an overview of how to read a map, the other features of the Atlas, and how educators can use this powerful navigational tool to develop and implement curriculum, instruction, and assessment.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to read the maps and use other tools in the Atlas to understand and interpret standards, and plan instructional sequences as part of their work in curriculum, instruction, and assessment.

SPEAKERS:
Ted Willard (Discovery Education: Silver Spring, MD)

Sponsoring Company: STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning

CER gets students to explain phenomena in a scientific way. Let’s use investigations to demonstrate how to use data collection to drive data-based conclusions. Guide students in how to think deeper, write scientifically, & incorporate vocabulary that strengthens their understanding of a phenomenon.

SPEAKERS:
Margo Dye (Accelerate Learning Inc.: Houston, TX)

Sponsoring Company: Texas Instruments

Bring a friend with you to attend, "Zombie Apocalypse!" Just make sure you can run faster! Zombies provide an excellent way to get students interested in understanding how diseases move through a population. Great for middle and high school students.

Sponsoring Company: ExploreLearning

This interactive session will explore a digital interface that develops models to capture students' thinking when designing and testing solutions to real-world problems. We will immerse ourselves in solving a puzzling STEM Case to develop a model and use it to optimize a solution.

SPEAKERS:
Patricia Low (ExploreLearning: Charlottesville, VA)

Sponsoring Company: Vernier Science Education

Inspire your students’ curiosity about the world around them through hands-on activities using the Go Direct® Temperature Probe, Go Direct® Magnetic Field Sensor, and Go Direct® Motion Detector. See how age-appropriate, sensor-based experiments teach students about data collection and analysis—practices that promote scientific inquiry, build STEM literacy, and boost test scores.

SPEAKERS:
David Carter (Vernier Science Education: Beaverton, OR)

Sponsoring Company: Savvas Learning Company

Techniques such as CRISPR, mitochondrial transfer, and mRNA therapeutics have opened new possibilities for genetic manipulation, bringing with them new opportunities to energize the biology curriculum.

SPEAKERS:
Kenneth Miller (Brown University: Providence, RI)

University/college instructors at several institutions in the US and Canada are using NSTA resources in lieu of a textbook when teaching preservice teachers. Participants will meet some of these instructors and learn how they integrate NSTA resources in their courses and the benefits of the program. Preservice teachers using NSTA create a library of resources, grow their network of professional colleagues, and enhance their content and pedagogical knowledge of science. Instructors receive a class landing page to manage their course and a private forum for asynchronous discussions. They also gain access to an administrator's dashboard to monitor and assess their students' engagement within the NSTA website. All instructors receive a free NSTA membership. Students can become members of the Association through graduation and add to the website's library all of NSTA’s Interactive E-Books+ Professional, professional learning units, and other fee-based resources to use in class and beyond.

TAKEAWAYS:
University/college instructors are using NSTA resources in lieu of a textbook when teaching preservice teacher courses. Participants will meet some of these instructors and learn how they integrate NSTA resources in their courses and the benefits of the program.

SPEAKERS:
Flavio Mendez (NSTA: Arlington, VA)

Lecture and PowerPoint are so 20th Century. Move beyond the traditional lecture approach to your introductory college science classes. Put research into practice as you experience these engaging, relevant, and real approaches to teaching non-majors. Your colleagues will share how they use embedded lab and investigation, real time data,, placed-based pedagogy, and other methods to make learning an active process. Question and Answer time is built into this session as is time to share your successful approaches.

TAKEAWAYS:
Make your college science classes more engaging, relevant, and real for your non-majors.

SPEAKERS:
Rhea Miles (East Carolina University: Greenville, NC), Matthew Blank (Assistant Professor: Houston, TX), Richard Jones (University of Hawaii-West Oahu: Kaploei, HI)

This session will introduce participants to NSTA instructional materials (lessons and units) designed for elementary classrooms. These instructional materials are designed around the critical aspects of sensemaking: students experience a phenomenon, engage in science and engineering practices and share ideas and to build and/or apply disciplinary core ideas and crosscutting concepts needed to explain how or why the phenomenon occurs. Sensemaking is in the vision of A Framework for K-12 Science Education - “the doing of science and engineering is highlighted as a strategy that can capture students’ interest in science and motivate their continued study.” (A Framework for K-12 Science Education, pp 42-43). NSTA lessons and units provide opportunities for all students to engage in science learning that is 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)

Countless studies have found that teachers are struggling to support students in maintaining focus, finding self-worth, and being intrinsically creative learners. Gamification provides the building blocks for engagement, community, healthy competition, and self motivation, and works with any grade level and any subject. With gamification, students can use their creativity in learning choices and earn incentives based around curricular and extracurricular themes. Student examples from a sixth grade science classroom include reviewing challenges that emphasize content and game elements. Participants in this session will gain the initial building blocks to create their own game for their classrooms that is manageable and can be enhanced over time. Activities will include defining gamification and creating their own game theme. During the session, the participant will participate in a game challenge by using a choice board to explore and expand the strategies and methods of gamification.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will begin the journey of gamifying their classroom right away. They will also leave with resources to use to continue their gamification journey.

SPEAKERS:
Michelle Simmons (Klahowya Secondary School: Silverdale, WA)

The main resource that will be shared is a poster that presents an overview of a case study completed as a part of the Multiple Literacies in Project-Based Learning (ML-PBL) Efficacy Study. The information shared will focus on the affordances of carrying the thinking from science to other parts of the school day and of using science-related texts for multiple purposes in literacy instruction. Overall efficacy study results will be shared. The url for finding the posted free ML-PBL OER curriculum resources will be provided, as well as information for learning more about ML-PBL. The case study has been published in a book of case studies, which will be mentioned (is shown in a section of the poster), but not promoted. Texts used to extend Grade 3 units will be available for attendees to review.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will be exposed to free resources and ideas for selecting resources for literacy lessons that allow students to continue to fine-tune and extend the ideas they are developing in science class. Handouts with links to additional resources will be available.

SPEAKERS:
Susan Codere (CREATE for STEM Institute, Michigan State University, Retired)

In this poster session, educators will have the opportunity to learn about ways to get students outside and learning about the native arthropods in their area. This 2-4 day project allows students to research, collect, and identify different arthropods in their environment. Students will practice and show their understanding of these arthropods by designing and presenting their own phylogenic tree while connecting it back to their native environment.

TAKEAWAYS:
Come learn about how to engage your students in the environment around them through the lens of classification and taxonomy.

SPEAKERS:
Jacqueline Svetich (Science Teacher: Naperville, IL)

In this poster session, we highlight how two 5th-grade teachers of linguistically diverse students strategically used the Science and Engineering Practice of Developing and Using Models over the course of a physical science unit to increase opportunities for sensemaking with all students. First, we show sample models from multilingual learners across three time points in the unit: initial, revised, and final model. At each time point, we highlight what the teachers did to elicit and interpret student thinking. In particular, we share how “final models” can serve as a more authentic end-of-unit task when an iterative modeling process has been enacted. We describe how the teachers’ own perceptions of modeling changed over the course of the unit. As a result of heightened student sensemaking with the more iterative modeling process, the teachers shifted away from positioning models as products and toward positioning models as evidence of current and evolving sensemaking.

TAKEAWAYS:
By strategically allowing all students, particularly multilingual learners, to develop and use increasingly sophisticated models over time, teachers shifted away from “models as products” and toward “models as evidence of sensemaking.”

SPEAKERS:
Iovanna Williams (Science Teacher: , NY), Adriana Romanzo (Elementary Science Teacher: New York, NY), Abigail Schwenger (Research Associate)

This presentation will examine current research showing the positive effect virtual/augmented reality has on student engagement and achievement when used effectively in the classroom. Educators will have the opportunity to review the literature to determine if and how virtual/augmented reality could be beneficial in their classrooms. Attendees will have the opportunity to use a virtual reality headset and experience educational applications. They will also be provided with various virtual/augmented reality educational resources. These resources range from requiring highly updated technology to simply needing a Chromebook. Any educator can implement virtual/augmented reality into their STEM classroom. This presentation will introduce many educators to a new age in educational technology.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn what educational research currently says about virtual/augmented reality in STEM classrooms, as well as what future studies should be conducted. Various tools and resources will be provided to enable teachers to utilize virtual/augmented reality in their classrooms.

SPEAKERS:
Kayla Sullivan (Chemistry Teacher HS: Georgetown, OH)

Interviews with pre-service teachers and their host teachers inform how host teachers can best support observing pre-service teachers, and how observing pre-service teachers can authentically and meaningfully engage in the classroom. The poster will present how both parties can work together to create a learning environment that both the pre-service teacher and host teacher mutually benefit from, and address typical pitfalls causing disengagement and miscommunication in the classroom environment. The research serves to answer the questions of "What do pre-service teachers and host teachers need from each other to produce a meaningful observation experience?" in order to progress science education preparation programs.

TAKEAWAYS:
Both practicing and pre-service teacher attendees will learn how to best support each other during teacher practicum observation hours to ensure both parties mutually benefit and learn from each other.

SPEAKERS:
Carol Compton (Preservice Teacher: Columbia, MO)

For many students, an undergraduate general education life science (GELS) course may be the only one where they are exposed to scientific reasoning at the collegiate level. In order to contribute to a scientifically literate and informed society, the Interactions in General Education Life Sciences (IGELS) project aims to engage students in reasoning skills around topics that are highly relevant to students. We describe the goals and activities of IGELS and provide preliminary results of our survey of GELS instructors that assesses their current knowledge and implementation of the “Vision and Change” (AAAS, 2009) framework in their courses. These data will inform our future activities to provide faculty development and develop curricular models that support reasoning and relevancy in GELS courses while implementing principles of “Vision and Change.”

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will be able to describe the mission of IGELS and envision how future projects can assist educators in increasing reasoning skills in learners in ways that are relevant to their lives.

SPEAKERS:
Heather Rissler (North Iowa Area Community College)

Understanding complex science standards in elementary school often depends on the amount of background knowledge children have. One way that teachers can help students develop their schema before beginning a new science unit is to provide children with opportunities to build their prerequisite knowledge. This is particularly important when meeting the needs of a diverse group of learners. This session will center around upper elementary curriculum. It will include examples of short (5-10 minute) hands-on activities that can be used in the classroom to help children expand their schema before beginning to learn new science standards. Examples of pre-teaching activities: Ecosystems and Environments: Sorting seeds for a seed dispersal lab. The children notice features of the seeds. Force and Motion: Test the ramps before the activity and discuss independent variables such as ramp height and surface. Earth Systems: Use a sponge puzzle in water to model how tectonic plates move.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with several examples of short, 5-10 minute long, hands-on activities to use in their classroom to help children develop their schema. They will also see examples of student's thinking and sensemaking in science notebooks.

SPEAKERS:
Stacy Sharp-Adamson (Bell Prairie Elem School)

This poster presentation will use the Krebs Cycle of Creativity as created by Dr. Neri Oxman as a framework for a new approach to interdisciplinary sciences. I will explore the intersectionality of art, science, engineering, and design. This will include how the synergy between these disciplines creates opportunities to study how art and design affect our behavior, how design and engineering impact utility, how engineering and science creates knowledge, and how science and art portrays information. I will use examples from my own classes to highlight how the Krebs Cycle of Creativity can provide a new lens to view interdisciplinary teaching in the science discipline. This will include examples of projects, teaching materials, and student samples. Visitors will leave with a tangible understanding of how their school can move away from the siloed STEAM approach and move towards a more holistic approach that connects the many different disciplines of science.

TAKEAWAYS:
Visitors will leave with a new lens to view interdisciplinary science teaching including examples of projects, teaching materials, student samples, and a tangible understanding of how their school can move away from the siloed STEAM approach and towards a more holistic take on teaching science.

SPEAKERS:
Adam Vorel (6th Grade Science Teacher: Webster Groves, MO)

Primary grades (K-2) are a challenge for science education. With the focus on basic literacy and math, there is little time for stand-alone science lessons. Here is one solution. Printable booklets are widely used to teach sight words (the top commonly used 100 words) or how to decode simple letter-sound relationships. With a careful selection of vocabulary words, they can also be used to introduce science ideas. The 5-part lesson 1) previews student ideas (models) and introduces vocabulary; 2) uses the booklet to get students to notice, wonder, and ask questions; 3) investigates a question from 2; 4) makes sense of results from 3 to build a shared model; and 5) assesses abilities to interpret new material using the model. The approach is illustrated with two booklets and lessons. One is on different kinds of leaves (~NGSS K-LS1-1) and one is on the effect of sunlight (NGSS K-PS3-1) which can tie into building a structure to reduce the warming effect of sunlight (NGSS K-PS3-2).

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn how to create or recognize science literature that clicks with a teacher focused on reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Use that literature to craft a lesson that explicitly connects teaching ELA to student ideas, science ideas, science practices, and sensemaking.

SPEAKERS:
Jan Weaver (Retired)

Participants will learn about the Authentic Literacy and Language (ALL) for Science curriculum framework and discover how the combination of guided science investigations, mini-lessons on Science-based disciplinary literacy, and science inquiry circles can increase learner performance. Teachers who used lessons using this curriculum framework reported that children demonstrated increased engagement with lessons and improved their language skills as they began to read, write, and think like scientists. They also found that children performed better overall on assessments of science concepts, attributing the use of collaborative learning teams that build a community of science practice as a factor. Participants will receive a sample lesson from the curriculum and access to the ALL for Science website where they can download FREE resources aligned with NGSS standards.

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn how the ALL for Science curriculum framework unifies guided science investigations and science-specific disciplinary literacy to engage learners in the practices of science. Educators will receive a sample lesson from the curriculum and access to free online resources.

SPEAKERS:
Jimmie Thomas (Baylor College of Medicine)

This poster focuses on the study that aims to investigate the effectiveness of gamification in science classes for exceptional learners, specifically those with emotional behavioral disorders (EBD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The study seeks to determine if gamification can increase engagement in science classes for exceptional learners, identify methods for incorporating gamification, identify the specific components of lessons that can be gamified, and measure the level of engagement of exceptional learners in science classes. The study includes 11 exceptional learners from a Title 1 alternative school in Florida. The participants come from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds, including some designated as homeless and living in group homes. The majority of the participants are male and African American. The study highlights the importance of engaging exceptional learners in science classes to improve their academic performance and prevent negative attitudes towards education.

TAKEAWAYS:
Using gamification in science classes can increase exceptional learners' engagement and interest in science. Educators can use the study's insights to gamify specific components of science lessons and improve engagement, which can aid in closing the achievement gap for exceptional learners.

SPEAKERS:
Lacie Conner (ESE Science Teacher, EBD)

Join us to explore the variety of online professional development opportunities for educators. We will be highlighting all the opportunities to gain NSTA certificates that could be used as continuing education certificates, including many that are free!

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn about the variety of professional learning opportunities that NSTA has to offer.

SPEAKERS:
Michelle Phillips (NSTA: Arlington, VA)

Polydensity bottles are made with salt, isopropyl alcohol, water, UV beads, and pony beads. These materials are easily accessible and relatively inexpensive. With the polydensity bottles, students can engage in sensemaking related to density, molecular properties, solubility, and other concepts supported by the NRC K-12 Framework. Students can be challenged to complete calculations and create their own bottles, or teachers can make bottles to be used as an introductory or anchoring phenomenon. This session will provide multiple ideas on ways to use these interesting bottles to give students at multiple levels the opportunity to engage in sensemaking and Science Practices. Instructions will be given for creating bottles with multiple recipes, and sources of instructional materials will be provided to participants.

TAKEAWAYS:
Poly density bottles are an effective and inexpensive way to provide a discrepant event to intrigue students. Students at various levels can engage with this phenomenon to engage in sensemaking as they employ several different concepts in Physical Science.

SPEAKERS:
Kelly Moore (Tennessee Tech: Cookeville, TN)

A Framework for K–12 Science Education and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) encourages students to engage in science and engineering practices to develop deeper understanding of disciplinary core ideas and crosscutting concepts. As a partner in the development of the NGSS, NSTA has been at the forefront of the shift toward improving the quality of science instruction for all students. Let us support your school or district efforts to implement three-dimensional standards and transform classroom instruction.

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn how to bring NSTA professional learning services to your school, district, or organization (face-to-face, virtual, and hybrid).

SPEAKERS:
Michelle Phillips (NSTA: Arlington, VA)

eCYBERMISSION is a free virtual STEM competition for grades 6-9. Supported by a wealth of standards-aligned resources, teams of 2-4 students are engaged in sensemaking as they research a community problem of their choosing. Through hands-on learning, students gain practical experience, enhance problem-solving skills, and develop leadership qualities. eCYBERMISSION strives to be accessible to everyone by providing free resources, grants for teachers, and a primarily virtual participation format. Participating students have the opportunity to compete for awards worth thousands of dollars and an all-expense paid trip with their supporting teacher to the finals. eCYBERMISSION offers a unique opportunity for students to think critically and creatively, paving the way for the next generation of innovators. Let's connect and empower your students today!

TAKEAWAYS:
eCYBERMISSION is a free virtual STEM competition for grades 6-9 that is supported by a wealth of standards-aligned resources. Students are engaged in sensemaking through hands-on learning while enhancing problem-solving skills and developing leadership qualities.

SPEAKERS:
Carey Dieleman (National Science Teaching Association: No City, No State), Brian Kutsch (National Science Teaching Association, eCYBERMISSION)

A middle school PLC observed that students were not retaining or using content specific vocabulary or completing teacher provided practice. Through a coaching partnership, educators researched and determined to prioritize the following learning: conceptual understanding, explicit instruction, connection between words, multiple interactions with words, and discourse among peers. First, teachers minimized the words in each unit to focus only on Tier 3 and Tier 2 words. Next, the educators placed the words in a flow chart on a large wall showing connections between words. Teachers developed conceptual understanding during instruction and ways for students to interact with each word. Examples included; labs, readings, definitions, and discourse with peers. The teachers intentionally selected strategies to interact with each word such as defining, drawing, comparing, summarizing, discussing, and synthesizing their understanding. Student work was displayed on the interactive wall.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will leave with strategies to implement vocabulary instruction in any science content area.

SPEAKERS:
Maryam Siddiqui (Teacher: , IL), Meghan Chuipek (Thompson Middle School)

Coaching Science Olympiad 30+ years and my science teaching cousin still a rookie, we offer tips and tricks on team startup or management. Join us to hear how I took a tiny Nebraska school to win B and C Divisions at Regionals my first year at Arcadia. Having been a veteran coach at four public schools, this amazing educational science event molded careers for my students, cousin, and four children. My cousin started a team in western Nebraska which added travel challenges across our state. We will share ideas on how to manage 2 teams of 30+ students to compete in 24+ events that coaches rarely get to see. Nebraska coaches often make tests for 2 events in 4 time slots to judge. Balancing team preparation and meeting NGSS/state science standards is a challenge while teaching a full day with 3-7 preps. The NE Director asked me to mentor more S.O. coaches so here we are. Teachers will be enlightened with a poster, slide show, paper examples and 3-D visuals to help coaches find success.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will gain ideas to start their own Science Olympiad Team/s. How to select students for various events to earn team points in each, make user-friendly maps with schedules, reminders and information students can follow, and build unity by wearing team designed school shirts .

SPEAKERS:
Marie Wadas (Arcadia Public School: Arcadia, NE)

Sensemaking with the Claim-Evidence-Reasoning process for students is made relatable when they use data sets generated about themselves. They can evaluate the results by examining the population directly in their environment. The Reasoning part that early learners struggle with flows out from their direct experiences with the data.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn how to measure, graph, and find relationships using their students as the data source.

SPEAKERS:
Stacey Bauer (Spalding Academy: Spalding, NE), Polla Renken (Science Instructor: Kearney, NE)

Case Studies are stories with an educational message. Learn how case studies engage learners, develop critical thinking, and enhance collaborative and communication skills. You will experience a case and try to solve a real-world mystery of a woman who was told she was not her children’s mother.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will experience a case study as learners, reflect on the experience and on the pedagogical potential, and discuss ways to use the technique effectively. They will explore NSTA’s collection of almost 1000 freely accessible case studies in all STEM disciplines.

SPEAKERS:
Annie Prud'homme-Généreux (University of British Columbia: No City, No State)

Play along as we think, tinker, and wow like scientists and engineers! The session layout will be as follows: -Listen: Attendees will together listen to a short excerpt of the research-based podcast, Wow in the World. -Wonder: Attendees will individually use divergent thinking and creative innovation to reflect on the wonders and wows sparked from the podcast, and share insights with the room. -Tinker: In small groups, they will sort through their wonders and identify their One testable Big Wonder (their hypothesis) to investigate by communicating, collaborating, and critically thinking. -Make: In the same groups, they will be guided through a hands-on scientific experiment or engineering design project, and build confidence by sharing their findings in a multimedia presentation. -Debrief: Attendees will reflect on the classroom management and streamlined instruction practices that the instructors used in the session and how they can do the same.

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn how to streamline PBL instruction, manage the classroom to develop 21st Century skills, and excite K-5 students about hands-on scientific inquiry and engineering design using TinkerClass’ modular LISTEN, WONDER, TINKER, and MAKE experience.

SPEAKERS:
Carole Paterson (Science Teacher: Ligonier, PA), Rebecca Caban (Educational Producer)

We will unpack the purpose of each phase within the design cycle (Ask-Imagine-Plan-Create-Improve) and the role it plays in developing and showcasing student understanding of scientific concepts and their development of SEPs. Students often jump quickly from asking questions to designing solutions. Participants will engage in an activity that emphasizes the importance of slowing down the engineering process to zoom in on intentional brainstorming and planning that encourages students to think creatively, yet logically, about their ideas. We will focus on helping students articulate their thinking and communicate their scientific ideas throughout the design process. We will look at how these ideas can be mirrored in the improve phase to allow students to reflect on their process, gather and communicate new findings, and purposefully redesign. Through well-developed design projects, elementary students can build strong scientific understanding and develop critical 21st-century skills.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will take away ideas for enhancing the engineering design process for their students in order to leverage student ideas and collaboration to create better engineering solutions.

SPEAKERS:
Briana Trager (Graduate Student: , NC)

We know two things: 1) the purchase of new instructional materials represents a significant district investment and 2) effective classroom use of high-quality instructional materials improves student learning. NextGen TIME can help districts ensure investment in the best possible instructional materials and provide guidance on preparing teachers for effective use. NextGen TIME is a suite of tools and processes to support districts in evaluating, selecting, and implementing instructional materials designed for the NGSS. NextGen TIME is also designed as a professional learning experience for teachers to deepen their understanding of NGSS as they analyze instructional materials. It addresses the needs of states, districts, and schools for a deep understanding of the NGSS to make selection decisions for instructional materials, plan for implementation of those materials, and provide teacher professional learning that enables effective implementation of NGSS‐aligned teaching and learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn how NextGen TIME supports the evaluation of current instructional materials to strengthen their design for NGSS and how NextGen TIME tools and processes can serve as critical components of curriculum-based professional learning. You’ll walk away with free access to NextGen TIME resources.

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

N/A

TAKEAWAYS:
Tips on how to relieve pressure and regain control.

SPEAKERS:
Michelle Phillips (NSTA: Arlington, VA), Azra Chughtai (NSTA: Arlington, VA)

Participants will be engaged in multiple strategies that include mandatory engagement and collaboration. Many of the activities also include movement. The strategies can be implemented the week they return in any classroom with any subject area. Activities range from a Tea Party (science/literacy) activity, card sorts, and data collecting.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will leave with a variety of strategies to engage students through collaboration and movement.

SPEAKERS:
Carol Moore (STEM West: CLAREMONT, NC)

The Kansas Association of Teachers of Science (KATS) is the District 11 chapter of the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA). The purpose of the KATS shall be the advancement, stimulation, extension, improvement, and coordination of science teaching in all fields of science at all educational levels. This session will explain the purpose of KATS to science teachers in Kansas, explain leadership opportunities that KATS provides its members, and share the amazing professional development opportunities and network events that will bridge Kansas science teachers together. Teachers will be introduced to members of the board of directors of KATS who desire to create a support system to science teachers.

TAKEAWAYS:
Kansas teachers will learn about the Kansas Association of Teachers of Science, the professional development opportunities they provide, and the system of networking they create to bridge science teachers together in the state of Kansas.

SPEAKERS:
Betsy Lawrence (Summit Trail Middle School: Olathe, KS)

Outline: (5 Minutes): Initial engagement KWL chart activity about creating accessible spaces: both physical and digital (15 minutes). Presentation about the importance of digital accessibility and some essential things to know (15 minutes). Educators will engage in discussion groups to brainstorm ways to bring accessibility culture to their STEM classroom using the HOW MIGHT WE design thinking protocol (5 Minutes). Closure: educators will go back to the KWL chart and fill in the L, what they learned during the session. Katie Fielding is a STEM Coach in Price William County Schools, Virginia. She is passionate about accessibility and creativity in the classroom. https://www.katiefielding.com/

TAKEAWAYS:
Removes barriers in your STEM classroom for all learners with an understanding of digital accessibility and universal design for learning.

SPEAKERS:
Katherine Fielding (Prince William County Schools)

A collaborative team of teachers and researchers share findings from a research project aimed at integrating science and language with fifth-grade multilingual learners (MLs). First, we describe three language instructional shifts: modalities, registers, and interactions. Then, we share how two teachers enacted these shifts over the course of a physical science unit and present classroom examples of how they (a) used nonlinguistic modalities (e.g., models) as an essential way to engage all students in the Science and Engineering Practices, (b) treated specialized language (i.e., a more formal register) as a product of learning science rather than a prerequisite, and (c) leveraged the affordances of different registers (i.e., everyday, specialized) based on the different communicative demands across different types of interactions. Finally, we provide suggestions for enacting these language instructional shifts with MLs across a range of classroom contexts.

TAKEAWAYS:
As all students, and especially multilingual learners, make sense of phenomena and problems, they use multiple modalities (both linguistic and visual) and a range of registers (from everyday to specialized) across different types of interactions to engage in communication of science ideas.

SPEAKERS:
Iovanna Williams (Science Teacher: , NY), Adriana Romanzo (Elementary Science Teacher: New York, NY), Abigail Schwenger (Research Associate)

Roger Bybee's Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS) 5E Instructional Model is based on constructivist theories and enhances student inquiry through a series of planning strategies. This model is designed to incorporate all aspects of inquiry learning environments by engaging students and allowing students to explore the concepts being introduced, discover explanations for the concepts they are learning, and elaborate on what they have learned by applying their knowledge to new situations. Through the engage, explore, and explain stages of the model, knowledge about science is gained. In the elaborate stage, a problem is introduced and engineering and mathematics are used to help solve the problem. In this session participants will be introduced to the model through a states of matter lesson that can be adapted to the intermediate, middle, and high school levels. Three-Dimensional Learning will be highlighted and participants will have access to a 5E Model planning template.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will gain an understanding of the 5E instructional model and how the stages incorporate Three-Dimensional Learning -- the framework of the Next Generation Science Standards.

SPEAKERS:
Christina Hilton (Central Indiana Educational Service Center: Indianapolis, IN)

Preservice teachers using NSTA in lieu of a textbook create a library of resources, grow their network of professional colleagues, and enhance their content and pedagogical knowledge of science by actively engaging with NSTA digital resources, virtual programs, and community members within the NSTA website. Instructors receive a class landing page to manage their course and to easily access the digital resources, a private forum for asynchronous discussions, and an administrator's dashboard to monitor their students' engagement within the website. All instructors using NSTA in lieu of a textbook receive a free NSTA membership, and their students can become members of the Association through graduation. Students gain the ability to add NSTA’s Interactive E-Books+ Professional, professional learning units, and other fee-based resources to their library.

TAKEAWAYS:
Preservice teachers using NSTA as a Textbook (or as instructional materials supplement) create a library of resources, grow their network of professional colleagues, and enhance their content and pedagogical knowledge of science.

SPEAKERS:
Flavio Mendez (NSTA: Arlington, VA)

John Sweller's Cognitive Load Theory in 1988 should have changed education, and yet, it is rarely talked about today. Knowing how students' brains become overloaded with information, leading to disruption and behavioral issues, can only enhance the time you have with your students. Learn about Germane, Intrinsic, and Extrinsic load, as well as how to use that knowledge to create lessons, assessments, and activities that target the learning you want the students to achieve. With specific, easy to use, and direct tips, this session will help teachers reduce unnecessary cognitive load and increase learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Students come to your class as different learners. One thing they have in common is Cognitive Load! Find ways to teach more efficiently, reduce unnecessary cognitive load, and increase student retention by learning about Sweller's Cognitive Load Theory.

SPEAKERS:
Kirsten Landry (Kent Denver School: Englewood, CO)

The NGSS and other standards based on the Framework of K-12 Education are quite complicated and often tricky to interpret. What teachers need is an easy-to-use reference guide to the standards, and since its release in 2014, the NSTA Quick-Reference Guide has become a perennial best-seller and an essential tool for many educators across the country. This session will be hosted by Ted Willard, the editor of the Quick-Reference Guide and formerly the in-house standards expert at NSTA. Ted will review the features listed above and how educators can use the Quick-Reference Guide to unpack the standards in their work developing curriculum, instruction, and assessment. Specifically, we will spend time exploring the crosscutting concepts in the standards using the tools and other resources in the Quick-Reference Guide.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to unpack the three dimensions using the tools and resources in the Quick-Reference Guide and will gain insights into the meaning of the crosscutting concepts.

SPEAKERS:
Ted Willard (Discovery Education: Silver Spring, MD)

Helping students make sense of science means planning for high-quality science experiences that engage students in all three dimensions of the NGSS. This session focuses on exploring the ASET 3-D Mapping Tool as a mechanism for planning lesson sequences and units that integrate the Science and Engineering Practices, Disciplinary Core Ideas, and Crosscutting Concepts as outlined in the Framework (NRC, 2012). The presenter will lead the participants in analyzing an existing 6-8 curriculum with respect to the related standards, phenomena, learning objectives, science practices, crosscutting concepts, and disciplinary core ideas. The session is concluded by sharing the lessons learned from researchers and practitioners who have used the 3-D map in planning and revising NGSS-aligned science learning experiences. After working in small groups and engaging in whole-group discussions, participants will walk away with an NGSS planning tool and tangible unit and lesson plan ideas linked with NGSS.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will explore the ASET 3-D Mapping Tool for planning lessons and units that integrate the three dimensions of the NGSS. After working in small groups and engaging in whole-group discussions, they will leave with an NGSS planning tool and tangible unit and lesson ideas linked with NGSS.

SPEAKERS:
Stephanie Harmon (PIMSER (KY): No City, No State)

The participants will follow a sequence of activities that align with a progression of the skills found in the PreK-2 engineering standards (NGSS). During the session, the participants will complete the hands-on activities in order to bring them back to their classrooms or modify them as they see fit. The first activity has the participants cut up a water cooler paper cup (cone shape) in order to maximize the “float time” after it was placed on a box fan pointed upwards. By watching the different designs, they will be encouraged to make a second design to test. The second activity has the participants making straw rockets using the following materials: plastic straw, clay, card stock. Using a straw rocket launcher, the participants will see how far their rocket goes. Last activity includes the designing and testing a sail for a car. Teaching materials will be provided, along with ways to encourage science fairs and family STEAM nights for elementary grades.

TAKEAWAYS:
During the session, the participants will complete hands-on STEAM activities that they can use or modify with their students the next day!!!

SPEAKERS:
Jeanine Doxsee (Franklin Early Childhood Center: Hewlett, NY), Brian Terry (Hewlett-Woodmere Public Schools: Woodmere, NY)

The NGSS provides a powerful set of performance expectations to guide improvements in science education. Translating these performance expectations into practices requires support and professional learning opportunities for teachers. Even after a decade, the conceptual shifts and three-dimensional learning laid forth in A Framework, and defined in the NGSS, continues to be a challenge. As we shift students’ learning experiences from "learning about" to "figuring out" so too should we offer professional learning experiences to educators that allow them to experience the three-dimensional elements of science authentically. Immersive or place-based professional learning for teachers builds understanding, empathy, and connection to the three dimensions of NGSS. Learn how to connect educators and enhance their understanding of disciplinary core ideas through immersive experiences.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn about the benefits of immersive and place-based learning and how it can bring the sensemaking process to life. We will provide phenomena and examples which fully engage the three dimensions of the NGSS approach, and are in use in daily practice by researchers and scientists.

SPEAKERS:
Rick Henningfeld (Vivayic, Inc.: No City, No State), Brian Beierle (Vivayic, Inc.: No City, No State)

Sponsoring Company: STEMscopes by Accelerate Learning

Models such as diagrams, drawings, physical replicas, mathematical representations, analogies, and computer simulations are helpful tools for representing ideas and developing explanations related to phenomena. This training will introduce educators to the ways in which models can be used to deepen student understanding of scientific concepts. Participants will also identify connections to the use of models in their instruction while examining their state standards and/or frameworks.

SPEAKERS:
Laurie Thompson (Accelerate Learning, Inc.: Houston, TX)

Sponsoring Company: Savvas Learning Company

Join Professor Michael Wysession in an inspirational session to reconnect you with the reasons you chose teaching as your profession. Through the lens of a modernized ancient concept (the Japanese “Ikigai”), participants will reflect on their teaching careers and rediscover the rewards (personal, societal, financial) of the teaching profession.

SPEAKERS:
Michael Wysession (Washington University in St. Louis: Saint Louis, MO)

Case studies are stories with an educational message that capture & hold students’ attention. Cases come in all shapes/sizes for small/large classes. They include intimate debate, clicker, discussion, Problem-Based Learning, and jigsaw. Learn how to pick the most appropriate one for your class.

TAKEAWAYS:
Educators will leave the workshop with a better understanding of several case study formats and will be able to choose the best one for their purpose. They will also discuss strategies for facilitating each one most effectively. The NSTA case collection has almost 1,000 selections.

SPEAKERS:
Annie Prud'homme-Généreux (University of British Columbia: No City, No State)

This presentation is designed to help teachers deepen their understanding of the effective and practical strategies to facilitate academic discourse that promotes inclusive science and STEM classrooms. Participants will engage in a variety of instructional strategies to ensure that all students have access to scientific discourse and opportunities to collaborate with peers through intentional planning. Participants will engage in a variety of formative assessment classroom techniques (FACTS) from Page Keeley’s Uncovering Student Ideas texts, including commit and toss, sticky bars, structured think-pair-share, and more. In addition, we will be discussing the shift away from traditional talk patterns-- like I-R-E (Initiate, Response, Evaluation) and towards Productive Talk to promote an inclusive science and STEM classroom. Finally, participants will leave with a virtual toolbox of resources for additional discourse strategies they can immediately apply in their classroom.

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)

The Framework for K-12 Science Education and NGSS calls for 3-D learning grounded in authentic phenomena and problems to ensure relevant learning for all students. Instructional materials design helps achieve these synergistic goals and create meaningful classroom sensemaking and learning. The BSCS Anchored Inquiry Learning (AIL) instructional model succeeds the 5Es and utilizes authentic phenomena/problems to anchor multiple cycles of inquiry and sensemaking, culminating with student explanations/design solutions. AIL employs science education research emphasizing coherence from students’ perspective. In this session, participants will: 1) consider how AIL integrates elements of the 5E instructional model, NextGen Science storylines, and problem-based learning instructional models; 2) experience a sample lesson to deepen their understanding of the approach, and 3) consider their own education contexts and how they can apply AIL to design meaningful learning experiences for their students.

TAKEAWAYS:
The research-based BSCS Anchored Inquiry Learning instructional model succeeds the 5Es and leverages authentic phenomena/problems to anchor cycles of inquiry and sensemaking. This approach provides instructional coherence from students’ perspective, equitable access, and motivation for ALL learners.

SPEAKERS:
Nancy Hopkins-Evans (BSCS Science Learning: Colorado Springs, CO), Cynthia Gay (BSCS Science Learning: Colorado Springs, CO)

Universal Design for Learning Science: Reframing Elementary Instruction in Physical Science (NSTA Press, 2020) -- With this practical book, teachers can learn from experienced elementary school educators about how to make physical science both challenging and accessible for a diverse range of students. In our session, authors will be sharing examples and experiences with using the 5E instructional framework and principles of Universal Design for Learning to transform their science instruction. Participants will learn how to identify barriers to students' learning within their curriculum/lessons and develop solutions for their specific students using the 3 principles of UDL. Participants will also use a storyline lens to examine the conceptual coherence of their lessons. We'll use a combination of personal testimonials, small group discussion, and team "teaching tasks" to prepare attendees to create more inclusive science learning. Attendees do not need copies of the book to participate.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to use Universal Design for Learning and the 5E Learning Cycle to create learning experiences that are accessible for all students, especially students with disabilities, and that support student sensemaking through coherent conceptual storylines.

SPEAKERS:
Debi Hanuscin (Western Washington University: Bellingham, WA)

Participants in this workshop will learn to plan and design a 5E unit and engage in an example 5E unit on the Isle Royale wolves. They'll explore the history of the wolf population, generate questions for a driving question board, and participate in hands-on activities that integrate science and engineering practices. Through data collection, analysis, research, and making claims supported by evidence, participants will learn how to effectively integrate the 5E model for inquiry-based instruction into their teaching practice. The workshop will also provide resources and strategies for differentiation and inclusion, making science accessible and engaging for all students.

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn to effectively use the 5E model for inquiry-based instruction to engage students in science education. Gain strategies for designing and assessing instruction, and see how the 5E model supports student engagement, understanding, and achievement.

SPEAKERS:
Kara Ball (Academic Officer: , MD)

In this session, participants will experience and unpack the Phenomenon Questioning Technique and will be able to apply it in their classroom. Students observe a phenomenon and are given time to observe and wonder. In groups, students: - Ask as many questions as they can. - Don’t stop to discuss, judge, or answer questions. - Change any statements into questions. - Circle their best question. Remind students to think about what makes a good question as they make their choice (related to science, helps explain phenomena, able to be investigated or researched, etc.). - Share their questions on a “Student-Driven Question Board.” - ​​Using the commonalities, create one guiding question for the class. - Students reflect on how they did with questioning by way of the formative assessment.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will experience and unpack the Phenomenon Questioning Technique and will be able to apply it in their classrooms.

SPEAKERS:
Eric Hadley (Little Creek Nature Area: Florissant, MO), Rebecca Prokopf (Regional Curriculum Coordinator)

The Institute for Quality Science Teaching at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago is invested in helping teachers effectively implement the NGSS. Chicago area teachers use a variety of curricula, so we are developing a framework of high-leverage pedagogical practices that can be used with any NGSS-aligned curriculum to enhance science teaching and learning. The framework was designed with a focus on equity. All the pedagogies are backed by research demonstrating their effectiveness. Our goal is to move research into classroom practices that are accessible to all science teachers. We’ll review pedagogical focuses, particular pedagogical practices, and classroom strategies that can be most helpful in implementing the NGSS in classrooms. We’re developing a “how-to” guide for teaching with the NGSS, no matter which curriculum you’re using. We’re very excited to have a chance to share our thinking with teachers and to hear their thoughts and suggestions about our approach.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will gain a deeper understanding of high-leverage pedagogical practices that directly support teaching with the NGSS, and strategies to implement some of these practices in the science classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Garrett Gray (Sr. Educator, School and Teacher Programs: Chicago, IL), Tara Flett (Sr. Educator IQST: Chicago, IL)

Learn to design moments people will remember and experiences that can have immediate impacts by adopting a human-centered mindset. Human-centered design thinking lets you better understand people's needs, motivations, and concerns to create highly-effective learning experiences for teachers and students. Implementing NGSS and three-dimensional teaching and learning requires ongoing support and high-quality professional learning opportunities for all stakeholders in science education. This session will explore how strategies and methods found in human-centered design can be leveraged to create professional learning to address the complexities teachers face in shifting practices to meet the vision of A K-12 Framework and the three-dimensional pedagogy of the NGSS. These strategies will enable designers to create inclusive spaces and environments to enhance professional development. Likewise, these strategies can be used by teachers to facilitate the student sensemaking process.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will experience practical human-centered design processes, methods, and tools used to deeply understand the people they are looking to serve and to continuously innovate solutions. Participants will leave this session equipped with strategies to design impactful learning experiences.

SPEAKERS:
Abby Tolley (Learning Analyst), Brian Beierle (Vivayic, Inc.: No City, No State)