An extension of our previous NASA/JWST ambassador and NSTA workshops, this session empowers educators with deeper understanding of orbiting observatories and provides an inherently engaging hands-on activity which works from pure STEM/STEAM fun to serious exploration of multi-wavelength astronomy. We provide gel filters that participants use with their phones to capture monochrome images at three wavelengths (630nm, 530nm & 470nm for red, green and blue). Participants then open their images in a free, browser-based image processing app to combine them into a "color" picture. This locks in an understanding of how "color" results from image processing. Then, participants choose NASA image files from an archive and repeat the process -- only now, they are assigning RG&B to wavelengths that are not actually visible to the eye. The tool we use includes both presets to make this fun as an introductory activity, and an array of math-driven functionality for deep dives into image processing.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will learn to process multi-wavelength image sets to create color images from space telescopes and your own devices. This leads to a deeper understanding of space-based astronomy and how space telescope images are made – and provides a classroom activity that is fun, rich, and economical.

SPEAKERS:
Donna Kaiser (Academy of Information Technology & Engineering: Greenwich, CT), Vincent Urbanowski (Academy of Information Technology & Engineering: Stamford, CT)

Explaining phenomena (e.g. “Why do I feel heavy in an elevator?”) requires sense-making of complex physics ideas and mathematical representations. Teachers will “wear a student hat” to explore visualization and writing strategies through active participation. First, we’ll explore the modeling practice of diagram and chart representations (e.g. energy bar charts). They’ll try using our “More is L.E.S.S.” (Model, List variables, Equations, Substitute & Solve) tool on engaging energy problems with a get-up-and-move “World-Café” collaborative learning strategy. In the second half of workshop, teachers will use informal writing. They’ll practice “Write a Story” in which they are given a representation (e.g. energy pie chart or equation) and they write a question. We’ll facilitate an interactive Gallery Walk to share additional writing activities: See/Think/Do; Annotated Derivations; Sticky Summaries, What’s Wrong With It, and One-Pagers). The “gallery” will include student work.

TAKEAWAYS:
Learn how to use visual representations, informal writing activities, and collaborative structures to help students explain physics phenomena.

SPEAKERS:
Jaimie Foulk (Rock Bridge High School: Columbia, MO), Karen King (Physics Teacher: Columbia, MO)

Participants will use light curve graphs and image analysis software tools located on the web to investigate stellar objects at the centers of supernova remnants, and determine if the objects are white dwarfs or neutron stars. Two sets of data from the Chandra X-Ray public archive will be used to plot brightness versus time to determine the rate of rotation of the object. Centripetal acceleration and Newton's Universal Law of gravitation calculations will then be applied. This activity is designed for physics and/or astronomy classes and integrates STEM analysis tools with the crosscutting concepts, physical science core disciplinary content and engineering concepts embodied by NGSS. Students may also use tools learned in this activity to use js9 to do further research projects using publicly available astronomy data sets.

TAKEAWAYS:
Light curves generated from web-based js9 image analysis software can be used to determine the period of rotation and identify objects as white dwarfs or pulsars using Newton’s Universal Law of gravitation and centripetal acceleration calculations.

SPEAKERS:
Pamela Perry (Lewiston High School: Brunswick, ME)

Seckinger High School utilizes an Artificial Intelligence framework that is incorporated into every subject. The framework will be shared with a see-think-wonder protocol. Participants will work through 3 sample lessons integrating parts of the framework. The Biology lesson will feature 3 uses of generative text models for learning: analysis of generated text for accuracy, creation of generative images for student productivity, and use of generative text models for creative problem-solving and student ideation. For the Chemistry lesson, students will use PASCO probes, along with their knowledge of acids and bases, chemical bonding, and properties to design a solution to a real-world problem. The Physics lesson will use an inquiry-based investigation to discover the coefficient of friction while comparing data between a spring scale and PASCO probes. Participants will receive hard copies of handouts and access to all digital resources.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn how to “upgrade” their lessons as education continues to move into the phase of artificial intelligence.

SPEAKERS:
Holly Hall (Seckinger High School: Hoschton, GA), Natasaskia Wayne (Gwinnett County Public Schools: Buford, GA), Krystal Shearon (Seckinger High School: Lawrenceville, GA)

Ever since the Wright Brothers first took flight in Kitty Hawk, the idea of powered flight has fascinated and captivated people. Unfortunately, despite flight's engaging nature and connections to fundamental physics concepts it is not a common topic in classrooms. Throughout our combined 97 years of existence our organizations, the National Free Flight Society and Science Olympiad, have been working to change this reality. In this session, we will introduce attendees to the idea of free flight model aircraft, demonstrate how these aircraft can be flown safely in schools, and share the variety of instructional resources that are immediately available for classroom use. Following this, we will identify ways attendees can take what they have learned and the activities available to enhance their classroom instruction. The session will close with a demonstration flight of a free flight model aircraft built from start to finish during this 60-minute session.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn the art of the possible when it comes to using flight as a topic to engage students in their study of forces, free body diagrams, and Newton's Laws.

SPEAKERS:
David Lindley (President: Lisle, IL), Julie Newman (Engineer: El Segundo, CA), John Loehr (Science Olympiad: Oakbrook Terrace, IL)

Presentational content will include a high level overview of NASA’s Great Observatories and other past and present orbiting telescopes, how their missions are coordinated, and how they work in concert to provide full spectrum data from across the sky in bands from gamma down to far infrared – almost all of which are invisible to the human eye. In the workshop portion, participants will access archived astronomical data from orbiting observatories using the same browser based tools used by astronomers. They will process their datasets using a variety of tools and techniques for reducing data, vetting objects, and generating results, such as Spectral Energy Distribution, Color-Color and Color-Magnitude plots. Teachers will bring this experience back to their classrooms adding depth of knowledge to astronomy content they may teach, as well as a deeper understanding of the conduct of science research.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn to access astronomical data such as monochrome images at various wavelengths and wavelength magnitude measurements for thousands of stars at a time just as professional astronomers do, and how to process such data for research using techniques of professional astronomy.

SPEAKERS:
Donna Kaiser (Academy of Information Technology & Engineering: Greenwich, CT), Vincent Urbanowski (Academy of Information Technology & Engineering: Stamford, CT)

OpenSciEd HS Physics units use a storyline approach to help students figure out answers to their questions in a three-dimensional, coherent, and equitable way. In this session, participants will experience that approach firsthand as they engage with the fifth unit’s anchor in ""student hat"", a unit anchored in the use of the microwave and its interactions with wireless devices. Participants will see how students develop and use different models to explore ideas about electromagnetic waves and their interactions with matter. They will also see some of the investigations students plan and carry out using different materials inside the microwave oven to explain energy transfer. Participants will also see how the unit supports students’ sensemaking to explain how different technologies apply these ideas to produce, transmit, and capture signals, and the potential risk associated with their uses.

TAKEAWAYS:
This unit is anchored in the use of the microwave and its interactions with wireless devices. Students figure out and use ideas about waves and their interactions with matter to explain how different technologies apply these ideas to transfer energy and to produce, transmit, and capture signals.

SPEAKERS:
Zoe Buck Bracey (Senior Science Educator and Director of Design for Justice: Colorado Springs, CO), Diego Rojas-Perilla (BSCS Science Learning: Colorado Springs, CO)

SPIN, a FREE web-based notebook created with funding by NSF, has 4 customizable lessons for data-focused investigations in Physics on Centripetal Force, Ohm’s Law, Pendulums, and Impact. Teachers can also input their own lessons into SPIN. One of the teachers who created the lessons in the notebook will be presenting. During the first 30 minutes, presenters will give teachers accounts in SPIN and show how students can use the notebook and the metacognitive support features such as the Communication Hub, I’m Stuck button, and SPAARC prompts. Experiences of teachers and students who have used SPIN will be discussed. In the final 30 minutes, teachers will customize a lesson in SPIN or input their own lessons with help from the presenters. By the end of the session, teachers will be able to use SPIN effectively with the ability to share the notebook with all of the teachers at their school. Use of SPIN is entirely free and is found at https://spin.cehd.gmu.edu/login.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will learn how to use SPIN to download and edit a lesson from the Global Marketplace or create their own lesson in SPIN. Teachers who have used SPIN note that it has helped their students understand data practices explicitly.

SPEAKERS:
Erin Barrett (Physics Teacher: Purcellville, VA), Erin Peters-Burton (George Mason University: Fairfax, VA)

"Designing for justice means centering inquiry on phenomena that cross the artificial boundary between human and natural systems. The result is instruction that not only teaches students to understand the natural world, but broadens their perspectives on how humans fit into natural systems, what constitutes science, and what they can accomplish using science. In high school, some of the design problems that students are noticing in the world may feel overwhelming, but breaking them down using the ideas and practices of science and providing social emotional supports can help students find hope and resilience. For example in OpenSciEd High School Physics, students ask: What can we do to make driving safer for everyone? Consider how instruction can support students in making positive changes in their communities while attending to students social and emotional needs. "

TAKEAWAYS:
In OpenSciEd HS Physics, students use science ideas and practices to make sense of design problems that emerge from complex systems at the nature-human divide with attention to students’ social and emotional needs.

SPEAKERS:
Whitney Mills (BSCS Science Learning: Shawnee, KS), Laura Zeller (BSCS Science Learning: Colorado Springs, CO)

Rubin Observatory is a public US observatory funded by the NSF. Educational materials and services are freely available to all. “Coloring the Universe” is one of six free online investigations that offer a complete, classroom ready lesson. Designed to support the NGSS, it comes with a phenomenon, teacher guide, presentation slides, videos, and a variety of three-dimensional formative and summative assessments and scoring guides. Since the entire lesson cannot be completed in 60 minutes, we will adopt a drop in approach at various places of the phenomenon and online app, and role-playing from the student perspective.We will then visit the website to preview additional resources. This workshop will also model how the lesson can be incorporated in Earth-Space or Physics storylines, and will demonstrate formative assessment and inclusive learning techniques.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to use the free interactive Coloring the Universe online investigation and support materials designed for NGSS teaching and learning, as well as active learning and assessment strategies that support inclusive techniques for building student communication skills.

SPEAKERS:
Ardis Herrold (Vera C. Rubin Observatory: Oro Valley, AZ)

Authentic engineering challenges are a highlight of my physics courses because of the increase in student engagement and depth of content understanding. I’ve also experienced the ways these design challenges level the playing field for all because problem solving and applying knowledge is valued. Yet, despite the many benefits of integrating engineering design in science classrooms, this component of the NGSS can easily be overlooked. In this workshop, participants immerse in the world of engineering design and optimization. Teacher teams will engage in a design task and subsequent design optimization. We’ll debrief strategies for incorporating engineering design activities into high school units and discuss techniques for implementation, while focusing on the engineering design cycle and the importance of optimization. Observations on how these design challenges invite all students into the discipline of physics will be shared. The takeaways are applicable to all science disciplines.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will take away a complete Engineering Design Challenge (EDC) that includes strategies for incorporating an EDC into an energy unit, highlighted disciplinary core ideas, templates for student analysis and reflection, and a three-dimensional assessment based on the EDC.

SPEAKERS:
Susan Swan (Vashon High School: Vashon, WA)

The Framework calls for students to engage in argumentation from evidence in a way that considers relevant social, ethical, and environmental tradeoffs that cannot be resolved without considering the values of interested parties. As educators, we need to honor students’ diverse experiences and value systems while also engaging students in the process of respectful scientific argumentation. OpenSciEd High School uses the Learning in Places Framework to inform the design of an argumentation tool for students to guide them through the process of weighing science ideas, societal and environmental impacts, and ethical considerations when evaluating potentially controversial arguments and design solutions. Join us to engage with an adapted version of this argumentation process. Participants will explore the Learning in Places Framework for Socio Ecological Decision Making and discuss use of the Learning in Places Framework within the classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
The NGSS calls for students to weigh complex socioscientific tradeoffs, including social, cultural, and environmental impacts. The Learning in Places Framework can be used to help structure student engagement in argumentation that requires decision-making around these tradeoffs.

SPEAKERS:
Whitney Mills (BSCS Science Learning: Shawnee, KS), Laura Zeller (BSCS Science Learning: Colorado Springs, CO)

The workshop will offer ideas to move from the typical teacher-led classroom to one that focuses on problem-solving, data analysis and exploratory learning. Learn how to combine graphing calculators with handheld sensors to maximize class time and provide opportunities for engaging inquiry and discussion. We will illustrate how you can utilize science tasks to support your 3-D initiative and the goals outlined in the NGSS, while at the same time reinforcing and seamlessly integrating CCSS for Mathematics. You can use one sensor at a time or multiple sensors simultaneously for lab-based or in-the-field data collection to quickly collect and analyze data. Several sensors will be available to explore this integrated solution. Hands-on science using this integrated technology gets students excited about science and math and deepens their understanding of seemingly complex concepts. It will free up class time for student engagement in the analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of real data.

TAKEAWAYS:
Use real data to develop mathematical models and learn how to test your hypothesis by performing an experiment and analyzing your results, combining graphing calculators with handheld sensors to maximize class time.

SPEAKERS:
Karlheinz Haas (retired: Tequesta, FL)

Over the past decade, researchers and practitioners have been calling for more attention to coherence from the student perspective as a key part of curriculum design. This type of coherence arises when students see what they do in the science classroom as productive for addressing meaningful questions and problems. A curriculum that is coherent from the student perspective provides opportunities for all students to contribute to class sensemaking. We will present co-design strategies used by OpenSciEd teams to develop high quality, NGSS-aligned instructional materials that are coherent from the student perspective. Participants will engage in a student hat experience to focus on how that lens can support student coherence in materials and instruction. Participants will explore a variety of co-design strategies for building coherence in developing and implementing instructional materials, with an emphasis on coherence from the student perspective through the use of student hat.

TAKEAWAYS:
When designing and revising NGSS-aligned high-quality instructional materials, co-design in student-hat is a powerful tool for weaving together coherence from the teacher’s perspective within science content, and from students’ perspective.

SPEAKERS:
Laura Zeller (BSCS Science Learning: Colorado Springs, CO), Diego Rojas-Perilla (BSCS Science Learning: Colorado Springs, CO)

Participants will engage in a thinking classroom for developing and using a constant velocity particle model by: • Observing a constant velocity toy car moving across the floor • Recording and summarizing their observations of the car • Developing a driving question board about their observations • Designing an experiment that could answer their question • Working in small groups to make sense of the model and apply it to a new situation using a thinking task • Discussing in a whole group a consensus model for any particle moving with a constant velocity • Examine the pedagogy that led to student thinking and sensemaking of the scientific model.

TAKEAWAYS:
Thinking classroom practices create the optimal conditions for learner-centered, student-owned science thinking and learning, and have the power to transform science classrooms.

SPEAKERS:
Earl Legleiter (Legleiter Science Consulting: Englewood, CO)

Rubin Observatory is a public US observatory funded by the NSF. Educational materials and services are freely available to all. “Expanding Universe” is one of six free online investigations that offer a complete, classroom ready lesson. Designed to support the NGSS, it comes with a phenomenon, teacher guide, presentation slides, videos, and a variety of three-dimensional formative and summative assessments and scoring guides. This workshop will model scaffolded teaching and assessment techniques to help students achieve success in making sense of abstract concepts presented in the lesson. Since the entire lesson cannot be completed in 60 minutes, we will adopt a drop in approach at various points by using portions of the phenomenon and the online app, and role-playing from the student perspective. We will then visit the website to preview additional resources.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn how to use the free interactive Expanding Universe online investigation and support materials designed for NGSS teaching and learning, as well as scaffolded teaching, and as formative assessment strategies to ensure that all students may achieve a successful learning experience.

SPEAKERS:
Ardis Herrold (Vera C. Rubin Observatory: Oro Valley, AZ)

Attendees will walk through the process of creating a Google Site specific to their classroom. They will learn how to create a master template to share with their students and how to help their students get started with the Google Site. They will also learn how to support their students as the Google Site is used to submit projects, portfolios, or lab notebooks. Attendees will learn how to insert pictures, files, and videos into the Google Site to create a more interactive resource for students. Attendees will begin to create their own template in the session with the goal of having a template ready to use in their classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
Google Sites streamlines the grading process for lab notebooks and projects.

SPEAKERS:
Brodie Solomon (Physics Teacher: Ft Worth, TX), Katie Labadie (Science Department Chair: Fort Worth, TX)

The session will give teachers an opportunity to participate in the same sort of rich and meaningful learning experiences that are called for by the NGSS. This session, as a result, will include approximately forty minutes of audience participation in student hat. Teachers will leave with high-quality instructional materials that they can use in their own classrooms. The agenda for this session is: • A discussion of some topics that are challenging to teach because many students see them as irrelevant and why students think this way about them (10 mins). • An opportunity for participants to experience an example of how a meaningful and authentic phenomenon can drive a learning experience (40 mins) • An overview of a tech tool to help teachers create these types of learning experiences (5 mins) • Questions and suggestions for learning more (5 mins)

TAKEAWAYS:
Meaningful phenomena and authentic problems can make topics not only more meaningful for students, but can also make instruction more rigorous and equitable.

SPEAKERS:
Todd Hutner (Del Valle ISD: Del Valle, TX)

By reframing curricular content already taught by the teacher, a debatable issue introduces and guides each curricular unit by engaging students at the intersection of their current level of scientific understanding and the world outside of the classroom. Students are then navigated through this multi-step process, which deepens their understanding of physics while at the same time developing their stance on the issue using evidence to support their claim. New learning in both transdisciplinary content and student agency aspects allows students to leave the classroom experience empowered to make real changes to their surroundings.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will leave this workshop with hands-on experience engaging in the SSI process from a learner’s perspective, and with a framework for developing and implementing their own.

SPEAKERS:
Dylan Fedell (Palisades High School: Kintnersville, PA)