Sponsoring Company: Flinn Scientific

Engage with Hands-On Biology! Flinn Scientific presents a variety of easy to perform and exciting intro and Advanced Biology demonstrations. Come see Flinn’s new demonstrations and some of your old favorites—all guaranteed to make your science classroom come alive. Handouts provided for all.

SPEAKERS:
Elizabeth Cambron, M.S. (Flinn Scientific, Inc.: Batavia, IL)

Sponsoring Company: PEER Physics

How can pedagogical tools and materials support students with building and revising mechanistic models? We’ll explore strategies for building models using shared evidence and consensus. Co-presented by PEER Physics and Arbor Scientific.

SPEAKERS:
Emily Quinty (University of Colorado Boulder: Boulder, CO)

Sponsoring Company: Great Minds

See how Colorado schools are using phenomena to drive K–2 science instruction. We'll dive into a PhD Science® module to discover how phenomenon-driven instruction anchors student learning. Participants will hear from a piloting Colorado district and leave with access to the free K–2 OER materials.

SPEAKERS:
Madeline Cronk (Great Minds: Washington, DC), Rebecca Rolater (Cherry Creek Schools: Aurora, CO)

We are conducting a workshop on how to engage science learners in a virtual platform. We will have an interactive workshop with examples of how to teach Life Science and Physical Science concepts from your home through science phenomena.

TAKEAWAYS:
Use various teaching tools and strategies in a virtual setting to foster the passion for science in all students. Use science phenomena to activate student’s critical thinking skills in a fun and interactive way.

SPEAKERS:
Elizabeth Huffaker (Teacher: Canton, GA), Rebecca Miller (Science Department Chair/ 8th Grade Science Teacher: Hoschton, GA), Latoya Moore (Georgia Connections Academy: Douglasville, GA)

Educators in Infant/Toddler classrooms can feel pressure to "teach science" in their groups. Yet, infants and toddlers, allowed to freely explore, engage in science learning daily. The framework's dimensions are part of their world, but adults seldom recognize this.

TAKEAWAYS:
The everyday "play" of infants and toddlers include their attempts to investigate their world, to find out patterns and predictability of objects in their lives. Adults who work with the youngest children rarely understand the scientific concepts that are being investigated and learned.

SPEAKERS:
Ellen Cogan (Hilltop Early Childhood Services: Hartsdale, NY)

Middle School NGSS-aligned curriculum, instruction, and assessment resources created by the SIPS Project provide a scalable and coherent approach to improve three-dimensional science learning for all students, including unpacking the science content, instruction, and assessing student progress.

TAKEAWAYS:
Educators’ ability to use three-dimensional instruction and assessment resources to provide inclusive, equitable instruction, promote sensemaking, assess learning, and make instructional decisions will be enhanced. Benefits of a coherent system to improve student outcomes will be shared.

SPEAKERS:
Rhonda True (Nebraska Department of Education: Lincoln, NE), Mary Nyaema (University of Illinois Chicago: Chicago, IL), Bill Herrera (edCount, LLC: Laramie, WY), Charlene Turner (edCount, LLC: Laramie, WY)

Are your students’ explanations of science sometimes jaw-dropping, leaving you scratching your head as to where that “knowledge” came from? While we can’t eliminate kids’ misconceptions, we can work with those ideas to help them understand the correct science.

TAKEAWAYS:
Educators will learn how to work with misconceptions that students hold in order to incorporate those into useful assessments. Use students’ sensemaking to discover ways to get at those ideas, and share your students’ misconceptions, hear others as well, and build research-based assessments.

SPEAKERS:
Cynthia Crockett (Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian: Antrim, NH)

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Assume the role of a crime scene investigator to solve a realistic crime scenario. Students use fingerprint, hair analysis, tire track impressions, blood typing, forensic entomology, and a police log review to identify a primary suspect from a pool of 6 alleged perpetrators.

SPEAKERS:
Laurie Nixon (Watauga High School: Blowing Rock, NC), Ryan Hainey (Product Manager of Biotechnology, Genetics, and Forensics: Burlington, NC)

Sponsoring Company: KidWind Project

Join us to explore the science of solar power! During this workshop, educators will learn the foundations of solar power including the science and technology of solar PV. We will also introduce activities for the classroom that engage students in dynamic, hands-on, energy-based learning.

SPEAKERS:
Michael Arquin (KidWind Project: Saint Paul, MN)

Sponsoring Company: Lab-Aids

Learn about the intentional design of our units to embed equitable opportunities in phenomenon-based learning. This hands-on workshop uses a model activity showing how students use data to develop an evidence-based argument supporting the best way to recover copper from a waste solution.

SPEAKERS:
Ed Miller (Selden Middle School: Centereach, NY)

Sponsoring Company: Flinn Scientific

Teaching Chemistry should be AWESOME! Flinn Scientific presents a variety of easy to perform and exciting chemistry.. Come see Flinn’s new demonstrations and some of your old favorites—all guaranteed to make your science classroom come alive. Handouts provided for all.

SPEAKERS:
Savannah Stanley, M.Ed. (Flinn Scientific, Inc.: Batavia, IL)

Sponsoring Company: miniPCR bio

Link physical science concepts like circuits and charged particles to the essential biotech method gel electrophoresis. Build a reusable gel electrophoresis system with the Bandit STEM Electrophoresis Kit, and use it to separate colorful dyes. Also, add the A to STEAM with creative pipetting art!

SPEAKERS:
Kristin Hennessy-McDonald, PhD (miniPCR: Cambridge, MA)

Sponsoring Company: PASCO

Get hands-on experience with sensors, demonstrators, and software for graphing motion. For students new to describing motion, position and velocity graphs can be challenging to interpret. Learn accessible methods to help your students solidify their motion graphing skills and comprehension.

SPEAKERS:
Sophia Guzules (PASCO Scientific: Roseville, CA)

Sponsoring Company: Simulation Curriculum

Teach astronomy and space science using the most effective and recognized tool available - Starry Night. We invite teachers to see our newest, browser-based NGSS aligned edition. We'll show the lessons, exercises, simulations and interactions along with the assessments and teacher materials.

SPEAKERS:
Michael Goodman (Simulation Curriculum: Hopkins, MN)

Sponsoring Company: 3D Molecular Designs

Dive deep into water's secrets! Harness 3D models to unravel states of matter, polar covalent bonding, solubility, and beyond in an immersive journey.

SPEAKERS:
Mark Arnholt (3D Molecular Designs: Milwaukee, WI), Tim Herman (3D Molecular Designs: Milwaukee, WI)

Physical science and physics offer a wide assortment of authentic, open-ended early learning activities with hands-on multisensory materials and rich opportunities for group work, easily adapted for all learners, including children with diverse learning needs as they explore concepts and ideas.

TAKEAWAYS:
Adults help illuminate concepts and skills as children act on familiar multisensory, hands-on materials, developing their emerging scientific thinking, understanding, & causal reasoning. Before children can see themselves as scientists, adults must view all children as science learners.

SPEAKERS:
Shelly Counsell (Self Employed Consultant: Buffalo, NY)

This introduction to STEM for elementary, secondary, or special education classrooms will allow participants to explore motion and energy while creating their own Rube Goldberg machine using found objects.

TAKEAWAYS:
Students can easily plan, build, and solve problems on their own Rube Goldberg project using recycled and found materials.

SPEAKERS:
Elaine Sevin (Isidore Newman School: New Orleans, LA)

The last total solar eclipse in the continental US for 21 years occurs this April. NSTA has assembled an abundance of resources for you to make the most of this teachable moment – from 3D learning materials, to safe viewing strategies, to ways to make it a school-wide experience

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will come away with links to resources 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: Seattle, WA)

Students have “glow in the dark” clothes and hard seen UV beads, but do they know why they glow? Probably not. Use phenomena to help students understand the glow (energy transformations) that are seen in nature and man-made materials. Those stars on their ceiling will never be viewed the same again.

TAKEAWAYS:
Things that glow are naturally engaging to students. Understanding why they glow can open many different avenues for students to investigate. From man-made objects to plants and animals, this phenomena can move students forward in understanding and identifying energy transformations.

SPEAKERS:
Karen Matsler (University of Texas Arlington: Arlington, TX)

Teachers will receive ready-made activity packet to be used with the free middle school lesson plans in middleschoolchemistry.com and the free elementary school lesson plans in inquiryinaction.org.

TAKEAWAYS:
Get access to free comprehensive lesson plans in chemistry for middle school and elementary school students.

SPEAKERS:
James Kessler (American Chemical Society: Washington, DC)

The marine soundscape provides biodiversity and population data to help determine the health of an ecosystem. This lesson explores acoustic data to assess coral reefs' dynamics, functioning, and resilience. Students will construct explanations and make predictions using authentic bioacoustic data.

TAKEAWAYS:
Students will distinguish between abiotic, biotic, and anthropogenic sounds. Biotic sounds tend to be more complex, with variations in frequency and pitch. Where abiotic and anthropogenic sounds are often characterized by uniformity.

SPEAKERS:
Missie Olson (Becker High School: Annandale, MN), Jocelyn Miller (E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation: Chapel Hill, NC)

This is a hands-on session where participants will use every day items and associate their use with scientific concepts. They will find that multiple items will lead to the same concept, and/or that one item can be associated with multiple science concepts.

TAKEAWAYS:
Children can learn real science through every day items. A handout will help participants remember some of these concepts and the science terms they can use with children.

SPEAKERS:
Ellen Cogan (Hilltop Early Childhood Services: Hartsdale, NY)

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Explore easy, engaging, and safe chemistry activities that guarantee a reaction in your students. Whether you’re new to chemistry or feeling out of your element, create excitement with hands-on labs, demonstrations, and Carolina’s digital content.These lab activities support 3-dimensional learning.

SPEAKERS:
Laurie Nixon (Watauga High School: Blowing Rock, NC)

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Apply creative problem-solving skills and engineering practices to chemistry and physical science challenges with race cars and rockets. Experience how Carolina makes it easy to incorporate STEM into your classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Patti Kopkau (Carolina Biological Supply Co.: Hale, MI)

Sponsoring Company: Simulation Curriculum

Teach about plate tectonics, minerals & rocks, earthquakes & volcanoes, geologic time, atmosphere, weather and climate using the most effective and recognized tool available - Layered Earth! We invite teachers to come and see our newest, browser-based NGSS aligned editions.

SPEAKERS:
Michael Goodman (Simulation Curriculum: Hopkins, MN)

Purposeful use of quality media resources can provide young learners with opportunities to investigate a broad range of phenomena and support three-dimensional learning. Learn how media can connect science content to students’ lives and make the science content accessible to more students.

TAKEAWAYS:
You’ll leave the session with a list of resources and ideas for actively engaging your students with phenomena through media and tips for supporting your students engagement in science practices and crosscutting concepts.

SPEAKERS:
Nancy Gifford (Monomoy Regional Middle School: Harwich, MA), Shawn Stevens (GBH Education: Watertown, MA)

Explore tried-and-true strategies firsthand for supporting student-driven revision of written work. Walk away with strategies to help students self- and peer-assess their work and improve it.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn what a critique lesson can look like in which students generate success criteria for quality scientific explanations. They will walk away with strategies to implement in their own classrooms to support students with the NGSS practice "constructing explanations."

SPEAKERS:
Kristie Rachell (Haven Middle School: Lincolnwood, IL), Claire Hiller (Chute Middle School: Evanston, IL), Kafi Chase (Chute Middle School: Evanston, IL), Alissa Berg (Evanston Skokie School District 65: Chicago, IL)

Museum educators have known that motivation and interest are vital for engagement. Learn how to bring these informal strategies into your classroom so students can not only interact with science in a different environment but make connections that allow them to see themselves as capable learners.

TAKEAWAYS:
Come prepared to take part in activities led by a pair of formal and informal educators that will combine the best of both worlds. Museum educators know how to rapidly engage an audience and you will take away strategies to reach the same level of participation in your classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Matt Brady (Atkins High School: Winston-Salem, NC), Shari Brady (Kaleideum: Clemmons, NC)

A unique and open-ended STEM investigation that incorporates absolute and relative dating techniques, anomalies, historical context, volcanoes, solar proton events, energy cycles, Earth systems, terrestrial events, and supernovas by analyzing 430 years of Earth history from 1562 to 1992.

TAKEAWAYS:
In constructing knowledge, there is no definitive answer, only plausible conclusions based on constructing, analyzing, and comparing data and research from multiple disciplines. This investigation provides a better understanding of the scientific process of developing models and defending results.

SPEAKERS:
Donna Young (NSO/NASA: Laughlin, NV)

Engage in teacher play with LED lights, objects, and screens that invite PK-2 students to independently investigate light & shadow phenomenon. STEM coaches and teachers will come away with a plan that gives children access to STEM learning every day during small group reading instruction.

TAKEAWAYS:
STEM coaches and PK-2 teachers will take away a list of easily obtained open-ended materials and a classroom-tested plan to allow students to independently engage in student-led STEM investigations every day that grows STEM dispositions and elevates student literacy learning as an added benefit.

SPEAKERS:
Beth Dykstra VanMeeteren (University of Northern Iowa: Cedar Falls, IA)

Join us in mastering the art of the “explore-before-explain” instructional sequence, and witness the transformation in your classroom as you nurture an environment where every student’s voice resonates.

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:
James Concannon (William Woods University: Fulton, MO), Patrick Brown (Fort Zumwalt School District R-II: Saint Charles, MO)

Discover engaging phenomena and relevant content (sensor technology, medicine, and the environment) to promote equity in your classroom by engaging ALL students in nanotechnology and scientific learning to help improve our world and the human experience.

TAKEAWAYS:
Nature-inspired solutions are needed to solve real problems and nanotechnology provides the tools to develop innovation solutions and engage students in learning; identify the locations of nano NGSS-aligned activities, resources, and virtual experiences for your classroom in any STEM subject area.

SPEAKERS:
Daniella Duran (Stanford University: Stanford, CA)

Sponsoring Company: NOAA

Come meet scientists from the NOAA’s National Geodetic Survey and learn how GPS uses time to pinpoint your location, enabling your phone to tell you where you are and how to get to the nearest pizza joint. Learn how to bring the lofty concepts of surveying and accurate positioning down to earth.

SPEAKERS:
Daniel Winester (NOAA-National Geodetic Survey), Derek Van Westrum (NOAA-National Geodetic Survey), Galen Scott (NOAA-National Geodetic Survey)

Sponsoring Company: PASCO

Experience the best way to teach basic circuits! Support student investigations of current, voltage, resistance, and series and parallel circuits with modular components that look identical to schematic drawings. Learn how to skip the tangled wires that confuse students and focus on the physics.

SPEAKERS:
Sophia Guzules (PASCO Scientific: Roseville, CA)

Sponsoring Company: Flinn Scientific

Turn the traditional prescriptive lab on its head, adapting the learning style to meet your students as they explore and do science around real-world phenomena. See how you can combine videos, simulations, VR experiences, flexible assessments, and editable labs to create hands-on curriculum.

SPEAKERS:
Savannah Stanley, M.Ed. (Flinn Scientific, Inc.: Batavia, IL)

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

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

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

Do you want your students to understand how current scientific research is relevant to their learning and has real world applications? We will present an accessible STEM curriculum, informed by current work in a university research lab, that integrates nanoscience phenomena with content standards.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn about current research in the field of nanoscience and will gain access to a STEM curriculum package that draws on nanoscience to help all students in grades 5-8 make connections between STEM content and their everyday lives.

SPEAKERS:
Melissa Kwan (teacher: San Diego, CA), Donna Terrasi (Saint Clement School: Chicago, IL), Silvia Kenna (Blessed Trinity Catholic School: Miami Springs, FL)

Receive practical ideas to build understanding about how to combine hands-on activities and computational thinking skills as tools to understand the nature of sound and waves and support NGSS practices: analyze/interpret data, use computational thinking, construct explanations and design solutions.

TAKEAWAYS:
Offer ideas to integrate hands-on activities and computational thinking skills as tools to build confidence in, and understanding of, NGSS PS4-Sound and Waves. Provide examples about how we may advance teaching and learning in K-8 cross-disciplinary STEM and Computation education.

SPEAKERS:
Laura Robertson (East Tennessee State University: Johnson City, TN), Dylan Singleton (Student: Johnson City, TN), Chelsie Pratt (Instructor: Johnson City, TN), Michaela Slagle (Graduate Assistant: Johnson City, TN), Chihche Tai (East Tennessee State University: Johnson City, TN)

Explore advanced space propulsion methods, from chemical to laser propulsion, in this hands-on session. Learn how light intensity changes with distance using PocketLab Voyager Sensors and laser pointers.

TAKEAWAYS:
Gain a deeper understanding of light and laser intensity variations with distance through engaging experiments and practical applications. Model how to implement the Pocketlab sensors and notebook into their curriculum.

SPEAKERS:
Jenny McCall (Winburn Middle School, Fayette County Public Schools: Nicholasville, KY)

Photons of electromagnetic radiation of all wavelengths are collected by telescopes and processed using computers. Scientists use image analysis software to analyze the data and construct unique models of the data, including stars and galaxies, while maintaining the integrity of the underlying data.

TAKEAWAYS:
All our knowledge of stars and galaxies is determined by spectroscopy— the analysis of radiation emissions, including radio, infrared, optical, ultraviolet, gamma, and X-ray. Knowledge of spectroscopy is essential to understanding the processes producing the individual wavelengths.

SPEAKERS:
Donna Young (NSO/NASA: Laughlin, NV)

We share the newest results of a study on effective multiple-choice questions in STEM education. We examined Science educators’ revisions to help reduce problems such as gender/racial/ethnic bias, and difficulty that are often present in test questions, while including common misconceptions.

TAKEAWAYS:
Evaluate assessment questions that you use to assess students’ sensemaking of elements outlined in the NGSS DCIs. Are the questions free of bias, not too difficult, or indicative of overall student performance? Do they include common misconceptions that students hold? Learn what works, and what does

SPEAKERS:
Cynthia Crockett (Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian: Antrim, NH)

Teachers will receive ready-made activity packet to be used with the free middle school lesson plans in middleschoolchemistry.com and the free elementary school lesson plans in inquiryinaction.org.

TAKEAWAYS:
Get access to free comprehensive lesson plans in chemistry for middle school and elementary school.

SPEAKERS:
James Kessler (American Chemical Society: Washington, DC)

We are middle school teachers at a title one school with the highest number of grade 6-8 L25 students of the 125 schools in our district. This session will focus on the strategies that we use daily to ensure we are teaching with rigor in a way that all students can learn!

TAKEAWAYS:
"Every student, every question, every time" is our school philosophy. We will share our tried-and-true strategies for distributed summarizing and effective questioning.

SPEAKERS:
Dave McGinley (Teacher: Lehigh Acres, FL), Barbara Rebeor (Harns Marsh Middle School: Ft Myers, FL)

Experience the “magnetic attraction” of science and literacy while figuring out a noncontact force. Participants use speaking, listening, reading and writing to engage in a phenomenon routine that includes noticing, wondering, modeling, and finding evidence to support or refute their thinking.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants understand the interdependency of science and literacy, receive knowledge of where to find investigations embedded with “inquiry principles” incorporated in the science and engineering practices, a sample interactive read aloud, and a resource list for everything shared in the session.

SPEAKERS:
Sandra Ryack-Bell (Wade Institute for Science Education: Dartmouth, MA), Kathy Renfrew (Wade Institute for Science Education: Milford, MA)

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Apply creative problem-solving skills and engineering practices to chemistry and physical science challenges with race cars and rockets. Experience how Carolina makes it easy to incorporate STEM into your classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Patti Kopkau (Carolina Biological Supply Co.: Hale, MI)

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Assume the role of a crime scene investigator to solve a realistic crime scenario. Students use fingerprint, hair analysis, tire track impressions, blood typing, forensic entomology, and a police log review to identify a primary suspect from a pool of 6 alleged perpetrators.

SPEAKERS:
Laurie Nixon (Watauga High School: Blowing Rock, NC), Ryan Hainey (Product Manager of Biotechnology, Genetics, and Forensics: Burlington, NC)

Sponsoring Company: Lab-Aids

This interactive workshop uses a model cart system with ramps to help students learn to measure speed and rate. They also match segments of a distance-vs-time graph to portions of a narrative to help conceptualize the meaning behind slopes on motion graphs.

SPEAKERS:
Ed Miller (Selden Middle School: Centereach, NY)

Sponsoring Company: Simulation Curriculum

See our newest Interactive Anatomy & Physiology curriculum where we'll demonstrate its latest lessons, simulations and interactions. Correlated to standards with LMS compatibility and free resources make this edition the most effective, interesting and engaging for instructors and students alike.

SPEAKERS:
Michael Goodman (Simulation Curriculum: Hopkins, MN)

Yes, your students (even freshmen) can derive energy equations and solve complicated energy conservation problems, and have fun doing it, using toys! Find out how using force vs. distance graphs and a graphic organizer using multiple representations.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn to use the idea of Work done on a system to derive energy equations and then use this knowledge to solve for variables in various hands-on stations. Participants will experience how students must make judgments on how to analyze systems to complete multi-step energy analyses.

SPEAKERS:
Kimberlee Freudenberg (Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory: San Francisco, CA)

Modeling workshops are structured inquiry approaches to physics teaching that incorporate computers and insights from content and physics education research. Modeling workshop attendees develop skills in scientific discourse, Socratic questioning, and in assessment of student learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees at this session will be introduced to the Modeling Method via a hands-on activity that is engaging and is representative of a typical modeling paradigm lab.

SPEAKERS:
Jon Anderson (University of Minnesota-Twin Cities: Minneapolis, MN)

"A Walk Through Water" combines project-based learning with NGSS-aligned education, immersing students in real-world environmental exploration. This approach nurtures environmental consciousness, fosters scientific problem-solving, and promotes responsible citizenship.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will experience integrated art, science, and NGSS-aligned education through phenomenon exploration and sculpting an organism with model magic to create deeper connections in order to build empathy and connection to the natural world, in order to solve important environmental issues.

SPEAKERS:
Nikki Atkinson (Visual Arts and CTE Media Arts: Fort Collins, CO), Deborah Holman (Wellington Middle School: Fort Collins, CO)

This session will share innovative activities to use with students where they will explore properties and patterns of the periodic table.

TAKEAWAYS:
Join us to share in ways to help students discover for themselves the patterns hidden in the periodic table.

SPEAKERS:
Jennifer Maguire (Virginia Tech: Blacksburg, VA)

Learn how to integrate some of the Science and Engineering Practices of Asking Questions, Constructing Explanations, and Engaging in Argument From Evidence into lessons driven by a phenomenon. Students of all backgrounds and abilities engage in these practices and feel part of a learning community.

TAKEAWAYS:
Resources for using phenomenon-based lessons, Question Board, Notebook Guidelines, Written Responses, and promoting Scientific Discourse will be shared. A guided lesson will be shared which covers DCI PS3.B and PE 4-PS3-2. A classroom video will be shared.

SPEAKERS:
Mary O'Donnell (Penn State University: Long Beach, CA), Gargi Adhikari (Holland Brook School/Readington Township Schools: Whitehouse Station, NJ)

This session introduces a way to create meaningful and authentic investigations for use in science classrooms that will help students learn the disciplinary core ideas, crosscutting concepts, and science and engineering practices at the same time.

TAKEAWAYS:
An opportunity for participants to experience an investigation that gives students an opportunity to use core ideas and practices from multiple disciplines to develop a solution to a problem.

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

In Rubin Observatory’s new online Coloring the Universe investigation, students use filters and colorizing tools to analyze authentic multiwavelength data images, then apply what they have learned to create a unique color data representation that communicates the answer to their science question.

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:
Justine Schaen (NSF's NOIRLab: Tucson, AZ), Ardis Herrold (Vera C. Rubin Observatory: Oro Valley, AZ)

This introduction to STEM for elementary, secondary, or special education classrooms will allow participants to explore motion and energy while creating their own Rube Goldberg machine using found objects.

TAKEAWAYS:
Students can easily plan, build, and solve problems on their own Rube Goldberg project using recycled and found materials.

SPEAKERS:
Elaine Sevin (Isidore Newman School: New Orleans, LA)

Attendees will learn more about the philosophy behind standards-based grading practices and apply NGSS-aligned standards to assess examples of student work from middle school level life and physical science.

TAKEAWAYS:
Standards-based grading identifies clear and specific learning goals for both students and teachers, and illuminates the path for students to demonstrate and teachers to assess proficiency.

SPEAKERS:
Christine Zarker Primomo (Lake Washington Girls Middle School: Seattle, WA), Katie Foutch (Science Teacher: Seattle, WA), Alexandra Guest (Science Teacher and Experiential Education Programs Coordinator: Seattle, WA)

Join us to explore the nature of science using parallel circuits and the SEPs to make sense of unexpected circuit behavior. Uncover the underlying scientific principles and learn how to use the systems thinking phenomenon iceberg to track student sensemaking during 3-dimensional science instruction.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will understand the nature of parallel circuits and understand why the perplexing parallel circuit breaks the rules based on the photon energies of different colors of light. This will all be done while using the iceberg model to record patterns, structure, and mental models.

SPEAKERS:
Deborrah Black (Tucson Unified School District: Tucson, AZ), Lisa Kist (Gridley Middle School: Tucson, AZ), DaNel Hogan (Waters Center for Systems Thinking: Tucson, AZ)

Science and math are the “bookends” of STEM education. Integrating science and math should be seamless, natural, and painless. Come join the fun as we collect and analyze an AVALANCHE of data as we work together to make hands-on, inquiry-based instruction one of your go-to strategies!

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will experience the power of having students collect and analyze their own data, while learning strategies for the effective science-math integration and collaborative instruction.

SPEAKERS:
Jeffrey Lukens (Roosevelt High School, Sioux Falls, SD: Sioux Falls, SD)

Learn science on your feet! Move your body to match a motion graph and scaffold students’ sensemaking about linear and parabolic functions. This activity uses your body, a wall, and a modern smartphone with a free app developed with the support of the National Science Foundation (#2114586).

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn (1) evidence-based pedagogical strategies for introducing students to the representation of rates of change (of motion) on graphs and (2) how to use a freely-available smartphone app to support those pedagogies.

SPEAKERS:
Colleen Megowan-Romanowicz (American Modeling Teachers Association: Sacramento, CA), Rebecca Vieyra (PhET Interactive Simulations, University of Colorado Boulder: Washington, DC)

Teachers can use students’ natural curiosity to engage their students, teach content areas and process skills, and address standards. Our discrepant-event format uses two setups that allow all students (regardless of background) to identify a problem to be solved and then to solve it.

TAKEAWAYS:
One of the most engaging formats for learning is the discrepant event. The format can generate natural curiosity. If we channel this natural curiosity into learning problem-solving skills, we will nurture these skills, and students will feel comfortable and competent when doing science.

SPEAKERS:
Mary Jean Lynch (North Central College: Naperville, IL), John Zenchak (North Central College: Naperville, IL)

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

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

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

Sponsoring Company: PASCO

Engage students in a real-world engineering challenge! Learn how students can design and test crash barriers with live collision data to explore the link between momentum and impact forces. Analyze the resulting data to improve upon further design iterations.

SPEAKERS:
Sophia Guzules (PASCO Scientific: Roseville, CA)

Test some heat-treated metal samples; practice your math skills and artistry with a STEAM activity; work in groups for an engineering challenge! There’s a little something for everyone and we won’t judge anyone for wanting to be hot and cheap in the classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
There can be a lot of fun learning and STEM possibiltiies with cheap, accessible materials, application of heat, and a little creativity. Teachers will leave with a number of ideas useful for all levels of high school classroom: chemistry, physics, physical science, math practice, and engineering.

SPEAKERS:
Scott Spohler (Global Impact STEM Academy: Springfield, OH), Briana Richardson (Washington High School: Columbus, OH)

Talking about science is an integral part of “doing science.” Together teachers will experience a phenomenon to explore talk formats, talk moves, and monitoring tools. Teachers will consider how these tools support students to clarify, build, and share their ideas with others.

TAKEAWAYS:
Supporting student talk that meets the targeted learning goals for your instruction requires a plan for classroom talk and practice facilitating learning conversations. Teachers will choose talk formats, employ talk moves, and develop monitoring tools to support students in talking about science.

SPEAKERS:
Laura Shafer, PhD (Knowles Teacher Initiative: Davis, CA)

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

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

SPEAKERS:
Max Vazquez Dominguez (University of North Georgia: Gainesville, GA)

Use the iceberg model to guide students through sensemaking using both natural phenomena and by surfacing science misconceptions using formative assessments. Help students see more than the tip of the phenomenon iceberg, and dive into understanding and scientific reasoning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will understand the value the systems thinking iceberg model has for tracking the patterns, structure of the systems, and mental models of a scientific phenomenon needed to develop the scientific reasoning connected to the standard they are teaching.

SPEAKERS:
DaNel Hogan (Waters Center for Systems Thinking: Tucson, AZ)

In this demonstration of a middle school mechanical engineering PBL unit, attendee's will build and test the performance of Lego toy cars, evaluate competing designs, and suggest improvements to how they would improve designs. There will be math and writing, and so bring a pencil and a calculator!

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will see a demonstration of a full problem-based learning unit outlining a full engineering design cycle for mechanical engineering, and the pedagogy used in lessons.

SPEAKERS:
Erin Brabant (STEM Lab: Westminster, CO)

Increase student engagement in analysis and evaluation of real data. Engage students of different ability levels in mathematical models with measurements not previously accessible in the classroom.

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)

Using coding in the science classroom, attendees will see how to put meaning to electromagnetic spectrum calculations homework. Using technology and coding attendees will see how they can make the calculations of frequency, energy, and wavelength come to life with sound, colors, and pictures.

TAKEAWAYS:
Bringing meaning to work in the science classroom. Have students interact with the work that we expect from the calculations from the EM spectrum equations.

SPEAKERS:
Stacy Thibodeaux (Southside High School: Scott, LA), Chris Coker (Camden Fairview High School: Camden, AR)

Learn how media can enrich science instruction and provide opportunities to engage all students, including English learners and students with disabilities, in three dimensional learning while making science content more meaningful to them.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with a list of resources and ideas for actively engaging their students with phenomena through media, and tips for creating an inclusive science classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Shawn Stevens (GBH Education: Watertown, MA)

Access to supplies is often a barrier to learning, yet amazing projects can be made with just paper, tape, and scissors. Learn how to transform paper into creative roller coasters, catapults, windmills, and dozens of other hands-on engineering projects.

TAKEAWAYS:
You don't need expensive equipment to do hands-on interactive projects.

SPEAKERS:
Godwyn Morris (Dazzling Discoveries / Skill Mill NYC: New York, NY)

Hear how an elements project integrates technology, literacy, and arts into the study of atomic structure and the periodic table.

TAKEAWAYS:
Student-generated learning project that can be done at any level by any student, which integrates STEAM in the physical science curriculum.

SPEAKERS:
Elizabeth Weissman (The Ramaz School: Fresh Meadows, NY)

Engage in the science practices of investigating (making observations) and analyzing data to make a claim about classifying objects based on observable material properties. Participants will explore and classify a set of K-2 appropriate materials.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will explore a set of materials to determine how to classify them according to their observable properties. Next, participants examine sample student work to uncover student ideas and think about why those ideas may be reasonable to them.

SPEAKERS:
Jaclyn Murray (Mercer University: Cumming, GA)

This hands-on session will generate ideas on how to get your secondary students outside and moving while still covering your science standards. Good NGSS practice starts with an anchoring phenomenon. What better way to explore a phenomenon than getting outside?

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with immediately applicable strategies and ideas to use in their secondary science classrooms outdoors.

SPEAKERS:
Jennifer Bateman (: Martinez, GA), Brooke Whitworth (Clemson University: Clemson, SC), Summer Landreth (educator: Anderson, SC)

Sponsoring Company: Mosa Mack Science

You’ll learn how to choose and implement the best science phenomena. You’ll also receive free access to Mosa Mack Science phenomena lessons.

SPEAKERS:
Elisabeth Johnson (Mosa Mack Science: Fairfield, CT)

Sponsoring Company: Texas Instruments

Feeling moody? Dive into the fascinating blend of science and coding as we guide you through how to create your own digital mood ring. No coding experience required! Grab a seat for this interactive session as we unravel the science of color and consider body temperature thresholds, all while deciding if fuchsia should feel flirty or if green feels groovy.

SPEAKERS:
Erick Archer (Texas Instruments: Dallas, TX)

Sponsoring Company: PASCO

In this workshop, you’ll learn how to facilitate deeper student understanding of mole ratios, stoichiometry, and limiting reactants. This hands-on activity uses common household chemicals to simplify setup and a Wireless Pressure Sensor to support live data collection and immediate data analysis.

SPEAKERS:
Sophia Guzules (PASCO Scientific: Roseville, CA)

Sponsoring Company: Flinn Scientific

The persistence of laboratory incidents injurious to high school students demonstrates the need for work towards implementing strong safety cultures in our school science labs. Please join us to learn about simple things you can do to make the laboratory a safer environment for your students.

SPEAKERS:
Mike Marvel, Ph.D. (Flinn Scientific, Inc.: Batavia, IL)

Sponsoring Company: Estes Rockets

Join us to learn engaging and creative assessment strategies for your classroom. Move beyond multiple-choice tests and challenge your students to apply their learning in new ways. Learn how you can use Claim-Evidence-Reasoning, EdTech Platforms, Google Forms and more to assess student progress.

SPEAKERS:
Nicole Freyschlag (Estes Industries: Colorado Springs, CO)

Join me as we engage with many high-leverage SEL strategies I regularly incorporate into my high school classroom. I use these strategies to foster a sense of belonging and support strong development of the NGSS SEPs. We’ll discuss successes and strategize your adaptations of my ready-to-use tools.

TAKEAWAYS:
One core SEL strategy I’ll share is a “temperature check” in which students take 5 minutes of class weekly to fill out a digital (or paper) survey to let me know how they’re doing. I’ll share my rationale behind the questions I use and how they have increased my ability to support students.

SPEAKERS:
Andrea Ames (Meridian High School: Lynden, WA)

Participants will engage as student learners to experience an OpenSciEd middle school lesson and gain an understanding of how to implement an effective 5-step modeling routine for making sense of phenomena adapted from the text, "Ambitious Science Teaching," with middle school students.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will gain an understanding of an effective 5-step instructional routine for developing student’s proficiency with the Science and Engineering Practice of Developing and Using models, and how it supports sensemaking of a phenomenon.

SPEAKERS:
Rebecca Garelli (Arizona Science Teachers Association: Northbrook, IL)

Join award-winning science educator Griff Jones and members of the IIHS Vehicle Research Center to practice a sample of engaging demos and hands-on activities, such as paper car crashes and egg drop competitions, from the IIHS’s free “Crash Science in the Classroom” program.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will try out a selection of inquiry-oriented discrepant events and hands-on crash science activities, and learn how to access other free, video-supported, classroom-tested lessons and resources to teach crash-related science and engineering concepts.

SPEAKERS:
Joe Young (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Highway Loss Data Institute: Arlington, VA), Griff Jones (University of Florida: Newberry, FL)

Come learn how easy, important, and fun it is to collect and analyze data as a part of good, solid, responsible science education. Integrating science and mathematics isn't just a good idea, it is essential for today's STEM learner. Today's technology makes it quick, easy, fun and meaningful!

TAKEAWAYS:
ALL attendees will be active participants in the data collection activities in this session. But collecting data will not be the greatest takeaway. Rather, instilling confidence in ALL attendees to perform mathematical analysis of the data will be the main goal of the session.

SPEAKERS:
Jeffrey Lukens (Roosevelt High School, Sioux Falls, SD: Sioux Falls, SD)

Sponsoring Company: Carolina Biological Supply Co.

Explore easy, engaging, and safe chemistry activities that guarantee a reaction in your students. Whether you’re new to chemistry or feeling out of your element, create excitement with hands-on labs, demonstrations, and Carolina’s digital content.These lab activities support 3-dimensional learning.

SPEAKERS:
Laurie Nixon (Watauga High School: Blowing Rock, NC)

Get in the groove and make a real working record player! Investigate sound and wave properties with an easy-to-build homemade record player. Learn how music is encoded and played back. Understand the difference between digital and analog information transfer with this DIY device.

TAKEAWAYS:
Sound waves and their application in technologies for information transfer.

SPEAKERS:
Eric Muller (Exploratorium: San Rafael, CA)

Sponsoring Company: PEER Physics

PEER Physics invites students into the joy of doing science. We engage teachers, raise rigor, and reignite joy through a community dedicated to the love of learning. Celebrate our 10 year anniversary! In this session, we’ll hear inspiring stories from PEER Physics teachers from around the country.

SPEAKERS:
Emily Quinty (University of Colorado Boulder: Boulder, CO)

Sponsoring Company: Texas Instruments

While graphs are essential for organizing and making sense of data, students often struggle with scaling, axes and understanding variables. Come join this engaging session to see how we break down these concepts through movement and discover how students can have fun with motion sensors by capturing data and creating their own graph. Watch as understanding scales up when learning becomes a dynamic experience!

SPEAKERS:
Erick Archer (Texas Instruments: Dallas, TX)

Sponsoring Company: Arbor Scientific

In this fun, Make-and-Take workshop you will construct loudspeakers and hear them play your favorite songs. This session will also explore the physics behind the design and operation of the speakers, allowing you to confidently embed this content within your electromagnetism and STEM teaching

SPEAKERS:
Alex Gonzalez (Arbor Scientific: Saline, MI)

Sponsoring Company: PASCO

Rediscover the most versatile tool in your physics lab: the meter stick! Learn how to facilitate student investigations of rotation, torque, optics, and even Lenz's law using the PASCO Aluminum Meter Stick and accessories.

SPEAKERS:
Sophia Guzules (PASCO Scientific: Roseville, CA)

Attendees will collect and analyze uniform motion data from a dune buggy and nonuniform motion with a fan cart, identify dependent and independent variables, and create large graphs that can be easily interpreted by using adding machine tape.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will: Observe that if Fnet = 0 N motion is uniform. Observe that if Fnet ≠ 0 N motion is non-uniform. Interpret graphs of position vs. time, velocity vs. time, and acceleration vs. time for uniform motion and nonuniform graphs that yield the Physics Kinematics Equations.

SPEAKERS:
Jan Mader (Retired Physics and Chemistry Teacher: Great Falls, MT)

In this session, participants will work on hands-on activities and build a guitar to learn about the properties of sound using the engineering design model and translanguaging for elementary grades.

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

SPEAKERS:
Max Vazquez Dominguez (University of North Georgia: Gainesville, GA)

Learn about the newest iteration of Modeling Instruction: Computational Modeling Physics First. Give ALL students exposure to coding by having them teach Physics to the computer to program simulations to learn Physics concepts more deeply.

TAKEAWAYS:
We will learn about the newest curriculum in Modeling Physics, how a computational representation enhances understanding, and why we choose to teach using Computational Modeling. We will work through the constant velocity sequence, using coding to enhance critical and proportional thinking.

SPEAKERS:
Kimberlee Freudenberg (Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory: San Francisco, CA)

Participants will explore concrete strategies for cultivating a safe classroom environment for collective sensemaking and in-depth learning that supports all students, particularly diverse and emergent multilingual learners.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn about 3 strategies for enacting an asset-based approach to science teaching, and walk away with tools and resources they can leverage in their own instructional planning.

SPEAKERS:
Claire Hiller (Chute Middle School: Evanston, IL), Alissa Berg (Evanston Skokie School District 65: Chicago, IL)

Come discover how free, NSF-funded simulations and curricula from The Concord Consortium can add all dimensions of the NGSS to your physics, physical science, and chemistry teaching with a special emphasis on the Science Practices. Bring a device to this interactive session and get free resources!

TAKEAWAYS:
Strategies in the use of simulations for 3D NGSS-aligned teaching.

SPEAKERS:
Chad Dorsey (The Concord Consortium: Concord, MA)

Explore how pets can be dynamic teaching tools, investigate standards-based lessons, participate in a challenge, and find opportunities to fund your classroom pet. Leave with a toolkit of ideas and a fresh perspective on enhancing your curriculum with our furry, feathered, or scaly friends!

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will be empowered to use pets in their classroom and understand the lasting impact of using pets to inspire science learning, fostering empathy and curiosity in students. Teachers will leave with the tools they need to incorporate a classroom pet into their curriculum.

SPEAKERS:
Kathy Biernat (Zanilu Educational Services, LLC: Oak Creek, WI)

In Rubin Observatory’s new online Expanding Universe investigation, students use galaxy redshift and supernova data to reconstruct Hubble’s law, then advance to a higher redshift data set to discover how the expansion of the Universe has changed over time, and its connection to dark energy.

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 formative assessment strategies to ensure that all students may achieve a successful learning experience.

SPEAKERS:
Justine Schaen (NSF's NOIRLab: Tucson, AZ), Ardis Herrold (Vera C. Rubin Observatory: Oro Valley, AZ)

Join the fun and inquiry as we apply a variety of hands-on activities to core concepts across grade levels, from elementary to middle school to high school.

TAKEAWAYS:
One of the goals of the NGSS is that topics should not be taught in a striated series of unrelated levels, but rather learning should be articulated vertically through the grade bands.

SPEAKERS:
Karen Ostlund (The University of Texas at Austin: Austin, TX)

What makes it rain? M&Ms versus Skittles? Baking soda versus baking powder? Free online lesson plans of hands-on activities and animations help your elementary students build foundational concepts in chemistry.

TAKEAWAYS:
By conducting hands-on investigations of common phenomena and interacting with molecular model animations, teachers will develop grade-appropriate explanations using atoms and molecules to help students better understand the causes of the phenomena they observe.

SPEAKERS:
James Kessler (American Chemical Society: Washington, DC)

Sponsoring Company: Vernier Science Education

Get students on the move with real-world kinesthetic experiments. Attendees will participate in activities like measuring grip strength, balance, and EKG/EMG responses using Vernier technology. Take home creative ideas to actively engage students in learning about organ system functions.

SPEAKERS:
Colleen McDaniel (Vernier Science Education: Beaverton, OR), Nüsret Hisim (Vernier Science Education: Beaverton, OR)

We share the newest results of a study on effective multiple-choice questions in STEM education. We examined science educators’ revisions to help reduce problems such as gender/racial/ethnic bias and difficulty that are often present in test questions, while including common misconceptions.

TAKEAWAYS:
Evaluate assessment questions that you use to assess students’ sensemaking of elements outlined in the NGSS DCIs. Are the questions free of bias, not too difficult, or indicative of overall student performance? Do they include common misconceptions that students hold? Learn what works, and what doesn’t.

SPEAKERS:
Philip Sadler (Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian: Cambridge, MA), Cynthia Crockett (Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian: Antrim, NH)

The various metals and alloys used in the minting of the US penny over the years will provide for rich explorations. We will share activities that combine some very basic lab activities conducted by some of our chemistry classes with detailed mathematical modeling done by the students in statistics.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will use real data to develop mathematical models and learn how to test our hypothesis by performing an experiment and analyzing the results, combining chemical analysis with statistical sampling for a cross-curricular approach.

SPEAKERS:
Karlheinz Haas (retired: Tequesta, FL)

This session explores techniques for creating learning environments that foster deep-level thinking and support students with applying ideas to new contexts. Participants will explore questioning strategies and teacher moves that can build classroom cultures that value learning above knowing.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with teacher moves and questioning strategies to support students with thinking more deeply and critically about disciplinary core ideas. Attendees will experience what it looks like to take the role of a facilitator rather than a lecturer.

SPEAKERS:
Angela Berk (Arcadia High School: Scottsdale, AZ), Kali Hines (High School Science Teacher: Holyoke, CO)

Have you ever wonder why minerals come in so many different shapes and color? Using nanoscience concepts, come experience how a mineral's internal atomic arrangement contribute to its properties through a fun hands-on activity involving simple materials without an electron microscope!

TAKEAWAYS:
Teaching abstract concepts, such as matter at the atomic scale, can be difficult to get across to our students. Learn to use common household objects to help our students make sense of mineral properties using nanoscience ideas.

SPEAKERS:
Yishan Lee (PS/MS 219: Bayside, NY)

The last total solar eclipse in the continental US for 21 years occurs in April. NSTA has assembled an abundance of resources for you to make the most of this teachable moment – from 3D learning materials, to safe viewing strategies, to ways to make it a school-wide experience.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will come away with links to 3D 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: Seattle, WA)

Learning targets and success criteria are meant to support our students, but they often give away meaningful opportunities for sensemaking. Come consider our process for embedding the 3Ds into our learning targets and success criteria to ensure administrative compliance AND student sensemaking.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will explore how dimension-aligned sentence stems help to make science learning targets and success criteria more 3D and supportive of sensemaking. They will consider how the resulting targets and criteria support administration goals and improve teacher planning and practice.

SPEAKERS:
Martha Inouye (University of Wyoming: Laramie, WY), Erin Arnold (Green River High School: Green River, WY), Megan Allen (Teacher: Green River, WY), Shawna Mattson (Green River High School: Green River, WY), Richard Carroll (Teacher: Green River, WY), Ana Houseal (University of Wyoming: Laramie, WY)

Sponsoring Company: 3D Molecular Designs

Dive deep into water's secrets! Harness 3D models to unravel states of matter, polar covalent bonding, solubility, and beyond in an immersive journey.

SPEAKERS:
Mark Arnholt (3D Molecular Designs: Milwaukee, WI)

Dinosaur Ridge is an outdoor fossil and geology wonder near Denver, Colorado. Home of the nation’s #1 Dinosaur Tracksite and a dozen points of geological interest, we bring an online, 360° tour for your students to explore.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teaching physical science in classrooms can be tough without real-world examples to show students. Dinosaur Ridge is a site that specializes in this and life sciences using cross-cutting systems, patterns, concepts, and scientific knowledge.

SPEAKERS:
Erin LaCount (Education Programs Director: Morrison, CO)

This short session will chronicle the journey of developing and enhancing NGSS-aligned Performance Assessment Tasks that complement effective science instruction and engage students in high-quality phenomenon-based lessons and assessment AS learning!

TAKEAWAYS:
The key takeaways will include: 1. Tips and tricks for writing novel performance assessment tasks that fit right into regular science classes. 2. Tips and tricks for enhancing/modifying existing assessment tasks. 3. Samples of modified assessment tasks for both Biology & Physical Science.

SPEAKERS:
Marissa Murdock (Dekalb County School District: Conyers, GA)

With a few simple materials, light up your student’s creativity with this fun and engaging STEAM activity. Students will create colorful greeting cards that have real working lights. You can then fill your classroom with these cards of joy!

TAKEAWAYS:
This activity uses science to explore electrical currents moving through a wire. Students can take it up a notch by including multiple LEDs, and two switches! Light up one object, two objects, or light three at the same time.

SPEAKERS:
Pepper Thiels (Teacher: Pineville, LA)

We are middle school teachers at a title one school with the highest number of grade 6-8 L25 students of the 125 schools in our district. This session will focus on the strategies that we use daily to ensure we are teaching with rigor in a way that all students can learn!

TAKEAWAYS:
"Every student, every question, every time" is our school philosophy. We will share our tried and true strategies for distributed summarizing and effective questioning.

SPEAKERS:
Barbara Rebeor (Harns Marsh Middle School: Ft Myers, FL)

Sponsoring Company: Imagine Learning

Join world class designers and engineers as we dive in to explore hydroelectricity and the growing need to harness force and motion found in the ocean. Experience a simulated lesson, make a 3D model of a water turbine, and use it to investigate the relationship between force and motion.

SPEAKERS:
Kristen Biadasz (Senior Product Marketing Manager: Scottsdale, AZ)

Sponsoring Company: NOAA

How are scientists able to discover new ecosystems in the ocean? Come explore the use of sound to create 2D/3D map models of seafloor features and learn how scientists use these maps to help them identify ocean features. We’ll also share resources to make it easier to connect to ocean exploration.

SPEAKERS:
Tami Lunsford (Newark Charter School: Newark, DE)

The Exploration Generation instructional materials (AIAA, Estes, NSTA) provide students equitable opportunities for STEM learning. Students’ interest and curiosity about rockets ignite learning as students develop and apply core ideas in science, engineering, and math using STEM practices.

TAKEAWAYS:
The excitement and curiosity generated by model rocket launches can be used to drive student learning about a variety of science, engineering, and math ideas.

SPEAKERS:
Nicole Freyschlag (Estes Industries: Colorado Springs, CO), Patrice Scinta (NSTA: Brooklyn, NY)

By looking at student data we can identify whether students are engaging in science practices as well as their level of engagement. This is essential to inform our instruction and it takes practice. Teachers will develop a range of indicators of student engagement and identify supports students need.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will analyze student work to identify indicators of student engagement in the science practices. Together, teachers will develop a spectrum of student engagement. Teachers will then reflect on how this understanding supports them in scaffolding student engagement in the science practices.

SPEAKERS:
Laura Shafer, PhD (Knowles Teacher Initiative: Davis, CA)

Explore our new web-based interactive earthquake lab! Engage your students in learning and practicing earthquake location and analysis techniques with real seismic data! Bring a laptop/ipad!

TAKEAWAYS:
Analyze and interpret data to help explain how patterns in seismic data allow earthquakes to be located. Construct an explanation of how models of Earth structure are used to calculate earthquake locations. Investigate how different methods can be applied using an online toolkit.

SPEAKERS:
Shelley Olds (EarthScope Consortium: Nederland, CO), Michael Hubenthal (EarthScope Consortium: Port Crane, NY)

This interactive presentation provides teachers with a ready-to-use middle school science unit. The Unit connects students' current weather experiences to Earth's weather systems. Next, students learn and apply their knowledge of thermal energy to a school building engineering design project.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will learn how to teach and assess a dynamic 3D unit addressing Physical Science and Earth Space Science Next Generation Science Standards. Teachers will leave with editable access to all Unit materials. Teachers will get time and guidance on how to adapt the Unit to their classroom and student needs.

SPEAKERS:
Kat Chamberlain (Ridgetop Middle School: Silverdale, WA)

Using blocks teachers will find ready to use activities that will include several integral science practices students need to succeed.

TAKEAWAYS:
Hands-on activities that will solidify otherwise stagnant concepts in introductory science practices.

SPEAKERS:
Chris Coker (Camden Fairview High School: Camden, AR)

Modeling unit conversions through water beads makes an abstract concept of units into a concrete model. Students use different-sized cups and class averages to determine unit conversion factors. Students use these conversion factors to answer word problems.

TAKEAWAYS:
Unit conversions are an important skill to learn for a variety of fields of science. Modeling this abstract idea helps all students understand the importance of converting units in other contexts.

SPEAKERS:
Ashley Garcia (MAP Academy: East Wareham, MA)

Thinking robotics is just for computer science and technology? In this session, explore how you can utilize robotics to teach forces and interactions, energy, and waves with an innovative approach using robots with sensors.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn how the concepts used in robotics and the engineering design process can help students understand the real-world application of concepts in a way that they can test and visualize the effects in their everyday lives. Sample lessons will be provided.

SPEAKERS:
Lori Birch (Sr Specialist Education and Workforce Development: Fraser, CO)

Explore the evolution of the NASA Next Gen STEM STEMonstration product as an innovative strategy in developing STEM minds and allow participants to co-develop a learning module around a STEMonstration filmed by astronauts aboard the International Space Station.

TAKEAWAYS:
Educators will learn how to integrate NASA STEMonstrations into their instruction and contribute to the development of future NASA education products and platforms.

SPEAKERS:
Seth Johnson (NASA Stennis Space Center: Stennis Space Center, MS), Matthew Pearce (NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies: New York, NY)

Attendees will collect and analyze uniform motion data from a dune buggy, identify dependent and independent variables, and create large graphs that can be easily interpreted by using adding machine tape.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will: Develop the relationship between a uniform motion car and a displacement vs. time graph. Compare a uniform motion graph to a nonuniform graph. Learn how graphs form the basis for equations students will learn in other STEM classes.

SPEAKERS:
Jan Mader (Retired Physics and Chemistry Teacher: Great Falls, MT)

Come play device-free comprehensive unit review games that are designed to provide an opportunity for all chemistry students to problem solve and think critically while working together as a team in a growth-mindset environment.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will walk away with device-free game materials and proven strategies that encourage collaboration and communication while increasing students' application of concepts in 14 units of the high school chemistry curriculum.

SPEAKERS:
Laura Hessling (New Trier High School, Winnetka Campus: Winnetka, IL), Elaine Kollar (New Trier High School, Winnetka, IL (retired): Northbrook, IL), Tracy Smith (New Trier High School, Winnetka Campus: Winnetka, IL)

Learn to use pressure sensors, simulations, computer graphing, and whiteboards to have students model and understand the particle behavior of gases. Also, teach gas law problem-solving using proportional thinking to make the numbers make sense physically!

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will use various representations of particle behavior to explain Gas Laws and mathematically model the relationships, using pressure sensors and simulations. They will learn to calculate using proportional thinking, leading to a verbal description of WHY variables change as they do.

SPEAKERS:
Kimberlee Freudenberg (Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory: San Francisco, CA)

PhET Interactive Simulations are open education resources that support science education. Engage with PhET’s 100+ simulations and research-based active learning pedagogies while learning about PhET’s professional development Virtual Workshops that you can embed into teacher education programs.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn (1) how to access PhET’s full range of teacher resources, including the PhET Virtual Workshop, (2) how to facilitate effective teacher professional development programs for online and virtual contexts, and (3) how simulations can be an on-ramp to use evidence-based pedagogies.

SPEAKERS:
Katherine Perkins (PhET Interactive Simulations, University of Colorado Boulder: Boulder, CO), Briana Clarke (Park Day School: Oakland, CA), Rebecca Vieyra (PhET Interactive Simulations, University of Colorado Boulder: Washington, DC)

Bohr’s model works well to help students visualize compounds, but ending with Bohr cuts the story short. This session will use a paper model to deepen the teacher’s knowledge base and result in students having a richer and more accurate portrayal of the atom.

TAKEAWAYS:
Free resource available to use in the classroom which models the current model of the atom.

SPEAKERS:
Karen Matsler (University of Texas Arlington: Arlington, TX)