This new version of the Quick-Reference Guide (aka The Purple Book) is a must-have reference tool for working with NGSS and other Framework-based, 3D standards. This session will review the features of the book and show how to use the tools and resources in it to unpack the crosscutting concepts.

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: Derwood, MD)

Student discourse needs to be carefully orchestrated to provide teachers with meaningful information about all students. We will share a discourse routine as a powerful formative assessment tool that simultaneously supports students’ science sensemaking and expansion of their linguistic toolkit.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will experience a Collect and Display discourse routine as learners and acquire strategies for integrating it into any instructional sequence to elicit and support 3D sensemaking and expand students’ linguistic repertoires.

SPEAKERS:
Jill Wertheim (WestEd: Takoma Park, MD), Lauren Stoll (Director of Professional Learning: Santa Barbara, CA)

An NGSS classroom promises Science for All, but sometimes students have different needs. See how classroom teachers build a culture of choice, create differentiated literacy and assessment products, and help students meet differentiated goals for 3D learning within an inclusive classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with ideas and routines for fostering a differentiated classroom culture, samples of high-quality, scaffolded guides for scientific readings and assessments, and strategies to allow students to set their own goals for meeting or exceeding standards.

SPEAKERS:
Barbara McIntyre (Michigan Technological University: Midland, MI), Chris Geerer (Mi-STAR: Rochester, MI)

Participants will collaboratively engage in a series of model activities to increase discourse in middle school science classrooms. These strategies will help foster regular talk opportunities that honor student voice and increase student engagement.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will gain a deeper understanding and internalize discourse strategies that enhance student talk to increase engagement and instill ownership in their science learning. These strategies can be easily adapted for any content area and topic.

SPEAKERS:
Ryan Gracia (Chicago Public Schools: Chicago, IL), Amy Brady (Dept. of STEM, CPS Bridgeport: Chicago, IL)

Sponsoring Company: TCI

Learn to promote interest and engagement while helping students achieve specific learning objectives with games. Join us as you learn simple and valuable ways to gamify your lessons. We will be sharing a few creative game ideas for building relationships and reviewing and learning content.

Sponsoring Company: TCI

Join our session to learn how to harness the power of three-dimensional Performance Assessments! Beyond evaluating learning, these assessments offer students a meaningful context to demonstrate understanding. Explore the role of performance assessments in teaching core science concepts effectively.

Finding authentic, relevant & engaging phenomena that requires students to use key science ideas to explain them is challenging & timely. Step into prompt engineering to discover how to use AI to help find phenomena to redesign/adapt learning experiences to increase equity & student interest.

TAKEAWAYS:
Use a new phenomenon heuristic and AI to generate ideas of phenomena for your classroom and learn some strategies to help learners use both the phenomenon heuristic and AI as tools for their sense-making.

SPEAKERS:
Sara Cooper (Contextus: Lincoln, NE), Kelley Turner (Winchester Public Schools: Winchester, VA), Dawn Novak (Northwestern University: Grayslake, IL)

Take a deep dive into the practice of developing and using models! We’ll explore how creating and using models help students build science ideas and can support students’ in developing and writing explanations. Experience the power of building science ideas together as part of a learning community.

TAKEAWAYS:
Developing models individually, in groups and as a class makes all students essential members of the knowledge-building community.

SPEAKERS:
Kristin Rademaker (NSTA: Freeport, IL)

Join Louisiana teacher leaders in empowering educators to effectively utilize high-quality instructional materials while addressing common challenges related to classroom assessment. Participants will engage collaboratively with resources designed to support educators with this goal.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with resources and strategies to assist with addressing some common challenges with curriculum-integrated assessment opportunties including analyzing and interpreting information provided in these assessment moments in an efficient and effective manner.

SPEAKERS:
Sarah Jimenez (LA Dept of Education/Evergreen Jr High: Gray, LA), Loren Klein (Academically Gifted Teacher: Lafayette, LA), Lauren Waguespack (Harry Hurst Middle School: Destrehan, LA), Kylie Martin (Bayou Blue Middle School: Raceland, LA)

The Atlas is a collection of 62 maps of the practices, core ideas, crosscutting concepts, and performance expectations in NGSS and other Framework-based standards. The maps show how goals in science are meant to build upon each other and relate to each other over a student’s K-12 education.

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: Derwood, MD)

Join us to participate in providing educators with the skills and knowledge needed to create authentic and engaging assessments that truly measure student understanding of the 3-D science standards.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will utilize the NGSS standards, the Louisiana Achievement Level Descriptors, and high-quality curriculum items to develop and evaluate 3-dimensional assessment items.

SPEAKERS:
Michelle Shirley (Teacher: Natchitoches, LA), Sheena Prelow (Natchitoches Parish School Board: Natchitoches, LA), Paula Callender (Natchitoches Central High School: Pleasant Hill, LA), Jessie Church (Natchitoches Parish School Board: Natchitoches, LA)

Assessing student sensemaking can be time-consuming, and applying standards-based grading can seem overly vague. In this session we’ll analyze 3D assessment scenarios to uncover their scaffolded structure, and use that structure to develop leveling rubrics that quickly convert to traditional grades.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with samples of high-quality, scaffolded three-dimensional assessment scenarios, and strategies to make standards-based grading quick and consistent.

SPEAKERS:
Barbara McIntyre (Michigan Technological University: Midland, MI), Chris Geerer (Mi-STAR: Rochester, MI)

Sensemaking with the three dimensions is the focal construct we want to measure in science assessments - not just the phenomenon or problem or the three-dimensions. Join us for a deep dive into how we center sensemaking in 3D assessment design for more equitable learning experiences.

TAKEAWAYS:
Leave with examples of 3D sensemaking in assessment tasks and tools for building better assessments that elicit student sensemaking.

SPEAKERS:
Dawn Novak (Northwestern University: Grayslake, IL), Sara Cooper (Contextus: Lincoln, NE), Kelley Turner (Winchester Public Schools: Winchester, VA)

AI is changing the world around us, but how can it help with making 3-dimensional assessments? In this session, we will explore the opportunities and challenges with using AI in all phases of creating and refining assessments in the classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
AI is not a silver bullet for developing assessments, but a powerful tool if a teacher understands the principles of 3-dimensional assessments.

SPEAKERS:
Loren Klein (Academically Gifted Teacher: Lafayette, LA)

Come learn about the NSTA press books addressing the three dimensions: Helping Students Make Sense of the World Using Next Generation Science and Engineering Practices, Disciplinary Core Ideas: Reshaping Teaching and Learning, and Crosscutting Concepts: Strengthen Science and Engineering Learning

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn techniques to use these three books to help educators have a deep understanding of practices, core ideas, and crosscutting concepts to foster better student learning in their classrooms.

SPEAKERS:
Ted Willard (Discovery Education: Derwood, MD)

The Learning Progression Model is a flexible, equitable assessment strategy to provide descriptive feedback, set goals, evaluate teaching, and report achievement. Attendees leave knowing how they can implement this in their classrooms even in a traditional grades school.

TAKEAWAYS:
Understand how the Learning Progression Model keeps students engaged and accountable, how learning progressions are used to develop/assess skills and knowledge aligned with NGSS, and how to integrate this approach into the traditional grading system.

SPEAKERS:
Elise Naramore (Pascack Hills High School: Saddle River, NJ)

Feeling burned out by unmotivated students? Join us to reveal motivational gems hidden in your class. Attendees will gain strategies to provide SEL support, including methods allowing students to share their input and assessment practices to increase participation.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will discover how things they may already be doing can be adapted to boost student motivation and build confidence. Walk away with strategies to implement tomorrow!

SPEAKERS:
Amber Richards (Chatsworth Elementary School: Chatsworth, GA)

Sponsoring Company: Kognity

Through this session, you'll gain valuable insights into our development process, from initial concept to final implementation, and discover how Kognity's unique tools can revolutionize your teaching methods. Engage with our experts, ask questions, and explore real-world applications that can enhance your educational practices.

SPEAKERS:
Grace Boersma (Kognity: Stockholm, Sweden), Wayne Wright (Kognity: Stockholm, Sweden)

Sponsoring Company: Lessi AI

Lessi AI helps science teachers find and customize high-quality open science resources. This workshop will help participants learn to build, extend, and adapt freely available NGSS-aligned lessons and assessments to meet the needs of all learners.

SPEAKERS:
Patrick Marcotte (Lessi AI: Saint Paul, MN)

Sponsoring Company: TCI

Learn to promote interest and engagement while helping students achieve specific learning objectives with games. Join us as you learn simple and valuable ways to gamify your lessons. We will be sharing a few creative game ideas for building relationships and reviewing and learning content.

Let’s work together to figure out how to Problematize phenomena in ways that pose productive uncertainties that motivate students toward productive sensemaking throughout a task. Walk away with strategies, example problematized tasks, and tools to use in your classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
Analyze multiple tasks to understand what it means for a task to be problematized. Reflect on how this leads to increased engagement and opportunities for more equitable access for all learners.

SPEAKERS:
Dawn Novak (Northwestern University: Grayslake, IL), Sara Cooper (Contextus: Lincoln, NE), Kelley Turner (Winchester Public Schools: Winchester, VA)

Discover how VR can transform the way you teach & your students learn. In this session, you'll explore the benefits of incorporating VR into your classroom, including: increased student engagement, improved retention of complex concepts, and opportunities for immersive experiential learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Integrating VR into the science classroom can create immersive and engaging learning experiences that deepen students' understanding of scientific concepts and foster their creativity and curiosity. This leads to better engagement and improved performances on formal and informal assessments.

SPEAKERS:
Lakiesha Domingue (Elementary Science Teacher/ Facilitator: Addis, LA)

Transform your assessment tool into a powerful instrument for enhancing learning. Designed for educators from K-16, with an aim to streamline the grading process, make rubrics strengths-based, differentiable across all levels, and centered on developing transferable skills. Bring your own rubric!

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will leave with their own revised rubric that not only simplifies grading but also fosters student engagement and achievement. They will discover ways to provide constructive, actionable feedback that drives improvement and facilitates student growth.

SPEAKERS:
Elise Naramore (Pascack Hills High School: Saddle River, NJ)

3-dimensional transfer task assessments require students to apply learning to related phenomena, demonstrate deep levels of understanding, and engage in new learning. Learn how to tailor existing transfer tasks and support students in completing them from 2 teachers who do this in their classrooms.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will examine revised and customized transfer task assessments, effective strategies and supports, and hear student testimonials to help guide and assist their students through the often challenging transfer task assessment process.

SPEAKERS:
Nicole Bolduc (Ellington Middle School: South Windsor, CT)

Learn how the STEM Observation Protocol – a tool that highlights integrated STEM practices – can be used for creating curricula, instructional coaching, and formative assessment on practice. This workshop will address observing lessons, modeling coaching conversations, and reflecting on practice.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will gain a better understanding of how to bring integrated STEM education into their current science classrooms. Resources – including access to a set of online learning modules – will be provided to support teacher growth and practice beyond the workshop.

SPEAKERS:
Emily Dare (Louisiana State University: Baton Rouge, LA)

This session will introduce teachers to a variety of note-booking techniques that will increase student engagement and excitement for learning. Students will take pride in their notebooks and therefore increase the level of effort they put into their work.

TAKEAWAYS:
This session will provide teachers and administrators with various strategies to differentiate learning for English Language Learners, Special Education Students, and General Education Students, and accurately assess student learning through note-booking by tracking student thinking/understanding.

SPEAKERS:
Darren Wells (Mather Elementary School: Dorchester, MA), Karen Ziminski (EMK Academy for Health Careers: Boston, MA)

Come see how you can make a shift to storylines in your classroom where students make sense of phenomena, see how this motivates them to engage in science and engineering practices, and learn disciplinary core ideas and crosscutting concepts.

TAKEAWAYS:
How having students make sense of phenomena leads to greater engagement and better understanding.

SPEAKERS:
Ted Willard (Discovery Education: Derwood, MD)

In this session teachers will focus on implementing anchor charts into instruction to develop deeper scientific reasoning skills for students. Participants will create and modify anchor charts to show the progression of student learning and the deepening of scientific reasoning during learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Anchor charts can increase student scientific reasoning skills and teachers ability to assess student learning when used effectively. This session will demonstrate how to use anchor charts to increase student scientific reasoning skills.

SPEAKERS:
Morgan Dallas (Caddo Parish Public Schools: Shreveport, LA)

Want to better understand your standards? In this session, we walk through the process of breaking down a standard using a learning progression protocol. This will result in teachers involved having an intensive understanding of their standards and a list of scaffolded student "skill" statements.

TAKEAWAYS:
A process and resources for walking through the process from standards/big ideas through scaffolded student skill statements.

SPEAKERS:
Delsey Olds (Tolleson Union High School District: Phoenix, AZ)

Explorations provide a strategic and clear to engage students in learning science regardless of the curriculum implemented. Explorations create a framework for student learning and formative assessment that provide streamlined and effective opportunities for scaffolding and student-driven learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn the components of the Exploration framework, examine its efficacy, and act as students moving through the exploration framework to learn about its ability to transform classroom learning.

SPEAKERS:
Tyler Miller (Teacher: Tulsa, OK), Jennifer Miller (Tulsa Public Schools: Tulsa, OK)

Recognizing and valuing the assets students bring to assessment tasks is critical for understanding how to move their thinking forward and support continued sensemaking. Use a new tool to see student work through an asset-based lens that recognizes what students are using to make sense of phenomena.

TAKEAWAYS:
Leave with tools you can use in your classroom to tend to student work in ways that change the culture of assessment in ways that are more caring and supportive and can make assessment a joyful experience.

SPEAKERS:
Kelley Turner (Winchester Public Schools: Winchester, VA), Dawn Novak (Northwestern University: Grayslake, IL), Sara Cooper (Contextus: Lincoln, NE)

Want to improve learning through common assessments? To do so, you need a way to design assessments efficiently that cover a wide range of standards and a way to score assessments that fits your capacity as a school or district. In this workshop, join us to explore practical common assessment design.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will leave with a process for designing, administering, and scoring common assessments that require students to apply three dimensions of science to explain phenomena and solve problems that are meaningful to students and important to their communities.

SPEAKERS:
Abraham Lo (BSCS Science Learning: Ambler, PA), Kate Henson (University of Colorado Boulder: Boulder, CO), William Penuel (University of Colorado Boulder: Boulder, CO)

Grading that supports student sensemaking doesn't have to keep you at school all night. Learn approaches to grading that prioritize 3D sensemaking and utilize technology, collaboration, and existing resources so you have can your evenings back.

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:
Sarah Delaney (OpenSciEd: San Carlos, CA), Matt Krehbiel (OpenSciEd: Derwood, MD)

Participants will learn how to break down 3-dimensional standards for their grade level/content into the crosscutting concepts, science and engineering practices, and disciplinary core ideas and what mastery of the standard looks and sounds like in your classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn the importance of internalizing and breaking down 3-dimensional standards so that they can be more intentional when planning their lessons. Intentionally teaching the 3-dimensions leads to students getting more “at bats” doing science, which helps builds joy and investment.

SPEAKERS:
Melvenia Martin (Ochsner Clinic Foundation: New Orleans, LA), Rachel Thomas-Little (Manager: New Orleans, LA), Carlin Czerniak (Ochsner Health)

Learn how to craft content language objectives (CLOs) that seamlessly blend the 3D of NGSS with the four elements of a language objective, providing insight into structuring targeted support.

TAKEAWAYS:
CLOs are a practical solution to the pressing challenge of addressing language proficiency as students access and engage with complex scientific concepts.

SPEAKERS:
Jean Rowe (DSST Public Schools: Denver, CO)

Students collaborate in small groups to design and develop a sustainable island with a universal theme utilizing various subject areas, seamlessly integrating STEAM standards. It fosters cross-curricular learning and real-world applications through project-based learning activities.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees learn how to implement project-based learning, cross curricular concepts, and real-world scenarios to actively engage and assess students throughout the year.

SPEAKERS:
Katharine Kintz (Needlessly Nerdy: Allenhurst, GA)

We know that a 3D aligned classroom looks different than classrooms of the past, so why shouldn’t the way we provide feedback and grades to our students change? If you want to begin changing your grading practices, join us in rethinking shifts in feedback & grading to support equitable practices.

TAKEAWAYS:
Engage with authentic student work and consider different ways of providing feedback to identify features that support students in sharing where they are in their sensemaking process. Participants will leave with some ‘tools’ they can use in their classroom to provide caring, collaborative feedback.

SPEAKERS:
Sara Cooper (Contextus: Lincoln, NE), Kelley Turner (Winchester Public Schools: Winchester, VA), Dawn Novak (Northwestern University: Grayslake, IL)

Explore and apply methods to restructure 3D HQIM assessments and grading guidance to efficiently and objectively grade student responses and offer clear, concise feedback. Participants will also engage with an evaluation tool to ensure that restructuring the assessments and grading guidance does not change the integrity, rigor, and 3 Dimensional quality of the tasks.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will walk away with an understanding of the process behind the LDOE/NSTA Partnership and explore practical strategies for using NSTA resources to build science leader capacity. Attendees will walk away with skills and tools necessary for restructuring the format and grading guidance of HQIM embedded assessments in a way that ensures maintenance of rigor and standards alignment.

SPEAKERS:
Jill Sutton (science teacher/instructional coach: Ruston, LA), Molly Talbot (Louisiana Dept. of Education: New Roads, LA), April Winstead (District K-12 Science Facilitator: Ruston, LA)

Explore an innovative evidence-based argumentation to gauge student mastery, fostering real-world connections, and authentic applications in the science classroom. The use of AI/GPTs, technology, and student conferencing will highlight how to incorporate respectful dialogue into your class.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn how to equip students with evidence-based argumentation skills for real-world relevance, fostering confidence in dialogue and authentic application of concepts taught in class. An introduction to the use of AI/GPTs, technology, and a workshop/conference model will be shared.

SPEAKERS:
Jesi Hessong-Brown (Flint Hill School: Sterling, VA), Andrew Tran (Flint Hill School: Oakton, VA)

Grading for Understanding is a standards-aligned assessment practice that provides greater clarity to teachers, students, and parents. Using the Grading for Understanding, teachers can provide more valuable feedback to students and focus on assessing current understanding of science standards.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will learn how Grading for Understanding reduces biases in grading and supports growth mindsets and hope for students to succeed in science.

SPEAKERS:
Tyler Miller (Teacher: Tulsa, OK), Jennifer Miller (Tulsa Public Schools: Tulsa, OK)

In this lesson, your middle or high school students take on the role of a genetic counselor. For the challenge problem, students will use their understanding of genetics to write a professional report explaining the likelihood of their patients having a child with a genetic condition.

TAKEAWAYS:
Through the challenge problem, students will demonstrate their creativity, understanding of genetic terminology, Punnett squares, pedigrees and writing skills. This can be used as a summative, performance assessment. Teachers can make simple alterations to have it fit in with their curriculum.

SPEAKERS:
Kaitlyn Johnson (Middle School Science Lead Teacher: San Jose, CA)

Advancing equity and increasing accessibility for all students in assessment is a key aspect of the vision for science education. Analyze example assessments with the newly developed culturally responsive framework for alignment to multiple equity goals.

TAKEAWAYS:
Use culturally relevant design principles to evaluate and adapt three-dimensional assessment tasks to meet the needs of the students in your classroom and support them in developing cultural competence.

SPEAKERS:
Kelley Turner (Winchester Public Schools: Winchester, VA), Dawn Novak (Northwestern University: Grayslake, IL), Sara Cooper (Contextus: Lincoln, NE)

Sponsoring Company: Texas Instruments

The classroom has changed A LOT in the last few years. Distractions are everywhere all the time. It's no wonder that students are having a much harder time focusing on tasks. This session will use technology that your school may already have and get students back in the game!

In this session, participants will explore the principles behind Eduprotocols and how these frameworks can be adapted to various subjects and grade levels. Through hands-on activities, attendees will discover practical techniques for integrating EduProtocols into their teaching practice.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will leave with several templates that can be used immediately to increase student engagement, foster deeper learning, and promote inquiry.

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

3-dimensional transfer task assessments require students to apply learning to related phenomena, demonstrate deep levels of understanding, and engage in new learning. Learn how to tailor existing transfer tasks and support students in completing them from 2 teachers who do this in their classrooms.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will examine revised and customized transfer task assessments, effective strategies and supports, and hear student testimonials to help guide and assist their students through the often challenging transfer task assessment process.

SPEAKERS:
Nicole Bolduc (Ellington Middle School: South Windsor, CT), Amy Hetherington-Coy (Teacher: Ellington, CT)

Sponsoring Company: Texas Instruments

Do you feel like you are forced to teach to the test? Do you despise the end of course or state exam? Let me show you how to use technology in a way that keeps your students engaged in LEARNING science while also preparing them for the dreaded end of year exam.

Writing exam questions can be challenging, especially for assessing critical thinking. Led by a content development expert, the session will review criteria for assessment, provide practice in writing and evaluating items, and discuss strategies for ensuring that exams are fair and useful.

TAKEAWAYS:
A useful assessment item requires more than just a correct answer. The best assessments allow students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills, and they help guide future learning.

SPEAKERS:
Joseph Berman (KGL: Sterling, MA)

Feeling phenomena fatigue? Wanting to help students connect their work to the broader community? Hear tips for incorporating community experts into units, including ways to prep your students and guests for an experience that validates student ideas.

TAKEAWAYS:
Localize phenomena/storyline curriculum without having to rewrite the entire unit with a different local phenomena. Community connections and industry partnerships can address questions, ideas for investigations and related phenomena that students generate during the anchoring phenomena routine.

SPEAKERS:
William Baur (Washougal High School: Battle Ground, WA)

In this session, you will help your middle or high school students take on the role of a genetic counselor. For the challenge problem, students will use their understanding of genetics to write a professional report explaining the likelihood of their patients having a child with a genetic condition.

TAKEAWAYS:
Through the challenge problem, students will demonstrate their creativity, understanding of genetic terminology, Punnett squares, pedigrees and writing skills. This can be used as a summative, performance assessment. You can make simple alterations to have it fit in with your curriculum.

SPEAKERS:
Kaitlyn Johnson (Middle School Science Lead Teacher: San Jose, CA)

In anticipation of the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) science results, join us to learn more about our new composite variable for measuring student socioeconomic status (SES) and how it can be used to uncover connections between SES and student achievement on NAEP.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will better understand the previous variables used to measure SES and how the recommendations provide new insights into student achievement in the upcoming 2024 NAEP Science release.

SPEAKERS:
Markus Broer (Managing Researcher: Washington, DC)

Sponsoring Company: Mosa Mack Science

Not all phenomena are equal. How you kick off your unit sets the tone for the entire unit itself. Learn what makes a phenomenal phenomenon that keeps your students engaged and how to choose and implement the best science phenomena. You’ll receive free access to Mosa Mack Science phenomena lessons.

TAKEAWAYS:
By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to evaluate, select, 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)

Explore how student self-assessment can transform STEM learning by empowering learners to reflect on and take charge of their educational journey. Gain practical strategies and tools to implement this effective approach in your classroom, enhancing engagement and understanding.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn to implement student self-assessment techniques that boost independence, deepen understanding, and increase engagement in STEM subjects.

SPEAKERS:
Matthew Mawn (Roxbury High School: Succasunna, NJ)

Students often lack skills to study effectively or generate study guides aligned to the range of questions encountered in NGSS 3 dimensional assessments. Students fill in this template of Bloom's taxonomy prompts alongside AI, lecture, lab, and text resources to elevate their preparation.

TAKEAWAYS:
First, attendees will learn how I arrived at this process to improve student learning and be able to look at samples of student generated study guides before and after implementing this learning strategy. Second, attendees will see how they can add this strategy to their toolkit.

SPEAKERS:
Jasper Steenhuis (Abraham Joshua Heschel Middle School: New York, NY)

Chunking texts from various sources allows teachers to decrease the amount of teacher-centric time and increase student-centric time. Students will also measurably grow in their science literacy skills as their increase their fluency with purposeful practice.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will learn simple strategies to add chunking to their lesson as a substitution for lecture. In addition, they will take away some understanding the role of literacy and student success in a science classroom.

SPEAKERS:
Brian Hamilton (Southland Center CCS: Columbus, OH)

Accurately assessing students’ scientific thinking without language ability getting in the way is a challenge. This session will share exemplar three-dimensional assessments for middle school science and provide practical tips for updating your existing assessments for all learners.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will leave with 3D assessments and grading rubrics ready for their middle school classrooms, as well as research-based strategies for adapting their existing assessments for struggling readers and English Learners.

SPEAKERS:
Linda Malkin (University of Wisconsin-Madison: Middleton, WI), Katrina Pommerening (Outreach Specialist: Madison, WI)

In this session, attendees will discuss perhaps unseen sides of assessment and learn how to use them to boost confidence and motivate students. Join us for strategies on how to make minor changes for big effect in your classroom!

TAKEAWAYS:
Walk away with strategies that allow students to share their input, share what they know, and share in the wealth that can be assessment.

SPEAKERS:
Amber Richards (Chatsworth Elementary School: Chatsworth, GA)

Sponsoring Company: Mosa Mack Science

Explore what will be required of students on the state test and how we authentically integrate real-world problems through performance assessments in our classrooms.

TAKEAWAYS:
By the end of the workshop, participants will be adept at leveraging performance assessments to not only enrich science education with real-world problem-solving skills but also specifically prepare teachers and students for the variety of question types featured in the state test.

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

Sponsoring Company: InnerOrbit

How do we scaffold and prepare students for 3-dimensional, sensemaking assessments? Join us to explore how Louisiana and other states are using InnerOrbit’s bank of scaffolded questions and phenomena to gather actionable data and to prepare for the LEAP and other state tests.

Explore how student self-assessment can transform STEM learning by empowering learners to reflect on and take charge of their educational journey. Gain practical strategies and tools to implement this effective approach in your classroom, enhancing engagement and understanding.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn to implement student self-assessment techniques that boost independence, deepen understanding, and increase engagement in STEM subjects.

SPEAKERS:
Matthew Mawn (Roxbury High School: Succasunna, NJ)

In the presentation, we will be sharing performance assessments and various examples that can be incorporated to all science concepts for grades 6-8. The activities the participants will experience will include hands-on activities using innovation, creativity, and technology.

TAKEAWAYS:
Get ready to learn, be involved, and have ready-made activities and performance assessments to bring back and use to engage your students and share with your colleagues!

SPEAKERS:
Amy Rush (Lufkin Middle School: Lufkin, TX), Becky Walker (Hudson Middle School: Lufkin, TX)

Explore an innovative evidence-based argumentation to gauge student mastery, fostering real-world connections, and authentic applications in the science classroom. The use of AI/GPTs, technology, and student conferencing will highlight how to incorporate respectful dialogue into your class.

TAKEAWAYS:
Attendees will learn how to equip students with evidence-based argumentation skills for real-world relevance, fostering confidence in dialogue and authentic application of concepts taught in class. An introduction to the use of AI/GPTs, technology, and a workshop/conference model will be shared.

SPEAKERS:
Jesi Hessong-Brown (Flint Hill School: Sterling, VA), Andrew Tran (Flint Hill School: Oakton, VA)

Sponsoring Company: InnerOrbit

In this session we’ll provide concrete strategies to use throughout each of your units to help students engage with phenomena and sensemaking consistently, so they can more confidently approach the phenomena-driven LEAP (and other state tests) and new phenomena in instruction.

Discuss strategies to help students with neurodiversity, including ADHD and dyslexia, thrive in a general education middle school science classroom. In addition, learn how to best communicate concerns with their parents’ while making them feel supported and part of the team.

TAKEAWAYS:
Based on the concern, learn a variety of strategies to support your student. For example, the student with dyslexia is struggling on quizzes. Simple accommodations could include reading the test aloud to them, providing a word bank with more challenging words or changing the font size and spacing.

SPEAKERS:
Kaitlyn Johnson (Middle School Science Lead Teacher: San Jose, CA)

Feedback is crucial for student growth, but only if students engage with it in a meaningful way. We will show an innovative three-dimensional assessment report and describe principles for helping all students partner in assessment for learning.

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will leave with strategies they can apply to their own formative assessment feedback, such as providing students guiding questions and space to reflect on progress and next steps.

SPEAKERS:
Linda Malkin (University of Wisconsin-Madison: Middleton, WI), Laura Wright (Researcher: Falls Church, VA), Katrina Pommerening (Outreach Specialist: Madison, WI)

Embark on an exploration of teacher recognition of NGSS Standards, where insights to refine science education practices, fostering deeper student engagement and enriched learning experiences. Join us to discover actionable strategies for enhancing pedagogy and igniting a passion for science.

TAKEAWAYS:
Gain actionable insights into teacher perceptions of NGSS Standards and discover targeted strategies for improving science education practices

SPEAKERS:
Stephanie Tracey (Graduate Student: Clemson, SC)

Guiding instruction based on the assessment of student’s developing proficiencies is a key feature of powerful learning experiences. This session focuses how to design assessments that gauge student understanding of justice-related phenomena and topics that are deeply consequential.

TAKEAWAYS:
Participants will learn about a detailed 9-step process for conceiving, developing, testing, refining, and using 3D science assessments focused on social justice phenomena and topics. Open education resources that support this assessment development process will also be shared. #NSFfunded

SPEAKERS:
William Penuel (University of Colorado Boulder: Boulder, CO), Philip Bell (University of Washington: Seattle, WA)

Reflection is a critical piece of classroom instruction that enhances self awareness, leadership, and empathy in our students. Through guided reflection, students engage in metacognition, gain a deeper understanding of their content, and can even build empathy with their peers!

TAKEAWAYS:
Teachers will leave this workshop equipped with a variety of ways to implement individual and group reflection practices in their classrooms that allow students to find purpose, relevance, and real world application in their work!

SPEAKERS:
Kenta Ferrin (American School Foundation of Guadalajara: Guadalajara Jalisco, Jal.)