You’re a preschool teacher who wants to come to NSTA’s conference in Fort Lauderdale, but you don’t want your principal to think you’ll be spending your time playing Beach Blanket Bingo.

Tell him/her that on Thursday, November 12, you’ll be busy doing 12 simple science activities for primary students that take 30 minutes or less…exploring weather-related investigations…discovering how storylines, discrepant events, and magic develop concepts in both physical and biological sciences…and hearing what author Marianne Berkes has to say about expanding students’ reading experiences in science and other core subjects.

On Friday, at the Preschool Science Education presentation, you’ll be absorbed in learning how to create fun environmental science lessons based on early childhood development theory. And far from goofing off on Saturday, you’ll be finding out about P.A.S.S.© (Portable Affordable Simple Science)…engaging in activities from Project WILD’s Early Childhood program…getting over your fears about having animals in the classroom…and picking up some new ideas for using science notebooks to teach energy.

Tell your principal you’ll also be bringing back all kinds of materials to share with your colleagues. You can even invite him/her to help you plan your schedule. Use the Fort Lauderdale session browser/scheduler and select “preschool” in the “browse by grade level” option to get the scoop on science for the younger set.