Find a new teaching technique that revitalizes your classroom, learn to ask the questions that unlocks students’ love of science, or give yourself the gift of more time in the classroom when you combine science and literacy. And from August 10–30, 2017, NSTA Press’ back-to-school gift to you is 20% off our top 20 titles when you use promo code 202020 to purchase them online in the NSTA science store.* Browse the selections below to find your favorites, including the book, ebook, and mixed media sets.

The NSTA Quick-Reference Guide to the NGSS, K–12 Indispensable to science teachers at all levels, as well as to administrators, curriculum developers, and teacher educators, the book’s emphasis is on easy. Find the parts of the Next Generation Science Standards that are most relevant to you, acquaint yourself with the format, and find out what each of the different parts means.
Helping Students Make Sense of the World Using Next Generation Science and Engineering Practices Helping Students Make Sense of the World Using Next Generation Science and Engineering Practices provides a play-by-play understanding of the practices strand of A Framework for K–12 Science Education (Framework) and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).
Uncovering Student Ideas in Earth and Environmental Science: 32 New Formative Assessment Probes If you’re new to formative assessment probes, you’ll love the latest book in the bestselling Uncovering Student Ideas in Science series. Authors Page Keeley and Laura Tucker give you 32 engaging questions, or probes, that can reveal what your students already know—or think they know—about core Earth and environmental science concepts.
Bringing STEM to the Elementary Classroom Many resources help you encourage young children to learn about science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). But only this book of quality STEM experiences was curated by the veteran educator who edits Science and Children, NSTA’s award-winning journal for elementary teachers. Sensitive to the needs of both preK–5 students and busy teachers, editor Linda Froschauer developed Bringing STEM to the Elementary Classroom as a comprehensive source of classroom-tested STEM investigations.

Use promo code 202020 to save 20% on these books online in the NSTA science store.
Good through August 30, 2017.

Argument-Driven Inquiry in Biology: Lab Investigations for Grades 9–12 Are you interested in using argument-driven inquiry for high school lab instruction but just aren’t sure how to do it? You aren’t alone. This book will provide you with both the information and instructional materials you need to start using this method right away. Argument-Driven Inquiry in Biology is a one-stop source of expertise, advice, and investigations.
The Power of Questioning: Guiding Student Investigations The authors of this book invite you to nurture the potential for learning that grows out of children’s irrepressible urges to ask questions. The book’s foundation is a three-part instructional model, Powerful Practices, grounded in questioning, investigation, and assessment. To bring the model to life, the authors provide vivid pictures as well as links to special videos and audio recordings. You can actually hear teachers and students engage in questioning and watch two easy-to-adapt examples (involving plants and life cycles) of the model in action. Then, you can implement new strategies right away in your own classroom, regardless of grade or topic.
Notable Notebooks: Scientists and Their Writings Take a trip through time to discover the value of a special place to jot your thoughts, whether you’re a famous scientist or a student. Notable Notebooks: Scientists and Their Writings brings to life the many ways in which everyone from Galileo to Jane Goodall has used a science notebook, including to sketch their observations, imagine experiments, record data, or just write down their thoughts. You also get four steps to starting your own notebook, plus mini-bios of the diverse featured scientists.
Inquiring Scientists, Inquiring Readers: Using Nonfiction to Promote Science Literacy, Grades 3–5 Inquiring Scientists, Inquiring Readers will change the way you think about engaging your students. The authors show that it’s possible to integrate literacy into elementary-level science instruction without sacrificing quality in either area. This unique book will show teachers how to teach science using a variety of nonfiction text sets (such as field guides, reference books, and narrative expository texts) and replace individual lessons with a learning-cycle format (including hands-on investigations, readings, directed discussion, and problem solving).

Use promo code 202020 to save 20% on these books online in the NSTA science store.
Good through August 30, 2017.

Problem-Based Learning in the Life Science Classroom, K–12 This book doesn’t just explain why, how, and when to implement problem-based learning (PBL). It also provides you with what many think is the trickiest part of the approach: rich, authentic problems. The authors facilitated the National Science Foundation–funded PBL Project for Teachers and used the problems in their own science teaching, so you can be confident that the problems and the approach are teacher tested and approved.
Argument-Driven Inquiry in Physical Science: Lab Investigations for Grades 6–8 Are you interested in using argument-driven inquiry for middle school lab instruction but just aren’t sure how to do it? Argument-Driven Inquiry in Physical Science will provide you with both the information and instructional materials you need to start using this method right away. The book is a one-stop source of expertise, advice, and investigations to help physical science students work the way scientists do.
Picture-Perfect STEM Lessons, K–2: Using Children’s Books to Inspire STEM Learning This book’s 15 kid-friendly lessons convey how science, technology, engineering, and mathematics intersect in the real world. They embed reading-comprehension strategies that integrate the STEM subjects and English language arts through high-quality picture books.
When the Sun Goes Dark This illustrated book is a fun way to get young astronomers ready for August 21, 2017, when millions of North Americans will have the rare chance to witness a total solar eclipse.

Use promo code 202020 to save 20% on these books online in the NSTA science store.
Good through August 30, 2017.

Disciplinary Core Ideas: Reshaping Teaching and Learning Disciplinary Core Ideas can make your science lessons more coherent and memorable, regardless of what subject matter you cover and what grade you teach. Think of it as a conceptual tool kit you can use to help your students learn important and useful science now—and continue learning throughout their lives.
Big Data, Small Devices: Investigating the Natural World Using Real-Time Data Now your students can transform their mobile phones and tablets into tools for learning about everything from weather to water quality. Big Data, Small Devices shows you how. This book is designed for Earth and environmental science teachers who want to help students tap into, organize, and deploy large data sets via their devices to investigate the world around them.
Solar Science: Exploring Sunspots, Seasons, Eclipses, and More Solar Science offers more than three dozen hands-on, inquiry-based activities on many fascinating aspects of solar astronomy. The activities cover the Sun’s motions, space weather caused by the Sun, the measurement of time and seasons in our daily lives, and much more. This is just the resource you need to get middle schoolers ready for August 21, 2017—the day when millions of North Americans will have the rare chance to witness a solar eclipse.
Next Time You See a Sunset “Next time you see a sunset, stop and sit down for a while.” This book’s tempting opening line invites children and adults to take in a daily phenomenon with fresh eyes. By reading Next Time You See a Sunset together, you can learn to appreciate the spinning of the Earth, the progress of day into night, and the reasons for the spectacular colors and shadows that accompany sunrise and sunset.

Use promo code 202020 to save 20% on these books online in the NSTA science store.
Good through August 30, 2017.

Uncovering Student Ideas in Primary Science, Volume 1: 25 New Formative Assessment Probes for Grades K–2 What ideas do young children bring to their science learning, and how does their thinking change as they engage in “science talk”? Find out using the 25 field-tested probes in the newest volume of Page Keeley’s bestselling Uncovering Student Ideas in Science series, the first targeted to grades K–2.
Next Time You See the Moon This fascinating book will stay with children every time they gaze up at the night sky. Next Time You See the Moon is an ideal way to explain the science behind the shape of the Moon and bring about an evening outing no child—or grown-up—will soon forget.
From Flower to Fruit From Flower to Fruit will transform curious readers—children and adults—into budding botanists. The book draws you in with the twin charms of rich illustrations and an engaging narrative. But this is more than just a pretty storybook. It sparks curiosity about the parts of a flower and the vital roles of bees and seeds in plant reproduction.
Problem-Based Learning in the Earth and Space Science Classroom, K–12 If you’ve ever asked yourself whether problem-based learning (PBL) can bring new life to both your teaching and your students’ learning, here’s your answer: Yes. This all-in-one guide will help you engage your students in scenarios that represent real-world science in all its messy, thought-provoking glory. This book is both informative and practical.

Use promo code 202020 to save 20% on these books online in the NSTA science store.
Good through August 30, 2017.

NSTA Press® is where you’ll find the best classroom-ready activities, hands-on approaches to inquiry, relevant professional development, the latest scientific education news and research, assessment, standards-based instruction—NSTA Press® develops and produces the high-quality resources that science educators need, in all disciplines. Check out sample NSTA Press chapters at the Science Store.
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Camp is not school. Like school, camp is play and camp is a learning environment, but the time together may not be long enough to build a community that effectively investigates together. In a half-day, five-day camp program with 15 minutes for snack and 30 minutes for recess, my class of eight children (grades K-2) had about 2 hours to work together each day and we made the most of it. Our theme was “Art in Motion” and my goal was to enjoyably expose the children to the work of a few artists and have them experience several kinds of motion, some while making art. I did not expect to spend much time in group discussion and reflection. Instead we had many individual conversations as children were working during activities and centers. If this was school we would have had many more hours to consider how to make, affect, and represent, the motion of objects. We could have scientifically inquired into the specifics of balls on ramps or balance of hanging objects but our time was limited so we had just a prelude to science inquiry involving aesthetics and objects in motion. 

Each day I read a book or two aloud to focus on a topic. Our beginning topic was Cezanne’s still life paintings, the opposite of art in motion although still full of life.  Drawing the simple arrangement of two vegetables was a challenging task for some children but they persisted. They had an easier time making a drawing of an imagined object in motion. Working with paper, crayons, and liquid watercolors, children noticed the way the wax crayons repelled the paint and how the paint was absorbed by the paper.

Dinosaur with footprints to show it is in motion.

With centers of marble painting and “spin art” (painting on small paper plates using a salad spinner to exert force), children manipulated the materials and the force to affect the motion of objects, and create art. Exploring light and shadow through shadow puppetry involved scientific discoveries and social negotiations as children learned which materials can block light and how to work with another person to tell a story. 

The week would not be complete if we didn’t paint in the style of Jackson Pollock, putting the paper base on the floor and dripping and pouring paint to express our feelings. A group experience introduced the process and individual works followed. With a longer time frame the children could have tried more kinds of paint and implements to move it, exploring how the density of a liquid effects how it moves and what kind of tool we need to control it.

The work of Alexander Calder, another art innovator, inspired us to try creating some figures using wire, and think about using balance and air movement as elements in our art. Watching the video of his presentation of his “Le Grande Cirque Calder” circus showed that adults like to play too. We saw how Calder combined materials and made characters that moved. I hope that this taste of making art that has motion will motivate the children to deepen their understanding of the properties of materials and the laws of physics that brought Calder’s circus to life. 

Games with an aspect of motion were part of the centers in between art making. It surprised me that none of the children had heard of Pick Up Sticks! It was a popular game. Children enjoyed the challenge of removing a stick without jostling the others.  Ramps and pathways materials—tracks, blocks, and objects—introduced motion on inclined tracks and structure design. Spinning tops allowed children to vary the force they applied to an object to vary the motion and they considered what variables make a top spin longest. Sharing materials encouraged negotiation and supported developing social skills. It is satisfying to see children exploring motion and trying to work out how to make the materials do what they want them to. This engagement is the beginning of a science inquiry.

I’m not sure what to do on the first day of my new middle school assignment (I started student teaching in the spring, so I never had the experience of a “first day”). Any suggestions? —C., Minnesota

On the first day, middle schoolers meet 6-8 different teachers. Listening to each teacher read the syllabus, describe the grading system, and review class rules can be overwhelming.

Ask your mentor about any required activities, and save most of the housekeeping for another day. Instead, introduce yourself and briefly describe the science course, including any big ideas that serve as a theme or organizer. Rather than going over class rules, describe the overall expectation on which the rules are based. For example, I would tell students that respect was most important in my class— they would respect each other, I would respect them, they would respect me, and we would all respect the learning process.

Use a brief activity—such as building a house of cards, describing “mystery objects,” or a card sort—to get to know your students’ personalities and how they interact. (Avoid any activities with chemicals, flames, projectiles, or heat sources until you have their safety acknowledgement forms.) You can observe their thinking and problem-solving skills and start to identify the leaders, thinkers, class clowns, and bystanders.

Or stimulate their interest with a brief demonstration. Or assign formative assessment probes from NSTA’s Uncovering Student Ideas in Science series. Try different ones to get a cross section of students’ prior knowledge and/or misconceptions.

The first day of school is exciting, stressful, busy, and a little scary for students (as well as their teachers). You want to set a welcoming tone for your students and communicate your passion for science and your interest in helping them learn.

Photo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kacey3/1263403799/

NSTA’s fall area conferences on science education are right around the corner:

• Baltimore, October 5–7
• Milwaukee, November 9–11
• New Orleans, Nov. 30–Dec. 2

If you’ve ever attended, you know that you get up to 16 hours of credit for sessions in vital areas like STEM, literacy, 3D learning, education technology, and other great subjects. You probably also know that exhibitors like Carolina Biological Supply, Disney Youth Programs, ePlanetarium, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, LEGO Education, miniPCR, National Geographic, Pasco Scientific, Texas Instruments, and the Makerboard People will be there to show off their latest innovations (leave room in your suitcase for all the giveaways!). And best of all, you know you’ll make new professional contacts and friends.

But did you know we have special programming days where you can take a deep-dive into chemistry, physics, and engineering, spearheaded by the American Chemical Society, the American Association of Physics Teachers, and the American Society for Engineering Education? Browse your topic below, and see all conference details here.

Chemistry Day at NSTA

Two ACS-sponsored programs, one for grade levels 9–12 and the other for middle level educators, will take place.

Connecting Structure and Properties: Building and Applying Knowledge

For grades 9–12

Friday, October 6, Baltimore
Friday, November 10, Milwaukee
Friday, December 1, New Orleans

Sponsored by the American Chemical Society

Solutions to real-world problems involving chemistry are complex and explanations of relevant phenomena are multifaceted. A deep understanding of how the particle-level structures of substances affect their macroscopic properties is necessary if students are to develop explanations and design solutions to complex problems. Explore how to engage students in challenging problems and help them learn to collect and explore data in order to develop a scientific understanding of structure-property relationships. Demonstrate students’ learning through relevant-to-their-lives applications.

Middle School Chemistry—Big Ideas About the Very Small

Friday, October 6, Baltimore
Friday, November 10, Milwaukee
Friday, December 1, New Orleans

Sponsored by the American Chemical Society

Come to one, two, or as many sessions as you like during this day of activities and information for teaching and learning middle school chemistry. Staff from the American Chemical Society (ACS) will introduce participants to the free online resource middleschoolchemistry.com. Each of the four sessions will include hands-on activities and explanations from the website that participants can easily incorporate into their teaching to support their current textbook and curriculum. Handouts of the session activities will be available for all participants.

Physics Day at NSTA

• Friday, October 6, Baltimore: Sponsored by the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) and the Chesapeake Section of AAPT
• Friday, November 10, Milwaukee: Sponsored by the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) and Milwaukee area AAPT members
• Friday, December 1, New Orleans: Sponsored by the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) with the LIGO Science Education Center

The American Association of Physics Teachers offers a full day of physics content. Physics Day consists of interactive hands-on workshops and sessions covering important physics topics for today’s world. Each of these workshops or sessions is organized by experienced physics educators and designed to deal with innovative teaching methods and/or hard-to-express concepts that can be immediately applied in your classroom.

Engineering Day at NSTA

Friday, October 6, Baltimore
Friday, November 10, Milwaukee
Friday, December 1, New Orleans

Sponsored by the American Society for Engineering Education

The American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) has put together a public/private partnership to develop ways of engaging elementary, middle school, and high school students and teachers in engineering. Participants will learn about innovative, hands-on, project-based engineering activities, courses, curriculum options, events, outreach programs, professional development, and competitions designed to increase engineering and technological literacy of all students; encourage more and more diverse students to pursue engineering careers; and enable teachers to learn about and experience engineering. Presenters will share lessons learned and examples of inquiry and design activities that have been developed in partnership with K–12 science teachers for use in the classroom and in informal educational settings. The materials result from a collaboration of engineering educators and STEM professionals working with Teachengineering.org, Engineering is Elementary, and Colleges of Engineering across the nation who actively engage in K–12 engineering in collaboration with partner teachers and schools. All sessions will help teachers understand the new ETS Engineering Design portion of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).

Check out more sessions and other events with the:

• Baltimore Session Browser/Personal Scheduler
• Milwaukee Session Browser/Personal Scheduler
• New Orleans Session Browser/Personal Scheduler

Follow all our conference tweets using #NSTA17, and if you tweet, please feel free to tag us @NSTA so we see it!

Need help requesting funding or time off from your principal or supervisor? Download a letter of support and bring it with you!

• Baltimore support letter
• Milwaukee support letter
• New Orleans support letter

And don’t forget, NSTA members save up to $95 off the price of registration. Not a member? Join here.

The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.

Future NSTA Conferences

2017 Area Conferences

• Baltimore, October 5–7
• Milwaukee, November 9–11
• New Orleans, Nov. 30–Dec. 2

2017 Discover the NGSS “Train the Trainer” Workshops

• Baltimore, October 6–7
• Milwaukee, November 10–11
• New Orleans, Dec. 1–2

2017 NGSS Administrator Institute

• Los Angeles, Nov. 15 | Monterey, Nov. 17

2018 National Conference

• Atlanta, March 15–18

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This week in education news, Indiana has work to do on preparing students for college-level coursework; flipped learning is evolving; Iowa teachers are spending the summer learning at externships; Florida has a growing shortage of math and science teachers; lessons in spatial learning are not really incorporated into current curriculum; a growing number of organizations are promoting the use of music in the course of STEM education; Education Week wants to know what skills do schools need to teach students to prepare them for jobs of the future; and unions are trying to shut down a proposed LA state-run STEM school.

How Well Are Indiana High Schools Preparing Students For College?

Every year, Indiana high schools graduate thousands of students who aren’t prepared for college-level coursework. In 2015, about one out of every seven Indiana high school graduates who went on to attend one of Indiana’s public colleges or universities — the only students for whom such information is available — was not prepared for college-level coursework. Click here to read the article featured in the Indy Star.

8 Principles To Help You Advance To Flipped Learning 3.0

Flipped learning is evolving because of research, classroom innovation and new technologies. Whereas educators asked about teacher and student satisfaction and achievement in flipped learning 1.0, flipped learning 3.0 focuses its questions on the effect of drawing or questions in flipped videos, the optimal time between individual work and group work, and the impact gamification has on a flipped classroom. Click here to read the article featured in eSchool News.

Iowa Teachers Spend Summer Learning At ‘Externship’

Iowa teachers are learning new lessons as they spend the summer working at state parks, high-tech companies, research labs and other places as part of a program organized by the governor’s STEM Advisory Council. Meghan Reynolds, the externship project coordinator with the council, told the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier that more than 60 teachers in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math are participating this year. Click here to read the article written by the Associated Press and featured in Education Week.

School Districts Tasked With Filling Math, Science Teacher Shortage

Florida has a growing shortage of the math and science teachers the state’s students need to prepare for the rigors of the 21st-century economy. The burden of solving this problem has fallen to Florida’s school districts, since neither the state government nor the teacher-preparation programs at our universities are making significant progress on this issue. Click here to read the article featured in the Orlando Sentinel.

Bay Area Teachers Learn New Style Of Sharing Science With Students

Greg Brown had been teaching science in the Bay Area for years when the idea came to him for a new style of teaching the subject. Why not take classic science activities and add a twist — starting with exploration? Well, the Next Generation Science Standards beat him to it, but his friend Kevin Brumbaugh from the Krause Center for Innovation at Foothill College was wondering how teachers were going to learn to implement the NGSS — the new method for teaching science hands-on. From that interaction, MADE Science was born. Click here to read the article featured in the East Bay Times.

Can Early Lessons In Spatial Skills Build Future Scientists And Mathematicians?

Strong spatial skills give kids an edge in science and math, and these skills can be taught. Scientists know this. Yet to a large degree, lessons in spatial learning haven’t been incorporated into the curriculum. A pilot program supported by a $1.4 million federal grant and led by researchers from the Johns Hopkins Science of Learning Institute aims to change that. Click here to read the article featured in Education Week.

Educators Using Music To Make Connections To STEM

Through this summer, the Urban Arts Collective is utilizing hip-hop music and culture in a camp designed to immerse students in learning about architecture. The idea for the camp originates from Michael Ford, a co-founder of the collective who has been studying and promoting the use of hip-hop in architecture education since his graduate study. Click here to read the article featured in Education DIVE.

In Washington’s Most Diverse District, STEM Opportunities Provide New Paths To Success

Federal Way Public Schools (FWPS) is the most diverse district in the state of Washington, serving 70 percent scholars of color. Current statistics show that scholars of color and females are underrepresented in STEM fields across the country, and so FWPS is actively taking steps to provide STEM and STEAM (STEM with an emphasis on the arts) opportunities for each scholar from kindergarten through high school graduation. Click here to read the article featured in Ed Surge.

What Skills Are You Teaching Students to Prepare Them for Jobs of the Future?

A recent report found that almost 40 percent of U.S. jobs are at a high risk for automation by the early 2030s—when many current students will be entering the workforce. So how can teachers prepare students for jobs of the future? Click here to read the article featured in Education Week.

Unions Trying To Shut Down STEM School Before It Even Opens

Unions are trying to shut down a proposed Los Angeles state-run science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) school, local media reported Monday. If unions are not successful, the school would become the first state public school to focus on teaching STEM to low income kids from across the state, according to LA School Report. Click here to read the article featured in The Daily Caller.

Nebraska Draft Science Standards Call For Students To Judge ‘Reliability And Validity’ Of Climate Models

Climate change would be added to Nebraska’s science standards for the first time, but students would “evaluate the reliability and validity” of climate models, according to the latest draft standards proposed Wednesday by the Nebraska Department of Education. An earlier draft, made public in May, worded the climate change standards as settled science. That version called on students to “gather and analyze” data from models to “recognize patterns in climate change over time.” Click here to read the article featured in the Omaha World-Herald.

Could ESSA Plans Invigorate State STEM Intentions?

Could states use their ESSA plans to formulate innovative ways to advance STEM in their schools? That’s the hope of an organization that recently examined the Every Student Succeeds Act plans developed by states for submission to the U.S. Department of Education. The analysis looked at the 17 plans that have already been submitted as well as eight other draft plans. Click here to read the article featured in T.H.E. Journal.

Stay tuned for next week’s top education news stories.

The Communication, Legislative & Public Affairs (CLPA) team strives to keep NSTA members, teachers, science education leaders, and the general public informed about NSTA programs, products, and services and key science education issues and legislation. In the association’s role as the national voice for science education, its CLPA team actively promotes NSTA’s positions on science education issues and communicates key NSTA messages to essential audiences.

The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.

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Even if your location is not in the path of the total solar eclipse, viewing a partial one is an amazing event. If you’re looking for safety tips, a refresher on the science of eclipses, classroom activities on the topic, or professional development, NSTA has many resources to assist.

Download the Observer’s Guide to Viewing the Eclipse

Check out ideas from others in the discussion forum or the Learning Center collection The Total Solar Eclipse of 2017

For young children, see The Early Years Blog Total Solar Eclipse on Monday, August 21, 2017!

Search for the topic Eclipses in SciLinks for grades 5-8 and 9-12

Start your Countdown to the Great American Eclipse with several articles in recent NSTA Journals:

• Total Eclipse shows how this event can be an opportunity for 3-dimensional learning.
• Modeling the Eclipse has ideas for studying eclipses through observations, planetarium and virtual modeling, as well as mathematical and physical modeling,
• The authors of Chasing Shadows suggest that the upcoming eclipse is also an opportunity for students to study exoplanets and astronomical transits.
• The August 2017 Total Solar Eclipse: The Perfect Opportunity to Highlight Three-Dimensional Science Learning has ideas for helping students understand phases of the moon, partial eclipses, and why they occur so infrequently.
• Preparing for the Eclipse and Eclipses and Eye Safety have suggestions for viewing and studying the upcoming eclipse safely.
• Eclipses Across the Curriculum has ideas for integrated lessons pertaining to the August 2017 event.
• Exploring Lunar and Solar Eclipses Via a 3-D Modeling Design Task has a lesson idea to help students understand the phenomenon and dispel misconceptions

If I were planning August professional development sessions, I would designate August 21 as Eclipse Day and focus on interdisciplinary teacher participation in this historic event. Of course, if your classes are in session then, you have an opportunity to view the eclipse with your students as a learning opportunity.

Photo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/sashapo/2722924752/

Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) take center stage at NSTA’s 2017 Area Conference on Science Education, in Baltimore, MD, October 5-7.

General session speaker Freeman A. Hrabowski, president of UMBC (University of Maryland, Baltimore County), will kick off the conference with “Holding Fast to Dreams: Creating a Culture of STEMSuccess,” on Thursday, October 5 9:15 AM – 10:30 AM, in the Baltimore Convention Center, Ballroom III/IV. Join Hrabowski as he shares innovative approaches to STEM teaching and learning, STEM teacher preparation, support for the growing population of diverse students who must participate and succeed in these fields, and the importance of partnerships between schools, universities, philanthropy, government agencies, and business.

Below is a sampling of more STEM sessions you’ll experience in Baltimore:

• Three Teachers…60 Students…One Genuine STEM Unit of Study
• Producing STEM Equity Through the CCSS Math Practices
• Let It Rain: A Hands-On Rain Garden Design Lab
• NSTA Press® Session: Creating a STEM Culture for Teaching and Learning
• The Perfect Match: Environmental Education and Project-Based Learning!
• How to Invent the Wheel: Designing a STEM Program from Scratch
• $TEM: Incorporating Career Connections
• A Unique Ice Core Investigation That Integrates the Three Dimensions of NGSS and STEM
• Analysis of Supernova Remnants Using X-Ray Spectroscopy with NASA Data and STEM Tools
• STEAM It UP: Are You Learning to Read or Reading to Learn Using Literacy with Science?

Check out more sessions and other events with the Baltimore Session Browser/Personal Scheduler. Follow all our conference tweets using #NSTA17, and if you tweet, please feel free to tag us @NSTA so we see it!

Need help requesting funding or time off from your principal or supervisor? Download this letter of support and bring it with you!

And don’t forget, NSTA members save up to $95 off the price of registration. Not a member? Join here.

The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.

Future NSTA Conferences

2017 Summer Institute

• Naperville, IL, August 9

2017 Area Conferences

• Baltimore, October 5–7
• Milwaukee, November 9–11
• New Orleans, Nov. 30–Dec. 2

2017 Discover the NGSS “Train the Trainer” Workshops

• Baltimore, October 6–7
• Milwaukee, November 10–11
• New Orleans, Dec. 1–2

2017 NGSS Administrator Institute

• Los Angeles, Nov. 15 | Monterey, Nov. 17

2018 National Conference

• Atlanta, March 15–18

Follow NSTA