This week, the Association of American Publishers PreK–12 Learning Group announced the year’s top learning resources, its 50^th year of providing this service to the education community. The 2016 REVERE Awards Finalists include resources from PreK to 12, from print to electronic, and from classroom to “beyond.” Among the impressive and diverse list of Finalists in this year’s competition are eight publications by the National Science Teachers Association. Finalists received the highest ratings from a corps of judges composed of professional educators and publishing-industry experts.

Supplemental Resources

NSTA Press’s book Argument-Driven Inquiry in Life Science: Lab Investigations for Grades 6–8, by Patrick Enderle and colleagues, is a Finalist for Supplemental Resources in Science this year. The goals of science education today include helping students not only understand important concepts but also learn to do science. The Next Generation Science Standards emphasize that students need to understand disciplinary core ideas, be aware of seven crosscutting concepts that span the disciplines of science, and learn how to participate in eight key scientific practices to be proficient in science. One increasingly popular way to knit all these elements together is argument-driven inquiry, an innovative approach to lab instruction and the focus of this book of laboratory investigations in life science for middle school. The emphasis in these engaging labs is on argumentation—the process of proposing, supporting, evaluating, and refining claims in the science classroom. This book is part of the growing Argument-Driven Inquiry Series.

Professional Resources

In the category of Instruction and Classroom Practice, AAP named Teaching for Conceptual Understanding in Science, by Richard Konicek-Moran and Page Keeley among the Finalists. The book is an engaging combination of deep thinking about teaching and learning for understanding; field-tested, classroom-ready strategies that support conceptual understanding in grades K–12; and personal vignettes with lessons for all educators. Konicek-Moran and Keeley guide teachers in how to really think about “the major goal of science education in the 21^st century”: to help students understand science at the conceptual level so they can see its connections to other fields, other concepts, and their lives. Konicek-Moran is author of seven additional books with NSTA Press in the Everyday Science Mysteries Series. Keeley has authored 11 books with NSTA Press in the Uncovering Student Ideas in Science Series.

Honored in the category of Specific Learning Populations this year is NGSS for All Students, edited by Okhee Lee, Emily Miller, and Rita Januszyk. Through rich case studies, Lee, Miller, and Januszyk vividly illustrate research- and standards-based classroom strategies to engage seven diverse demographic groups in science learning: economically disadvantaged students, students from major racial and ethnic groups, students with disabilities, English language learners, girls, students in alternative education, and gifted and talented students. The case studies span all grade levels and science disciplines.

Two more NSTA Press Finalists in the Subject Areas category are The Power of Questioning: Guiding Student Investigations, by Julie V. McGough and Lisa M. Nyberg, and Solar Science: Exploring Sunspots, Seasons, Eclipses, and More, by Dennis Schatz and Andrew Fraknoi.

In The Power of Questioning, McGough and Nyberg invite grades K–6 teachers to nurture the potential for learning that grows out of children’s irrepressible urge to ask questions. The book’s foundation is a three-part instructional model grounded in questioning, investigation, and assessment. To bring the strategies to life, the authors provide vivid pictures as well as links to special videos and audio recordings direct from an elementary classroom in all its questioning and tumultuous glory.

In Solar Science, Schatz and Fraknoi provide grades 5–8 teachers with 45 lessons related to the Sun, including such topics as the Sun’s motions, the measurement of time and seasons in our daily lives, and the causes of both solar and lunar eclipses. The classroom-tested activities support the three-dimensional learning encouraged by the Next Generation Science Standards and connect to the Common Core State Standards. The book comes packaged with an observer’s guide to viewing the upcoming 2017 total solar eclipse as well as eclipse-viewing glasses that can help teachers model safe Sun-observation practices.

Magazines

In the REVERE Awards Magazine Finalists, NSTA Journals are honored for three publications this year. In the category of Professional Magazines, Science and Children’s “Engineering Encounters” is named a Finalist among Departments and Columns. “Engineering Encounters” seeks to both celebrate creative ways to incorporate engineering design into the elementary curriculum and familiarize teachers with ways that engineering and science overlap.

The Science Teacher’s “Teaching the Manhattan Project,” by Elizabeth Schibuk, is named a Finalist in Feature Articles for presenting a nuclear chemistry unit on the research effort that led to the development of the world’s first nuclear weapons. The article, marking the 70th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Japan, offers teachers a way to teach the science and history of the world’s first use of a nuclear weapon in war, while acknowledging the emotional and moral impact of the discussion.

In the category of Single Issue Editorial awards, Science and Children’s September 2015 issue titled “Engineering and Design” is honored as a Finalist. The Next Generation Science Standards is leading the call for more emphasis on engineering in our schools. This issue of Science and Children includes strategies, ideas, and techniques to help elementary teachers bring engineering and the design process into their classrooms.

Each year the REVERE Awards honor the best in education resources and draws attention to the rich array of high-quality teaching materials developed across the educational publishing community. Congratulations to the authors and to the NSTA Press Books and NSTA Journals editorial, design, and production teams for receiving these eight Finalist honors in the 2016 REVERE Awards. For the full list of this year’s Finalists, visit the REVERE Awards pages and stay tuned for AAP’s announcement in June 2016 of the Winners in each of these categories.

There has been a good deal of activity at the Department of Education with the ESSA and on Capitol Hill recently.

But first, a shameless plug—mark your calendars now to join NSELA (National Science Education Leadership Association) and NSTA for a joint webinar on the new federal education law–The Every Student Succeeds Act– on Wednesday, May 18, 2016. This webinar, geared for science teachers, science district leaders and administrators, will examine the new law with a focus on science/STEM education and teaching and learning.  Learn about the key changes from No Child Left Behind and NCLB, where (and how) you can find and access federal dollars for science and STEM programs, and bring your questions (cause if we can’t answer them, we will find someone who will.)  The webinar begins at 6:30 p.m. ET (5:30 p.m. CT / 4:30 p.m. MT / 3:30 p.m. PT. Learn more and register here.

Department of Education

May 2-6 is Teacher Appreciation Week.  You can follow #ThankATeacher on social media and tell the world about your amazing students and colleagues (think selfies with students, parents and colleagues) at #WhyITeach.  Tuesday, May 3 will be National Teacher Appreciation Day, and two NSTA members—Mary Colson and Steve Long—will be joining President Obama for a special ceremony honoring the Teacher of the Year at the White House that day. More on their stories next week.  Access the Department of Education’s digital workbook here.

ED officials have released a STEM Funding Guidance document outlining how states, districts, and their partners can access federal funding for STEM education purposes through K-12 programs at the Department. Read more here. (Note that many of these programs are for the 2016-2017 school year under the ESEA (No Child Left Behind). ESSA is expected to be in place for the 2017 school year.)

After issuing guidance following a negotiated rulemaking session on a number of issues in the new federal education law, the Department of Education is now accepting thoughts and comments thru May 25 on possible guidance that will help the “public understand the law, how ED is interpreting the law, and to provide clarification and examples of best practices.” Some of the STEM related areas include Title II and Title IV funding. The department is accepting input until May 25 at ESSA.guidance@ed.gov

Update on Appropriations

As previously reported in the March 21 Legislative Update, NSTA is part of a new coalition that is seeking full funding ($1.65 billion) for the ESSA Title IV A, Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants. This flexible block grant, which is authorized at $1.65 billion in FY 2017, will provide funding to districts for activities in three broad areas:

1) Providing students with a well-rounded education (e.g. college and career counseling, STEM, arts, civics, IB/AP)

2) Supporting safe and healthy students (e.g. comprehensive school mental health, drug and violence prevention, training on trauma-informed practices, health and physical education) and

3) Supporting the effective use of technology (professional development, blended learning, and devices).

Specifically, in regards to the use of Title IV A funds for STEM, districts and states can use grant monies to expand high-quality STEM courses; increase access to STEM for underserved and at risk student populations; support the participation of students in STEM nonprofit competitions (such as robotics, science research, invention, mathematics, computer science, and technology competitions); provide hands-on learning opportunities in STEM; integrate other academic subjects, including the arts, into STEM subject programs; create or enhance STEM specialty schools; integrate classroom based and afterschool and informal STEM instruction;  and expand environmental education.  

The President’s budget request calls for funding of only $500 million for the grants, far short of the $1.65 billion authorized by ESSA lawmakers, and suggests the funds should be competitive. Advocates, including NSTA, believe this amount is “grossly inadequate,” and is meeting with appropriations lawmakers to ensure robust funding for this program.

An Ed Week article this week discussed how the two sponsors of the new ESSA law—Reps John Kline and Bobby Scott—sent a letter to appropriators seeking more money for the new ESSA block grant.

Nearly two dozen technology companies, education companies and advocacy groups have also written a letter to appropriators urging them to fully fund the ESSA Title IV block grant. Read the letter here.

Also this week, an open letter from leading tech companies, governors, and education leaders asking for funding for computer science also ran as a full-page ad in The Washington Post and delivered on Capitol Hill.

With the current spending limits of the 2015 budget agreement, spending on education for FY2017 programs will be extremely tight.  Stay tuned.

Out of School Learning and STEM

NSTA was one of the hosts for the April 28 Capitol Hill event that focused on the effectiveness of informal STEM education programs and outcomes associated with sparking student interest, engagement, motivation, and persistence in STEM education.  At the event, the STEM Education Coalition released a 10-page white paper that makes the case why informal and afterschool learning must be an integral part of policies to improve STEM education across the board.

Jodi Peterson is Assistant Executive Director of Legislative Affairs for the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) and Chair of the STEM Education Coalition. e-mail Peterson at jpeterson@nsta.org; follow her on Twitter at @stemedadvocate.

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

Follow NSTA

This month, all three K-12 journals include the article Addressing Student Diversity and Equity. Another must-read article for all science teachers!

Science and Children- Methods and Strategies

Think about how the “methods and strategies” described the featured articles can be applied to other lessons and other grade levels. Most of the articles include examples of student work and a detailed chart connecting the lesson to the NGSS.

• Many of us use “thumbs-up” for students to indicate their understanding of a concept. Meta-Sticks takes this further with suggestions for students to share their beliefs and describe the source of their understanding.
• We read a lot about integrating science and language arts, which can be easier said than done. Science in Sync offers concrete suggestions for connecting reading with NGSS scientific practices, including a lesson template and a chart with corresponding scientific practices, reading skills, science activities, and examples of related texts. How About Teaching Literacy With Science? answer its own question with suggestions and a sample lesson for using student whiteboards to generate, share, synthesize, and build on ideas.
• Promote scientific language and communications with the routines described in Explicitly Speaking: awareness, modeling, supported practice, and integration.
• Making and Recording Observations is the backbone of science investigations. Here are strategies and rubrics for helping students to make and record observations that are complete, accurate, clear, objective, and labeled.
• If To Kit or Not to Kit? is the question, the article has suggestions for assessing the extent to which kits are (or are not) aligned with NGSS.
• The two investigations in Teaching Through Trade Books: Roly-Poly Pill Bugs capitalize on children’s fascination with these arthropods.
• The Early Years: Encouraging Curiosity has suggestions for encourage young children to ask questions and how to involve families through a “Question of the Day.”
• Formative Assessment Probes: Talk Moves show how to turn a probe into rich, student-focused classroom discussions.

For more on the content that provides a context for these projects and strategies see the SciLinks topics Animal Adaptations, Arthropods, Buoyancy, Ecosystems, Fossils, Weathering.

Continue for Science Scope and The Science Teacher.

Science Scope – Science, Language Arts, and the Common Core

 The featured articles in this issue have many suggestions for helping students write arguments, informational and explanatory text, and narratives. Perhaps our colleagues in Language Arts would be interested, too. And the editor makes a good case for also incorporating creative writing in science, too, to tap into student interests. Most of the lessons include a detailed chart connecting the lesson to the NGSS.

• The authors of Using Apps to Integrate Writing Into Science Education share examples of free or low-cost apps to help students organize their writing, annotate text, create and use a science notebook, collaborate, and incorporate multimedia into their communications.
• Making Science Real: Supporting English Learners in Argumentation and Exploration Through Authentic Tasks goes beyond simple collections of strategies to using real-life investigations to integrate skills. The article includes a description of the tasks, a rubric, and samples of student work.
• Do your students struggle with the language of science? The author of Personalized Vocabulary Learning in the Middle School Classroom describes the “In a Word, In a Symbol” strategy (with examples) that has been effective in his classroom.
• In the classroom, students read a different levels. Light, Color, Vision, Optics! A Text Set for Grades 6–8 shows how to create a sequence of texts on a topic that provide essential information, scaffolding, and elaboration.
• Naming the Solar System: Implementation of Vocabulary Strategies to Improve Scientific Literacy integrates a Frayer model and word walls into an interactive experience to help students with specialized vocabulary. Examples of student work are provided.
• Simple investigations can be the context in which students have opportunities for speaking, reading, writing, and listening as described in Tried and True: Problem-Based, Enhanced–Language Learning With Pendulums. The 5E lesson was designed for English-language learners but would be appropriate for all.
• Teacher’s Toolkit: Explanations Across the Curricula: Integrating Common Core State Standards in Literacy With the National Science Education Standards includes examples of student work that show how the Claim-Evidence-Reasoning explanation can be used across the curriculum, promoting literacy in science, language arts, and social studies.

For more on the content that provides a context for these projects and strategies see the SciLinks topics Chemical Reactions, Earthquakes, Pendulums, Plate Tectonics, Properties of Light, Solar System, Temperature, Visible Light, Water Quality.

The Science Teacher – Science for All

The annual “Science for All” issue reaches out to all teachers with ideas and strategies to help students with various backgrounds, skills, and interests achieve in science. Most of the lessons in TST include a detailed chart connecting the lesson to the NGSS.

• Which Comes First—Language or Content? describes the integration of two approaches to supporting English learners in the classroom: the 5E Learning Cycle and the Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP).
• The authors of Many Ways of Knowing share a lesson on climate change in which students investigated collaborations between indigenous knowledge systems and Western science.
• We often think of Family Science Night in the context of elementary schools, but the authors share their experiences in planning and hosting an event for immigrant families.
• If there are students in your class who struggle with traditional science text or try to avoid reading, Helping Reluctant Readers provides strategies for modifying or revising text to make it more accessible. Examples are provided.
• Critical Response Protocol has examples of a protocol that includes five prompts for enhancing student understanding, discussion, and critical thinking, using nanotechnology as the context.
• Science 2.0: Mastering Scientific Practices With Technology, Part 3 describes technology tools for the practices of Engaging in Argument from Evidence and Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information.
• The Green Room: When Lead Flows From the Tap has suggestions for real-life and timely investigations about lead poisoning.
• Health Wise: Helping Students Cope With Dyslexia offers suggestions and resources to meet the needs of students with this learning disorder.

For more on the content that provides a context for these projects and strategies see the SciLinks topics Climate Change, Land Use, Landfills, Migration of Birds, Nanotechnology, Pollution.

We are excited about attending an NSTA conference next year (it would be our first conference). The school has professional development funds to cover some of the expenses, but we have to write a proposal describing what we hope to learn from it. Any suggestions on what to include? We’ve never been to an event like this, and we want to get the most out of it. Do you have any suggestions for a conference first-timer? —E. and M., Virginia

Attending professional events such as the NSTA national conference in the spring and the area ones in the fall is a wonderful professional development activity. Many of the sessions are hands-on, demonstrating strategies and procedures you can use in your classroom. The opportunity to hear scientists describe their research in person is extraordinary. In the exhibit hall, you can visit major textbook publishers along with vendors of lab equipment, supplies, professional development programs, and other teaching materials. Agencies such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NASA, and U.S. Geological Survey have excellent (and free) materials to bring back. There are numerous sessions related to the Next Generation Science Standards, and events geared specifically toward elementary and middle school teachers, as well as other specialties. You can meet NSTA officers, staff, and book authors. Making connections with teachers from around the world is a priceless experience.

See the related blog for 2016 conference first-timers with many suggestions on what to expect at an NSTA conference.

Check with your district to see if there is a format for your proposal. In my district, like yours, teachers who wanted to attend conferences had to submit a mini-proposal that included

• our professional goals for attending the conference
• what topics we were interested in learning more about
• a strategy for sharing information with the rest of the teachers when we returned

During the conference we were expected to keep a log of our activities and expenses. After the conference, we had to submit a report summarizing our activities and what we learned. It was work, but we understood that because the district was using grant funds, some accountability and documentation was necessary.

Survey other teachers for suggestions of themes for sessions to attend: topics they would like more information about, content their students struggle with, new equipment or materials to investigate and compare. Add these topics (and the fact that these would be helpful to other teachers) to your proposal. The conference schedule is available online in advance, so you can decide together how to split up the sessions to meet your needs and the needs of your department.

In your proposal, indicate how you will share what you’re learning. During the conference, use tools such as Twitter, Facebook, Skype, blogs, or e-mail to update the folks at home. Send pictures of yourself at various sessions and events or even posing with a science education celebrity. Many of the conference presenters upload their handouts and other materials to the NSTA Communities site, so even if you can’t make a session, the materials can be accessible.

Your proposal could also note that you are willing to do a presentation to the faculty about what you learned or lead a discussion or demonstration of a new idea. Turn in session evaluations to have access to a transcript from NSTA that documents your participation and include it in your report. (My supervisor was amazed that we attended sessions on Saturday and Sunday, too).

In case some supervisors think you’ll be on vacation… I’ve been attending educational conferences for more than 25 years, and I have yet to see teachers lounging around. Attendees are usually exhausted (in a good way) from participating in sessions from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., browsing the exhibit floor for new ideas and materials, and networking with other educators. And of course before they left home they had to prepare lesson plans for the substitutes. But it’s worth it to come back charged up