Ask yourself this question: Have you ever worked on a real scientific experiment? Your thoughts may jump to the lab components of your undergraduate science courses and the research papers/assignments you completed in college, but should such structured, step-by-step exercises really be considered experiments? Is this what real scientists do? For the author, the answer to these questions about the true nature of science came in the form of two inspirational professional development courses where teachers become scientists. In this article, she describes her participation in the workshops and discusses how these experiences benefited her students back in the classroom as well.