Welcome to the 2024 NCSTA Professional Development Institute. The Benton food service bar will be available in the Main Lobby during the lunch break on Thursday and Friday. Grab a quick bite and visit the Exhibit Hall. StemScopes/Accelerated Learning offers a free lunch and learn session on Thursday. Get tickets at Booth 204. Savvas offers a free lunch and learn session on Friday. Get tickets at Booth 101. NCSTA will reimburse up to $15 for parking (total, not per day). Information and form from our website. CEU forms will be emailed to you after the conference. You may earn .6 CEU per day.
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Every Campfire has a master who lights it, keeps it burning, and puts it out. Industrial facilities use boilers to make the things we need, and land managers use fire to protect and rejuvenate the forest. But fire has a dark side of soot, air pollution, and danger. We will look at fire through chemistry, math, and energy using hand-on demonstrations, chemistry and fire.
Discover how instructional designers use generative AI to create more inclusive learning experiences. Join our interactive session on best practices for prompt generation and priming AI models with information like identity profiles that match your learner population. Create digital stories, rubrics and data sets, and modify resources for diverse learning needs, including students with language-based learning differences and multilingual learners. Perfect for educators seeking to differentiate by process, product, or content.
In this presentation we will talk about an integrated climate change professional development we developed for K-12 educators in our community (Spring 2024). In this session we will talk about the lessons learned and topics covered during this two-day workshop. Additionally, climate change education research indicates many teachers are willing to teach climate change, but are unsure of how it connects to their classroom and where to find high-quality curricular materials
Discover how we use virtual reality to explore global farming and objects beyond everyday experience. Learn practical VR methods to expand classroom learning. We'll showcase "Scale Worlds," our virtual environment where students can grow from the size of stars to atoms. Teachers can experience these environments with headsets and discuss possible integration. Lesson plans and other resources will also be provided.
NC Department of Environmental Quality uses science to protect human and environmental health in North Carolina. Educators from DEQ have the mission of supporting teachers and students and developing both knowledge and teaching skills. In this workshop educators from the DAQ, DWR, DEMLR, and Geological Survey will share how some of their resources support the new Essential Standards in Science and how the student’s knowledge can lead to good employment opportunities in the student’s future.
If you want to improve your leadership skills, this is the session for you! Learn how the NCSLA Science Leadership Fellows Program builds individuals' leadership skills in its two-year program. This session is appropriate for all STEM educators regardless of position, including informal educators. Graduates of this program are better leaders in their workplaces and in professional associations. The program is generously funded by the NC SMT Center and the BWF.
Senior STEM Specialist, North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching
Jennifer currently serves as the STEM Specialist for NCCAT. Her previous roles include STEM Coordinator for Guilford County Schools and high school science teacher.
Crush critical thinking and creativity with personalized chatbots that you create for your students. In this hands-on session, you will explore and learn how to create custom bots aligned with the new science standards using SchoolAI and MagicSchool. Drawing from science-based playful approaches, this session connects the newest genAI tools to the new science standards and combines it with sound, age-appropriate pedagogy to empower your students with the skills they need to be successful humans.
Western Region DTL Consultant, NCDPI Digital Teaching and Learning
Stacy Lovdahl has 24 years of experience as a state and district-level education technologist. She is an AI literacy trainer, the Western DTL Consultant for NCDPI, an Instructional Technology Facilitator and a middle school science teacher. Stacy has dedicated significant efforts... Read More →
Friday November 8, 2024 1:40pm - 2:30pm EST
Winston 3C
This session will feature biomedical research taking place to understand environmental exposures to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and implications for human health. Attendees will participate in an activity that introduces how scientists use a systems biology approach to study environmental influences on living systems. This session will showcase strategies for incorporating real biological data and associated science practices into instruction to provide students with current, NC-relevant examples of curriculum concepts.
Appropriate to any audience, this is not-your-usual presentation; recommended read/review ahead, from a not-your-usual blog: (2023) Climate Uncertainty and Risk: Table of Contents https://judithcurry.com/2023/03/11/ “This book is for people that are willing to think and challenge their preconceived notions about climate change.” You’re right: it’s complex. But we’ll nug it down to some basics with plenty of time for questions & discussion. (Handouts, too)
What can BioNetwork do for you and your classroom? The BioNetwork STEM Outreach division provides STEM resources, programs, and more for teachers and students across North Carolina. Join us as we provide an overview of what BioNetwork is, what programs and events we offer, and answer your questions.
I am the new Western STEM Outreach Coordinator for BioNetwork, the life-science training initiative of the NC Community College System. Our outreach team strives to serve K-12 and community college educators and students in all 100 counties through community STEM events, classroom... Read More →
In this session, instructors will use 2D models of photosynthesis and cellular respiration to conduct tracking of carbon molecules and apply this information to a hands-on assay using freshwater algae to indirectly qualify carbon movement. They will then develop protocols that quantifies the qualitative changes witnessed (via carbon dioxide tracking) under a variety of environmental conditions. Collectively, participants will use the sum of their experiences to develop and explain an ecological model of carbon cycling.
