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My eBook “Think Like a Scientist: Understanding Weather & Climate” is now available through NSTA Press. Learn more about this and other NSTA ebooks for the K-5 classroom here.
Category Archives: Professional Reflections
Creating VR Experiences: A Journey
On February 7th I walked out of a VR EdTechTeacher workshop a bit flummoxed. For the first time in a long time I felt over my head, swimming in exposure to half dozen new tools and apps and several new … Continue reading
Weaving ‘Book Talks’ into Science, Weaving Science into ‘Book Talks’
View this post on Instagram Investigating an octopus’ suction cups during the Memorial Superfish aquarium field-trip preview program. A post shared by Burlington Science Center (@burlingtonsciencecenter) on Jan 24, 2020 at 11:52am PST Over the past several months I … Continue reading
Posted in 3-5, K-2, Professional Reflections
Tagged collaboration, crosscutting concepts, reading
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How do you “Choose Your Own (PD) Adventure?”
A quick glimpse at the 25 most recent emails in my inbox included three seemingly outstanding upcoming professional development opportunities. A stipended opportunity to learn about engineering design and the physics centered on designing your own hand held vacuum at … Continue reading
Posted in Professional Reflections
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#NSTA 2019 Takeaways
NSTA 2019 marks my sixth national conference and the start to a 51-week countdown to NSTA’s 2020 National Conference in Boston! Plenty of personalized learning opportunities and professional networking happens at an NSTA conference, even if you can only attend … Continue reading
Posted in NGSS, Professional Development, Professional Reflections
Tagged #NSTA19, NSTA, NSTA2020
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Pathways to Personalization and Science for All Students
Science educators now familiar with the Next Generation Science Standards and the Framework for K-12 Science Education are likely aware of its emphasis on recalibrating science classrooms to be for all students. The NGSS dedicates an entire appendix to this … Continue reading
Posted in NGSS, Professional Reflections
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Coded Communications Thanks to Teacher Collaboration
Time is tight in the elementary schools to meet all the expectations of our state’s science standards. So when opportunities knocks for collaboration with teachers who have face time with students outside of their allotted science time – I answer! … Continue reading
Leading through Celebration of Successes Big and Small
There are many successes that can go unnoticed in our lives everyday. This afternoon I cheered in jubilation upon confirming that, after research via online discussion boards, measuring, catalog flipping, and web browsing… the 36 plastic plastic tubs I purchased … Continue reading
Community Building through Curriculum Mapping
“It takes a village” can be used in several contexts, particularly when it comes to education. While overhauling the Burlington elementary science curriculum the saying has only been reinforced as Wendy Pavlicek and I have leaned on classroom teachers, curriculum … Continue reading
Posted in 6-8, Curriculum, Professional Development, Professional Reflections
Tagged curriculum development
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Incremental Improvement through Student Discourse
Over the summer I took in a rebroadcast of the Freakonomics podcast episode titled, “In Praise of Incrementalism”. The featured authors, economists, and guests of the show touted the power of incremental changes in a world where our attention is … Continue reading
My New Favorite Way to Say “Stop Using the Scientific Method”
For generations human civilization presented the model of Earth as flat. Sure, it seemed to work under specific scenarios, like when you stood at a high point and looked out to the horizon. No curve? Must be flat. Model works. … Continue reading
Posted in Professional Reflections
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Musselman / Science 