Coweta Science Update
November 2019
Georgia Science Teachers Association Awards and Grants Application
GSTA Awards & Grant applications are open!
The annual GSTA Awards and Grants recognize excellence and innovation in Georgia science education and serves to raise awareness and exposure of the outstanding work being done in our state.
All entries must be received by 11:59PM EST on 11/30/2019, via online submission.
A distinguished panel of professional science educators will review applications and select the winners. To be eligible for consideration, applicants must be current GSTA members and all work must be current and cumulative, as applicable.
GSTA Awards and Grants recipients will be honored during an awards banquet in February 2020.
The GSTA Awards and Recognition Program is supported by member donations, the Georgia Science Teachers Education Foundation, and generous sponsors. GSTA Awards and Grants help support the science educators and their science educational programs, professional development and proactive efforts in the science education field.
For more information contact Dr. Sally Creel, the GSTA Awards and Foundation Chair.
GSTA recognizes the following awards and grants:
- GSTA Teacher of the Year
- GSTA Teacher of Promise
- Georgia Science Administrator of the Year
- GSTA Mini-Grants
- ScienceQuest Teacher Scholarship
- GSTEF Conference Grant
- Science Adventure Student Scholarship
Congratulations to Martha Milam for Winning the Presidential Excellence Award in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering!!!
Established in 1983, PAEMST is the highest award given by the U.S. Government to kindergarten through 12th grade teachers of mathematics and science, including computer science. A panel of distinguished mathematicians, scientists, and educators at the State and national levels assess the applications before recommending nominees to OSTP. Teachers are selected based on their distinction in the classroom and dedication to improving science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education. Awardees come from schools in all 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) schools, and schools in the United States territories of Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands. Nominations and awards are facilitated by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the National Science Foundation. Georgia awardees include (L-R): Martha Milam, East Coweta High School, Billy Singletary, Coahulla Creek High School, Ashley Greenway, Elm Street Elementary, and Tanasha Mahone, Burgess-Peterson Academy. See the official White House press release here. Way to go Martha!
5th Grade Science Element Review Sheets
2020 Students Rebuild Hunger Project
The Art of Science Learning
(K-12) The Art of Science Learning is a National Science Foundation-funded initiative that uses the arts to spark creativity in science education and the development of an innovative 21st Century STEM workforce.
The initiative is built on more than 15 years of work by Harvey Seifter and colleagues, exploring the impact of artistic skills, processes and experiences on learning and the innovation process. You can find lesson plans and resources from the project by clicking here.
Girls Who Code
(3-12) STEM/STEAM Georgia has partnered with Girls Who Code (GWC) this year to bring free computer science learning opportunities to our community. Girls Who Code Clubs are FREE after-school programs for 3rd-5th or 6th-12th-grade girls to join a sisterhood of supportive peers and role models and use computer science to change the world. Participants not only learn hard coding skills and computational thinking, but they’ll also learn project management skills, collaboration, bravery, resilience, how to positively impact their community, and so much more.
When you start a GWC Club, you’ll gain access to free resources, flexible plug and play curriculum, funding opportunities, ongoing support, alumni opportunities for your young learners, free t-shirts for up to 20 Club members and more! There’s no computer science experience needed to get started since GWC is there for you every step of the way. Apply now with the quick 15 min Clubs Application or learn more about how to get started by joining the next live 30 min webinar!
2019 Southeastern US Deepsea Exploration
(K-12) The NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer 2019 Southeastern U.S. Deep-sea Exploration expedition offers a unique opportunity for explorers of all ages to investigate deepwater habitats and interesting geological features in the Atlantic along the Southeastern continental margin. You might choose to learn more about why NOAA and its partners are exploring this particular deep-ocean area, what advanced technologies are being used, and what explorers are hoping to find. You might also be looking to learn more about the explorers themselves so your students more fully understand what skills and expertise are required to support careers in ocean exploration. You just might need a short video or images to complete your lesson unit on a particular topic. Whatever your NOAA deep-ocean exploration education needs, we hope that you will find them here.
Artic Tundra Virtual Field Trip...Polar Bears!!!
(K-12) Experience Polar Bears | Virtual Field Trip Premiere
November 13th and 14th, 2019
Live from Churchill, Manitoba, Canada
#CelebratewithDE as we return to Churchill, Manitoba, Canada for the annual polar bear migration. Since 2010, Discovery Education has teamed up with Polar Bears International to host a series of shared learning experiences to engage students and inspire their interest in studying the science of polar bears and their Arctic habitat.
This year, there are two ways to take part in the experience: watch the live broadcast with embedded videos and questions and answers from real classrooms, or watch the videos on your schedule then take part in a live chat with the tundra crew.
Learn About Polar Bears and Their Environment
Register today and come back to this page on the day and time of your virtual field trip and we will take care of the rest. You will be able to access a live stream along with a live chat where you can meet scientists & ask questions in real time while polar bears roam outside.
STEM Research Grant Program from the Society for Science & the Public
(6-12) The STEM Research Grant Application is now open for any full-time teachers who have had a student enter an ISEF-affiliated fair in the last 3 years! If you are uncertain if your fair is ISEF affiliated, please use this link to find your local fair.
If your school has received this grant in the last 3 years, you are not eligible to reapply (except starter grant recipients of $1,000 from 2019).
Grants may be put towards:
- Equipment or other experimental materials needed to complete research projects
- Travel or other expenses necessary to bring students to locations where they can complete their research
Preference will be given to:
- Schools or teachers supporting multiple students in research
- Schools or teachers who are supporting low income students or students of underrepresented ethnicity (African American, Latino, or Native American)
- Programs showing a plan for sustainability past this year (schools may apply once every 3 years)
https://www.societyforscience.org/stem-action-and-research-grants
Tamis Tower- Let's Think About Engineering
(K-2) It’s lunch time and Tami, the golden lion tamarin, is hungry! Help Tami reach the delicious fruit by building a tower. But watch out! Other animals can cause Tami’s tower to topple over. From the Smithsonian Science Education Center, Tami’s Tower: Let’s Think About Engineering is an educational engineering design game that will help teach your student how to design a solution to a problem using basic engineering design principles. https://ssec.si.edu/tamis-tower
Bone ID Chart
(3-7) Thinking of dissecting owl pellets with students? Make it easier with a Bone Identification Chart from The Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Most appropriate for grades 3-7, the detailed chart enables students to compare the bones of six prey types commonly found in owl pellets (e.g., rat, vole, mouse, shrew, mole, bird). After downloading the chart (free registration required), teachers gain access to videos, images, and other fun facts to share with students.
Stanford NGSS Integrated Curriculum: An Exploration of a Multidimensional World
(6-8) With a tagline of “An Exploration of a Multidimensional World,” this curriculum for the middle level (grades 6–8) aptly echoes an interdisciplinary, phenomena- and project-based approach reflective of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Use this document to help translate from NGSS to GSE. Developed by educators at Stanford Center for Assessment, Learning, and Equity (SCALE), the curriculum aligns with California’s integrated model and embeds Earth and space science, life science, physical science, and/or engineering within each curriculum unit. Each grade level has four project-based units and one group work-themed unit. Titles include Setting Things in Motion, Extreme Living, Nature via Nurture, and A Warmer World for sixth grade; A Balanced Biosphere, Matter Matters, Mimicking Nature’s Design, and Save the Andes! for seventh grade; and Colossal Collisions, Traveling Through Space, Using Engineering and Technology to Sustain Our World, and Adapt or Die? for eighth grade.
MOSAiC in the Classroom
While many activities are more appropriate for middle to college levels, some lessons are suitable for younger audiences. Design and Build a Sea Ice Drifter, for example, is an engineering design challenge for grades 3–5, and EcoChains: Arctic Life Game can be played with upper-elementary to high school learners. These and other activities can help students better understand the complex relationships among Earth’s ecosystems, human activity, and weather and climate.
CCSS Science Teacher Directory
Science Google Classroom Codes
Elementary: uz7l4 (that's a lowercase L...not a 1)
Middle: wumkvdb
High: s0ei0d (those are zeros...not Os)
Professional Learning Opportunities
STEM/STEAM Resources
https://www.teachengineering.org
http://www.novelengineering.org
http://www.stemcobb.com/lesson-links.html Elementary STEM Lessons
http://www.stemcobb.com/ms-stem-lessons.html Middle School STEM Lessons
Upcoming Professional Learning
First Grade Science Professional Learning
This teacher led session will feature lessons and resources to help you integrate science and literacy in the 1st grade classroom.
Thursday, Nov 21, 2019, 03:00 PM
167 Werz Industrial Boulevard, Newnan, GA, USA
Georgia Science Teachers Association Conference
Thursday, Feb 13, 2020, 08:00 AM
Columbus Georgia Convention & Trade Center, Front Avenue, Columbus, GA, USA
Comments, Concerns, Questions?
Email: donald.white@cowetaschools.net
Website: bit.ly/CCSSScience
Location: 167 Werz Industrial Boulevard, Newnan, GA 30263
Phone: 770-254-2800
Twitter: @dwhitesciguy