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E-Blast March 25, 2010
March 25 - April 14 - Science Matters Network Michigan eBlast
Sponsored by the National and Michigan Science Teachers Associations - NSTA/MSTA
In this E-Blast
- Leadership
- The Science Matters Network in Michigan
- MDE, MEAP, and MMC Science
- Science Humor
- Science Matters to Parents
- Student Activities and Opportunities
- Grants
- K-12 Science
- High School Science
- Middle School and High School Science
- Middle School Science
- Elementary and Middle School Science
- Elementary School Science
- March Contest Winners
Here are your science education resources and announcements for March 25 - April 14, 2010 provided by the Science Matters Network. These science education highlights are emailed to Key Leaders, Points of Contact and State Partners. Please forward them on to other science educators in your school. If you have questions or comments, please forward them to:
David Bydlowski
Michigan Coordinator - Science Matters Network
or
Sue Campbell
MSTA Representative
Please Note: If you do not receive the full e-blast you can view it at: http://msta-mich.org/smn or request a Word version by emailing: bydlowd@resa.net You can also listen to the e-blast, as a podcast, by visiting: http://k12science.net and clicking on Podcasts or you can subscribe at iTunes by searching for k12science in the iTunes Store.
What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail?
Thank you to Herm Boatin, Science consultant and lecturer, University of Michigan-Dearborn, for contributing this leadership quote.
The Science Matters Network In Michigan
2a. Science Matters Network Advisory Board Invitation
The Michigan Science Matters Network has an Advisory Board and meets twice a year. Our next meeting is in Lansing on April 15 from 10:00 - 2:00. This Board provides direction for the Science Matters Network in Michigan. Would you be interested in being on the Advisory Board? Lunch and mileage is provided. If you would like to be on the Board, send an email to David Bydlowski at: bydlowd@resa.net
2b. Follow Science Matters on Twitter and Listen to the Podcast
To view the eBlast and listen to the podcast, go to:
To listen to the podcast and subscribe to it, go to:
http://k12science.net/Podcast/Podcast/Podcast.html
or
http://deimos3.apple.com/WebObjects/Core.woa/Browse/k12.mi.us.1834937839.01834937844
Remember, if you have a special comment about the podcast or twitter, you can qualify for a special prize. If you have something nice to say about the twitter or podcasts send it to:
3a. Informational Writing Prompts on the MEAP
Recently I asked Rodger Epp, MEAP Science Consultant, if the ELA writing prompts on the MEAP were aligned to the Science Content Expectations. The question had originally come from a Point of Contact, who wanted clarification. He then consulted with Wendy Gould, Reading and Writing Consultant with OEAA and she said the following:
"Ideas for the informational writing prompts, may be drawn from the science and social studies content expectations from Kindergarten up to the grade being assessed. However, since this is a writing assessment, it is not our intent to assess specific knowledge from the science or social studies but rather the student's writing ability."
Dad: Well son, how are your grades in science?
Looking over at the least competent speller in the class, the science teacher said, "Here's an easy science word to spell, weather." Pulling at his chin, the student said, W-E-T-H-O-R and smiled. Sighing, the teacher said, "That is the worst spell of weather we've had here for quite some time."
Science Teacher: "Beverly, use this book wisely. You will discover it will do half your work."
Beverly: "Great, I'll take two!"
Would you like your students to do more science at home? If so, you should have them check out:
This is a great website and has a wonderful parent section that you can visit at: http://www.tryscience.org/parents/parent.html
Here you will find resources, especially for parents that explain why students need a good science education. You will also find a wealth of science activities that can be done "right now." Have fun and share this with the parents of your students.
Student Activities and Opportunities
6a. Show Green! Student Film Challenge
The Question: WHAT IS GREEN TO YOU?
Make a film about "What is Green" in 90 seconds or less. Submit by June 1st. Win cash plus a new Flip Video Camera! The Show Green Film challenge is open to any student under age 19 who has something to say about the environment. Say anything you want, any way you want - just keep it green and get it in by June 1st. Just visit: http://www.ShowGreenTV.org
What are you waiting for? GO create something!! Sponsored by Energy Works Michigan, Recycle Ann Arbor,
The Ecology Center, and the Michigan Public Service Commission.
http://www.EnergyWorksMichigan.org
April 5, 2010: Deadline for 9th - 12th grade students to enter the 2010 Thacher Environmental Research Contest. For more information, please visit: http://www.strategies.org/education/index.aspx?sub=education&sub2=scholars&sub3=scholars2010#Awards
April 16, 2010: Deadline for HS students to apply for the Michigan High School Mathematics and Science Symposium at Grand Valley State University. For more information contact Paul Bigford at: paulbigford@hotmail.com or call (231) 898-2633
April 23, 2010: Deadline for high school students to enter the InvenTeams Initiative. For more information, visit: http://web.mit.edu/inventeams/
June 1, 2010: Deadline for students under the age of 19 to enter the Show Green Student Film contest. For more information, just visit: http://www.showgreentv.org
7a. Free Software from TechSmith
You might be interested in this software, if you're looking into podcasting, a reverse lecture model, interactive teaching, or some other buzz word related to getting videos out there for or by your students. Please visit: http://www.techsmith.com/michigangrant/
TechSminth, based in Okemos, makes video editing software. Right now they're giving away $2,000,000 worth of product to Michigan schools. They are accepting applications on a month-by-month basis until all of the money is gone. The first round is done already, but the next deadline is March 31st. Applications are being accepted from districts, schools, and even individual teachers! The grant application process is really easy. All you need to do is tell them how you will use their software and how your students will benefit. It's good software and it's really hard to argue with free! Plus you can be the hero that got a hundreds of dollars worth of software for your department.
March 31, 2010: Deadline to apply for the Captain Planet Foundation Funds Projects Grants. For more information, please visit:
http://www.captainplanetfdn.org/grants.html
March 31, 2010: Deadline to apply for free TechSmith software. Please visit: http://www.techsmith.com/michigangrant
April 1, 2010: Deadline for Chemistry teachers to apply for the ACS-Hach Awards. For more information, please visit:
April 1, 2010: Deadline to apply for the Nature Hills Nursery Green America Awards. For more information, please visit: http://www.naturehills.com/green_america_awards.aspx
April 2, 2010: Deadline to apply to field test the 2010 Project 2061 MS and HS science assessment items and receive a $50 gift card. For more information, please visit: http://register.p2061.org/field
April 2, 2010: Deadline to apply for the COSEE Great Lakes Shipboard and Shoreline science workshop aboard the R/V Lake Guardian. For more information, please visit: http://coseegreatlakes.net/events/shipboard10
April 10, 2010: Deadline to apply for the NASA Mission Educator Fellowship Opportunity. For more information, please visit: http://messenger-education.org/teachers/ao.php
April 15, 2010: Deadline to apply for the Salmon in the Classroom Project. For more information, please visit: http://www.michigan.gov/sic
May 3, 2010: Deadline to apply for the Michigan Section American Water Works Association $1000 Teacher Grants. For more information please contact Holly at 616-355-1263 or visit: http://mi-water.org/wateryoudoing/Index.html
May 21, 2010: Deadline to apply for the High School Science Teaching Prize from AAAS. For more information, please visit: http://www.aaas.org/aboutaaas/awards/hs_scied_leadership/
May 26, 2010: Deadline to apply for the Toyota International Teacher Program for 6th - 12th grade teachers. For more information on this fully funded opportunity, please visit: http://www.toyota4education.com
Don't forget to let your students know that May 3 - 7, 2010 is Teacher Appreciation Week. It is never too early to put posters and notices up in your room.
8b. Exciting New EcoLibrary to Help Your Students
It is believed that good visual images engage students' interests and passions. EcoLibrary was created to give students and teachers free access to high-quality images and useful supporting information. The goal is to help students learn more about ecology, conservation biology, and environmental issues. at: http://www.EcoLibrary.org
you will find:
Excellent photographs, all accompanied by detailed and scientifically accurate descriptions
360° interactive panoramas, from deserts to tropical rainforests around the world
Thematically linked groups of images for K-12 teachers (such as /Mimicry and Camouflage /or /Ecosystems and Biomes/)
Cross-links among items; every image in the database leads to related images
Free use of all EcoLibrary materials, if used for non-commercial, educational purposes.
To learn more about EcoLibrary, please try their short Flash introduction at: http://www.ecolibrary.org/introduction
8c. Take the EPA "Don't Fry Day" Sunshine Pledge
Take the EPA "Don't Fry Day" Sunwise Pledge! With the UV Index on the rise, it's time to remind your students to Slip! Slop! Slap! and Wrap! In their effort to raise awareness about a health issue that is largely preventable and too often ignored - skin cancer, EPA encourages you to promote sun safety before the second annual Don't Fry Day on the Friday before Memorial Day (May 28, 2010). As millions of us prepare to enjoy the great outdoors this Memorial Day weekend, EPA and the National Council on Skin Cancer Prevention are reminding Americans to practice sun-safe behaviors. They need your help; go online and pledge to incorporate sun safety into your spring and summer activities. Take the Pledge:
http://www.epa.gov/sunwise/dfdpledge.html
Participating classrooms and informal education organizations will receive a Don't Fry Day poster and a set of sun safety stickers. The stickers feature SunWise animals showing children how to Slip! Slop! Slap! and Wrap! Additionally, you will be entered into a random drawing for a SunWise Prize Pack. The prize pack includes a set of
UV-sensitive beads, a real-time UV monitor, UV-sensitive nail polish and other sun safety resources.
The Educational Equity Center at the Academy for Educational Development (EEC/AED) through a grant from the National Science Foundation has developed Great Science for Girls: Extension Services for Gender Equity in Science through After School Programs (GSG), to provide inquiry-based, informal science learning programs that will stimulate girls' curiosity, interest and persistence in STEM and break down the barriers of gender stereotyping.
Working with intermediaries (organizations that provide training and technical assistance to afterschool programs in their region) around the country GSG delivers curricula, research, and professional development and consulting services to help promote the concept that science is, indeed, a "girl thing." You can get involved now by visiting:
8e. Third Annual Joint Education Conference Announced
Have you ever needed a lesson that covers more than one strand? Or would you like to present an integrated session? Then mark your calendar for June 23, 2010! The Michigan Science Teachers Association (MSTA), The Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning (MACUL), The Michigan Council for the Social Studies (MCSS), The Michigan Council of Teachers of Mathematics (MCTM), and The Michigan Association of Middle School Educators (MAMSE), have partnered to host the 3rd Michigan Joint Education Conference (MiJEC).
There will be integrated lessons that teach more than one strand! Visit vendors that have integrated materials!
Member registration is only $49, includes lunch! The MI Joint Education Conference will be June 23, 2010 and will be held at Thurston High School in Redford, Michigan.
To register or to obtain a speaker proposal, visit: http://www.mijec.org/
In Celebration of Bird Migration, The Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge presents an adventure with Project WILD and the new resource: Flying WILD. You are invited to network with other naturalist, teachers and volunteers as they explore these outstanding new guides. Flying WILD professional development workshops are designed with urban educators in mind. Each training session (minimum of 3 hours) provides formal and non-formal teachers of K-12 students with a comprehensive overview of Flying WILD: An Educator's Guide to Celebrating Birds, as well as practical hands-on training in its implementation. Workshop facilitators also share information about migratory birds and their conservation needs and help participants become networked into the bird conservation community in their city. Each participating educator receives a complimentary copy of Flying WILD: An Educator's Guide to Celebrating Birds and a CD as well.
Location: Westfield Center in Trenton, Michigan, 2700 Westfield Road
Date: Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Registration: Please contact Mike Mansour at: mmansour001@comcast.net
March 27, 2010: Participate in Earth Hour at 8:30 pm, local time. For more information, please visit: http://www.earthhour.org
March 27, 2010: Creating a Schoolyard Habitat Workshop at O.W. Holmes Elementary in Detroit, MI. To register contact Joan Chadde at 906-487-1620 or jchadde@mtu.edu or print a flyer at: http://www.michiganenvironmentaled.org
April 11 -17, 2010: National Environmental Education Week. For more information, please visit: http://www.eeweek.org/
April 17, 2010: Taking Students Outdoors Workshop at the Belle Isle Nature Zoo in Detroit, MI. To register contact Joan Chadde at 906-487-1620 or jchadde@mtu.edu or print a flyer at: http://www.michiganenvironmentaled.org
April 21, 2010: Project Flying Workshop at the Westfield Center in Trenton, MI from 4:30 - 8:0 pm. For more information, please contact Mike Mansour at: mmansour001@comcast.net
April 29, 2010: Detroit Tigers Weather Day at Comerica Park in Detroit, MI. The weather presentation begins at 10:00 and then the Tigers play the Twins at 1:05 PM. For more information, please contact Dwain at 313.471.2241 or by email at dwain.lewis@detroittigers.com.
May 3 - 7, 2010: Teacher Appreciation Week
October 8-10, 2010: MAEOE Conference in Pellston, MI. For more information, please visit: http://www.michiganenvironmentaled.org/
9a. Call for Presenters for the Green Up Michigan Green Chemistry Conference
The Michigan Green Chemistry Roundtable invites proposals for presentations to be delivered during the 2nd Annual Green Chemistry Conference, scheduled for October 20, 2010 at the Kellogg Center at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. Business leaders, engineers, chemists, researchers, teachers, policymakers, and anyone else interested in moving green chemistry forward in Michigan are invited to participate in this conference. Focus areas include:
Green Chemistry for Educators (what's happening in K-12 and University level)
Manufacturing (auto, furniture, etc.)
visit: http://www.michigan.gov/greenup
to review the Call for Presentations and get updated conference information. The deadline to apply is April 16, 2010.
9b. Modeling in High School Physics Instruction
This three-week summer workshop will thoroughly ground physics teachers in the methods of "Modeling Instruction" - an approach recognized as EXEMPLARY by the U.S. Department of Education. The content focus will be on Mechanics, typically a first semester of high school physics. Participants are supplied with a complete set of course materials and will practice the implementation of the curriculum as intended for high school classes. Participants rotate through roles of student and instructor as they practice techniques of guided inquiry and cooperative learning. Strategies for raising the level of discourse during classroom discussions and student presentations are emphasized.
Dates: June 24 - July 15, 2010
Location: Oakland Schools Technical Campus Southeast
Sponsors: Oakland Science, Mathematics and Technology Center and the Detroit Metropolitan Area Physics Teachers
Facilitators: Dan Pata and Laura Ritter
Deadline to Apply: April 10, 2010
Application: Contact Mike Gallagher at mike.gallagher@oakland.k12.mi.us or 248-209-2234
April 10, 2010: Deadline to apply for the Summer Modeling Workshop in Mechanics. For more information, please contact Mike Gallagher at mike.gallagher@oakland.k12.mi.us or 248-209-2234
April 16, 2010: Deadline for teachers to apply to present at the Michigan Green Chemistry Conference. For more information, please visit: http://www.michigan.gov/greenup
April 24, 2010: Michigan Section of the American Association of Physics Teachers Spring Meeting at Hope College in Holland, MI. For more information, please visit: http://web.miaapt.org/home
April 30, 2010: Michigan High School Math and Science Symposium to be held at the Grand Valley State University Eberhard Center in Grand Rapids. For more information, please visit: http://www.gvsu.edu/rmsc
May 8, 2010: Physics Olympiad at the University of Michigan. For more information, please visit: http://olympiad.physics.lsa.umich.edu
June 18, 2010: Deadline for teachers to apply to attend the AP Summer Institute through the Lapeer Public Schools. For more information, please visit: http://www.lapeerschools.org/LEHS/SummerInstitute/
June 23, 2010: Third Annual Joint Education Conference at Thurston High School in Redford, MI. For more information, please visit: http://www.mijec.org/
July 12 - 16, 2010: Teachers Forensic Science Workshop at Lawrence Technological University. For more information, please contact:
248-204-3617 or msedir@ltu.edu
Middle School and High School Science
10a. The Siemens STEM Institute for 6th - 12th Grade Educators
A premier STEM immersion program brought to you by the Siemens Foundation, and administered by Discovery Education in conjunction with the College Board. It will take place from August 1 - August 6, 2010. The location is Discovery Communications world headquarters in Silver Spring, MD (outside of Washington D.C.) The application deadline is April 16, 2010.
The Siemens STEM Institute is a unique immersion program that promotes hands-on, real-world integration of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) in the classroom. Fifty educators will be selected as STEM Fellows to attend this all expenses-paid, week-long professional development experience, hosted at the world headquarters of Discovery Communications, located just outside of our nation's capitol in Washington D.C. The week will be filled with guest speakers at the forefront of STEM, field trips to leading institutions where Fellows will observe real-world applications of STEM subject matter, and opportunities for networking and collaborating with peers from across the nation. Guest speakers may include top STEM experts and personalities from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Science Foundation, American Society of Civil Engineers, CNN, the Science Channel, and many more!
For additional information on the resources and opportunities available through the Siemens STEM Academy, please visit: http://www.siemensstemacademy.com
10b. ReaL (Regional and Local) Earth Inquiry: Professional Development
On behalf of the Paleontological Research Institution (PRI), you are invited to participate in an exciting new initiative to improve Earth science education across the nation to take place in Monroe, MI from July 28 - 30. PRI and its Museum of the Earth is a non-profit organization based in Ithaca, New York. Composed of scientists and educators, its outreach program aims to make the Earth and its life - and the science by which we understand it - accessible to audiences of all ages and backgrounds. As part of that mission, they are currently developing a series of Teacher-Friendly Guides to North American Earth System Science. Supported by the National Science Foundation, the project is a five-year initiative that will bring regional and local Earth system science into classrooms across the nation.
You are welcomed to apply to participate in a professional development program that is focused on the Teacher-Friendly Guide and the Virtual Fieldwork Experiences. They wish to have a diverse group in the professional development programming. They hope to include teachers from late elementary school through high school; those from early, mid and late career; from urban, suburban, and rural schools; teachers from all states within the region; and teachers who are ethnically diverse.
The face-to-face workshops are a key part of a larger professional development program. The two and a half day workshop will focus on actual fieldwork, with discussions on how to document a field site to bring your field experience back to the classroom and on how to bring your students into the field. Stipends and support for travel and lodging total $800.00 per participant. Ongoing virtual study groups where teacher groups of about four use Internet conferencing technologies to share their work and support one another in the development of virtual fieldwork, and of teaching portfolios showcasing the virtual fieldwork. The creation of virtual fieldwork experiences of both the workshop site and of sites near teacher participants' schools.
APPLICATION DEADLINE: May 3, 2010. For more information and to apply go to http://www.virtualfieldwork.org/PD_Application,_Summer_2010.html
The location will be the Knabusch Mathematics and Science Center in Monroe, MI.
10c. Free Leopold Education Project Workshop
Location: Pierce Cedar Creek Institute in Hastings, MI:
http://www.cedarcreekinstitute.org
Cost: Free!
This fast-paced, fun and fact-filled workshop will leave you laughing as you dive into the mating rituals of our native birds, fascinated as you study tracking and "reading the landscape," inspired as you read, reflect and contemplate the words of Leopold, and confident in activities designed to help you lead your classroom outdoors. These activities, correlated to the new GLCE's, cover plant, bird, and track identification, habitat studies, ecological relationships, stewardship values, journaling and more; they will also change your way of teaching the natural sciences - understanding becomes real when students can see, touch and experience the natural world around them.
In this environmental education workshop, hands-on participation in a number of Leopold Education Project (LEP) activities will provide basic but highly useful information in Michigan natural history and conservation ethics, preparing educators to successfully and efficiently use curriculum materials with students. Each participant receives the LEP Teacher's Guide, A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold, outdoor "Task Cards", and many additional supplemental materials.
The Leopold Education Project is an innovative, interdisciplinary education program based on Aldo Leopold's classic writings in his book A Sand County Almanac. Through reading about Leopold's recorded discoveries and participating in meaningful hands-on activities, students are provided with opportunities to increase their appreciation for the land and to expand their ecological awareness. For more information, please contact Wendy Cheek at: wcheek@allcom.net
April 16, 2010: Deadline for 6th - 12th Grade teachers to apply for the Siemens STEM Institute. For more information, please visit: http://www.siemensstemacademy.com
April 17, 2010: Free Leopold Education Project Workshop at the Pierce Creek Institute in Hastings, MI. For more information, please contact Wendy Cheek at: wcheek@allcom.net
First week of May, 2010: National Lab Day for 6th - 12th grade students. For more information, please visit: http://www.nationallabday.org
May 3, 2010: Deadline to apply for the ReaL Earth Inquiry PD to be held at the Knabusch Mathematics and Science Center in Monroe, MI. For more information, please visit:
http://www.virtualfieldwork.org/PD_Application,_Summer_2010.html
October 16, 2010: Vernier Workshop in Grand Rapids, MI. For more information, please visit: http://www.vernier.com/workshop/directions/directions.html?id=2428
October 18, 2010: Vernier Workshop in Detroit, MI. For more information, please visit: http://www.vernier.com/workshop/directions/directions.html?id=2429
11a. ISS EarthKAM Spring 2010 Mission
NASA has exciting news! EarthKAM has just launched a new beta version of its Web site. Middle school educators are invited to join NASA for the International Space Station Spring 2010 Mission from April 27-30, 2010, and be beta testers of the new site and software. Find out more about this exciting opportunity that allows students to take pictures of Earth from a digital camera aboard the International Space Station.
ISS EarthKAM is a NASA-sponsored project that provides stunning, high-quality photographs of Earth taken from the space shuttle and the space station. Since 1996, ISS EarthKAM students have taken thousands of photographs of Earth by using the World Wide Web to direct a digital camera on select spaceflights and, currently, on the International Space Station. For more information about the project and to register for the upcoming mission, visit the ISS EarthKAM home page at: http://www.EarthKAM.ucsd.edu
If you have questions about the EarthKAM project, please e-mail: ek-help@earthkam.ucsd.edu.
Elementary and Middle School Science
April 15, 2010: Deadline for 6 - 14 year olds to enter the United Nations Painting Competition. For more information, please contact Andrea DiPaola at andrea.dipaola@unep.org
13a. Free Preschool Programs at the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum
Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum received a small grant from the Target Foundation for the development and delivery of a new Preschool Program called Music and Movement. This is a highly kinesthetic program - lots of music and fun, too - that young children will love. This grant permits them to give away 20 free Music and Movement programs to local Preschools. These 50-minute programs occur in Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum's ScienceWorks Lab, on our site. Each class can accommodate 30 children at a time. We can conduct two classes simultaneously (thus, we can accommodate up to 60 students at one time).
Without the grant support, the price for these will be $90/class ($3 fee for 30 students) - so it's a wonderful offer! Entrance fee to the Museum must still be paid; that fee is $5/child for groups of 20 or more (Title One schools' entrance fee is reduced to $4/child for groups of 20 or more). We also ask that teachers fill out a brief evaluation of the new program and suggest some tweaks.
A description of this Movement and Music class is as follows:
Preschool scientists become musicians as they learn the science of sound and the various scientific principles such as pitch, tempo, beat and dynamics that blend together to create music.
To book your free class, please call Jan at 734-995-5439. First come first served!
If you have questions, please call contact Nancy Bryk at 734-995-5439.
May 1, 2010: Deadline for K-6 teachers to apply for the Presidential Award in Mathematics and Science Teaching. For more information, please visit: http://www.paemst.org
In March, we gave away five SubWay gift cards. Here is a list of the winners:
Steve Poniewierski, Edmonson Elementary - Lamphere Schools
Diane McKenzie, Southeastern High School - Detroit Public Schools
Brandi Norton-McKale, LaMora Park Elementary - Battle Creek
Todd Gudith, Meads Mill Middle School - Northville Public Schools
Agnes Carter, Glen Lake Elementary School - Maple City
Congratulations to all of the winners. If you did not win, keep trying. Next month may be your lucky month.
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