STOM News

Recently, the Missouri Chamber recognized 25 outstanding students from across the state for committing to further their education in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math. Inspired by signing days for athletes, the Missouri Chamber Foundation's Mathematics and Science Coalition launched the program in 2019 to raise awareness of STEM pathways for students beyond high school. "Whether it's to a traditional four-year college, 2-year college or technical school — wherever their passion for STEM takes them — these incoming freshmen are the future of high-demand fields across Missouri. The Missouri Chamber and our partners are thrilled to help tomorrow's nurses, doctors, engineers, welders, IT professionals and scientists reach their postsecondary education goals," said Missouri Chamber President/CEO Daniel P. Mehan. The second annual Missouri STEM Signing Day award ceremony was a virtual event streamed on the Missouri Chamber's Facebook page. Each student received a $1,000 scholarship and signed a letter of intent to study a STEM field at their postsecondary education institution of choice.  The awardees submitted video messages answering the question, “How do you want to change the world with STEM?” Those videos can be viewed here. Last year’s inaugural STEM Signing Day program awarded scholarships to 10 recipients. This year, thanks to the generosity of our partners, 25 high school graduates will receive scholarships. The Missouri Chamber offers the 2020 program in partnership with the Boeing Company, Orscheln Industries, Cerner and the Missouri Dept. of Higher Education and Workforce Development.

Watch Awards

Nutrients For Life Foundation (Plant and Soil Science)

www.h2knowlearning.org 

The H2Know case study invites you to investigate a water quality issue in Lake Erie. Here, you will gather information about the problem, consider potential contributors and environmental factors, review data and research happening in the field, and engage in discussions and activities related to effective solutions that will improve the water quality of Lake Erie.

www.nutrientsforlife.org

The Nutrients for Life Foundation was formed in 2004 by leaders in the fertilizer industry with the belief that developing solutions to sustainably feed the world begins with educating the next generation of innovators and decision makers. In 2017, we impacted 4.9 million students with our educational resources. 

The Linking Science & Literacy for All Learners program is accepting applications from teachers of 6^th-8^th grade Life Science, English Language Arts and Special Education for its 2020-2021 cohort.

Visit their website for program information and the application link: https://scienceandliteracy.missouri.edu/

To apply, use this link: https://missouri.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0SsVYTUSlMiI6rP

Each summer the AMTA sponsors face-to-face workshops across the United States and the world.  Summer workshops are typically 2-3 weeks in duration in order to thoroughly treat the pedagogy and content for a typical STEM course, and to have a transformative effect upon the classrooms of our teacher participants.  Content addressed includes approximately one semester of a typical high school physics, chemistry, physical science, biology or middle school course. The 2020 Modeling Workshops are already getting posted on the website, as soon as we hear about a new workshop, we will add it.  

https://modelinginstruction.org/professional-development/upcoming-workshops/summer-2020/

AMTA offers a variety of distance learning courses based on members’ interests and requests. We also offer opportunities for non-Modelers to learn about Modeling Instruction through introductory courses.  Past distance learning courses include: Introduction to Modeling, Mechanics, Chemistry II, Electricity & Magnetism, and Advanced Modeling Instruction.  Distance learning can be taken to gain knowledge about the pedagogy, to learn and/or strengthen content knowledge, or to further improve your teaching practices. After the success of the last few years’ distance learning courses, we are adding 3 courses to the spring 2020 line-up.  

*Participants may earn graduate credits through university partners for an additional fee

· Intro to Modeling, a 15 week course hosted on Tuesday evenings 7-10 pm EST

For details and registration: 

https://www.eweblife.com/prm/AMTA/calendar/event?event=2125

· Advanced Topics for Middle School Modeling, a 5-week course hosted on Wednesday evenings from 7-10 pm EST

For details and registration: 

https://www.eweblife.com/prm/AMTA/calendar/event?event=2126

· Electricity & Magnetism Modeling course, a 15 week course hosted on Thursday evenings from 7-10 pm EST

For details and registration: 

https://www.eweblife.com/prm/AMTA/calendar/event?event=2123

Wendy Hehemann

American Modeling Teachers Association

Workshop and Outreach Coordinator

wendy@modelinginstruction.org  gheheman@asu.edu

www.modelinginstruction.org 480-854-4764

https://tinyurl.com/give2AMTA

Hi there,

I’m Emma from Point to Point Education. We help teachers find teaching positions in Asia and the UK! I taught in England for a year and had the best experience, professionally and personally! I have full-time teaching contracts available for 2020 and skype interviews are happening now. We work for free for teachers, so if you’re wanting some more information just email me your phone number and I can give you a quick call to have a chat about the jobs/locations/schools/interviews and how it all works. I can also skype with you if you would prefer.    

You can see a first hand account of what it’s like teaching overseas…check out Sally’s video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JykKdEFKj2E&t=3s.

Kind regards,

Emma Liddell

Science Coach, the region’s leading supporter for curious students and their maverick research teachers, is pleased to invite you to the premier FREE educator professional development workshop: Innovation to Entrepreneurship presented by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Jorge Valdes and Juan Valentin, Program Advisors to the Office of Education and Outreach of the USPTO, will lead a two-day workshop that will:

• Increase your own awareness and understanding about the role of Intellectual Property (IP). 

• Learn strategies for integrating IP information into STEM/STEAM curriculum. 

• Motivate students with real-world innovation models for classroom instruction and learning. 

• Empower students to capitalize on their own creativity. 

The event opens with a special presentation by Andrei Iancu, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO.

K-12 STEM Educators (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math), Computer & Art teachers, Counselors, and Administrators will all benefit from this exciting event. Attendance for both days will enable you to receive a certificate of professional development participation from Science Coach. Lunch will be provided both days. 

The workshop will be held in the Assembly room at the Innovation Hall at Cortex, 4220 Duncan Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63110.

The first 60 attendees will be able to register for the workshop. All others will be waitlisted. Register ASAP by going to:

 http://sciencecoach-uspto.eventbrite.com?s=110474935 and feel free to share this with your colleagues.

To learn more about Science Coach and its offerings for students and teachers please visit: ScienceCoach.org

For questions regarding the event, please email Jill@ScienceCoach.org .

We look forward to seeing you soon!

Jill Malcom

Program Director

Science Coach, A program of BioSTL

Jill@ScienceCoach.org

314-472-3302

ScienceCoach.org

Due to low registration and enrollment, the STOM Board of Directors has chosen to cancel this year's fall conference scheduled for October 18-19 in Camdenton.

Please look for STOM at the 2020 Interface Conference in February at Tan-Tar-A Resort in Osage Beach. There will be wonderful professional development available, as well as opportunities to network and collaborate with other science educators from around the state.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and hope that you will join us at Interface in February.

Clara E. Bennion

Science Teacher, Camdenton High School

President - 2019

Science Teachers of Missouri

I. David Rosenstein has introduced the launch of a new blog titled Electrifying America. It can be found at https://electrifyingamerica.com.  

This site is his retirement hobby after working 40 years in the electric industry. It is free for anyone to use and he does not accept advertising dollars.  

During his working years, he found that many well meaning people wanted to effect change in the electric industry such as advocating for lower rates or for reduced emissions. However, those efforts were often ineffective because the advocates did not fully understand the background of electric service and the electric industry. He created Electrifying America in the hopes of providing that background. 

Each post in Electrifying America is a short description of a different aspect of electric service or the electric industry. Most of the posts include additional explanations through YouTube videos as well as links to more in depth material on the subject matter.

As a teaching tool, he has included a page titled Electric Industry Tutorials. These tutorials assemble the posts into the following three modules: 

Module 1 is titled “The History of the Electric Industry.” In that Module he has included the following posts: “The Electric Current War,” “What is an Electric Utility?”  “Determining Just and Reasonable Rates,” “Senator George Norris vs. Henry Ford – Prelude to Federal Hydropower,” “The Rural Electrification Act Brings Electricity to America’s Farms” and “Government Oversight After the 2003 Northeast Power Blackout.”

Module 2 is titled “The Current Status of the Electric Industry.”  In that Module he has included the following posts: “The Watts, Volts, Amps and Ohms Post” “Who Controls the Electric Transmission Grid?” “Remote Central Station Generation Stations,” “The Nuclear Industry Headed in Two Directions,” “Electricity Sales in a Power Market,” “Protecting the Grid Against Cyber Attack” and “So You Want to Build a Wind Farm Project”.   

Module 3 is titled “The Future of the Electric Industry.” In that Module he has included the following posts: “Distributed Generation – an Old Idea Reconsidered,” “Is the Utility Death Spiral for Real?” “Is a Carbon Tax the Answer to Climate Change?” “Could Increased Electric Usage be the Answer to Climate Change?” “What is a Smart Grid?” and “What is a Micro grid?”

At the conclusion of each of these Modules he has included a series of Study Questions.

While he hopes that this blog is useful for anyone seeking a better understanding of the electric industry, he believes that it should be especially useful for science teachers and their students. 

He is already planning additional posts, however, he is hoping to receive feedback from readers that will suggest additional topics and help him make this even more useful.

THE HUMAN ELEMENT, a new environmental documentary from the producers of RACING EXTINCTION, CHASING ICE, and THE COVE, follows renowned photographer James Balog as he meets everyday Americans on the front lines of climate change. 

About the curriculum: The full film and accompanying lesson plans are available to educators free of charge and aligned to Next Generation Science Standards. The curriculum engages students and teachers in forward-looking dialogue and thoughtful discussions about climate change and its impacts on students' communities and daily lives. Through compelling scientific and visual evidence, students will learn how the Anthropocene—the current epoch of systemic human change in the environment—is affecting four foundational elements: earth, air, water, and fire.

Who it's for: The curriculum balances art and science to mirror the film, and can be used in either humanities or science classes. Though it was initially built for middle and high schoolers, students of any age can benefit from seeing the film and participating in many of the assignments and discussions contained in the lesson plans. 

How to get access to it: Click here to sign up for the curriculum. Once you submit your email, you will receive an automated email with six lesson plans as well as Vimeo links to the full film and shorter clips that you can screen to your students. If you have any questions, please contact THE HUMAN ELEMENT's impact coordinator, Caroline Beaton, at caroline@earthvisionfilm.com.