Winter 24-25 STEM UPDATES & SUPPORT
Nov-Dec-Jan

📣 News & Resources
Remake Learning Days 2025
Remake Learning Days is a joyful celebration of hands-on learning events across Pennsylvania.RLD launched in May 2016 in Pittsburgh, PA as the largest open-house for families featuring hands-on learning. Your school can get involved with Remake Learning Days in the following ways:
1. Host an event
2. Promote events in your area
3. Register for the Career Ready PA Backpack Challenge
4. Participate in the discoverED design challenge (grades 1-2)
For more information, visit the link below.
TRETC 2025
Three Rivers Educational Technology Conference (TRETC) is an exciting professional development opportunity to advance the integration of educational technology for teachers, K-12 administrators, industry experts, and higher education decision makers in South Western PA.
Join us for a transformative conference where we delve into the dynamic journey of educational technology and its profound impact on teaching and learning. This conference explores how innovations evolving from traditional chalkboards to cutting-edge chatbots, are reshaping the educational landscape.
TRETC 2024 Conference
Date: January 20, 2025
Time: 8:00 AM-3:00 PM
Location: Sewickley Academy | 315 Academy Avenue, Sewickley, PA 15143
*The Act 48 hours will be administered at the end of the event.
Group Discounts Available (10+ teachers) | Email mcolf@pghtech.org
Administrators bring one staff member for free upon registration.
For more information, please visit: https://www.pghtech.org/events/TRETC_2025
Zero Barriers in STEM using a UDL Approach
December 16, 2024 at ARIN IU28
9am - 3pm
During this session designed with STEELS in mind, educators will collaborate to:
- Create STEM classrooms that are inclusive of all learners.
- Reduce barriers for students who may not otherwise have access to robust STEM experiences.
- Raise teachers’ awareness of inclusive design practices by using museum exhibits as exemplars.
- Encourage all students who engineer solutions to problems to use universal and inclusive design practices.
A Making Workshop that Makes a Difference
AT Making – Solder, Switches & Stuffing
Discover skills for helping your students create accessible technology solutions by learning soldering and other useful techniques.
Are you looking for projects that your school’s STEAM program or club can use to develop and hone basic making skills? Are you curious about additional, real-life applications for the tools and skills your students are learning? Are you wondering how you can hack toys to make them more accessible to children with physical disabilities?
This hands-on workshop will introduce participants to assistive technology (AT) making skills to create usable access products. Participants will learn basic soldering to join wire segments and assemble mono and stereo components for use in a variety of assistive technology applications. Those skills – along with some 3D-printed parts – will be applied to create a mechanical switch that could be used by an individual with physical disabilities. Each participant will also make a battery interrupter and switch-adapt a stuffed, electronic toy that can be used with the scratch-built switch.
Skill Level: Beginner (no previous knowledge expected or needed)
What to Bring | All materials will be provided for this workshop. Participants are encouraged to bring a reusable shopping bag to carry completed projects home at the end of the day.
Who Should Attend | STEAM teachers and other educators who would like to learn valuable “making” skills in ways that can increase accessibility for others
Lunch will be provided.
Film Pittsburgh's Teen Screen
This free film program and accompanying materials align with many curricula disciplines, including English Language Arts, History, Science, Foreign Languages, and Art. This program helps teachers screen independent feature films, short films, narratives, and documentaries through which students can encounter challenging narratives and opportunities for analysis, discourse, and reflection. Participants can show the films in class at their own pace, or – if they’re within a few hours of Pittsburgh – can come right to a commercial movie theater. Learn more about Teen Screen here or at filmpittsburgh.org/pages/teen-screen
🤖 Lending Library Spotlight
Hummingbird Kits
Hummingbird kits contain lights, sensors, and motors which allows students to create personally meaningful robots out of any materials. Students can use a variety of coding languages to create a wide variety of projects. Make moving masterpieces, talking portraits, motion sensor triggers, and more with some cardboard and this kit!
If you've never used a Hummingbird Kit before, borrow one from the lending library and try a Tiny Drummer. You'll be shocked by how fun and easy it is.
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Participation in the ARIN Lending Library offers you access to over 100 STEM tools. Sign up for an account, search our inventory, request materials, and have them delivered to your school. Our library includes robotics kits for all ages, drones, virtual field trip kits, and more! Click here for more information.
📣 Check out the link below for information on Assistive Technology services provided by ARIN.
🔬 STEELS Standards
ARIN supports the implementation of the Pennsylvania Integrated Standards for Science, Technology & Engineering, and Environmental Literacy and Sustainability (PA STEELS Standards) by providing assistance for building curriculum, instruction, and assessment capacity.
Please click here for details on 2024-25 trainings and supports for the STEELS Standards.
🔗 Ecosystem & Career Readiness
ARIN convenes diverse stakeholder groups to establish STEM/Computer Science partnerships and create meaningful programs as part of dynamic collective impact networks (STEM Ecosystems) in support of authentic real-world and relevant STEM/computer science learning and career readiness. For more information, please contact Stacie Isenberg at sisenberg@iu28.org.
2024-2025 STEM Network
These sessions are appropriate for any teacher, K-12 who will address the Technology & Engineering standards from STEELS. If you are a STEM teacher or any teacher interested in addressing the T&E standards, this network is for you!
STEM Networking sessions are free and will be in collaboration with Westmoreland County IU7. Click here to register.
- September 23, 2024
- November 19, 2024
- February 3, 2025
- April 30, 2025
ARIN supports the development and implementation of local, regional, and state STEM and Computer Science related competitions. Look for the following competitions for the upcoming school year.
- ARIN Regional Competition - Nov. 19, 2024, Elderton High School Gym, 9:30 am - 1:30 pm
- State Competition - February 12, 2025, PETE&C
Media and Design Competition (MadCom)
- ARIN Regional Competition - March 26, 2025, Elderton High School Gym, 9:30 am - 1:30 pm
- State Competition - May 20, 2025, Elizabethtown College, Elizabethtown, PA
STEM Design Challenge - Registration deadline is February 16, 2025
- ARIN Regional Competition - March 5, 2025, Elderton High School Gym, 9:30 am - 1:30 pm
- State Competition - Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg on Friday, May 9, 2025
24 Math Challenge - April 9, 2024, Elderton High School Gym, 9:30 am
PA Governor's STEM Competition
Logo Contest Submission Closes: November 28, 2024
Registration Form Closes: December 23, 2024
Project Submissions Due: January 27, 2025
Judging Timeframe for Round 1: February 3, 2025, to February 25, 2025
Top 20 Prototypes Announced: March 7, 2025
State Finals: April 29-30, 2025
🖥️ CS in PA (Computer Science)
ARIN supports the growth and implementation of K-12 Computer Science Education and the 7-12
Computer Science Educator Certification (CSPG-71) in collaboration with PaTTAN via CSinPA.
CS4ALL SCRIPT Workshops - CS alignment for districts
CSinPA 7-12 - Computer Science Praxis Pathway - resources and supports for taking the 7-12 CS Praxis
CS Standards & STEELS Standards Crosswalks
The CS Standards & STEELS Standards Crosswalks created by PaTTAN is now hosted in two filterable databases, allowing you to filter by STEELS discipline, CS concepts, and grade levels.
The database now also incorporates the Science (3.1-3.3) STEELS standards crosswalks.
Click the crosswalks to learn more about the updates and how to integrate STEELS and CS standards into your instruction.
Additional Resources
2024 CS in PA Summit Dec 11-12
This year’s Summit will be offered as a two day hands-on intensive workshop where educators will iteratively develop a universal-designed, culturally relevant, and standards-aligned CS lesson plan. Following the summit, there will also be stipends available for participants to continue their work, developing a fully-aligned unit for inclusion in our CS Toolkits.
We welcome all K-12 educators currently teaching or planning to teach CS. This includes:
Grade-level teachers
Content-area teachers
Special education teachers
English language teachers
Librarians
Specialists
Instructional coaches anyone brand new and/or teaching CS for years.
SUMMIT DETAILS
Dates: December 11 - 12, 2024
Where: PaTTAN Harrisburg
Cost: There is no cost to register. See below for stipend and financial assistance options.
Act 48 Hours: Act 48 hours will be provided.
CSinPA Books
Check out this list of books that can be used for expanding Computer Science education. These books are available in the CSinPA library (contact your IU for assistance). CSinPA is currently developing additional resources and activities to help you engage learners in Computer Science using these books. Stay tuned for more updates!

