WCPSS Elementary Science Updates

December 2017

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays! Our December 2017 Updates include useful resources and information to support science teaching and learning. We wish you and yours a wonderful Holiday Season!

WCPSS K-5 Strands and Standards

Did you know that the NC Essential Standards for Science build conceptual understanding for students beginning in Kindergarten? If you haven't already seen the WCPSS K-5 Science Strands and Standards one page document, you can now find it under the "Vertical Alignment" tab on the Elementary Science Canvas Course. The one page document gives a glance of how the NC Essential Standards and Strands build upon one another from kindergarten to fifth grade in order to scaffold student understanding in science. Teaching science in every grade level prepares students to be college and career ready! #WhatStartsHereChangesEverything

Focus on Fifth Grade

Are 5th Grade Teachers expected to teach students potential and kinetic energy?

The concepts of potential and kinetic energy reach beyond the spirit of the 5th grade Essential Standards. In reviewing the 5th grade Essential Standards, Unpacked Content, and Teacher Resource Pack for the Force & Motion strand, we did not find anything related to kinetic and/or potential energy. The concepts of kinetic and potential energy are named specifically in 7th grade:

7.P.2 Understand forms of energy, energy transfer and transformation, and conservation in mechanical systems.

7.P.2.1 Explain how kinetic and potential energy contribute to the mechanic energy of an object.

7.P.2.2 Explain how energy can be transformed from one form to another (specifically potential to kinetic energy) using a model or diagram of a moving object (roller coaster, pendulum, or cars on ramps as examples).

Professional Development & Opportunites

Edible School Garden Session 1

Megan Lewis will be hosting an online session all about steps for starting a school garden in Wake County on December 7, 2017 at 4:15pm. She will also cover funding and garden safety. Please see the following flyer for more information and for a link to participate.

NC Science Leadership Fellowship Program

The North Carolina Science Leadership Association (NCSLA) Science Leadership Fellows Program is a leadership program that fosters science leadership in North Carolina. The purpose of the NCSLA Science Leadership Fellows Program is to enhance professional competence and develop the leadership abilities necessary for science/STEM leaders to operate effectively in various leadership positions in science education. Teachers will learn about the following topics: Grant writing, Organizational Change, Conflict Resolution, Professional Development, etc. Educators (formal and informal), science/STEM teachers, university science/STEM leaders, science administrators, science supervisors, etc. can apply. Applications are due December 10, 2017. Form more information go to: http://ncsla.net/login/lead/science-leadership-fellows-program (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

NSTA Regional Conference in Charlotte

Are you interested in presenting at the NSTA Regional Conference in NC? Proposals are due by Tuesday, January 16, 2018. The conference will be November 29th thru December 1st, 2018. This is a wonderful opportunity to share the wonderful strategies you are using to teach science. Submit proposals to present at : www.nsta.org/conferenceproposals

Summer 2018 Opportunity for Educators to Explore Appalachia

Agee Films, in partnership with the University of North Carolina Asheville, is looking for K-12 teachers to join them for a tuition free two week teacher institute sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities. The Power of Place: Land and Peoples in Appalachia, held from July 8 to July 20 in Asheville. Teachers will explore the environmental history of the Appalachian Mountains using an interdisciplinary approach. Teachers who attend the institute will receive a $2100 stipend as well as possible CEU credit. Please visit the following websites for additional information: http://appalachiafilm.org/neh &http://www.neh.gov/divisions/education/summer-programs . Completed application materials must be postmarked no later than March 1, 2018. Applicants will be notified of the outcome by March 28, 2018.

Resource Spotlight

Let's talk about equity! Read the three principles toward more equitable learning in science and then discuss your thoughts with a colleague. What do these principles mean for your science instruction?

A Learning Trajectory for Sense Making in Science

Elementary teacher Emily Miller shares her understanding of how English language learners make meaning in the science classroom. She discusses "collective sensemaking," how it can be developed, and the tools she uses to scaffold that learning. Read More »