UtSTA 2024: Out-Of-This-World Science Teaching

This presentation delves into a SEEd storyline lesson sequence where students take charge of their learning through model-based and student-designed investigations around a homemade electric speaker. Participants will make their own electric speaker to investigate and take home. Participants will also learn how to guide students across a storyline that bridges the electromagnetism and waves strands in a natural way. This will be accomplished through students developing cause-and-effect models based on the speaker phenomenon, designing and carrying out experiments, using evidence to refine models, and collaborating to build a class consensus model. All attendees will receive a detailed instructional guide to know how various ambitious science teaching strategies and science practices are sequenced for this unit.

DNA sequencing, flow cytometry, mass spectrometry and live cell imaging are vital technologies for diagnosing diseases. Learning about the biochemical processes they employ affords a deeper understanding of molecular genetics and the central dogma. This workshop explores: An interactive online activity featuring short videos that outline these technologies and task students with matching the technology appropriate for illuminating the molecules, processes and structures responsible for building and maintaining organisms. An online interface that provides a molecular and cellular view of the consequences of information transfer gone wrong from DNA to protein Function. A paper-based cooperative learning exercise where students analyze data from genetic technologies to identify a genetic disorder, engaging them in critical thinking and problem solving. We'll demonstrate the features of the online interactives, engage in the cooperative learning exercise, and discuss classroom use.

These Engineering Tomorrow lessons align tightly with the high school engineering standards. Students are presented with a problem space, given some background knowledge, and learn key math concepts as part of each investigation. Students build the solution, test the solution, collect data on their solution, and then complete a second and third iteration based on data they collected. The 20 available labs provide engineering lessons that will reach standards in each high school content area. Each lesson involves designing a solution, planning and carrying out an investigation, analyzing data and communicating solutions.

Engineering Tomorrow is a program started by large engineering firms, with the sole purpose of engaging and encourage students to pursue engineering careers. Teachers interested in using this program will receive all the free lessons, physical materials, and online support to run these investigations in their classrooms. This presentation is one you won’t want to miss!

Attendees will experience a lesson where students gather evidence to make and support a claim about whether cotton or spandex is best to wear while river rafting. The lesson aligns to Chem.2.3 and focuses on how the structure of macromolecules affects the functions of those materials. Students will see macro-scale properties of cotton and spandex fibers including water absorbency and a flame test. Students will also experience the structures of the molecules using models and visual aids. This lesson was created through the 3D-RST project as BYU. Lesson materials can be found at 3drst.byu.edu.

Come learn about a hands-on opportunity for your students to participate in a real-world disease outbreak simulation! The Utah Valley University Operation Outbreak Embassy is excited to invite all high school science teachers to engage their students in data collection and collaboration with local college students. We would love to involve your students in research. Operation Outbreak is appropriate for students of all ages but is especially applicable to AP and CE students.

We will begin by introducing Operation Outbreak. Operation Outbreak simulations are simulated outbreaks of pandemics for the purpose of teaching students about disease along with data collection on disease spread and human behavior. Students engage in real world modeling and provide data for epidemiologists on how people behave during outbreaks and how diseases spread through populations. We will discuss how the simulations work as well as the benefits for students. We will also talk about research opportunities for high school students and how to reinforce their science identity and bring the university into their classrooms.

These are the SEED standards that Operation Outbreak simulations and associated lessons address:
Bio 1.1, Bio 1.2, Bio 1.4, Bio 4.2, Bio 4.4, Ess 2.6, Ess 4.2, Ess 4.4.

In addition to discussing the benefits of running Operation Outbreak simulations we will discuss the resources available for teaching Outbreak science in the classroom as well as how to use the data. Operation Outbreak is a collaborative and cross-curricular activity that covers multiple content areas including social science, history, math, health, and journalism in addition to Biology. We will discuss the collaborative nature of the simulation and how to involve the entire school in a full simulation.

During my conference presentation, I'll be share insights gained and lesson plans developed as part of a collaborative cohort in Nebo School District adopting high quality instructional materials. The main source of curriculum is open source, OpenSciEd. Attendees will have the opportunity to actively participate in a segment of an OpenSciEd lesson, and they'll also walk away with digital copies of student workbooks and presentation slides to support their teaching.

We are told that we are to have students engage in argument from evidence. What does this look like and where do they get the evidence? Could the ability to engage students in wanting to be in class, having students look forward to attending class, students excited to be in class everyday, be found in the ability to have classroom discourse on ideas that are being taught, models that are being thought through, methods that we use to reach the students?

The goal of this presentation will be to highlight phenomena that students can observe and explore at home that align with the SEED standards for chemistry.  I will share some ideas about how to get students thinking about chemistry at home, and we will brainstorm more ways to incorporate learning that goes beyond our classroom walls.

What we've learned so far from trying to move from online, simulation-created data collection to more physical, hands-on data collection by utilizing smart carts in some of our labs involving motion, forces, momentum, energy etc. Our physics team has been implementing these smart-cart labs for all of our physics classes. We'll talk about what we've learned so far - the good, the bad, and the never-do-this-agains. We have Pasco carts, so we've been learning the Pasco interface (SPARKvue) now a free web-based app. We'll bring some carts, you bring a bluetooth-capable device, and we'll try some stuff. Pasco.com claims that SPARKvue now works on iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, and Chrome as a web app on laptops, phones, and tablets. We haven't tried everything yet, but we can in the session.
SEEd Strands PHYS 1, PHYS 2

Phenomenon-based science instruction is used to teach learners the Disciplinary Core Idea Newton's 2nd Law related to Utah SEEd Physics Standard 1.1. The Science and Engineering practice of Analyze and Interpret Data and the Cross Cutting Concept of Cause and Effect will be used to derive the equation.
Participants will also learn how Technology Mediated Lesson Study was used to develop the lesson plan.

This project represents a culminating synthesis of the year's learning journey, designed to weave together the knowledge acquired across various strands. It delves into Strand 1 by exploring the life of stars, tracing their birth to demise, and examining the orchestration of solar systems. From Strand 2, we investigate the topography of distant worlds and the transformative power of natural disasters. From Strand 3, we observe the cosmic forces that render Earth—and potentially other planets—capable of hosting life. Finally, from Strand 4 we encourage a forward-looking perspective, challenging us to consider the stewardship of our planet's resources and devising innovative strategies for sustainable living. This comprehensive project is not just a reflection of what has been learned; it's a bold step toward shaping the stewards of tomorrow's Earth.

This presentation explores some of the pitfalls and challenges associated with rubrics and how to overcome them. It walks through how to turn a mediocre rubric into an excellent rubric that can be reused in multiple contexts. Rubrics allow the grader to focus on the underlying SEP's and track student mastery over time. We will also look at how AI can be leveraged to get students immediate formative feedback and decrease teacher work load.

The environmental footprint of food and agriculture takes into account various factors that measure the environmental impact of producing, processing, transporting, and consuming food. Some of the key factors considered in food's ecological footprint include land use, water use, greenhouse gas emissions, energy consumption, waste generation, inputs, and transportation. These factors all contribute to understanding the overall impact of food production and consumption. During this workshop, participants will evaluate the benefits and contributions of the agricultural industry, weigh the environmental impacts of food production, and explore solutions that reduce and mitigate the environmental impact caused by humans and agriculture. (SEEd Standards BIO.1.2, 1.3, and 1.5)

We will have supplies for 20 lab station groups. This is for high school science teachers, but could be modified for junior high students as well (even possibly elementary). This data collecting and analyzing process, as well as it's emphasis on energy make this lab applicable to all subjects.

In this very hands-on workshop, teachers will:

Discover the World of Enzymes: Kick off with an introduction to enzymes, their roles in biological processes, and the specifics of catalase activity.

Prepare for Experimentation: Learn how to set up the experiments using easily accessible materials and equipment, ensuring that the activity can be replicated in your own classrooms.

Conduct Experiments: Engage in a series of experiments that demonstrate the effects of various factors on catalase activity, such as pH, temperature, and substrate concentration.

Data Collection & Analysis: Quickly collect real-time data as the experiments unfold. Teachers will practice using simple yet effective methods for recording and analyzing experimental outcomes.

Curriculum Integration: Discuss and plan how to integrate these experiments into your current curriculum, aligning with the Utah Science SEEd standards.

Resources:

i-Tree
Not Even Past: Social Vulnerability and the Legacy of Redlining
Urban Heat Island Story Map
National Phenology Network


Practices: My presentation will describe the 2023 Heat Mapping Campaign in Salt Lake City funded by NOAA. Scientists designed routes and modeling methods, and volunteers attached mobile sensors to their cars and drove the routes. In class, students use Infrared thermometers to map the heat island effect around their campus.

Crosscutting Concepts: Our results revealed that historically redlined neighborhoods on the Westside experience a greater heat burden than other neighborhoods. Our results will improve our ability to build effective heat mitigating infrastructure like trees and cool roofs.

Core Ideas: In studying the urban heat island effect, students learn that the Earth’s surface absorbs or reflects solar radiation. When the surface absorbs solar energy, heat is transferred by conduction, convection, evaporation, and emission. Human bodies respond to heat with perspiration and vasodilation. Heat waves are becoming more common and more severe, and the burden of risk is not equally shared.

This presentation will build quantum ideas- starting with what is a photon and how can we control what state it is in and moving on to using photons in cryptography for quantum key distribution, quantum cloning and finishing up with quantum teleportation.

Teachers will leave with a digital copy of the support materials and activities used in the training (and hopefully then used in their classes). Quantum Information is highly relevant to our future and connects as an extension on the 8th grade standard 8.2.5 - as this is essentially just a model of light waves. The content of this presentation also connects with SEEd standards phys.4.4 and phys.4.5

The presentation will include content created as part of a NSF sponsored summer research opportunity with the BYU physics department and the Quantum for All summer camp with the University of Texas at Arlington. These materials were also used at a workshop for AAPT national conference in Boston, summer 2024 and at the Utah-Idaho chapter meeting of AAPT in April 2024.

Motivated science students – including those who may have been categorized as gifted and talented – can achieve remarkable learning preparatory to their future STEM careers by doing actual hands-on research; but facilitating such experiences for these students can be daunting for their teachers who are focusing on the large number of other students who need their attention. Secondary school science educators can enable their high-capability students’ research experiences by connecting them to extramural resources such as college/university faculty members and facilities. Specific cases of this kind of successful arrangement will be given as concrete examples of how this might be accomplished.

Come learn and get hands-on experience on how to teach gel electrophoresis and DNA fingerprinting in a single classroom session. You will pour, load, and run a gel, capture gel image, analyze the results, and deduce a probable conclusion for a whale of a forensic mystery. This hands-on lab can be used to support Strand Bio 3 - Genetic Patterns.