Obtaining food to meet our energy and matter needs is a basic requirement of humans, in addition to helping define our cultural practices and ways of life. This presentation will share how to use elements of the three dimensions of the NGSS and Framework to engage students in making sense of phenomena and problems related to the production and consumption of food. Strategies for how to use driving question boards, 3-dimensional learning outcomes, and engagement of all learners will be shared. Students will ask questions for how perfect apples are mass produced, how nutrients and environmental factors affect the quality of fruit, and how to attain the right balance of sweet-tart flavor. This storyline weaves together concepts such as meiosis and mitosis, pedigrees and probability, plant structure and function, nutrient cycles, and the role of photosynthesis in producing food in order to explain why it took 30 years to produce the Honeycrisp apple.
This presentation highlights the journey of the Wauwatosa School District Biology team as they transformed from a fragmented collection of experts to a strong, mission and vision-aligned force. The Wauwatosa Biology team has become a lighthouse within the district and across the state as they are deeply committed to continuous improvement and providing a rigorous, 3-dimensional, storyline experience for all students, through the use of OpenSciEd curricular resources.
In this session, we will discuss the importance of a strong vision, sound process for selecting curriculum, ongoing instructional coaching, teamwork, and strategies for building system-wide capacity in building a movement and driving change. We will share ideas and tools, including grading practices, for districts or departments interested in transforming the student experience in science to be more coherent, impactful, rigorous, and equitable.
In this session we will overview the recent revisions made to the LEAF K-12 Forestry Education Program’s 4th grade guide. We will explore why and how the revisions were made in an effort to produce a broader, more inclusive approach to teaching about Wisconsin’s forest history. Participants will then try some of the new hands-on activities together, then look at how an activity that has students trace the human use history of a forest plot through simple observations and measurements fits into a three-dimensional approach to teaching and learning. Finally, we will take a little time to reflect on how Wisconsin forest history and information about the Indigenous people of our state fit into their elementary science curriculum.
LEAF K-12 Forestry Education Program Outreach Educator, Wisconsin Center For Environmental Education
Nicole has a B.S. in Biology/Ecology, a secondary science teaching certificate, and an M.S. in Science Education from Northern Michigan University. She has been with the Wisconsin Center for Environmental Education since 2013, assisting with professional development for the LEAF... Read More →
Thursday April 3, 2025 10:00am - 10:50am CDT
Herietta
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ Angler Education Program provides training and materials for adults to offer fishing programs in their schools and communities. This workshop will keep you busy with hands-on activities, and we’ll even go fishing! You’ll go home with a boatload of program materials that link fishing to science through investigations of fish and their habitat and provides opportunities for interdisciplinary unit development with social studies, language arts, fine arts and physical education. Fishing equipment and other supplies are available for loan to instructors at more than 50 tackle loaner sites run by the DNR and partners. The program has two main levels, Junior Angler for grades 4 – 8 and Hook, Line & Thinker for high school. A subset of materials appropriate for younger learners is also available. The materials are aligned to Wisconsin’s state academic standards making the program an easy fit in the classroom. Successful program models include after-school fishing clubs, summer enrichment classes, and school-family events, in addition to classroom use. [I would like this to be an all-day workshop. What are my options?]
Attendees will look closer at the CASEL SEL competencies and the Learning for Justice Standards, both of which aim to bring equity and SEL into the classroom. This presentation is step one of getting familiar with the resources, as well as having time to implement one of the strategies in their current curriculum.
Attendees will learn the core principles of Universal Design. From there, attendees will have an opportunity to 3D think and implement how to connect NGSS standards to strong UD principals in a practical, realistic, sustainable way. With extra time, attendees will take an upcoming lesson they are planning and apply these principles to that time to ask questions while integrating.
