The Physics Classroom is a one stop shop. It is an interactive up to date text book, it has on line lab simulations, it has differentiated progressive on-line concept builders, it has a test generator that can grade, it ties in with Modeling Curricullum, ACT Prep sections, Lesson plans for all levels of Physics including beginning teachers, video tutorials, it is continually being improved and updated, and all this for much cheaper than any textbook on the market. This presentation will demonstrate the diverse set of learning tools that TPC has for teaching Physics and Chemistry. While TPC is always free, the low fee of using the Task Tracker system to monitor student progress will be emphasized only because it is a great tool and gives you more time to do what you love...helping students learn! TPC has a diverse set of tools and resources that litteraly cover almost every aspect of teaching Physics and is progressing to providing Chemistry rources too. The presenters will be the Owner/Software designer Trevor Fayas and a regular classroom teacher who uses it.
Owner of PhysicsClassroom.com, our site has been offering time proven tools, lessons, interactives, and learning modules for teachers and students in Physics (and now Chemistry!). Come learn about our resources and how they help students learn and grow.
Thursday April 3, 2025 8:00am - 8:50am CDT
Lake Poygan
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 an era where data-driven insights are critical for scientific discovery and understanding, the ability to collect, analyze, and interpret data has become a fundamental skill for students. This workshop will explore how you can empower students to actively engage in data collection across diverse science disciplines, including physics, chemistry, biology, and environmental science. Participants will learn hands-on techniques for integrating data collection into their science curricula using sensors, which provide real-time data and enhance students’ learning experiences. This session will offer insights on inquiry-based learning that develops students’ scientific literacy and problem-solving skills.
Objectives: 1. Understand the Role of Data Collection in Science Education 2. Explore TI Technology for Real-Time Data Collection 3. Design and Implement Data-Driven Experiments 4. Integrate Data Collection into Standards-Based Instruction
By the end of this session, participants will: • Gain confidence in using technology for data collection in science education. • Acquire practical strategies for designing and implementing data-driven science experiments. • Understand how to integrate data collection with standards-based instruction to enhance student engagement and scientific literacy.
Come experience a hands-on model lesson from OpenSciEd for High School and discover how the new Carolina Certified Edition enhanced these high-quality instructional materials, making them more accessible, user-friendly, and safer for classroom use. Participate in the featured Serengeti board game from the Biology 1 unit and walk away with valuable resources that you can take back to your classroom.
Bob is a Wisconsin lifetime science educator and has taught at the elementary, middle and high schools levels. He presently is consulting for The Smithsonian and Carolina Biological.
Both of these activities were developed by a high school teacher in the Teach Quantum fellowship at UW-Madison. Using a bird navigation storyline in chemistry, learn how to incorporate electrons, configurations, and spectrum to understand the Zeeman effect and its role in migratory behaviors of birds and even grazing patterns in cattle. You will also learn how to use quantum physics in an electron escape room using flame tests to explore superposition. I will provide the full lesson plans and list of materials to run activitites. Both activities showcase making chemistry equitable for all learners with basic strategies and promote group discourse and concesus modeling throughout the units. Its a great way to expose students to quantum chemistry in a unit that is difficult to come up with examples for.
Kevin will share NGSS-aligned resources for teaching climate change, vaccines, and evolution. We'll discuss strategies to teach them to students in ways that will be approachable for all. We'll also discuss how to support general media literacy for students - weeding out the fuzzy from the evidence-based. Finally, we'll discuss the psychological barriers that make people want to believe certain things and keep them believing it despite the evidence. It's important to note that private school teachers also teach these topics!
Science Education Consultant, Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction
Dr. Anderson currently works as the Science Education Consultant at the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI). He enjoys helping educators improve science programs and instruction to support all students in making sense of the world and solving problems. Previously, he... Read More →
We have a 0.5 credit Science Intern Course at Hartford Union High School which allows students the opportunity to learn alongside a science teacher. They are responsible for laboraory set up, preparation and clean-up for our department in addition to being a teaching assistant during labs or activities in our introductory level courses. We have an application and interview process along with a reflection document that is filled out during their internship. Several former students have secured lab interns jobs as freshman at their respective universities. Learn how to propose and execute this course to help develop students as leaders in science.
Have you ever found yourself in need of making accommodations to better support the range of learners in your room, but you didn’t know how to begin? In this presentation, you will be provided some ways to create a template for accommodating and modifying that can be used consistently throughout the year to speed up the process and provide a starting point. I have taught biology and chemistry for many years with a diverse group of learners, including students assessed on the Essential Elements with significant needs. Whether you just need some ideas for embedding more explicit vocabulary strategies or materials to reach a nonverbal student in a way that allows them to participate in a lab with their peers, there will be an opportunity to see examples and hear how they were created.
The goal of the session is to provide an overview with a few examples of my resources followed by time to brainstorm with peers in the session, ask questions, and create some resources you can use in your classroom when you return. Bring your colleagues for even more collaboration!
Soil and water are inextricably linked. Negative soil charges, known as cation exchange capacity (CEC), are essential for soil nutrient and contaminant retention, water filtration, and surface and groundwater quality. In this session, we will discuss the basics of how soils get their charge, the impact of CEC on soil and surface water chemistry, and the practical application of CEC to food production and waste management systems. Through easy and visual experiments using ionic dyes and water quality test strips, you will evaluate the CEC of diverse soils and explore the impacts of varying soil CECs on nutrient retention and loss. At the end of the session, you will be able to describe the source of charge in soils, the impact of diverse land management practices on soil CEC, as well as the connection between soil CEC and potential surface and groundwater quality.
I've been a soil scientist with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service for 32 years. I started my career mapping soils and collected soil data in northern and western Wisconsin. I now help soil survey users interpret soils and their properties. I also enjoy hydric soils... Read More →
I have been using legos to help teach chemical bonding, balancing chemical equations, stoichiometry, dimensional analysis and limiting reagents to my chemistry students. We will discussion I use this in my classroom and how I got my supplies using a front and center grant. We will go through my assignments that I do with my students and see what other ideas people have to use legos to teach.
Wisconsin residents have extensive, high quality water systems and a broad range of individuals and organizations working to understand, protect and enhance them. The Milwaukee Waters Investigation Project (MWI) is a multidisciplinary STEM project focusing on a semester of teacher support, four professional development meetings, and ending with a one day field investigation with over 325 students supported by partners from more than 15 organizations. There is no cost to teachers to participate. The Freshwater Tool Kit.org website, project activities, water systems review, and water quality and water habitat monitoring and the opportunity to reveal and inspire potential career pathways in the water sector connect this project to the NGSS standards. This presentation includes an overview of the MWI Project, and the experience of a teacher involved in the project. There will also be an exercise for conference attendees to share what they are doing with their students in this space, to identify partners they do or might want to work with, and explore opportunities for collaboration within their community or with peers in other parts of the state to develop real-world projects centered on this vital resource.
I will discuss how I use the 3D Molecular designs water kit to help my students understand water and solutions. We will discuss the different hands on activities I use with the water kids and my students to show the properties of water and different types of solutions. We will also discuss how you can show how water dissolves substances.
Think outside the box! As we continue to face decreasing levels of student engagement, can we design new course offerings to captivate students in a variety of ways?
Science electives offer high school students a unique opportunity to explore their passions and delve deeper into specific scientific fields. Beyond meeting graduation requirements, these courses provide invaluable benefits, such as gaining in-depth understanding of a specialized science area, developing practical skills through laboratory work, fostering critical thinking and problem-solving abilities, exploring potential career paths, and simply satisfying a natural curiosity about the world!
Attendees will hear about the development process for three unique electives including: Cultivating student interest, encouraging exploration and interest-based course selection, and providing opportunities for students to contribute to curriculum development.
Presenters will share reflections on the preliminary offerings, including successes, challenges, and the need for cultural shift in order to maximize the benefit of these courses.
Join other Chemistry teachers from Wisconsin using phenomenon based curriculum for an informal roundtable discussion and resource-sharing session. Bring a computer and any resources you would like to share. Are you diving into chemistry phenomenon based curriculum like Storyline or OpenSciEd—need others to connect with—or are you new to the concept and want to learn more? After introductions,, we plan to break the group of educators into smaller groups to connect specifically with your interests. We are excited to make connections in teaching chemistry and provide resources to explore after the conference!
