10:50-11:50

A total solar eclipse is coming to DFW on Monday, April 8, 2024. There won’t be another total solar eclipse in the contiguous United States until 2044! Learn how to observe this special celestial event safely, with or without any special equipment. Explore how eclipses relate to the TEKs across the curriculum, including lessons on scale, orbits, lunar phases, and tides in the Earth-Moon-Sun system. Leave with abundant resources, answers to your questions, and more!

Are you looking for ways to embed the new SEPs and RTCs into your curriculum? Look no further! We have created cards to help teachers d the SEP and RTC. These cards serve multi-purposes, from planning lessons, and providing strategies and question stems to help teachers shift their role to facilitators.  Participants will leave with all these resources to help build a three-dimensional learning environment for science classrooms.

This session introduces a way to create STEM design challenges for use in science classrooms that will help students learn recurring themes, scientific knowledge and skills, and practices of science and engineering at the same time. 

Do you find teaching vocabulary daunting with little student buy in? Do you want to have a more hands on engaging classroom that is very student centered? This session may be for you! Come learn about engaging your students and letting them explore the topics before you explain and teach vocabulary. 

Step into the world of phenomenon-based inquiry, where students become curious investigators seeking to unravel the mysteries of the natural world. This session will showcase the power of phenomenon-based learning in STEAM education for Texas, inspiring educators to integrate captivating lessons around real-world phenomena and integrating the new science TEKS. Learn how to ignite curiosity, spark critical thinking, and encourage cross-disciplinary exploration through hands-on STEAM stations that promote deep learning and a profound understanding of complex concepts.

Finally a FUN way to teach macromolecules without the crazy prep! In this microscale lab activity, students can test for starch, glucose, protein, lipids, and even DNA without needing large reagents, cleaning test tubes, or boiling reagents. Students can use their new knowledge to perform tests on some unknown samples for the presence or absence of these macromolecules.

As we implement the revised TEKS, the process of Sensemaking needs to be supported for all learners, especially Emerging Bilinguals. To support teachers and students in this process, scaffolding is needed. This presentation includes examples of scaffolding for making and creating observations, wonderings, and models/diagrams.  Teachers can support diagrams and model-making while embedding reoccurring themes with proper planning. In addition, this presentation will include how to analyze the student diagrams to provide insight into the depth of understanding.

Come on in for an experience and an introduction to the new Integrated Physics & Chemistry book by Activate Learning.  This book is a compilation of chapters from the highly decorated books, Active Physics and Active Chemistry.  This book covers 100% of the TEKS and ELPS standards for IPC.  It is a Project-based book that is student-centered and really keeps students actively engaged in the learning of science concepts and the honing of 21st-century Century Skills, so vital in students’ post-high School lives.