Help Send Ms. Cooper to the NSTA National Conference!
I need funding to attend the National Science Teaching Association Conference in Boston! I am excited to attend so I can learn more about how to address real-world phenomena through project-based learning in my classroom.
My classroom is special because of all of the languages spoken within it. In a school where most of the students speak a language besides English at home, it is both exciting and challenging to plan lessons that ALL students can access.
In one single sixth grade class, the reading levels range from first to eighth grade; it is my responsibility to create lessons that engage students at all levels.
This is a challenge, especially for a first-year teacher. My goal moving forward is to incorporate a project-based learning approach into my classroom so that students have multiple ways of expressing their understanding of the content.
My Project
At the conference, I am excited about the option to focus my time on "The Long View: Building a Lifelong Passion for Science." In my school, science class is unfortunately treated as another ELA class. We spend most of our time on reading and writing, to the point where the students are saying, "This isn't science!" I am upset because I do not think that I am cultivating lifelong lovers of science through this ELA-heavy curriculum. I became a teacher with the hope of multiplying my love for science by spreading it to younger generations, but I just do not feel successful. I hope to engage with other science educators who are succeeding at inspiring a love for science through real-world phenomena.
At the NSTA National Conference, I would deep-dive into real-world phenomena so that I could develop standards-aligned projects that investigate real-world questions.
My ultimate goal is to apply what I learn at the conference to partner with the Billion Oyster Project, an environmental educational organization that aims to restore oysters in the New York Harbor. After bringing this PD learning to my work, I would hope to see my students asking more questions about the real-world. I want them to see that science is everywhere around us, and that the concepts we learn in class can be used to explain the natural world. For example, our discussions of ecosystems would directly relate to the field trips we take to the Oyster Research Station. Rather than being bombarded with reading and writing, the students should be making connections between what they learn in science class and what they experience outside. They should understand that science will determine their future—whether it be technology or climate change, science is not going away.
More than three‑quarters of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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