July 9, 2018

     Day 1 of the Teacher Innovator Institute~

     We loaded a charter bus at 7am, heading for Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (the other Air & Space Museum and affectionately referred to as Hazy -- H AH ZEE).  When we arrived, we were greeted by our fearless leader, Shannon Baldioli and whisked upstairs toward the observation tower. What a view!
     While taking in a beautiful view, we had a gourmet breakfast and stood at tall tables.  We chatted with Astronaut Paul Richards, who flew on the Space Shuttle Discovery.

After breakfast Astronaut Paul Richards talked to us about being on the Space Shuttle Discovery and the future of Space exploration.  Then we toured Hazy.  Hazy is a treasure trove of artifacts showing the history of flight.  

Teacher Innovator Institute

      I had an incredible opportunity to attend the inaugural Teacher Innovator Institute in Washington DC this summer. We were housed at American University and split our time between the National Space and Science Center and Hazy. Wow! Our first day was talking one on one with an astronaut on the Space Shuttle Discovery! We spoke with pilots, museum curators and directors, and experts in a variety of fields.  The focus of our institute was to incorporate resources from museums, project based learning, and resources for our students.

 Thirty teachers were selected from all over the US. Here is a picture of our awesome group!

Three Dimensions of Science Learning

Three Dimensions of Science Learning (link)

I know change is tough! It is. We also love our tried and true methods.

There is a shift in thinking about how to teach Science.  Have you gotten familiar with the Three Dimensions of Science Learning? If not, check out the link above.👆🏼 It takes you to the NGSS webpage that explains this beautifully,

You can also watch this short video that shows the Three Dimensions of Science in action:

Heather Johnston puts the Three Dimensional Learning in a nutshell easily:
  1. Science and Engineering Practices- What students do.
  2. Crosscutting Concepts- How students think and can be used to guide/direct student thinking.
  3. Disciplinary Core Ideas- What students are learning/discovering through their investigations.