K-8 SCIENCE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Across the Science Department: Plan the Year.
Teachers will examine the standards for selected content domains across multiple grades and develop a scope and sequence for each teacher or department for each year. We will consider the availability of kits and other materials, teachers' own topic expertise as well as the prior science knowledge of the students in your school. The Next Generation Science Standards [NGSS] organize content standards by grade bands allowing considerable flexibility in the order in which topics and content themes are presented -- particularly in middle school. Some states [Massachusetts] and some districts specify topics for each grade but there are many areas of conceptual overlap between standards on the same theme. ASL's Plan the Year PD help schools and districts plan carefully and proactively to ensure a developmentally and pedagogically sound progression of content over the middle school years.
Grade Level Teachers: Plan a Unit .
Teachers in grade band teams will use the Understanding by Design [UbD] protocol to plan a 4-6 lesson sequence addressing a specific set of NGSS standards. The UbD protocol provides a helpful structure for determining essential questions, authentic formative and summative assessments and options for hands-on and project-based learning. We will pay particular attention to ensuring that the lesson sequence leads directly to intellectually rigorous assessments
Individual Teacher Coaching: Plan a Single Hands-on Project.
Charlie will meet with an individual teacher well prior to the beginning of a new instructional unit to map out the objectives, assessments, lesson sequence and opportunities for hands-on project learning. He will visit the classroom to provide feedback and coaching as the unit progresses. We'll pay special attention to use of the NGSS science practices.