Earth Science Week celebrates the value of Earth science in society and is an opportunity for K–12 educators to engage with the public and their students about today's topics in Earth science. The theme of this year's Earth Science Week is "Earth as Inspiration," which will emphasize the important role of artistic expression in understanding geoscience.
NSTA Position Statement Confronts Challenges of Teaching Climate Change in Nation's Science Classrooms
CLEAN Launches New Climate Literacy Quiz
CLEAN Following on the popularity of its energy literacy quiz , CLEAN has added a climate literacy quiz that steps through the causes of climate change, the scope of today's changes in the context of Earth's recent climate history, effects of climate change, and solutions to climate change.
Grades K–16
EnviroAtlas in the Classroom
Apply to Be a 2019–2020 PolarTREC Teacher
PolarTREC (Teachers and Researchers Exploring and Collaborating) is accepting applications from U.S. formal (grades 6–12) and informal educators for teacher field research experiences during the 2019 (usually Arctic) or 2019–2020 (usually Antarctic) field seasons. The program pairs teachers with researchers to improve science education through authentic polar research experiences.
OpenSciEd is working to create a complete set of open-source, K-12 science instructional materials designed for the Next Generation Science Standards. Phase two began last week, and the group is seeking teams to complete the middle school curricula. NSTA Executive Director David Evans serves on the Advisory Board. Learn more about the project here.
Sept. 27
Smithsonian Science How Webcast
Bring scientists into your classroom with a free 30-minute, live webcast from the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. Each program provides students in grades 6–8 with positive science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) role models, information about science careers, and pathways to cutting-edge research. In this webcast, students will meet paleontologist Kay Behrensmeyer, who studies how things fossilize.
Deadline July 15
Captain Planet Foundation EcoTech Grants
Schools or nonprofit organizations wishing to engage children in inquiry-based, STEM-related projects that leverage technology and/or use nature-based design to address environmental problems in local communities may apply for grants of $2,500 each.
Deadline July 15
Captain Planet Foundation ecoSolution Grants
Youth-led environmental projects that empower children and youth worldwide to solve environmental problems in their neighborhoods and communities may apply for grants of $500 to $2,500 each.
Find more professional development programs on NSTA's Calendar.
High school and middle school science teachers who are interested in sustainability and want to be on the leading edge of developing and adopting instructional materials that support implementation of sustainability concepts and the NGSS are invited to submit an application to attend a workshop entitled Connecting Earth Science and Sustainability to Teach the NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards). The workshop will take place at IslandWood , a beautiful environmental learning center located in Bainbridge Island, WA.