Teaching Strategies

Moving students beyond rote memorization and fostering genuine inquiry and sense-making can be challenging. Our course supports educators in this journey, guiding them to become facilitators of student-driven exploration. Throughout the course, participants engage in hands-on explorations of phenomena, learning how to guide students in constructing, evaluating, and refining ideas. Participants learn to critically assess and redesign curricular materials to maximize student proficiency in science and math practices. Participants emerge with a newfound perspective on science and math education, equipped with tools and strategies to redefine their classrooms as vibrant hubs of exploration. They leave with a deepened appreciation for the transformative power of student-led inquiry and a renewed commitment to cultivating critical thinkers and lifelong learners. REGISTRATION CLOSED - COURSE IS FULL

In this workshop, teachers will learn how high cognitive demand tasks increase opportunities for students to access learning. Teachers will explore ways of modifying tasks to increase students' abilities to engage in sensemaking. This workshop will assist teachers in gaining the knowledge and confidence needed to design and modify tasks for their math classrooms to engage more learners.

How can we integrate engineering into math and science classes to help students develop a more meaningful understanding of real-world issues? We’ll use a Four-Level Empowered Engineering framework to explore how engineering integration in science and math offers students a range of opportunities for learning, engagement in community issues, and agency for solving problems in their world. Teachers will identify entry points in their curriculum to integrate engineering and social justice.

How can students learn to integrate their content knowledge with effective communication skills to solve meaningful and complex problems in a collaborative setting? In this workshop, teachers will learn strategies and principles for establishing a classroom culture of effective and meaningful student collaboration through the clear and intentional setting of actionable norms—working persistently, communicating productively, and taking risks. Leave this workshop with strategies that leverage the use of the actionable norms to encourage more students to effectively participate in groupwork activities.

Project-based learning (PBL) can be utilized to engage students, but most importantly should be a powerful lever to provide rigorous mathematical and scientific experiences for students. Come learn with us about the Project Planning Pyramid Framework, a tool developed to strengthen the disciplinary content and practices present in projects, in order to help support all students in accessing rigorous math and science through your PBL courses. Walk away with key takeaways for your next project.

Moving students beyond rote memorization and fostering genuine inquiry and sense-making can be challenging. Our course supports educators in this journey, guiding them to become facilitators of student-driven exploration. Throughout the course, participants engage in hands-on explorations of phenomena, learning how to guide students in constructing, evaluating, and refining ideas. Participants learn to critically assess and redesign curricular materials to maximize student proficiency in science and math practices. Participants emerge with a newfound perspective on science and math education, equipped with tools and strategies to redefine their classrooms as vibrant hubs of exploration. They leave with a deepened appreciation for the transformative power of student-led inquiry and a renewed commitment to cultivating critical thinkers and lifelong learners.

Facilitating successful collaborative groupwork in science and math education can be challenging due to difficulties in crafting collaboration-dependent tasks, ensuring focused productivity, and addressing workload and participation imbalances among students. Our course, designed for educators dedicated to enhancing math and science engagement, introduces Complex Instruction (CI) as a research-backed instructional strategy. Participants will delve into strategies to improve collaboration through groupwork, learning how to address common pitfalls while engaging students with challenging content. By the end of the course, teachers will possess a toolkit of strategies to improve group dynamics, foster participation, and deepen student engagement in collaborative settings. Armed with these skills, participants will be equipped to create collaborative learning environments where every student can thrive, ultimately shaping the next generation of scientists and mathematicians who value and excel in teamwork.

Are you excited to help students explore real-world connections between math, science, and engineering, but worried that you already have too much content to cover? Engineering doesn’t need to be an “extra” in STEM -- instead it can be embedded into your current content teaching to promote relevance, engagement, and 21st century skills. Learn how to plan and facilitate engineering design challenges that inspire your students to learn and apply math and science concepts as they solve real-world problems. Participants will engage as learners in engineering design challenges that span STEM subject areas, and will develop skills for teaching engineering in your classroom. Using tools for developing your own design challenges, participants will build an NGSS-aligned framework for using the engineering design process in your classroom.

Designing and modifying engaging learning experiences for students that are accessible, rigorous, and effective in strengthening students’ conceptual understanding can be challenging. Our course is designed for educators and equips participants with the skills and knowledge necessary to modify and implement learning experiences that cater to all students’ needs while promoting a deeper conceptual understanding of the content. Participants will learn strategies to orchestrate productive classroom discussions, ensuring that all students actively participate in authentic mathematics and science practices. By the end of the course, participants will apply a framework that will support them in creating engaging learning environments where every student sees themselves as capable “doers” of math and science.

Wednesdays, September 24 – October 29, 2025