Professional Learning Teams (PLTs)

share some of your favorite statistics lessons, and return to your class with a new set of inspiring activities. While we will primarily use resources and materials from the AP Statistics curriculum, all high school statistics teachers are welcome.

Enhancing Elementary Science Facilitators: MƒA Master Teachers Constance Clark and Jean Hourihane

TUESDAYS, FEB 7, MAR 14, APR 18, MAY 23 MƒA  SCIENCE

+PLEASE NOTE: TEACHERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO PURCHASE THEIR OWN COPIES OF PICTURE-PERFECT SCIENCE LESSONS, USING CHILDREN’S BOOKS TO GUIDE INQUIRY, K-5 AND 3-6, BY KAREN ANSBERRY AND EMILY MORGAN, AND TEACHING SCIENCE THROUGH TRADE BOOKS , BY CHRISTINE ANNE ROYCE, EMILY MORGAN, AND KAREN ANSBERRY, AND CAN BE REIMBURSED THROUGH THE MƒA FLEX FUNDS PROGRAM. How might we enhance the elementary science curriculum to engage and support all learners? In this PLT, teachers will build upon their elementary science curriculum to inspire, challenge, and support all students. We’ll open by identifying the needs of our students, engaging in a sample extension activity, and exploring resources aligned with curriculum standards. These resources will include: Picture-Perfect Science Lessons, Using Children’s Books to Guide Inquiry, K-5 and 3-6, by Karen Ansberry and Emily Morgan, and Teaching Science Through Trade Books, by Christine Anne Royce, Emily Morgan, and Karen Ansberry. In sessions two and three, we will create, adapt, and share activities to enhance our science units by utilizing literacy connections, engineering design tasks, and art integration. Finally, we will reflect on our curriculum development and plan the next steps for continued work. This PLT is best for elementary science teachers seeking to collaborate and reinvigorate their classrooms.

Equity, Identity, and Restorative Justice: Applications in Our Communities p Facilitators: MƒA Master Teachers Sage Forbes-Gray and Naomi Hawkins

WEDNESDAYS, FEB 15, MAR 22, MAY 3, MAY 31

MƒA  INQUIRY, PRACTICE, AND LEADERSHIP

How might we use circles and other collaborative practices to build resilience and respond to harm in our communities? How do equity and identity inform what we understand restorative justice (RJ) to be? And how can we ensure that students have opportunities to feel connected to their classrooms and schools, both academically and socio-emotionally? We will begin by briefly exploring some historical contexts of restorative justice, including its roots in Indigenous practices. Then, we will utilize storytelling and personal reflection to explore how our identities and perceived power can positively and negatively affect the implementation of RJ. As a group, we will flesh out specific challenges in our communities that might improve with RJ practices. We will break into small groups to generate actionable interventions to tackle these problems. In between sessions, teachers will take strategies back to their classrooms and schools to test out with colleagues and students and then share their experiences with the PLT. This course is best suited for all STEM teachers interested in building community and responding to harm in their classrooms. No previous experience with RJ is necessary, but it is welcomed.

(URC)—a free STEM curriculum grounded in data analysis, investigation, and social justice–and adapt it for our middle school classrooms. First, we will discuss the importance of this work and familiarize ourselves with URC. In sessions two and three, we’ll develop and adapt a sequence of lessons appropriate for our classrooms. Finally, after piloting some lessons in our schools, we will share our experiences, give feedback, and consider next steps. This PLT is a continuation of work from the fall semester. Both new and returning middle school science teachers are welcome.

Exploring TRU: Video Study in the K-8 Science Classroom

Facilitators: MƒA Master Teachers Pamela Flanagan, Keeshia Lambert, and Erica Tunick

TUESDAYS, FEB 7, MAR 14, APR 18, MAY 23 ONLINE  SCIENCE

Equity, Inclusion, and Justice in Middle School Science p

Facilitators: MƒA Master Teachers Lauren Couto and Chereese Gardener

WEDNESDAYS, FEB 15, MAR 22, MAY 3, MAY 31

ONLINE  SCIENCE

How might we teach equity, inclusion, and justice in our middle school science classrooms? This PLT aims to explore the Underrepresentation Curriculum

How might we analyze videos of other classrooms to help invigorate our own science teaching? As we emerge from two very challenging teaching years, many educators are left wondering, “Why am I a teacher anyway?” Teaching for Robust Understanding (TRU) is an excellent framework for re-energizing teachers and their classrooms. Join us in this PLT as we analyze videos of our own teaching and other science teachers in action, and engage in thought-provoking discussions on how to improve our practice. We will watch these videos through the lens of the five TRU dimensions. We’ll open with a focus on cognitive demand, discuss how it shows up in classrooms, and consider how we can leverage it in our practice. In session two, we will continue our analysis using a different set of teaching videos focusing on equitable access. After session two, we encourage teachers to record themselves incorporating what we have learned from these videos to then share in later sessions. In sessions three and four, we’ll investigate the dimensions of agency, ownership, and identity and formative assessment. All elementary and middle school science teachers are welcome.