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Our CEO, Rita Ferrandino, along with our Midwest Sales Manager, Tom Pence, and our colleague and Indiana Trainer, Kate Ingemunsun caught up for some seriously good food at an Italian restaurant after a Board of Directors Meeting. The rest of us are jealous! Kate is off to do a training for I-STEM in Earth’s Changing Surface for us tomorrow. Thanks, Kate!
Have Questions about the Conceptual Framework for Science Education?Leading science education consultant (and former Science Companion Academic Advisory Board Member) Harold Pratt shares a helpful article about what the Conceptual Framework is all about.
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New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand has introduced some exciting new legislation designed to help educators bring great STEM education to their students.
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(By way of NSTA):
Last week U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu joined with U.S. Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan and NSTA Executive Director Francis Eberle to announce the launch of the America’s Home Energy Education Challenge, a competition that will be run by NSTA to educate students about the benefits of energy efficiency, motivate them to play an active role in how their families use energy, and help families across the country save money.
This fall, school teams in grades 3–8 participating in the Home Energy Challenge will be asked to implement energy efficiency activities that reduce the energy use in their homes. Teams will be asked to monitor and measure their energy consumption over a specific three-month period and compare it to data from the same period the year before, to track if they have successfully reduced their energy use. Participating schools can compete for more than $200,000 in prizes that will be distributed at the regional and national levels of the competition, including some additional prizes for honorable mention competitions. All participating schools and students will receive a DOE certificate of recognition, along with benefitting from the energy and money savings that come with energy efficiency improvements.
Students can also earn an Energy Fitness Award via a number of online activities where they will improve their knowledge of energy use in buildings, better understand energy-saving techniques, identify local energy-saving opportunities, develop an energy savings plan, and learn to undertake various energy use calculations.
“Energy efficiency is all about helping families save money by saving energy,” said Secretary Chu. “America’s Home Energy Education Challenge leverages the passion and curiosity of students to encourage families across the country to reduce energy waste in their homes while inspiring the next generation of America’s energy leaders.”
“Science teachers nationwide will recognize that America’s Home Energy Education Challenge is a valuable teaching tool that encourages active learning about energy and science and will help students to connect science to real world applications,” said Dr. Francis Eberle.
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Join our marketing director Leigh (and a host of other critters) as they explore the Catskill Mountains around her farm — and what happens when it rains and rains and rains, with a lesson from our new Soils module!
We’re having so much fun with these that we’d like to share!
Send us pictures from your vacation this summer to enter our Intrepid Virtual Field Trip Guide contest. If we choose your photos to fit with a lesson from one of our modules (you’re welcome to make suggestions or leave it to us), we’ll feature you as our guide and send you a free Science Skill Builders module, which is a great tool for any elementary classroom!
Send your photos and/or any questions to leigh(a)sciencecompanion.com!