Piloting a Localizing Guide for 4th Grade Energy Conversions Amplify Science Unit
4pm zoom sessions on Sept 25, Oct 16, and Nov 20
Earn up to 6 clock hours (3 STEM & 3 Equity) and a $200 implementation stipend
Piloting a Localizing Guide for 4th Grade Energy Conversions Amplify Science Unit
Have your students felt a disconnect between the science units you are teaching and their own experiences?
Have you wished for ways to make science more meaningful and engaging for your students?
Would you be interested in a variety of quick tweaks and longer adaptations you can use to make your science classroom more inclusive, community-connected and culturally responsive?
IslandWood is in our third year of convening a working group of teachers, the developers of Amplify Science, Educational Service Districts, and Seattle Public School’s science department leaders to help students make meaningful and authentic connections between the science they are doing in their classroom and their region, community, and personal funds of knowledge. Last year’s teacher team developed a “Localizing Guide” for the 4th grade Amplify Science Energy Conversions unit, and we would love you to try out and provide feedback on the ideas they came up with.
Asynchronous pre-work and a 90-minute introductory zoom session will provide you the opportunity to become familiar with the localizing guide and see how neighborhood walks, home interviews, guest speakers, and things as simple as swapping in a local picture can help make the unit more relevant for your students. Follow-up zoom sessions will provide an opportunity to explore additional adaptations, consider local community assets that could support the unit, discuss how things went and share feedback about the guide.
- Asynchronously watch a 30-minute recording, read the localizing guide, and turn in a reflection on it by 9/22
- Introductory Zoom Session from 4-5:30 on 9/25
- PLC Session from 4-5:30 on 10/16
- Reflection Session from 4-5:30 on 11/20
- If you are teaching the Energy Conversions unit with students this Fall, you can earn up to $200 by turning in reflections on adaptations you tried with your students, participating in our final session, and completing a final survey about the localizing guide
- $100 for up to five adaptation activity reflections ($20 each)
- $50 for providing feedback during final session
- $50 for providing implementation feedback in final survey
- We are seeking pilot teachers who have previously taught the Amplify Science Energy Conversions Unit and will be implementing it this Fall. Teachers who are new to the unit or teaching it later in the school year may also join but may not be able to receive the implementation stipend.
- The guide has Seattle and Whatcom County focused examples but is designed to support localizing the unit to anywhere in Western Washington. We look forward to incorporating examples from other locations in the region.
- Attending this professional learning with your grade-level team is encouraged.
- All sessions are free thanks to funding by ClimeTime and Boeing. There is a PDEnroller fee to claim the clock hours ($3 per clock hour).
- Later this year we will have pilots for 5th and 6th grade Amplify Science localizing guides and are currently developing both Amplify Science and OpenSciEd localizing guides that will be piloted in future years.
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