April 2024

In preparation for the solar eclipse, NWO created and assembled over 1,200 solar activity bags for education partner Washington Local Schools. The bags contained solar glasses, a solar bead bracelet making kit, a chalk art eclipse activity, which allowed students to track the exact time of the eclipse at their location using a cardboard moon template, and a pinhole projection activity to view shapes of illuminated objects through the card. Students were so appreciative they designed and wrote colorful thank you notes and compiled them into a power point presentation!

This article is from Ohio STEM Learning Network

No matter what grade you teach, the Ohio STEM Learning Network (OSLN) has programs that can help you bring computer science to your school. Get students excited, meet education standards, and teach important skills.

Pathway 1: Join the year-long Computer Science Professional Learning cohort, begin teaching computer science, then prepare for licensure. (Apply by May 1)

Build your foundation this summer and teach computer science in Fall 2024 year under Ohio’s temporary licensure waiver (download here). Then, prepare to take the licensure exam.

Targeted for different levels of learning, OSLN offers four different programs.

• Elementary educators can join OSLN’s K-5 Computer Science Program
• Middle/high school educators select from three programs, each offered in partnership with Code.org. Programs: Computer Science Discoveries, Computer Science Principles, and Computer Science A.

Connect to your cohort in a five-day summer workshop and begin teaching. The cohort continues with a series of workshops during the school year. Connect with peers and with OSLN’s expert facilitators to solve problems as you implement new these lessons.

Then, join OSLN again next spring for the 2025 Licensure Exam Preparation Program.

Pathway 2: Join the Licensure Exam Preparation Program in 2025 (Note: Year-long participants may be granted priority seats for the 2025 licensure prep program)

OSLN’s Licensure Exam Prep Program offers targeted support and deep dives into key exam topics. Deepen your understanding and prepare for licensure under Ohio’s supplemental pathway. The spring 2024 applications are now closed but future rounds will open in the 2024-2025 school year. 

Teachers starting with the Licensure Exam Preparation Program can use the OSLN’s professional learning cohort as a component of their mentorship experience as they begin teaching under the supplemental licensure pathway.  

Pathway 3: Prepare to join the 2025 cohort

Another year-long Professional Learning cohort will launch in June 2025. This cohort also includes the five-day summer workshop and ongoing supportive workshops throughout the academic year.

The Licensure Exam Preparation Program will be offered again. However, funding under the Teach CS Grants will have ended and schools/educators may need to cover costs of the exam preparation program.

FIND THE OSLN PROGRAM ON COMPUTER SCIENCE FOR YOU

This article is from BGSU News

Doyt L. Perry Stadium played host to an experience for the ages as the University and community took in the Great American Eclipse

On April 8, 2024, at 3:11 p.m., an event that had been predicted and planned for years arrived at BGSU, uniting the learning and greater community in three minutes of celestial spectacle. The Great American Total Solar Eclipse, the rare occurrence of the moon completely blocking out the sun, plunged the skies over Bowling Green into darkness and the event served as a reason to celebrate – and educate – during the eclipse viewing party at Doyt L. Perry Stadium.

University photographers Craig Bell, Justin Camuso-Stall '14 and Haven Conn '22 as well as student photographers Nico Kvalheim, Nicholas Polace and Keira Ellenberger and social media team members Juwaan McGee and Brielle Somodi '22 captured the excitement of the day.

Click here for complete article.

Ohio STEM Learning Network Offerings

Fostering STEM Institute opens for third cohort
Now recruiting for a third year, the Fostering STEM Institute helps instructional specialists and teacher leaders foster STEM culture and instructional practices in their schools. The institute is designed around essential tenets of effective instructional coaching, transformational professional learning, and quality STEM education. The Fostering STEM Institute includes both workshops and a residency opportunity.

Priority applications close April 1, 2024. Learn more and apply here.

The 2024 Ohio STEM Innovation Summit centers on community

Join OSLN on June 4, 2024, for a day devoted to fostering connections and collaboration, aimed at strengthening the Ohio STEM community and empowering educators within it.

The 2024 summit will focus on professional learning with sessions led by teachers, administrators, and partners from across the state. The Ohio STEM Learning Network has revamped session tracks to match the Ohio STEM designation rubric and quality model that form the foundation of STEM/STEAM designation:

•  Culture for Learning
•  Learning and Teaching
•  Pathways to Success in Careers
•  Disadvantaged and Underrepresented Groups in STEM

Share experiences and ideas by applying to lead a session.

Learning Blade free STEM awareness curriculum
This supplemental curriculum provides interactive and engaging lessons on various STEM topics by exposing students to STEM, Computer Science, and CTE.

Designed for students in grades 5-9, Learning Blade can help teachers foster critical thinking, problem-solving, and understanding of careers. Please see the link below for more information:

https://osln.org/how-we-help/classroom-opportunities/stem-career-awareness-platform/

OSLN Innovative Leaders Institute (2024-2025)
The Innovative Leaders Institute empowers school leaders to transform current practices and bring high-quality STEM education to their students. This year-long professional learning program is designed for school leaders interested in:

• Creating or strengthening STEM culture and identity in the school buildings they lead
• Forging strong business and community partnerships and leveraging these relationships to create authentic learning experiences
• Applying transformational leadership strategies to support their faculty in implementation of STEM instructional approaches
• Challenging traditional approaches to teaching, learning and assessment

As the landscape of STEM education in Ohio has evolved over the past 10 years, so has the approach to leading schools. The Innovative Leaders Institute: Bridge to STEM and Innovative Leaders Institute: Reimagined experiences drive change in communities of all kinds across the state. 

Applications close May 1, 2024.

NWO 2024 Spring STEM Inquiry Series!

Session THREE

From Barriers to Belonging: Fostering Equity and Excellence with Design Thinking

April 18, 2024

This interactive session will feature hands-on Design Challenge experiences to create an environment where every student feels valued, respected, and capable of success in STEM.

Facilitator: Paige Espiritu, Assistant Technology Director, Ottawa Hills Local School District
Location: BGSU Levis Commons, 1655 North Wilkinson Way Perrysburg, OH
Time: 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. (dinner provided)
Registration: https://forms.gle/3u8ikMUyR37a6h8aA

ESC of Lake Erie West Teacher Camp

Creating Authentic Meaningful Partnerships Teacher Camp is a week-long immersive experience for educators grades 3-12, June 10 – June 14^th .

Application deadline is April 1^st, for more information: please see https://conta.cc/3wBsQ2C

Envirothon

The Environthon is a competitive outdoor academic team event testing kowliedge of aquatics, forestry, soils, wildlife and a current environmental issue. The event is designed to stimulate and reinforce the students interest in our environment and our natural resources while encouraging cooperative decision making, team building and problem solving. Held on Ohio State University Lima Campus on April 24^th.

For more information: https://www.area1envirothon.com/about

Ohio Pork Council Virtual Field Trips

Six Virtual Field Trips will be offered during spring 2024. These tours connect students directly with an Ohio pig farmer live from his/her farm from the comfort of your classroom, with all trips also being livestreamed for those in remote learning situations. Students will see inside barns, learn how pigs are cared for, the life cycle of a pig, careers related to the pork industry, and more, while also having the opportunity to ask questions directly to the farmer.

Elementary (Grades K-5) – IF YOU ARE A TEACHER, follow these registration links: https://virtualfarmtrips.com

• April 18 at 1 p.m. with Ohio pig farmer – Register Here
• May 14 at 10 a.m. with Ohio pig farmer – Register Here
• May 14 at 1 p.m. with Ohio pig farmer – Register Here
• May 21 at 1 p.m. with Ohio pig farmer – Register Here

Middle and High School (Grades 6-12) – IF YOU ARE A TEACHER, follow these registration links: https://virtualfarmtrips.com

• April 25 at 10 a.m. with Ohio pig farmer – Register Here
• May 21 at 10 a.m. with Ohio pig farmer – Register Here

For more information, call 614-570-7218 or email dan@shift-ology.com.