July 2022

NWO is assisting Washington Local Schools with their 2nd annual on-site Summer Panther Camps to bring informal Science/STEM programming to the students participating in the camps. These camps are serving WLS families with students in the K-7th grade. We are extremely grateful for our high-energy STEM community partners who are providing top-notch programming with interactive/hands-on experiences: Heritage Sylvania, Imagination Station, Toledo Metroparks, Challenger Learning Center, Crazy Craig, The Toledo Zoo, and Keep Toledo/Lucas County Beautiful. The students are loving these experiences!

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in partnership with the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), announced the 2022 recipients of the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators and the President’s Environmental Youth Award.

Amy Boros, Science Teacher at Hull Prairie Intermediate School, Environmental Club adviser and Great Lakes Certified educator, earned the award for this region of the country.

“The tradition of excellence in environmental education continues with this year’s winners and I am so proud of their efforts to tackle the most pressing environmental challenges we face,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “I’m happy to celebrate the climate action and environmental stewardship work of the dedicated youth and educators who are leaders in their classrooms and communities. Environmental education is one of the most important tools in our work to protect the environment and combat the climate crisis.”

The PIAEE award was established by the 1990 National Environmental Education Act and seeks to recognize, support, and bring public attention to the outstanding environmental projects performed by teachers who go beyond textbook instruction to incorporate methods and materials that utilize creative experiences and enrich student learning in K-12 education.

"We all have a role to play in finding solutions to the climate crisis and environmental injustice - including in our classrooms through environmental education and stewardship," said White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Brenda Mallory. "Congratulations to these outstanding educators for their ideas, creativity and leadership in finding equitable solutions to address the impacts of climate change in their communities."

From across the country, 13 educators and 49 students are recognized for their leadership and commitment to environmental education and environmental stewardship. This year, 11 educators received the 2022 Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators, and 2 educators were recognized with an honorable mention distinction. Winning educators demonstrated leadership by integrating environmental education into multiple subjects and using topics such as climate change, waste management, water quality, wildlife conservation, STEM education, and school gardens.

Mrs. Boros recently returned from a trip to Costa Rica with area teacher colleagues to visit rainforests and other sites through a grant from Martha Holden Jenning’s Foundation Fund for Teachers.

An excellent opportunity for students and families to witness a NASA Space mission in real time!

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope – the largest, most powerful, and most complex space science telescope ever built has been fully unfolded in space. The telescope’s first full-color images and spectroscopic data will demonstrate Webb at its full power, ready to begin its mission to unfold the infrared universe. As an infrared telescope, Webb sees light invisible to humans on earth.

NASA, in partnership with ESA (European Space Agency) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency), released the James Webb Space Telescope’s first full-color images and spectroscopic data during a live broadcast on July 12, from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

Released one by one, these first images from the world’s largest and most powerful space telescope will demonstrate Webb at its full power as it begins its mission to unfold the infrared universe.

Each image will simultaneously be made available on social media, as well as on the agency’s website at: http://www.nasa.gov/webbfirstimages or

 https://www.nasa.gov/specials/nasaathome/index.html.

Ohio STEM Learning Network

The year-long STEM Rural Ohio Fellowship uses a cohort model to help members learn about, reflect upon, and inform their local STEM educational landscape. Through the study of place-based learning, teachers will develop targeted solutions that build upon local resources and address current challenges within their own communities.  

The 2022-2023 cohort is limited to 30 participants. The initial application deadline is August 15, 2022.

Strategies and outcomes:

• Connect your teaching practice to local needs in STEM by creating a new place-based unit built around your region
• Get support by joining a cohort of peers within your region to support each other and promote local place-based learning
• Connect students to local jobs and local STEM opportunities by building key local contacts for STEM learning within the community

Eligibility:

• Be currently employed as a classroom teacher
• Work in districts in one of the following counties: 
• Adams, Allen, Athens, Auglaize, Belmont, Coshocton, Darke, Defiance, Gallia, Guernsey, Hancock, Hardin, Hardin, Harrison, Highland, Hocking, Jackson, Jefferson, Meigs, Mercer, Monroe, Morgan, Muskingum, Noble, Paulding, Perry, Pike, Putnam, Putnam, Ross, Scioto, Van Wert, Vinton, Washington, Williams

For more information: https://tinyurl.com/bdcchdkb

­CODE4her CS Mentorship Program for Girls

This workshop for 5^th-8^th grade girls will offer the opportunity for them to learn to program with Lego EV3 Robots during five 2.5-hour mentoring meetings held on five Sundays on BGSU's campus: August 28, September 25, October 16, November 6, and November 27. Each girl will work with the same BGSU student mentor and member of the BG Women in Computing student organization. Cost $125.00 Space is limited! For more information, please see: http://code4her.org

Toledo MetroParks

Outdoor Expo at Glass City Metropark

Sunday, July 24, 4-8 p.m.
Glass City Metropark
1001 Front Street

At Outdoor Expo, everyone will have the opportunity to try rock climbing, kayaking, and atlatls! Metroparks outdoor skills experts will be on hand to guide participants to discover an outdoor passion – regardless of ability.

Family Friendly Activities to include:

• Kayaking in the pool
• Rock Climbing
• Atlatls
• And More!

This is an inclusive event and staff are trained and ready to make accommodations. Adaptive equipment will be readily available.

https://metroparkstoledo.com/explore-your-parks/glass-city-metropark/

Toledo Imagination Station

JULY 20-23: Shark Week

Sharks are spectacular creatures that have outlived dinosaurs and many other forms of life on Earth and are essential to marine ecosystems. Let's celebrate these majestic predators during Shark Week July 20-23.

Enjoy unique, hands-on opportunities and exciting 3D experiences in the KeyBank Discovery Theater.

Many more activities are listed on Imagination Station website: https://www.imaginationstationtoledo.org/

Science News for Students

Science News for Students is an award-winning online publication dedicated to providing age-appropriate, topical science news to learners, parents and educators. Science News for Students is a publication of the Science News Media Group, which is a program of the Society for Science, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) membership organization dedicated to public engagement in scientific research and education. Science News for Students — which is free to use — helps to fulfill the Society’s mission by connecting the latest in scientific research to learning in and out of the classroom.

https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/

Resources for using Science News for Students for teaching and learning
Free resources to help students in the classroom or at home 
https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/how-to-use