Winter Wrap-Up 03: Supporting students with a creative twist, feat. Shad Lacefield

Tune in to the finale of Science Connections with elementary educator and recipient of the 2023 Anton Banko Award for Excellence in Teaching Elementary Science, Kate Bala. In this episode, Kate shares teaching tips on how she seamlessly integrates science with other content areas to give students an engaging, phenomena-based learning experience. Listen to hear about Kate’s unique teaching style and the helpful tips she offers to make science the superhero of any classroom.To learn more about the resources Kate shares, check out the following:Dive into The Wonder of Science for list of phenomenon for each NGSS grade band.Read Sharing Books, Talking Science, to start integrating literacy into your own science lessons.

Join us as we sit down with doctoral student and 2023 NSTA keynote speaker, Minerva Contreras. Listen as Minerva tells her science story, discusses the benefits of storytelling in science, and shares how diverse representation and inclusion in science opens doors for students.And don’t forget to grab your Science Connections study guide to track your learning!For more from Minerva, check out these resources:Watch the latest episode of Crash Course en Español, BiologíaCheck out the posters Eric's students made that highlight Minerva.Hear more of Minerva’s story by tuning into her episode on Story Collider.Keep up to date with Minerva by following her on Instagram and Twitter.Catch Minerva in person at the 2023 NSTA National Conference.

Join us as we continue our discussion on the importance of integrating critical thinking into the science classroom with former teacher and current director of education at the Center for Inquiry, Bertha Vazquez. Listen as Bertha shares her experience with engaging students through identifying pseudoscience, and how developing these skills creates an identifiable impact on the real world.For more from Bertha , check out the following resources:Check out Generation Skeptics to access some of the resources Bertha shared.Learn more about combatting pseudoscience at Science Saves.Find out more about the Teacher Institute for Evolutionary Science.Get your free back-to-school toolkit from Amplify Science.

Join us as we sit down with Melanie Trecek-King, college professor and creator of Thinking is Power, to explore how much of an asset science can truly be in developing the skills students need to navigate the real world. You’ll learn about “fooling” students and the importance of developing critical thinking, information literacy, and science literacy in the classroom. We’ll also share real strategies and lesson examples that help build these essential skills and engage students in learning.And don’t forget to grab your Science Connections study guide to track your learning and find additional resources!For more from Melanie, check out the following resources:Website: Thinking is PowerSkeptical Inquirer article: “How to Sell Pseudoscience” by Melanie Trecek-KingAssignment: How to Sell PseudoscienceSkeptical Inquirer article: “Teach Skills, Not Facts” by Melanie Trecek-King

In the latest episode of the Science Connections podcast, we explore using AI in the classroom and its impact on our students.  Listen as I sit down with teachers Donnie Piercey and Jennifer Roberts to discuss ChatGPT and how we can use it to build science and literacy skills in K–12 classrooms while preparing students for the real world. And don’t forget to grab your Science Connections study guide to track your learning and find additional resources!

We’re continuing our investigations around science and literacy with Doug Fisher, Ph.D., professor and chair of educational leadership at San Diego State University. We talk about the importance of integrating science and literacy, as well as practical guidance for teachers who want to unite the two disciplines in their own classrooms.Listen as we discuss how science and literacy can be powerful allies and specific strategy areas to focus on when integrating the two disciplines. And don’t forget to grab your Science Connections study guide to track your learning and find additional resources!

In our second episode of the season, we continue finding ways that science is overlooked and how it can be better utilized in schools—and as an ally to other subjects! We sat down with Dr. Susan Gomez Zwiep, former middle school science teacher and senior science educator and staff advocate at BSCC Science Learning. She shared past experiences and research that shows the benefits of integrating science and literacy, as well as strategies for applying these ideas in the classroom.  Listen now and then explore more from the Science Connections podcast!

It's time for season 3 of the Science Connections podcast! In our first episode, we unpack the research around our season theme of science as the underdog with Horizon Research, Inc. Vice President Eric R. Banilower and  Senior Researcher Courtney Plumley. Eric and Courtney dive into the research they’ve found and their experiences as former educators to show how science is often overlooked in K–12 classrooms. Listen as we discuss how the science classroom compares to other subjects in terms of time and resources, how schools are a reflection of society, and what’s needed to change science and its impact on a larger scale. 

Listen to the last episode in our Winter Wrap-Up! In this conversation from season 1, Eric sits down with Shad Lacefield, 2021 Kentucky Science Teacher of the Year. Shad shares his experience teaching during the first year of the pandemic, which included dressing up in over 100 costumes to create unique and engaging online learning experiences for his students. Shad also explains ways he connects with his students to celebrate student success, as well as large-scale efforts he leads within his school to cultivate the love of learning science content.

While we’re hard at work producing the exciting third season of Science Connections: The Podcast, we’re continuing to share some of our favorite conversations from our first two seasons. This time we’re revisiting a popular episode from season 1: Overcoming adversity in the classroom featuring Joe McCormick, director of engineering at Splitspot.Hear Joe’s story about losing his vision at a young age, gaining new support and community, and paying thanks to the educators whose flexibility helped him along his journey to becoming a software engineer.