Alaska Science Teachers Association

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Motivate Celebrate Collaborate Advocate

for effective and engaging science education

It's time to consider and submit a proposal to present your very own session!

October 21-24 in lovely Juneau, Alaska

Click here and submit by June 1, 2021.

APRIL IS CITIZEN SCIENCE MONTH!

Celebrate your experiences and those of your colleagues and their students right here.

Learn New Science Standards for Alaska

through this WEBINAR SERIES

January 27-February 12 from 3:30-5:00
Awareness of Science Standards for Alaska
Introduction with Dept. of Ed and ED staff
By Teachers for Teachers

Opportunity for questions with presenters provided

Note: Recordings have transcription attached

January 27 for Introduction Recording

February 3 for Grades K-2 Recording February 5 for Grades 6-8 Recording

February 10 for Grades 3-5 Recording February 12 for Grades 9-12 Recording

Link to Register Here
No cost to participants.
Link for Description

2021 ASTA MINI-GRANT APPLICATION PERIOD OPEN NOW!

to current ASTA members only

Time to take another look at your wish list!

ASTA offers two mini-grants of up to $500 twice a year for either professional learning opportunities or a classroom project or activity. Next deadline is March 31. Download, complete, and return via e-mail or postmark by the deadline to Joey Jigliotti. Applications are screened by a panel and awards are decided within a few weeks. Reimbursement requires reporting as described in the application.

Professional Learning Mini-Grant

Classroom Project Mini-Grant

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE, JANUARY 2021

To all teachers of science in the Last Frontier 2020-2021:

In these times demanding tremendous flexibility and creativity, you are so appreciated! You are modeling the very essence of exploration in STEM. The educational goals are mostly pretty clear, but the path to get there is different in every community. And might be different next week.

And all this at a time when the importance of understanding science and math has never been more clear. How do viruses work? What can we do to prevent transmission? What do we do if someone gets sick? How fast does it spread?

I have been so inspired by the creativity of health care workers and others finding ways to protect themselves and community members and make do without their first choice of equipment.

It is both a challenge and a gift that some students are learning from home, not able to tap into the lab stations you would have set up, less able to really work with their classmates in "real time," and maybe they don't have all the materials or connectivity they would need. But it's also a great time to see the science all around them. Remember that great book that came out in the 1990's called The Way Things Work by Neil Ardley and David Macauley? It answered a lot of questions for me, let me check my misconceptions, and the diagrams were great fun. The book has been updated to include new technology and could be a fine resource for students to explore the machines in their own homes. It could lead to more questions and more innovations, and provide a "phenomenon" to kindle the learning of science fundamentals appropriate to their age.

And now that the new Science Standards for Alaska are widely disseminated and links to professional development are being made available, we are more than ready for dialogue about them. There are opportunities to network through a brand-new list-serve offered through the Department of Education and we continue to use both of the Facebook pages, Alaska Science Teachers and Alaska Science Teachers Association.

Please strongly consider joining ASTA this year, and NSTA (national), too, so we can strengthen our voices to build opportunities in science. We want to know what you need to put your best foot forward for your students and to enjoy the journey with them.

Sincerely,

Patty Brown, ASTA President 2019-2021

Click this link for membership options

To submit a proposal: 2021 AK STEAM Presentation Proposal

Sponsors and Vendors Invited

For more information on how to apply for the PRESIDENTIAL

AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN MATH AND SCIENCE TEACHING

or nominate someone else, go to PAEMST or contact Joey Jigliotti for science or Sandy Schoff for math. There are mentors available to help guide you in the intricate process.

The 2021 nomination period is for elementary teachers and is open from now until March 1, 2021. Applications are due April 1, 2021. Don't wait! The process of applying is itself professional development in its purest form, away from the oversight of administrators or actual instructors. It is a time for self-reflection and celebrating your intrinsic gifts as a teacher. Keep science and math education moving forward and in the news!

If you have applied before, please note that there have been some changes made. These include the allowance of up to one break in their video, opportunity to respond to state-level reviews through an addendum in early June, more detail provided in instructions related to responding to the Five Dimensions of Outstanding Teaching prompts.

MT. EDGECUMBE TEACHER IS

THE NEWEST PRESIDENTIAL AWARDEE

CHOHLA MOLL: My students come from over 100 villages and leave their families, communities, and cultures to get an education at my school. We are their teachers, but we are also much more. In all that I do, I try to make the sacrifice they and their families have made worth it. I represent my family, the community that raised me, and my school community. This award is a symbol to my students and my children that if you do what you love and you love what you do, you can be successful and have fun doing it!

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE, JANUARY 2021

To all teachers of science in the Last Frontier 2020-2021:

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