This an opportunity to explore the science and math resources available in our community. Attendees will learn about field trips, programs, and instructional materials to excite their students about science and math. The afternoon will also include educator workshops about Common Core Standards, Next Generation Science Standards, best practices in science education, and more.

The free open house will be held on October 1, 3:30 - 5:30 p.m., at the Lindsay Wildlife Museum, in Walnut Creek. For more information, contact Connie Loosli at (925) 627-2922. 

Come to Chabot Space and Science Center's 2nd annual Educators' Night and see the programs and opportunities available to students and educators.  The evening includes keynote speakers Helen Quinn and Jonathan Osborne, authors of the new Framework for K-12 Science Education. There will be finger food, beverages, and a raffle for prizes held throughout the evening.

The event will be held on  October 4, 4:00 - 7:00 p.m., at the Chabot Space and Science Center, in the Oakland hills. Registration is required, visit this Web page to learn more.

The UC Davis Fall Robotics Academy is now open for registration. Robotics can easily get students engaged and excited in learning STEM concepts by blending academics with fun. The UC Davis C-STEM Center and its industrial partners have developed an innovative modular robotics technology called Mobot for integrating computing, robotics, and engineering into K-12 math and science education.This Robotics Academy introduces teachers to the innovative Mobot curriculum and how to integrate it into STEM classroom teaching and after-school programs, including RoboPlay Competitions on UC Davis C-STEM Day, on April 13, 2013. Registration covers instruction, supplementary textbooks, teaching materials, software licenses for teaching, morning beverage, lunch, and UC Davis C-STEM Center support for implementation of the program.

The Robotics Academy will be held October 13-14, at 1062 Bainer Hall, UC Davis Campus. Cost is $199 before September 28 and $249 after. Registration is now open on their website. 

The Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) presents the 2012 California Science Education Conference, Get In The Know. Join science educators from around the state to attend over 200 workshops and network with science educators. This year's conference includes strands on the Common Core Standards, Next Generation Science Standards, STEM Education, Science Literacy and Early Science Education (Pre-K through 2).

The conference will be held October 19 - 21, at the San Jose Convention Center.  Cost is $105 - $125 for CSTA Members and $158 - $177 for non-members. For more information go to the conference's website.

The Contra Costa County Office of Education (CCCOE), Local Planning Council for Child Care and Development, and California Preschool Instructional Network presents a STEAM professional development series: Mathematics Series for Young Children. Participants can attend one, two, or all three of the trainings. They will learn about research in early STEAM, be familiar with the California Preschool Learning Foundations in mathematics, and explore how STEAM can be integrated in the classroom.

The upcoming presentations will be held on October 11: Number Sense,

November 8: Geometry, and January 10: Measurement. The courses will be held 6:00-9:00 p.m. at the CCCOE in Pleasant Hill. Cost is $15 per person; dinner will be provided. To register, go to Eventbrite.   For more information, contact Ruth Fernandez, CCCOE at (925) 942-3413.   

This free workshop will be held on Saturday, October 20th, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., at the Albany Middle School, in Albany. If you wish to earn academic credit, for an additional fee of $50 and attendance at another full-day workshop, you will be eligible to earn 1 unit of Geology 104 at San Jose State University.  For more information, contact Ellen Metzger at (408) 924-5048, or to register, please visit the BAESI website.

The Bay Area Mathematics Project, the Bay Area Science Project, and the Bay Area Writing Project are sponsoring Saturday Seminars, a free professional development series connecting Math, Science and Writing.  

Saturday seminars will be held at Albany Middle School, in Albany, from 8:45 a.m.-12:45 p.m., on the following dates: September 29, Common Core Connections; February 2, Examining Student Work; and 

March 23, Accessing our Complex Language.  Registration is open on Eventbrite.

California State Parks, in partnership with the California Institute for Biodiversity presents Eureka Series: 2012 Sacramento - San Joaquin Delta Institute. This four-day institute will examine how physical geography, natural history, and human interactions have shaped the Delta, and explore ways to manage it wisely into the future.  Hands-on activities, field explorations, and content overviews will prepare you to inspire your students with the importance of the Delta in their lives. All of these resources are aligned with California Standards for 6th through 12th grade. Participating teachers will be asked to clearly describe how they will use this information in the classroom.

The Institute will be held November 3-4 and 10-11, at the Big Break Regional Shoreline, in Oakley. The cost is $75 per person. For more information and to register, visit the Institute's website.

The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) is presenting a series of free Web seminars on the practices described in A Framework for K-12 Science Education, released in 2011 by the National Research Council (NRC). The Next Generation Science Standards (expected to be released next year) are based on the Framework. The Framework describes the major practices, cross-cutting concepts, and disciplinary core ideas that all students should be familiar with by the end of high school.

The webinars will be held live, 3:30-5:00 p.m. (PT) on the following dates:

• October 9: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations
• October 23: Analyzing and Interpreting Data
• November 6: Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking
• November 20: Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions
• December 4: Engaging in Argument from Evidence
• December 18: Obtaining, Evaluating and Communicating Information

For more information and to register, visit their website.

Are you interested in developing case studies for use in the science classroom?  Stagelearn is seeking middle and high school science teachers interested in honing their skills in the development of case studies that incorporate the new integrated science standards. Case studies are used extensively at Harvard Business School, and help students develop critical thinking and build team work skills by collaborating with their peers. Many of the best cases are based on contemporary, and often contentious, science problems that students read about in the news - bringing real world applications into the classroom.

 
Teachers selected for this project will receive guidance, instruction, and case topics, and the teachers will be paid for their work, which can be done outside of school hours. Interested teachers are invited to contact Dimitris Mantoulidis.