Free NASA Webinars – Open to All Educators

Written by Nathan Smith on December 9, 2015. Posted in Education, Internet Resources, STEM and STEAM.

The NASA STEM Educator Professional Development Collaborative (EPDC) at Texas State University is presenting a series of free webinars open to all educators. Join NASA education specialists to learn about activities, lesson plans, educator guides and resources that bring NASA into your classroom. Registration is required to participate. To register, simply click on the link provided beneath the webinar description.

December 8, 2015, at 6:30 p.m. ET: International Toys in Space/Gravity and Physics (Grades K-12) – Explore common toys and how they behave in Earth's 1g environment. Then, predict how those toys will behave in the microgravity environment of the International Space Station. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/137339

December 9, 2015, at 6:30 p.m. ET: International Space Station — Off the Earth, For the Earth: Changing Altitude of ISS (Grades 6-8) – Want a lesson that integrates STEM across the curriculum? This webinar for educators of grades 6-8 focuses on using NASA press releases, video clips and mathematics problems all in one lesson. The NASA Space Math website is used and is aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core Math. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/149763

December 10, 2015, at 6:00 p.m. ET: International Space Station — Off the Earth, For the Earth: One-Year Crew (Grades 5-8) – Explore the STEM on Station website, where NASA is celebrating the One-Year Crew and their yearlong mission to the International Space Station. Discover ways to bring “space” into your classroom with NASA STEM online resources, lesson plans, videos and up-to-the minute education news that incorporate the Next Generation Science Standards. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/146121

December 14, 2015, at 6:30 p.m. ET: International Space Station — Off the Earth, For the Earth: The Brain in Space (Grades 9-12) – Participants will get an overview of resources related to the study of the effects of microgravity on the human brain. Classroom application and modification of resources will be an integral part of this webinar. Activities and lessons discussed in this webinar address the Next Generation Science Standard LS1. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/150655

December 15, 2015, at 6:00 p.m. ET: The History of Winter: Ice Core Samples (Grades 4-10) – Climbing an ice fall, drilling an ice core from a frozen lake or standing inside a pit to study layers of snow are not usually part of the normal work week of a science teacher. But the annual "History of Winter" program, an initiative of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, provides these and many other firsthand experiences for elementary and secondary science teachers. Webinar participants will learn about ice core samples and how to bring them to the classroom as part of a problem-based lesson. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/139302

December 16, 2015, at 6:30 p.m. ET: International Space Station — Off the Earth, For the Earth: Teaching Gravity With NASA (Grades 5-8) – Participants will get an overview of resources for teaching about gravity and microgravity to grade 5-8 students. Discussion will include modifications of activities and accommodations. Activities and lessons discussed in this webinar address the Next Generation Science Standards PS2 and PS3. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/150931

December 17, 2015, at 6:00 p.m. ET: International Space Station — Off the Earth, For the Earth: Mass vs. Weight (Grades 5-8) – "Mass" and "weight" have very different meanings and often are incorrectly used. Webinar participants will explore mass and weight using NASA curriculum that features education video filmed by astronauts on board the International Space Station. Newton’s Laws of Motion, NASA online resources, STEM inquiry activities and the Next Generation Science Standards also will be explored in this “heavy-duty" online session. Register online to participate. https://www.etouches.com/146123

Nathan Smith

Nathan Smith is Director of Technology for the College of Education and Human Services at Utah State University. In that role, he also directs The Adele & Dale Young Education Technology Center (The YETC) located in room 170 of the Education Building on Utah State University's Logan campus. The YETC is a combination student openaccess computer facility, a K12 curriculum materials library, a NASA Educator Resource Center for Utah, and a technology training center. Nathan served eight years (20042012) on the Board of Directors for the Utah Coalition for Education Technology (UCET) He was reelected in 2014 to serve another two year term on the board. A former elementary school teacher, Nathan has taught students every age from young children to senior citizens. He has had the opportunity beginning in 2011 to train international high school teachers from all over the world about technology in education, through the U.S. State