The 2019 Middle School Marine Science (MS)2 Summer Workshop is accepting registrations from middle school earth and life science teachers interested in exploring the topic of marine science as it connects to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).  The workshop will be held at the Marine Institute at Sapelo Island and will involve hands-on activities. Teachers will also be introduced to 1-week ready-to-use classroom modules created by Georgia Tech with support from the National Science Foundation* and the ECOGIG project.  Through lectures by faculty, break-out discussion and lesson planning sessions, and hands-on lab and field exercises, the 4-day course (July 14-17, 2019) will disseminate teaching modules developed around cutting-edge marine science. Modules consist of lesson plans and project learning exercises that address key marine topics, such as ocean food webs, oil spills, and ocean salinity and oxygen shifts in response to global change. Click here for more information.

NASA’s App Development Challenge (ADC) provides an opportunity for middle and/or high school students to demonstrate the practice of coding and app development. In this ADC, students work in teams to develop an app that visualizes three minutes of simulated test data in support of the upcoming Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2) flight test. 
 
In June 2019, NASA will launch a full-stress test of the Orion spacecraft’s Launch Abort System (LAS), called Ascent Abort-2, which will demonstrate the LAS can send Orion and its crew a safe distance from a failing rocket if an emergency arises during ascent to orbit. This flight test is a critical step to demonstrate Orion’s safety as NASA leads the next steps of human exploration into deep space.
 
In Round 1 of this challenge, participants will have the opportunity to chat with NASA subject matter experts to learn tips on how to make the app the best it can be. Teams will then post videos of their app designs online for consideration by NASA to use in future missions. In Round 2, teams with favorable submissions advance to present their app in an interview with NASA engineers working on the AA-2 flight test. After this round, NASA will select student team/s for an all-expenses paid trip to a NASA field center in early summer, 2019.
 
The challenge begins on March 13, 2019 and Round 1 participation concludes with video submissions on May 1, 2019.  

For more information, download the flyer here. 

The Regional Science Fair was a huge success thanks to our partners Cobb EMC and Gas South as well as our many volunteers. Below is a list of winners by grade level.

The Charlie Elliot Wildlife Center is hosting several professional learning opportunities for teachers this spring and summer:

WILD/WET/PLT Triple Facilitator Workshop- March 15-16th: (prices dependent on choice of meals each day, lodging and program materials) Learn how to conduct workshops to train other educators in your area for all three of the Projects. You must have completed educator training in WILD, WET, or PLT prior to attending this workshop. Registration form.

Project Wild/Growing UP WILD Educator workshop – April 13th:  $58 (includes lunch and program materials) Get the best of both worlds with Project WILD and Growing UP WILD. With these two curriculum guides, you will have access to over 200 activities for grades K-12 that demonstrate best practices in Environmental Education.   Registration form.

Teacher Conservation Workshop -June 17-21: $50 (includes meals, lodging, and program materials) - The workshop focuses on topics related to forestry and natural resources management. With field experiences at a lumber mill, tree farm, and a logging site, educators get immersed with content to bring back to the classroom. Participants also are certified in Project Learning Tree, Project WILD and Project WET. Registration form.

Outdoor Wildlife Leadership School (OWLS) July 8-12: $150 (includes meals, lodging, and program materials) This workshop, part of a three-part series, discovers the Blue Ridge and Ridge and Valley Ecoregions through field trips and experiences such as snorkeling in the Amicalola River, discussing black bear research, and by visiting a fish hatchery. Registration form.

​Are you a high school Biology, Chemistry, Physics or Earth/Environmental Science teacher who is looking for a way to make your subject matter relevant and come alive? Then Science Teachers @ Tech Day is for you! This event at Georgia Tech involves cutting edge lab tours, collaboration with your peers to complete an authentic college-level freshman lab activity, conversations with Georgia Tech students about how to prepare your students for college, and enjoying the fun and excitement of science! Registration for the event is required and the cost of the event is $100.  Interested teachers can register at https://apps.ideal-logic.com/ceismc.  If there are any questions, please contact Tiarra Moore at [email protected].

The annual ESO coaches meeting and material pick-up will take place on Wednesday, October 10th from 4:00-5:00 pm at Hawthorne (1595 Hawthorne Ave SE, Smyrna, GA 30080). ESO events will be posted soon on the ESO page. 

The Dodgen & Walton Science Olympiad Teams cordially invite you to participate in the Dodgen-Walton Science Olympiad Invitational Tournament for Middle School teams on Saturday, November 10, 2018. The Tournament will be held at Walton High School, 1590 Bill Murdock Road, Marietta GA 30062.  

Schools may send one team and all 23 events will be run.  Experienced schools will be asked to sign up for and run at least one event per team.  This will include making the test and providing for all necessary supplies, tools, people, paper tests & key copies for teams, etc. needed to run the event.  Medals and team trophies will only be awarded for the written test events.  For the building events, we are encouraging the students to bring their prototype devices to run in a tournament to gain experience in preparation for their regional tournaments.  The courses will be set up per the rules and judges/experienced coaches will be available for the students to talk with regarding their devices and the events.  

Please complete the registration form at the following link before September 14:  https://sites.google.com/site/dodgensciolyinvitationalreg/home . The invitational committee will send you an email by September 24th letting you know if your team is included in the invitational or on a waiting list.  Last year spaces filled quickly. The cost of the tournament is $75 per team and payment is due by October 1st, with no refunds given after that date.  Please do not send payment until you receive a confirmation email.   Your confirmation e-mail will include payment details as well as a link to the invitational website with the schedule and other tournament information.