Central Region (MA) 2022 Summer Professional Development Institute for Grade 6-12 Educators

Does taking field trips, conducting experiments, learning directly from scientists and STEM professionals, and connecting with fellow educators from across the state sound like a fun way to spend a week this summer?

Join the Wade Institute for Science Education and our collaborating partners New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill, Mass Audubon’s Broad Meadow Brook Conservation Center and Wildlife Sanctuary, and Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor for a unique, graduate level course. Engage in hands-on, minds-on, inquiry-based investigations and increase your STEM content knowledge! Connect with scientists, engineers, and STEM professionals, and work with educators at our collaborating partner institutions to explore real-world phenomena through standards-aligned, hands-on, minds-on investigations that you can bring back to your classroom. 

When designing and constructing our built environment it is imperative to consider the impact on the natural environment. Examine how buildings and landscapes work together and how nature inspires us to create. Delve into the concepts of green design and biomimicry. Explore the features of a LEED-certified building and design elements that support nature, such as solar fields, rain gardens, and pollinator gardens. Use your new knowledge to design a public green space within an urban environment.

Throughout the course, instructors will weave pedagogy through the science content, highlighting ways to shift your lessons towards inquiry, incorporate the Science & Engineering Practices, and implement phenomena-based units. Earn Professional Development Points and optional graduate credit while you connect and collaborate with educators, scientists, engineers, and STEM professionals. You’ll leave the course with investigations to bring your new science and engineering knowledge into your classroom! 

Learn more and register at the Wade Institute for Science Education website!