I'm so proud of my county and my university.
Several years ago, a flu campaign was initiated by our beloved Dr. Parker Small. His goal: vaccinate the school children and prevent the spread of influenza through the community. This year, with the support of the Emerging Pathogens Institute, Florida Department of Health and the Alachua County school system, free vaccinations were administered to our students. Even in the private schools, nose tickles were given early in the fall. Kudos to all involved. There is a small article in The Gainesville Sun.
I had the opportunity to sit next to Dr. Glenn Morris during a dinner last week and spoke to him about the vaccination effort. He was very pleased with the results and the community effort that was involved. One advantage we have here at the University of Florida...lots of students! Graduate and professional students in the Health Science Center were instrumental in talking with parents, getting forms signed, and helping with classroom management.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Kid's Challenge
There are so many fantastic competitions for students to become involved with. The Kid's Challenge is a great one. The website has many resources for students and teachers. The grade range is geared more toward upper elementary/middle school, but we can all learn something. The deadline is very near for this year, but perhaps you will want to consider incorporating the idea in your curriculum for next year. Who wouldn't want a free planetarium for the classroom?!
The deadline for the Kids' Science Challenge is February 27th, 2010. The KSC is a free national competition for third to sixth graders, funded by the National Science Foundation. Students enter their ideas in three science fields: Bio-Inspired Designs, Detective Science and Imagining Sports on Mars.
If their idea is chosen, they visit and collaborate with scientists and engineers to see the idea come alive. Last year's winners were featured on NPR and the Today Show!
The first thousand students who enter receive free hands-on activity kits. We have about 200 kits left, but they are going fast!
We also have 8 classroom prizes left (including microscopes and planetaria) for teachers who send in 25 entries or more from their classes.
On our website, kidsciencechallenge.com you'll find entry forms, videos, downloadable activities, educational games and curricula aligned to national standards. Kids can enter individually or as teams. Thousands of students and educators have participated in the KSC and downloaded our curricula, including many NSTA members - see our ad in the January issue of Science and Children.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Emerging Pathogens Institute
The University of Florida Center for Precollegiate Education and Training (UF CPET) is pleased to announce applications are being accepted for our ICORE professional development opportunity.
The Interdisciplinary Center for Ongoing Research/Education (ICORE) Partnership is an exciting new opportunity for high school teachers, funded by a grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, to engage in innovative and continuing professional development. The theme for the 2010 program is Emerging Pathogens, an area of cutting-edge and active research with ‘real world’ implications for Florida residents.
Teachers will perform hands-on research with scientists involved in the identification, understanding, and management of emerging pathogens; incorporate these ideas into classroom-ready modules; and present the results of their experiences to colleagues at professional meetings. ICORE also offers continuing university partnership support to teachers throughout the academic year and beyond.
An expanded program overview is below. More information, including the application materials, can be found at http://www.cpet.ufl.edu/ICORE/default.html
There are a limited number of seats. The ICORE program is open to all Florida high school teachers, but most appropriate for science and health related subjects. There is no registration cost; transportation and meals are the responsibility of the participants. On-campus housing is provided. Applications should be submitted as soon as possible; selections will be made on a rolling basis until all positions are filled.
HHMI ICORE Summer Institute: July 11 – 23, 2010
Gainesville, FL
Contact: Julie Bokor, julie@cpet.ufl.edu or 352.392.2310
http://www.cpet.ufl.edu/ICORE/default.html
*********************************************************************
Program Overview
The ICORE partnership program offers outcome-oriented professional development for high school teachers through collaborations with researchers across Florida. The initial program is organized around studies of Emerging Pathogens, a topic of major importance to the health and economy of Florida and the nation. The ICORE Partnership is designed to provide long-term collaborations, experiences, and resources to assist teachers in improving science education, and to offer ongoing opportunities and incentives for teachers to engage in laboratory workshops and earn graduate credit towards a Certificate in Biotechnology Education. Institute modules will focus on human, animal, and plant pathogens through laboratory investigations using the content and skills of biotechnology, structural biology, bioinformatics, host-parasite interactions, and translational research.
Teacher responsibilities:
• Attend the two-week HHMI ICORE Summer Institute at UF and create an Action Proposal, incorporating current research focused on emerging pathogens into a classroom-ready unit
• Implement Action Proposals in classroom with graduate student assistance; provide inservice training to other school and district teachers; share progress with ICORE program participants and coordinators.
• Present the outcome of Action Proposals at the annual Junior Science, Engineering and Humanities Symposium (JSEHS) held at UF (February 2011)
Upon completion of the ICORE program, teachers will receive:
• Access to biotechnology equipment lockers and professional support for classroom activities
• A $200 grant to implement action proposals
• A student field trip to UF Special Explorations for Teachers and Students (SETS), Florida Atlantic University (FAU), or the Ft. Lauderdale Research and Education Center
• Continued communication and assistance from UF and FAU partners (grad students, staff, researchers)
• Expertise and support in modifying curricula aligned with national and state standards
• Priority seating in teacher workshops offered by the UF Center for Precollegiate Education and Training (CPET)
• Opportunity to participate in summer research internships in laboratories at UF, FAU and industrial sites
• Three credits towards a Graduate Certificate in Biotechnology Education, further graduate studies, and/or Florida teacher recertification
The Interdisciplinary Center for Ongoing Research/Education (ICORE) Partnership is an exciting new opportunity for high school teachers, funded by a grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, to engage in innovative and continuing professional development. The theme for the 2010 program is Emerging Pathogens, an area of cutting-edge and active research with ‘real world’ implications for Florida residents.
Teachers will perform hands-on research with scientists involved in the identification, understanding, and management of emerging pathogens; incorporate these ideas into classroom-ready modules; and present the results of their experiences to colleagues at professional meetings. ICORE also offers continuing university partnership support to teachers throughout the academic year and beyond.
An expanded program overview is below. More information, including the application materials, can be found at http://www.cpet.ufl.edu/ICORE/default.html
There are a limited number of seats. The ICORE program is open to all Florida high school teachers, but most appropriate for science and health related subjects. There is no registration cost; transportation and meals are the responsibility of the participants. On-campus housing is provided. Applications should be submitted as soon as possible; selections will be made on a rolling basis until all positions are filled.
HHMI ICORE Summer Institute: July 11 – 23, 2010
Gainesville, FL
Contact: Julie Bokor, julie@cpet.ufl.edu or 352.392.2310
http://www.cpet.ufl.edu/ICORE/default.html
*********************************************************************
Program Overview
The ICORE partnership program offers outcome-oriented professional development for high school teachers through collaborations with researchers across Florida. The initial program is organized around studies of Emerging Pathogens, a topic of major importance to the health and economy of Florida and the nation. The ICORE Partnership is designed to provide long-term collaborations, experiences, and resources to assist teachers in improving science education, and to offer ongoing opportunities and incentives for teachers to engage in laboratory workshops and earn graduate credit towards a Certificate in Biotechnology Education. Institute modules will focus on human, animal, and plant pathogens through laboratory investigations using the content and skills of biotechnology, structural biology, bioinformatics, host-parasite interactions, and translational research.
Teacher responsibilities:
• Attend the two-week HHMI ICORE Summer Institute at UF and create an Action Proposal, incorporating current research focused on emerging pathogens into a classroom-ready unit
• Implement Action Proposals in classroom with graduate student assistance; provide inservice training to other school and district teachers; share progress with ICORE program participants and coordinators.
• Present the outcome of Action Proposals at the annual Junior Science, Engineering and Humanities Symposium (JSEHS) held at UF (February 2011)
Upon completion of the ICORE program, teachers will receive:
• Access to biotechnology equipment lockers and professional support for classroom activities
• A $200 grant to implement action proposals
• A student field trip to UF Special Explorations for Teachers and Students (SETS), Florida Atlantic University (FAU), or the Ft. Lauderdale Research and Education Center
• Continued communication and assistance from UF and FAU partners (grad students, staff, researchers)
• Expertise and support in modifying curricula aligned with national and state standards
• Priority seating in teacher workshops offered by the UF Center for Precollegiate Education and Training (CPET)
• Opportunity to participate in summer research internships in laboratories at UF, FAU and industrial sites
• Three credits towards a Graduate Certificate in Biotechnology Education, further graduate studies, and/or Florida teacher recertification
Olympics in your classroom
There is so much cool science and math that can be showcased during the olympics. Bring the winter sports into your classroom with the help of the eGFI website. They have many, many resources including lesson plans, activities, and experiment for students. Give it a visit and perhaps build a luge in your classroom or discuss the aerodynamics of speed skating.
Research presentations
Have you ever wanted to show your students a presentation straight from a researcher? For our program participants, they go back to the classroom with all of their Institute presenations on CD, but now there is a new resource to draw from. http://www.hstalks.com
The University of Florida has a license to The Biomedical & Life Sciences Collection, a vast collection of audio visual presentations, specially commissioned from leading world experts. The 1,000 plus talks are divided into comprehensive series and are presented by many of the same speakers you would like to give a guest lecture or hear present at a conference. The talks are ideal for research scientists, graduate students and advanced undergraduates and can be viewed on campus now at
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