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Director's Notes
I recently had the opportunity to work with a talented group of people who came together to submit a proposal for engaging high school students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) curriculum. For this funding stream there will be approximately 10 awards out of what was expected to be over 150 applications. Yes, a bit of a long shot, but we believe we stand a decent chance. I wanted to share a little about this exciting project and the organizations involved because it speaks to innovative approaches to learning that NCES and others are trying to bring to the North Country.
NCES partnered with Tufts University and the Mount Washington Observatory in preparing the proposal. The project would involve high school students and teachers in replicating the real work of planetary scientists. Using systems designed by mechanical engineering and chemistry graduate students at Tufts, high school students would simulate missions, like the Phoenix Mars Mission, and conduct experiments remotely at various elevations along and at the summit of Mount Washington. With Mt. Washington's harsh weather conditions, students will experience firsthand the engineering challenges of data collection in extreme environments.
Those of you who have been in the area long enough may remember Art Hammon, a former science teacher. Art is now an Elementary/Secondary Education Specialist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. I had the opportunity to speak with Art and make arrangements for a group of high school teachers to tour JPL as part of a trip to do planetary science fieldwork in Death Valley should the project be funded. Art was thoroughly impressed with the project and the efforts of the partners to develop authentic learning experiences for students.
Whether we are successful with this particular funding source or not, now that the wheels are in motion on using planetary science investigations to spark student interest in STEM careers, we plan to figure out a way to get it off the ground one way or another – pun intended!
Lori Langlois
Interim Executive Director
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Student Response Systems
Have you heard about student response systems but are not sure why they are valuable in the classroom, how they work or what it takes to set them up?
NCES recently acquired Activote and ActivExpression student response systems from Promethean and a Senteo student response system from Smart Technologies. These are great quick assessment tools to get a pulse on whether your students are ready to move ahead or if they still need more support for the content you are teaching. We are offering a one day hands-on workshop on incorporating this equipment into your classroom.
Topics covered will be how to set up student response systems, setting up multiple choice, Yes/No, ranking, matching, or short answer questions and viewing student results. You will learn what software and hardware the systems require, how they complement existing interactive white boards or work without one, assign student names to each “clicker” and how to save the student responses to analyze later.
Date: Thursday, November 5, 2009 from 9:00 to 3:00
Presenter: Paula Churchill
Refreshments: Continental breakfast beginning at 8:30 am and lunch will be provided
Cost: Member School Staff $30, Associate Member School Staff $35, Non-Member $40
Location: NCES Conference Room, Gorham, NH
Registration: Please register by October 30th by emailing Becky Ring at becky@ncedservices.org or calling NCES at 800-268-5437 or 603-466-5437. Purchase orders should be faxed to 603-466-2907 or checks mailed to NCES, 300 Gorham Hill Road, Gorham, NH 03581. MC/Visa accepted.
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Basis for Understanding and Application of Instrumental Chemical Methods
Increasingly, students are involved in measuring the quantity of an unknown material in a real sample. Whether they are conducting a laboratory experiment or answering their own questions, quantitation of the material is required. Three common approaches to quantitation covered in this workshop are 1) the working curve, 2) standard addition, and 3) internal standards. This workshop will focus on a systematic exploration of these three methods, including real world examples that demonstrate under which conditions each method should be used.
Who: This workshop is targeted for teachers from broad backgrounds and disciplines including the chemical, physical, biological, earth, and environmental sciences. Teachers interested in working with students to correctly make authentic measurements.
When: Thursdays, October 29, November 5 and 12, 2009
Time: 5:00 to 8:00 (sandwiches and drinks provided from 4:15-5:00pm)
Where: Professional development centers in Gorham (NCES), Concord (CACES), Keene (SWnhESC), and Durham (UNH)
Seats: Four seats available at each of the four centers (total workshop capacity = 16)
Prerequisites: Appropriate for the teacher interested in how modern chemical measurements are made. Also, a mathematical understanding of algebra is desired.
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Writing Cohorts: Grades K-2 / Grades 3-6
For as long as we've been doing process writing in classrooms we are still seeing samples that lack focus and organization, that are weak in elaboration and student accountabilty for effective revising and editing skills. The purpose of this course is to fine tune existing practices and to establish significant strategies at each stage of the process, in all aspects of content writing, that will transfer to student ownership and bring students to their optimal ability to write quality pieces.
There will be two cohorts for this course. One for K-2 teachers and the other for grades 3-6. This course will be most effective if you participate as a team.
Instructor: Jean Mann
Grade K-2 Meeting Dates: 10/21, 12/2, 1/13 & 3/10/2010
Grade 3-6 Meeting Dates: 11/4, 12/9, 1/20 & 3/17/2010
Time: 8:30 to 4:00
Location: NCES, Gorham
Cost: $899/person (includes 3 graduate credits from Plymouth State University)
Onsite, school based consultation: Ideally participants in this course would purchase additional consultation time with Jean Mann. This would include modeling lessons and strategies in classrooms. Contact Lori Langlois at lori@ncedservices.org for more details on arranging for onsite, school-based visits.
Download the brochure
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Promethean - Interactive White Board: 21st Century Learning Symposium
Dr. Robert Marzano’s research results using the Promethean ActivClassroom
Dr. Robert Marzano’s research findings on how to engage, motivate, and teach students using the Promethean Activclassroom will be discussed. We would like to share with you Dr. Robert Marzano’s latest research findings on the Promethean Activclassroom. Come see what the buzz is all about and why this particular interactive whiteboard and learner response system is motivating students to get involved in their daily classroom experiences.
Presenter: Chris Beeso, Assistant Director of Curriculum and Technology Integration, GreenPages
Date: Thursday, October 22, 2009 from 4:00 to 5:30
Location: North Country Education Services, Gorham, NH
Refreshments will be served.
Can’t attend? Let us know if you have an interest but the date does not work.
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"An Exploration of Arts, Culture & Politics" Humanities Seminar
The seminar will examine the intersection of arts, culture and politics, using James Tusty's documentary The Singing Revolution, which tells the little known story of how Estonians freed themselves from decades of Soviet occupation in the 1980s. Dr. Baudot will provide an overview of the topic, considering the power of poetry, literature, music, architecture and visual arts to stimulate the imagination and creativity of political actors and citizens in their pursuit of peace and social justice and providing insight into the ways in which this subject has been addressed by political philosophers over time. The seminar is a joint collaboration of NCES, the Arts Alliance and the NH State Council on the Arts' Statewide Arts in Education Partnership Conference, and is funded by the New Hampshire Humanities Council.
Speakers: Filmmaker, James Tusty and scholar, Barbara Baudot
For: Educators and community members
Cost: Free
Date: Friday, October 30, 2009 from 3:30 to 5:30
Location: NCES, Gorham, NH
Registration: Download form below or call 603-323-7302 or email info@aannh.org.
Sponsored by: 
Registration form
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Project SUCCESS Advanced Group Counseling
Based on the stages of group development, this interactive workshop will provide techniques on how to move the group through the stages and utilize the Project SUCCESS Implementation Checklists to lead groups. Participants will examine and process their own beliefs about trust and change to enhance their skills in leading groups. In order to maximize the applicability of the workshop, participants will be encouraged to share their own practice experience from engaging clients to managing internal obstacles to change.
Presenter: Andrea Fallick, Assistant Director for School Based Programs, Student Assistance Services
Date: Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Time: 8:30 to 4:00 (registration/refreshments, 8:00)
Cost: Free to staff from SAUs 3, 7, 9, 20, 23, 35, 36, 58, 68, 77, 84. All others, $15/person.
Registration: Contact Becky Ring at 603-466-5437 or 800-268-5437 or email becky@ncedservices.org.
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North Country Professional Development Day
North Country Professional Development Day will be on Friday, October 9, 2009 at White Mountains Regional High School. The program booklet is available at www.ncedservices.org
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North Country Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition
20 Youth Grants
Leaders in Prevention Scholarships
Four scholarships are reserved for the January 15-17, 2010 Teen Institute Leaders in Prevention program for teams of eight middle school students. Contact Diane Gibbs at dgibbs@nchcnh.org or 837-2519 ext 222.
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NH Arts in Education 2009 Partnership Conference
Maps & Journeys
October 30 - November 1
Highland Center, Crawford Notch
Conference highlights include a keynote address, "How an Art Form Defeated an Army," by James Tusty, director and producer of The Singing Revolution, a riveting documentary film on Estonia's independence movement; a talk and workshops on "The Power of Creativity" with artist-in-residence Julie Lyonn Lieberman, master violinist, vocalist, composer and educator; and a presentation by Bob Morrison of Quadrant Education Research on the N.H. Arts Education Data Project, the first comprehensive survey of arts education in the state.
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Conference details
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