This interactive, hands-on workshop will equip you with review strategies to enhance science discourse, make thinking visible through models, explore science and engineering practices, strengthen vocabulary instruction, and more!
Elementary, Middle & High School levels included along with LUNCH!
In this interactive professional development webinar, science teachers will explore how to meaningfully support students’ motivation, strategic thinking, and metacognitive skills while teaching science content and science practices. Together, we will examine how three widely used instructional models in science education - cognitive apprenticeship, explicit and reflective instruction, and the 5E learning cycle - naturally align with key phases of self-regulated learning (SRL). Teachers will see how modeling thinking, providing structured scaffolds, inviting student articulation, and building in opportunities for reflection can strengthen both science learning and student independence. By the end of the webinar, teachers will leave with practical routines, prompts, and instructional moves that make student thinking visible, develop metacognitive habits, and help students take greater ownership of their learning in science. During the session, participants will engage in hands-on activities that mirror the student experience: Modeling + Think-Aloud Demo: Facilitators will walk through a science task while verbalizing planning and monitoring strategies, offering teachers a concrete model of SRL-aligned cognitive apprenticeship. Scaffold Design Workshop: Teachers will collaborate to create scaffolds (e.g., planning guides, metacognitive prompts, reflection routines) that can be embedded into upcoming units. 5E Lesson Re-Mix: Participants will adapt a familiar 5E lesson by integrating SRL subprocesses—planning in “Engage,” monitoring in “Explore/Explain,” and self-evaluation in “Evaluate.” Peer Reflection Cycle: Teachers will practice short reflection protocols that parallel what students might use in their own science classrooms.
Speaker: Dr. Erin Peters-Burton, George Mason University
Whether you've been teaching physics for decades or this is your first year, a refresher on the physics content can be super helpful in preparing you to teach your next unit, especially for AP and dual enrollment courses. In this webinar, we will get a conceptual primer on topics related to fluid statics (density, pressure, buoyancy, etc.), with emphasis on teaching strategies for tricky concepts, real-world applications, and what students need to be successful for their next physics class.
This is the third in a series, to be followed by one more webinar on Fluids later in the semester.
When: Wednesday, April 8 | 4:15-6:15 (Zoom)
Focus: Making sense of concepts related to fluid statics, with emphasis on effective teaching strategies for tricky topics and real-world applications
Audience: Physics teachers, especially AP and dual enrollment
Presenters: Tatsu Takeuchi, Physics Professor (VA Tech) and CeeCee Bishop, Physics Instructor (CBGS)
Whether you've been teaching physics for decades or this is your first year, a refresher on the physics content can be super helpful in preparing you to teach your next unit, especially for AP and dual enrollment courses. In this webinar, we will get a conceptual primer on topics related to fluid dynamics (continuity, Bernoulli's equation, etc), with emphasis on teaching strategies for tricky concepts, real-world applications, and what students need to be successful for their next physics class.
When: Wednesday, April 15 | 4:15-6:15 (Zoom)
Focus: Making sense of concepts related to fluid dynamics, with emphasis on effective teaching strategies for tricky topics and real-world applications
PDI Pre-Conference
When: November 12, 2026; 10:00 am - 3:30 pm
Where: Hotel Madison
Registration Cost: $100.00 (Lunch is Included)
Please note, this is a separate registration from the PDI!
From Strategy to Student Impact: AI-Enhanced Science Instruction That Works
Presenters: Tyler Hunt, Jessa Miles, Eric Rhoades, and Cary Wright
In an era of rapid technological change, the heart of science education remains the same: a student’s ability to ask “Why?” and “How?” This preconference session explores the powerful connection between student-centered inquiry and the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence. Rather than viewing AI as a replacement for critical thinking, we will examine how it can serve as a cognitive scaffold that strengthens and accelerates scientific and engineering practices.
Participants will explore practical strategies for maintaining a truly student-first environment, transforming AI from a tool of passive consumption into one that supports active, student-driven experimentation and discovery.
Virginia Association of Science Teachers
communications@vast.org
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