Contra Costa STEAM

Contra Costa County Office Of Education STEAM is a leader in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics Education for the Contra Costa County School Districts and the region by developing opportunities, providing resources and fostering communication among STEAM and Educational professionals that prepare all students to become successful members of a rapidly emerging technological world.

Contra Costa County Office Of Education STEAM supports the academic success of our districts by

Providing high-quality, timely communication to educators via the STEAM website, the STEAM e-newsletter and leadership organizations regarding STEAM resources and opportunities.
Creating partnerships with business and community organizations to provide professional development, outreach programs and other STEAM events
Offering inspirational and challenging STEAM programs throughout the educational process (pre-K through 16) including integrated curriculum, extra-curricular activities and real-world applications.
Supporting professional development, seminars and other outreach activities to educators, parents and community members.

Upcoming Events and News

Next Generation Science Standards

First Public Draft of the Next Generation Science Standards
Available on Friday, May 11

The first draft of the Next Generation Science Standards is scheduled to be released this Friday, May 11. This first draft of the new science standards will be online for public comment for three weeks until June 1.

The Next Generation Science Standards are based on the National Research Council (NRC) Framework for K–12 Science Education, which describes the major practices, crosscutting concepts, and disciplinary core ideas that all students should be familiar with by the end of high school, and provides an outline of how these practices, concepts, and ideas should be developed across the grade levels.

Science educators, supervisors, administrators—in fact anyone interested in the future course and direction of science education—are encouraged to carefully read these new science standards and submit comments online to Achieve during the comment period.

For more information, go to nextgenscience.org, and view our resource section. Visit this page for updates.

Educator Institute: Music and Dance

Join teaching artists and educators from the East Bay Center for the Performing Arts and KQED Education for a free three-day institute about dance and music traditions. Learn how to integrate the study of contemporary art into language arts, social studies, arts and much more.

Mon, June 11 - Wed, June 13 from 9am - 3pm at the East Bay Center for the Performing Arts. For more information and to register, visit kqedeastbay.eventbrite.com

A Framework for K–12 Science Education

The National Research Council (NRC) released its much anticipated report that presents a new framework for K–12 science education and identifies the key concepts and practices that all students should learn.

A Framework for K–12 Science Education offers a new vision for K–12 education in science and engineering, and represents a significant shift in how these subjects are viewed and taught. The framework will serve as the basis for the Next Generation Science Standards, a state-led effort managed by Achieve, Inc. The framework will also inform the work of curriculum and assessment developers, researchers, teacher educators, and others.

To download a copy, please go to www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13165

Science on Saturday

Science on Saturday (SOS) is a series of science lectures for middle and high school students. Each topic highlights cutting-edge science occurring at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). The talks are presented by leading LLNL science researchers supported by master high school science teachers. These presentations are offered in several locations. See the schedule below to find locations nearest to you.

Dates and locations: Ongoing - see calendar for for events at the Lawrence Livermore National Labratory's Education Program

Watch series programming online

Resources

Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)

STEMscape - A newsletter from the Ohio STEM Learning Network - STEMscape is a monthly newsletter of the Ohio STEM Learning Network (OSLN). This newsletter is designed to share innovations and best practices occurring across our Network of STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) schools, programs and partners both inside and outside Ohio.

EDSource - STEM - Provides information and resources on STEM education in California and nationally. In addition to pulling together publications and data pages from the EdSource website, it will extensively feature other research and work being carried out in this area.

OCSTEM CTE Community Collaborative Project - unded by the Governor's SB 70 Career Technical Education Initiative Grant, is designed to bring multiple Orange County partners and initiatives together to better coordinate and organize a focused effort to meet STEM demands.

Next Generation of Science Standards (NGSS): California State Review Team

The NRC publication A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas was published online in July 2011. The final print version and PDF can be viewed below or by clicking the following link:
A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas

The official NGSS website is at http://www.nextgenscience.org/
The CDE NGSS Web page is at http://www.cde.ca.gov/pd/ca/sc/ngssintrod.asp

These standards will serve as the foundation for the CA standards.

Science	Technology
Science News for Kids	Sloan Career Cornerstone Center
Bay Area Science	e-Learning for Kids
Kids Know It Network	HP Learning Center
Science for Preschoolers

Engineering	Math
Discover Engineering	Math Moves U
Engineer Your Life	World of Math Online
Engineering Go For It!	Math Playground (K-7)
Engineer Girl	Coolmath.com
	Coolmath4kids.com
	Figure This! Math Challenges for Families
	AAA Math
	S.O.S. Mathematics (math review material from Algebra to Differential Equations)