Username Password

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.

Final Draft of NGSS Now Available

After an extensive year and a half development process, the final draft of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) is now available.

Based on the National Research Council's (NRC), A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas, the NGSS were developed by 26 lead state partners, including California. The draft standards underwent numerous private and public reviews, with thousands of comments submitted to Achieve, Inc., the non-profit managing partner of the NGSS.

The NGSS and supporting appendices can be found on the Achieve, Inc. website at: http://www.nextgenscience.org/.

California Begins Process for Adopting New Science Standards – As required by Senate Bill 300, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction (SSPI) is required to recommend new science content standards for California public schools, kindergarten through grade 12, based upon the NGSS. Senate Bill 1200 requires these new science standards to be presented to the State Board of Education (SBE) by July 31, 2013. The SBE must adopt, modify, or reject the presented standards by November 30, 2013.

In fall 2011, the SSPI convened a group of 80 science experts; a State Review Team (SRT) representative of K-12 science teachers, administrators, county science consultants, college and university professors, and business and industry. The SRT has reviewed numerous drafts of the NGSS, facilitated regional review sessions, and submitted feedback to Achieve, Inc.

This spring, the CDE, with the support of the California Comprehensive Center of WestEd, will facilitate three Regional Public Stakeholder meetings, where members of the public will have the opportunity to hear about the development process of the NGSS and to provide feedback to the CDE. The dates and locations of these meetings are currently being finalized.

Public comments from these meetings will be shared with the California Science Expert Panel (SEP), a smaller group representative of the SRT, who will convene this spring to analyze the NGSS, ensure they meet the rigor of California's current science standards, and submit to the SSPI new science standards based on the NGSS. For more detailed information about the development process, please visit the CDE's NGSS web page at: http://www.cde.ca.gov/pd/ca/sc/ngssintrod.asp

 

---

Upcoming Events and News

Samsung Mobile App Academy Summer 2013

30 students will be selected by lottery to attend the
Samsung Mobile App Academy 2013

All App Academy attendees will receive a free Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet and a chance to win up to $20,000 in scholarships!

Eligibility:

• Students who are going to be in the 11th or 12th grade during the 2013-2014 school year
• Students interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering, math)
• Have taken or be enrolled in at least 2 Honors and/or AP STEM related courses
• Have at least a 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) GPA.
• Live within 60 miles of Berkeley

Please see more information at: www.scholastic.com/samsungacademy/

 

Stem Summer Camps

The CCCOE and the Contra Costa Economic Partnership (along with numerous professional partners) will once again be producing outstanding hands-on education career camps. Incoming high school juniors and seniors can now register. The week-long camps are looking for teachers to support student learning. Instructors will earn professional development hours and a small stipend for each camp, while also being exposed to a full range of industry experts.

The camps are scheduled for these dates:

• Engineering: June 17-21, Diablo Valley College, Pleasant Hill
• Biotechnology: July 8-12, CSUEB, Concord
• Environmental Sciences: July 22-26; CSUEB, Concord

For more information and to register, visit the program's website.

 

Junior Achievement of Northern California 2013 Open House

Join us to find out how Junior Achievement of Northern California (JA), the world's largest non-profit organization that empowers young people to own their economic success, is impacting local students. JA offers in-school and after-school programs for students in grades K-12, through a dedicated volunteer network that focus on financial literacy, entrepreneurship and workforce readiness.

When: May 22, 5:00 pm to 6:00 p.m.

Where: Contra Costa County Office of Education, 77 Santa Barbara Road, Pleasant Hill

For more information contact: Shaun Rundle, District Manager at srundle@janorcal.org

Download event flyer (PDF)

 

CCCOE in partnership with SFMOMA presents:
On-line Learning with ArtThink

Explore online learning opportunities with SFMOMA ArtThink. ArtThink offers theme-based activities that provide students with an accessible look at the art of our time. Prepare your class before a museum visit with Art Basics; follow up after touring the galleries with Detail Detective; and integrate art, history, and cultural studies into your core classroom curriculum with standards-aligned activities spanning grades four through college.

When: May 23, 2013, 4:00 pm to 6:00 p.m.

Where: Contra Costa County Office of Education, 77 Santa Barbara Road, Pleasant Hill

Register Online: http://artthink.eventbrite.com

 

CTAP Teacher Workshop Series

CTAP Region IV is hosting a series of STEM workshops. The presenter is Geoff Belleau from Solano County Office of Education. These workshops are being offered through Adobe Connect through the MyCTAP site. Workshop topics and dates/times are listed below:

• Connecting Gen C with STEM in Math – May 15 - 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm

For further information and to register, visit the Teacher Workshop Series Wiki website.

---

 

return to top of page

---

Resources

Why STEAM

STEAM engages students in integrated learning as they explore the world around them, create innovative solutions to problems and communicate their results while learning Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math. The following sites provide resources on integrating Art into STEM.

---

STANDARDS related to STEAM

The standards are an essential component to any high quality STEAM program. STEAM should include both content standards and practice standards. Curriculum should be aligned to Common Core State Standards, Next Generation Science Standards (when adopted), Visual and Performing Art Standards.

Open All

---

STEM Initiatives, Networks, and Organizations

---

Resources for Educators

Open All

---

Resources for Parents and Students

Open All

---

---

STEAM Newsletter Archive