“Teaching and Learning Under the Stars”
When: May 19-20, 2017
Host: Howard B. Owens Science Center
Contact: Patty Seaton, Planetarium Specialist, pxts13@yahoo.com
On behalf of the Howard B. Owens Science Center, Planetarium Specialist Patty Seaton invites you to participate in our planned “mini-conference” under the theme “Teaching and Learning Under the Stars”
The goal of this meeting is twofold: (1) to provide a means of collaboration among planetarium educators in the region during the gap between the July 2016 MAPS meeting and the October 2017 Pleiades Conference, and (2) Foster collaboration between planetarium educators and teachers on best practices under the dome with reinforcements in the classroom.
Friday, May 19, is planned for just Planetarium educators, and will include a morning 2-hour tour of the Goddard Space Flight Center. The afternoon will consist of workshops, paper sessions, and presentations.
Saturday is planned to be a joint meeting of planetarium educators and educators from Prince George’s County Public Schools. Both will participate in a morning session exploring the Sun (Solar Quest), and an afternoon session exploring what is More than Meets the Eye, including making our own telescopes.
Planetarium Educators will gain first-hand experience with successful planetarium programs running at HBOSC. In addition, they will interact with PGCPS classroom teachers who have benefitted from the HBOSC programs and taken the resources to their classrooms. Teachers and Planetarium Educators will collaborate to develop meaningful STEM experiences for all planetarium facilities and classrooms.
To help cover costs of food and supplies, registrants will be asked to pay a nominal fee of $30.
Since this is expected to be primarily a local meeting, no specific hotels have been booked for this conference. A list of nearby hotels and prices will be provided with the registration materials for those who are interested in traveling in to the meeting.