SAMEC E-News (Week of 01-13-06) Upcoming Professional Development for K-12 Teachers LiftOff Summer Institute 2006: Return to the Moon. Beginning in the summer of 1990, the Texas Space Grant Consortium initiated week-long professional development training for teachers. This aerospace workshop series, called LiftOff, emphasizes science, mathematics, and technology learning experiences by incorporating a space science theme supported by NASA missions. Teacher participants are provided with information, materials, and experiences through hands-on activities and field trips that will promote space science and enrichment activities for themselves and others.  Before the end of the next decade, NASA astronauts will again explore the surface of the moon.  And this time, we're going to stay, building outposts and paving the way for eventual journeys to Mars and beyond.  There are echoes of the images from the past, but it won't be your grandfather's moon shot. How do the Earth and Moon compare?  How did the Moon form?  What causes the phases of the Moon?The moon has loomed large in the human imagination..for many moons. Join us as we begin a close examination of Earth's natural satellite during LiftOff 2006: Return to the Moon! Many Space Grant Consortium's in other states will fund all or a portion of the selected participant's expenses.LiftOff 2006 applications are available online. Dates are July 17 - 21, 2006. http://www.tsgc.utexas.edu/liftoff/ The Science and Mathematics Teacher's Colloquium Series is a forum for K-12 science and math teachers to learn about cutting edge research taking place at The University of Arizona (UA). From nanotechnology to Earth-sized virtual radio telescopes, the Ice Age to gene science, The University of Arizona is advancing in all areas of science. The new year will begin with Professor Robert Strom from the UA Planetary Sciences Department who will talk about Global Warming and Its Impact on the Environment Thursday, January 26, 2006, 4:15-6:15 pm in the UA Modern Languages Bldg. Room 405. Free global warming posters, parking and refreshments will be available. This series is sponsored by the The UA/NASA Space Grant Program and The Southwest Environmental Health Sciences Center for Toxicology which provide funding for this program. For additional information visit our website at: http://samec.lpl.arizona.edu/profdevelopment/index.html or email us at samec@lpl.arizona.edu Upcoming Courses for Teachers Spring 2006 New! Teaching Evolution and Astrobiology K12 Educators Programs at the UA; This spring 2006, earn two units of UA graduate credit at no cost to K12 educators by taking either of these two new courses. Each covers tuition and fees to be reimbursed upon completion for in-service K12 educators. ECOL 596s has a high school focus and is focused on a lecture series on “Evolution: Exploring Our World and Ourselves”. ASTR 597b has a middle school focus and is focused on a lecture series on “Astrobiology and the Sacred”. Both are open to K12 teachers at any level. Enrollment is limited to 24 participants for each course. These graduate credits help to fulfill the new "highly qualified teacher" requirements for NCLB and can be used as part of the UofA MS Biology Degree program. Contact UA Continuing Education at 520-621-7724 or staugaar@email.arizona.edu to register for either course. More information follows below on each course: 1) ECOL 596s, Selected Topics: "Teaching Evolution: Exploring our World" http://eebweb.arizona.edu/courses/ecol596s/indexEIA.htm How does the science of evolution affect our daily lives? How can we translate cutting-edge research on evolution at the UA to the teaching of evolution in a high school classroom? Meet with the scientists who study evolution at the UA, and hear about opportunities to involve your students in research at the UA. Learn of the search for HIV origins in chimpanzees amidst civil war in the Congo, the discovery of what our genes tell us about human ancestry, and how a study of evolution can help us to better combat human disease. This graduate seminar course for K12 educators is focused around an evening speaker series offered through the UA College of Science. We attend the public seminars, meet with the speakers, and discuss implications for teaching in high school. This course is structured for science teachers at the 6th-12th grade level, with a focus on high school. Class meets from 6-9 pm Tuesday evenings over 10 weeks starting Feb 14. All tuition and fees are reimbursed to K12 Educators upon completion of the course from a grant from Research Corporation. Enrollment: 24.  Contact Katrina Mangin, 520-626-5076, mangin@u.arizona.edu for more information. To register, call Continuing Education 520-621-7724. 2) ASTR 597b, Special Topics “Teaching Evolution in the 21st Century” http://scienceandreligion.arizona.edu/educatorforum.html The 2-credit hour graduate course for K-12 educators on teaching concepts of evolution, astrobiology, and its cultural implications is structured as a seminar with discussion, lectures and activities for the K-12 classroom. The course is built around a series of talks by poets, scientists and philosophers on “Astrobiology and the Sacred” (Templeton Series). Educators participate in a classroom-ready activity for teaching science in a middle school classroom, attend the public lectures and discuss the lecture and classroom applications. Activities and discussion focus on teaching science, social studies, and English in middle school. This course is specially designed for in-service teachers at the middle school level, but educators at all levels are invited to participate. Class meets from 6-9 on Mondays or Wednesdays over 10 weeks starting Jan 23rd. All tuition and fees are reimbursed to K12 Educators upon completion of the course from a grant from LaPlace. Enrollment: 24. Contact Tim Slater at tslater@as.arizona.edu for more information. To register, call Continuing Education 520-621-7724. Resources for K-12 Teachers Teachers and Student Teachers are invited to join The University of Arizona A+plus Club”. Your free membership entitles you to a 20% discount every day on all general reading books, including all of our children's books. (Please note no other discounts apply and the offer does not apply to textbooks or technical books). You'll also be invited to our annual Teacher Extravaganza and we'll be happy to personalize a UA BookStore tour for your group or class. To receive your free membership visit the General Books Counter at The University of Arizona BookStore, 1209 E University Blvd in Tucson or contact Ann Wolnick, 520-621-8475, awolnick@u.arizona.edu. Visit our website at http://www.uofabookstores.com to see our 2006 story time schedule for early readers and to sign up for The BookStore Reminder Service offering you advance notice of sales and events. Available Positions for K-12 Teachers Pueblo High School in Tucson is looking for a science teacher who can sub for 9-10 weeks starting on Feb 3.; The class is Integrated Science and is a fresh class.; There is one sectuion of forensics involved.; If interested, please contact Wilma Amaro, science chair at Pueblo High School, at 520-225-4356 or Wilma.Amaro@tusd.k12.az.us Physics and Chemistry Job Openings in Metro Phoenix AZ. Great Hearts Preparatory Academies, Metro Phoenix, Arizona, are known for their outstanding academic results and are Arizona's premier liberal arts academies.  They are looking for teachers in Mathematics (Algebra to Calculus) and Science (Life Science, Earth Science, Biology, Chemistry, and Physics). To apply, please send a résumé (no more than 2 pages) via e-mail as an MS Word document attachment to Dr. Daniel Scoggin at dscoggin@greatheartsaz.org. Please do not call the academies or the Great Hearts office. To learn more about our schools, please visit their website: http://www.greatheartsaz.org, which has links to the websites of all three academies. GateWay Early College High School is looking to hire a short-term science teacher (located on the campus of GateWay Community College, Phoenix) for the remainder of this semester. The position specifics are as follows: Short-Term Secondary Science Teacher at GateWay Early College High School, Phoenix, AZ, 8:00am - 4:00pm. Courses to be taught: Chemistry (one class-mainly upperclassmen); Earth Science (two classes-mainly underclassmen); Weekly, hour-long advisory period; Annual salary of $38,966 - $55,003 prorated for remainder of the school year depending on education level and years of full-time teaching experience.  No benefits for this semester. Certified Secondary Science Teacher Class One Fingerprint clearance card. This position does have the opportunity for a full-time position for the 2006-2007 school year. Interested applicants should fax their resume to Nora Laflin at 602.286.8752, GateWay Early College High School, 602.286.8756 laflin@gatewaycc.edu