PD for teachers

How climate change impacts birds and migration in New Jersey and how students can make a difference.

This workshop will prepare teachers of all subject areas to teach Climate Change Standards that are required in NJ. Through this PD, teachers will get an overview of climate change and the newest research/data that Rutgers has to share for NJ. We will also cover how climate change can affect wildfires in New Jersey though changes to rainfall and how we can address wildfire challenges.

In this session we will look at ways to incorporate ideas from Peter Liljedahl's "Building Thinking Classrooms" for your K-5 class in math.  This session is for teachers with little to no experience or knowledge about "Building Thinking Classrooms" and attendees will come away with ideas for incorporation into their own classes. 

Mastering mathematics is a priority in schools worldwide, yet many districts continue to rely on outdated assessment methods that serve only as a post-mortem review of student knowledge after a unit is completed. The Math Mastery Assessment method addresses this issue with a practical approach inspired by the Standards-Based grading model. This method goes beyond traditional tests; it provides real-time insights into student understanding and informs instruction in a meaningful way.

In this professional development seminar, you will learn how to incorporate the Math Mastery Model into your mathematics classroom. Designed by a teacher leader, the program is tailored to seamlessly integrate into your existing practices without overwhelming your current instructional approach. The session is hands-on, aiming to equip you with a ready-to-use Mastery Test for your next unit. For department heads and school leaders, this model also offers a scalable solution for school or grade-wide implementation. Ideal for grades 5-12, this seminar will help you bring assessment practices in line with modern educational goals.

Greatly overlooked but essential for all aspects of our lives, our local and regional water supply requires consistent assessment of quantity and quality, especially as our changing climate impacts both. Climate change in our region has led to extreme variability in the precipitation, thus impacting our water supply. This data-driven and problem-based workshop will explore engaging instructional resources to challenge students to critically think about their water supply now and into the future. 

An experiential learning experience for K-12 teachers to consider the effects of climate change on the land, water, and air quality. Using engaging activities, we will explore the intersection of human activity and climate change, including the impacts of severe weather events and storm water runoff, the human health effects of air pollution, and how birds and other animals are affected by increasing temperatures and changing habitats.

In this session we will look at how to engage elementary students in fractional reasoning with attention to creating a positive environment around fractions.  We will look at how to introduce fractional concepts with attention to meaning and visuals before procedures, rules, and symbols.  This session will also serve as a great way to brush up on fraction operations and fraction understanding for the elementary school teacher.

Join us for a workshop that brings science and history to life—by kayak! Paddling along the South Branch of the Raritan River, educators will explore the interconnected stories of creatures large and small, from American eels to benthic macroinvertebrates and algae, as well as the lasting impact of dams on aquatic ecosystems. Through hands-on water sampling, species identification, and historical site exploration, teachers will gain practical tools to integrate environmental science, local history, and sustainability into their curriculum. This workshop emphasizes place-based learning and real-world connections to their local watershed.

AI is moving too fast! Just as I think I am beginning to understand, something new comes along…In this session, you will discover the now time-tested and updated tools and ways to keep up.

You will discover how to:

1. make use of AI effectively to improve quality and efficiency of your work
2. know the warning signs of AI to work around
3. share best practices with others

BONUS: after you leave with a wealth of useful new ideas and methods, the presenter will continue sharing a “latest and greatest” document, with simple explanations for quick reference. Sign up now, and get ready for a productive and exciting day!

CMSCE is excited to be a certified Professional Learning Provider for OpenSciEd. We will be offering a 2-day OpenSciEd launch workshop virtually. Teachers will be provided with unit-specific content and pedagogy required to teach the award-winning curriculum effectively. The Middle School & High School workshop will take place October 7th & 8th. The workshop will take place virtually from 11:00 pm - 4:00 pm EST.

We will cover basic concepts, definitions and known and potential impacts on human/public health of climate change including extreme weather events and natural disasters. We will include two major interactive activities, with handouts and Mentimeter polling, both of which teachers could use or modify for use with minors and adults (students and other teachers and staff or even parents) at their districts/schools. Topics include sustainability, climate change and energy/water efficiency and conservation plus the connections among these topics and with human health at individual and community level.

Design thinking is a way of thinking (philosophy, mindset) and working, as well as a collection of hands-on methods. Design Thinking is not an exclusive property of designers—all great innovators in literature, art, music, science, engineering, and business have practiced it. Whether you work in business, government, education, or nonprofit, design thinking can help you develop innovative solutions based on the needs of your customers and students. In this workshop you will learn about design thinking skills, habits of mind, ways of thinking, being reflective about how we think, and common language for design thinking in STEAM. You will be immersed in hands-on-minds-on activities that will help you unlock your creative potential. The workshop will cover  Engineering Habits of Mind, Brainstorming, Engineering Notebooks, Sketching and Drawing, Assessing PBLs.

This workshop empowers middle school educators to integrate climate change education into social studies by connecting historical lessons from ancient civilizations to contemporary environmental challenges. Through examples and workshop discussions, participants will collaborate with facilitators and each other to identify strategies, resources, and interdisciplinary approaches that foster critical thinking about sustainability, resilience, and the human-environment connection. Attendees will be equipped to inspire students to draw meaningful parallels between historical events and our shared responsibility for a sustainable future. 

An experiential learning experience for K-12 teachers to consider the effects of climate change on the land, water, and air quality. Using engaging activities, we will explore the intersection of human activity and climate change, including the impacts of severe weather events and storm water runoff, the human health effects of air pollution, and how birds and other animals are affected by increasing temperatures and changing habitats.

This session will explore current career and college math skills necessary for success, with a heavy emphasis on data analysis and statistics.  It will focus on integrating data analysis into Algebra 1 and Algebra 2 classes to fit with the curriculum.  The session will focus on project-based learning in this context, and connecting the data analysis and statistics to the content in class, including linear, quadratic, and exponential regression, normal curves, spreadsheet skills, sampling, and experiments/observations.

This one-day intensive is designed for science and humanities educators ready to reimagine classroom engagement. Participants will learn how to structure lessons that move beyond passive learning and into inquiry, discussion, and authentic exploration of content. Using hands-on experiences, we’ll unpack strategies that foster curiosity, keep students in the “flow” of productive struggle, and maximize the ratio of student-to-teacher work in every period. 

Young people are among the more vulnerable groups to the impacts of climate change. Even those students who have not been directly affected by climate change may struggle emotionally when learning about climate change and its impacts. In this workshop we draw on the healing justice framework with its emphasis on self-expression through art and storytelling. We will focus on strategies, in particular movement-based approaches, for creating learning environments that center care and support students in finding the power and joy to fight climate change

A Standards-Aligned Approach to Integrating Informational Text in Language Arts, Science, and Social Studies (K-5)

In this session we will look at ways to incorporate ideas from Peter Liljedahl's "Building Thinking Classrooms" for your grade 6-12 math class.  This session is for teachers with little to no experience or knowledge about "Building Thinking Classrooms" and attendees will come away with ideas for incorporation into their own classes. 

We will cover basic concepts, definitions and known and potential impacts on human/public health of climate change including extreme weather events and natural disasters. We will include two major interactive activities, with handouts and Mentimeter polling, both of which teachers could use or modify for use with minors and adults (students and other teachers and staff or even parents) at their districts/schools. Topics include sustainability, climate change and energy/water efficiency and conservation plus the connections among these topics and with human health at individual and community level.

 Design thinking is a way of thinking (philosophy, mindset) and working, as well as a collection of hands-on methods. Design Thinking is not an exclusive property of designers—all great innovators in literature, art, music, science, engineering, and business have practiced it. Whether you work in business, government, education, or nonprofit, design thinking can help you develop innovative solutions based on the needs of your customers and students. In this workshop you will learn about design thinking skills, habits of mind, ways of thinking, being reflective about how we think, and common language for design thinking in STEAM. You will be immersed in hands-on-minds-on activities that will help you unlock your creative potential. The workshop will cover  Engineering Habits of Mind, Brainstorming, Engineering Notebooks, Sketching and Drawing, Assessing PBLs.

This session will explore integrating productive struggle into math in grades 3-8.  We will engage in content tasks, discuss features of effective implementation of productive struggle tasks, and discuss what works in an ideal math class incorporating productive struggle in learning.  Attendees will learn about the value of integrating productive struggle into their lessons and the effective placement of these tasks within a lesson.  Takeaways will include activities and tasks that can be used in the classroom.

In this one-day intensive, math educators will dive into the practical moves that transform classrooms into spaces where students do the thinking. Through engaging tasks and live modeling, participants will explore structures that maximize student work time, strengthen collaboration, and build productive struggle into every lesson. Teachers will experience what it feels like to step back while students step up—discovering how to increase the minutes of meaningful math each day. By the end of the day, you’ll walk away with routines, strategies, and ready-to-use tools that shift your classroom from teacher-driven to student-powered.

CMSCE is excited to be a certified Professional Learning Provider for OpenSciEd. We will be offering a 2-day OpenSciEd launch workshop in-person. Teachers will be provided with unit-specific content and pedagogy required to teach the award-winning curriculum effectively. The Middle School & High School workshop will take place December 3rd & 4th. The workshop will take place at Rutgers from 9:00 am - 3:00 pm EST.

This session will explore integrating productive struggle into Algebra 1, Algebra 2, and Pre-calculus classes through open-ended collaborative tasks.  Attendees will learn about the value of integrating productive struggle into their lessons and the effective placement of these tasks within a lesson.  Takeaways will include activities and tasks that can be used in the classroom.

In this session we will look at how to engage elementary students in fractional reasoning with attention to creating a positive environment around fractions.  We will look at how to introduce fractional concepts with attention to meaning and visuals before procedures, rules, and symbols.  This session will also serve as a great way to brush up on fraction operations and fraction understanding for the elementary school teacher.

Student safety is a primary concern for teachers as schools race to incorporate more hands-on projects across the curriculum, K-12, in response to standards requirements including NJ’s Design Thinking Standard (NJSLS 8.2) and the addition of Engineering to Earth/Space, Life and Physical Science (NGSS).  Additionally, "makerspaces" of varying shapes and sizes are quickly being adopted as a regular part of programming.  Whether you are an elementary teacher using hot glue guns with students for the first time, or you are a secondary teacher tasked with developing a safety/emergency plan for a new STEM course or robotics club, you want to ensure that you are following best practices for safety pedagogy and putting the necessary systems in place to protect you and your students. Personal Safety, Emergency/Lab Safety, and specific Tool/Machine Safety will be addressed in terms of curriculum, instruction and assessment, including demonstration lessons; and all participants will leave with a shared folder of turn-key resources that can be used in the classroom (e.g., safety contracts, sample assessments, and equipment lists)

This professional development session is designed for K–5 administrators, supervisors, instructional coaches, and science leaders to gain a comprehensive overview of the Newly Released OpenSciEd Elementary Science Units. Participants will explore how these research-based, phenomenon-driven units align with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and support three-dimensional teaching and learning in the elementary classroom. 

The session will highlight the structure of the units, key instructional routines, and the ways in which they foster sensemaking, equity, and student engagement in science. Leaders will leave with a clear understanding of the instructional shifts required, strategies for supporting teachers in implementation, and resources for planning professional learning in their own schools or districts.

A Standards-Aligned Approach to Integrating Informational Text in Language Arts, Science, and Social Studies (6-12)

This professional development session is designed for K–5 administrators, supervisors, instructional coaches, and science leaders to gain a comprehensive overview of the Newly Released OpenSciEd Elementary Science Units. Participants will explore how these research-based, phenomenon-driven units align with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and support three-dimensional teaching and learning in the elementary classroom. 

The session will highlight the structure of the units, key instructional routines, and the ways in which they foster sensemaking, equity, and student engagement in science. Leaders will leave with a clear understanding of the instructional shifts required, strategies for supporting teachers in implementation, and resources for planning professional learning in their own schools or districts.

This session will explore integrating productive struggle into Algebra 1, Algebra 2, and Pre-calculus classes through open-ended collaborative tasks.  Attendees will learn about the value of integrating productive struggle into their lessons and the effective placement of these tasks within a lesson.  Takeaways will include activities and tasks that can be used in the classroom.

Student safety is a primary concern for teachers as schools race to incorporate more hands-on projects across the curriculum, K-12, in response to standards requirements including NJ’s Design Thinking Standard (NJSLS 8.2) and the addition of Engineering to Earth/Space, Life and Physical Science (NGSS).  Additionally, "makerspaces" of varying shapes and sizes are quickly being adopted as a regular part of programming.  Whether you are an elementary teacher using hot glue guns with students for the first time, or you are a secondary teacher tasked with developing a safety/emergency plan for a new STEM course or robotics club, you want to ensure that you are following best practices for safety pedagogy and putting the necessary systems in place to protect you and your students. Personal Safety, Emergency/Lab Safety, and specific Tool/Machine Safety will be addressed in terms of curriculum, instruction and assessment, including demonstration lessons; and all participants will leave with a shared folder of turn-key resources that can be used in the classroom (e.g., safety contracts, sample assessments, and equipment lists)

A cross-disciplinary approach to deepen understanding of real-world issues, like climate change, through informational text, while meeting literacy standards in science, social studies, and language arts.

This two-part intensive will immerse math educators in practical strategies to transform classrooms into spaces where students do the heavy lifting of learning. Participants will explore how to design lessons that spark curiosity, maximize student work time, and encourage productive struggle—so students stay engaged, focused, and invested. Through hands-on activities, teachers will experience what it feels like to “lose track of time” in meaningful problem solving and will leave with ready-to-use routines that shift the balance from teacher talk to student thinking. Expect to walk away with concrete moves that revolutionize your classroom culture and immediately boost engagement in mathematics.  

This two-day intensive adapts the principles of “building thinking classrooms” for science and the humanities. Educators will learn how to design inquiry-rich lessons where students are the primary readers, writers, experimenters, and makers of meaning. With strategies that maximize student work minutes, build productive struggle, and create conditions for flow, participants will leave with practical routines that shift the focus from teacher talk to student engagement.The result: classrooms where curiosity, collaboration, and authentic thinking drive learning.   

We will cover basic concepts, definitions and known and potential impacts of environmental and social injustices on human/public health in the context of recent extreme weather events and natural disasters connected to climate change. We will include 3-4 interactive activities, using brief 1-2 pages fact sheets/supplemental readings and videos/movie trailers (~3-7 minutes long each) plus Mentimeter polling/word clouds, which teachers could use or modify for use with minors and adults (students and other teachers and staff or even parents) at their districts/schools. Topics will cover a brief history of EJ in the U.S. early 1980s-2020s; issues with quality of air, water, soil/sediment, and the location and clean-up status of Superfund or abandoned hazardous waste sites (State of NJ has most among U.S. states).

How climate change impacts birds and migration in New Jersey and how students can make a difference.