******* January, 2017 *******
The Chemistry of Agriculture, Gardening, and… Art
Presented by the USAFA Chemistry Department
Saturday, Jan. 28, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
United States Air Force Academy – U.S. Air Force Academy, CO 80840
Guest Presenter: Ron Furstenau
After an overview of the topic, we will perform two labs:
- Extraction and Identification of Caffeine from Tea Bags. This lab involves classic extraction techniques and modern methods for separation and identification.
- Detection of Micronutrients in Mushrooms or Spinach. This experiment involves the very modern technique of Inductively Coupled Plasma/Mass Spectrometry, capable of detecting metals in the parts per trillion range!!!
There will be a working lunchtime presentation on the Chemistry of Pesticides.
Please be assured that you do not have to have a chemistry background to enjoy and benefit from this workshop.
As always, Hub Workshops are free to science teachers, and credit is available. Additionally, we provide door prizes and great teacher resources.
It is imperative for you to RSVP for this workshop; we are required to submit a list of participant names to the AFA in advance. Please contact Tammy Johnnie to RSVP.
We will meet at 9 AM on the south steps of the Cadet Field House, and promptly at 9:15 we will be escorted to the Chemistry Conference room. Participants may not arrive late or leave early, because everyone must be escorted to enter and depart from the campus.
Refreshments will be served, but please bring your own lunch.
******* February 2017 *******
Science vs. Pseudoscience
Link to resources shared @Feb Hub – Google Drive Folder
Wednesday, Feb. 15, 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Discovery Canyon Campus – 1810 North Gate Blvd, Colorado Springs, CO 80921
Guest Presenter: Terry Bramschreiber
When students are bombarded by pseudoscientific ideas in the media, where do they draw the line between real science and nonsense? Learn how to teach the nature of science through hands-on activities and to encourage critical thinking as students pit claims against scientific scrutiny. Your students will love these activities which are appropriate for any science class.
******* March 2017 *******
Insects & Evolution: How can you use insects to advance science learning?
Link to resources shared @March Hub – Google Drive Folder
Thursday, March 9, 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Cheyenne Mountain Junior High – 1200 W Cheyenne Rd, Colorado Springs, CO 80906
Guest Presenter: Sam Johnson, Entomologist and Retired Educator
From Apple Maggots to Zebra Caterpillars, join us for a tour of insects and how they can be used to advance science learning in YOUR classroom! Sam Johnson, a local entomologist and former middle school teacher, will share classroom activities and biological studies vetted in his own classroom. By the end of this workshop, educators will be able to teach others about the orders of insects and lead students in one or more biological studies of insects including: Insect Diversity – Observing form and inferring function; Community Similarity Indices – Collecting insects in the field and quantifying the similarities between sites; Biodiversity Estimation – Using field collections to estimate # of species; and Population Size Estimation – Two methods of field sampling to estimate total population in an area.
******* April 2017 *******
SeCO Science Symposium – Best Practices in Science Education
Link to ECLIPSE resources shared @April lunch session – Google Drive Folder
Saturday, April 8, 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Pueblo West High School – 661 W Capistrano Ave, Pueblo, CO 81007
******* May 2017 *******
A Trip to Chico Basin Ranch: bird banding, prairie ecology, and ranching
Saturday, May 6, 8:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Click here for flyer: PALSFlyer_May_2017
Meet no later than 7:40 a.m. at: Cheyenne Mountain Junior High – 1200 W Cheyenne Rd, Colorado Springs, CO 80906
*We will travel by bus to Chico Basin Ranch (http://www.chicobasinranch.com/)
Please meet the bus at CMJH by 7:40 am so that you can be settled into the bus and ready for departure promptly at 8:00 am. The restrooms will be open at Cheyenne Mountain Junior High prior to departure.
In order to offer .5 credit from Colorado School of Mines or 7.5 hours of increment credit, we have to have 7.5 hours of instruction, bus riding time normally does not count.
To make the field trip more productive and compact, Becca Fruct from Chico Basin will be driving to Colorado Springs and riding the bus with us so that she can talk to us on the bus as part of the instructional time. We will also have a working lunch, and finally we are asking everyone to look at the following 2 websites before the trip.
http://ranchlandsreview.com/
http://ranchlandsreview.com/
This will take about 15 minutes and they provide good background on the philosophy behind the operations at Chico Basin.
Please remember to bring water and a lunch, clothing appropriate for a day in the field and your science notebook. If this is your first Science Hub Meeting of this school year, you will be provided with a composition book.
We will have an assortment of snacks and beverages available on the bus.
This is the final Science Hub Meeting of this school year and time to think about credit. If you want Colorado School of Mines Credit, the simplest thing would be to bring your check book and take care of the paperwork on the bus. You can also work with Sandy Smith by e-mail and snail mail to get credit application information and a check to her after the field trip.
Chico Basin Ranch is an 87,000-acre family-run, working cattle ranch that operates on the high prairie 30 miles southeast of Colorado Springs, Colorado. Its sprawling ranges of shortgrass and sandsage prairie, spring-fed lakes, creeks, and pools are home to diverse populations of birds, pronghorn, deer, fish, prairie dogs, coyote, badgers, and much more. Chico Basin is dedicated to the enhancement and preservation of the natural world and western heritage. Chico Basin educational programs focus on nature, grazing, local history, ecology, biology, ranching practices, business development, and our management model. The Chico’s abundant springs, creeks, lakes, and other habitat provide refuge for hundreds of species of migratory birds. Each spring and fall, the ranch maintains a bird banding station in partnership with the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory. The current list of bird species sighted on the ranch numbers over 330. The program today will focus on bird banding, ecology, and ranching.