It's Time for Science

It's Time for Science and it's time to talk about English Language Development (ELD) and translanguaging! Tom talks with Diana Vélez and Claudio Vargas about ELD in the science classroom and discusses their work on translanguaging. Diana Vélez is a curriculum developer and professional learning provider for the Full Option Science System Project (FOSS K–8) at the Lawrence Hall of Science. She spec...

It's Time for Science, and it's time to talk about science communication! Tom talks with Erin Winick Anthony, science communicator and founder of STEAM Power Media, about what it means to be an effective science communicator, the importance and many components of effectively communicating about STEM/STEAM, her recent time on an ocean mapping expedition aboard the EV Nautilus, and being a competiti...

It's Time for Science, and it's time to talk about going back to school–with a first on It's Time for Science–talking to actual students! Tom talks with teacher Lisa Lacey about embedded assessment, student collaboration, academic vocabulary, and more! AFTER listening to an interview Ms. Lacey conducted with two students–talking about their experiences in the science classroom! Lisa Lacey is curre...

It's Time for Science, and it's time to talk about cross cutting concepts and sense-making discussions! Tom talks with Dr. Samantha Messier and professional learning specialist Leslie Lausten about those deep fundamental ideas that span across all science disciplines and how to facilitate students making sense of the data they collect while engaging with phenomena and cross-cutting concepts.  Dr....

Want to read more about our guests and catch up on the podcast? Visit our new and improved blog: https://www.foss-science.com/category/podcast/ .   It's Time for Science, and it's time to talk about the importance of activating prior knowledge and a multimodal approach to science education through establishing noticing, wondering, and connections routines! Tom talks to Dr. Joel Donna, professor of...

It's Time for Science, and it's time to talk about student-centered learning and successful implementation! Tom talks to science specialists Lynn Gutzwiller and Rachael Coleman from Jordan School District in Utah about how they best support teachers and how they were able to use ELA and technology funds to help fund their science curriculum purchase. Tom then talks with international classroom tea...

It's Time for Science, and it's time to talk again providing access to STEM for all students and technology integration! Tom talks to Dr. Leena Bakshi McLean (founder of STEM4Real, and author of the book "STEM for All: How to Connect, Create, and Cultivate STEM Education for All Learners") and Nicole Czaplicki, a principal in the Upper Dauphin Area School District.     Dr. Leena Bakshi McLean is t...

It's Time for Science, and it's time to talk again fostering safeR hands-on science environments! Tom talks to safety expert Dr. Kenneth R. Roy (Director of Environmental Health & Safety for Glastonbury Public Schools in Connecticut) and 2025 Paul deHart Hurd Award winner Kenneth L. Huff!    Dr. Kenneth R. Roy is currently the Director of Environmental Health & Safety for Glastonbury Public School...

It's Time for Science, and it's time to talk again about implementing elementary science effectively! Tom talks with the team from the Syracuse City School District about what they've done to have such a successful implementation of the FOSS Program. This well-oiled team consists of Science and Technology Director Dr. Dana Corcoran and elementary science instructional coaches Amy MacDonough and As...

It's Time for Science, and it's time to talk again about science learning outdoors! Host Tom Racine talks with Dr. April Holton and educator Elisa Slee about outdoor professional learning and the value of getting both kids and teachers outside. Then Tom talks with Erica Beck Spencer about the history and importance of Taking FOSS Outdoors and weaving outdoor experiences directly into the FOSS curr...

It's Time for Science is back in 2025 to celebrate being FOSS awarded a design review badge by Johns Hopkins University! Host Tom Racine talks with Dr. Steven Ross and Dr. Alan Reid from Johns Hopkins, before having a conversation with FOSS director Linda De Lucchi.   Steven M. Ross, PhD is a professor and Executive Director at the Center for Research and Reform in Education at Johns Hopkins Unive...

Closing out the second season of It's Time for Science, it's time to talk about STEM learning and women in STEM! Host Tom Racine talks with teacher Stacy Gale and science communicator Dr. Alex Dainis!   Stacy Gale is currently a 4th grade teacher and the former STEM specialist at Paul Cuffee School in Providence, RI. Her love of outdoor education began when she was a camp counselor in Lake George,...

This month on It's Time for Science, it's time to talk about ELD (English language development) and science instruction! Host Tom Racine talks with Diana B. Vélez  and Veronica Gallardo.   Diana B. Vélez is a curriculum developer and professional learning provider for the Full Option Science System Project (FOSS K–8) at the Lawrence Hall of Science. She specializes in English language development...

This month on It's Time for Science, it's time to talk about the science of reading! Host Tom Racine talks with Leslie Lausten, M. Ed  and Dr. Jennifer Slavick, Ed. D., authors of the whitepaper FOSS Enhances the Science of Reading Through Knowledge Building.   Get the paper here:  FOSS Enhances the Science of Reading Through Knowledge Building   Leslie Lausten, M.Ed has a rich background in eleme...

This month on It's Time for Science, it's time to talk about Implementation Strategies! Host Tom Racine talks with Nicole Krefting who is the Elementary Curriculum Coordinator for Grand Forks Public Schools in Grand Forks, North Dakota.    Tom and Nicole discuss tips on Implementation strategies and steps needed when implementing a full science curriculum.   They discuss the importance of a profes...

This month on It's Time for Science, it's time to talk about going back to school! Host Tom Racine talks with Dr. Anne Farley Schoeffler, the president of the National Middle Level Science Teachers Association, and award-winning outside educator Rachel Arbor.    Dr. Anne Farley Schoeffler is the currently the president of the National Middle Level Science Teachers Association (NMLSTA), as well as...

This month on It's Time for Science, it's time to talk about summer science at home and nature journaling! Host Tom Racine talks with John Muir Laws, a principal innovator in the global nature journaling movement, and outside educator Erica Beck Spencer.   John Muir Laws  is an award-winning naturalist, artist, scientist, educator, and the author and illustrator of several books including The Laws...

This month on It's Time for Science, we talk with a very special guest about student engagement. Host Tom Racine talks with award winning science communicator, the Hip Hop M.D., Maynard Okereke!   Maynard Okereke, better known as the Hip Hop M.D., graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in Civil Engineering.  He is an award winning Science Communicator, having received both the A...

This month on It's Time for Science, it's time to talk about social and emotional learning (SEL)! Host Tom Racine talks with Dr. Kenneth Wesson, a consultant on the science of education, learning, and the brain, and Ilyse Opas, Independent Educational Consultant specializing in SEL.   Kenneth Wesson is a former higher education faculty member and administrator. He delivers keynote addresses on the...

It's Time for Science Podcast Episode 10   This month on It's Time for Science, it's time to talk about community engagement and citizen scientists! Host Tom Racine talks with Dr. Mwenda KudumuBiggs from the Fleet Science Center and Emma Giles from SciStarter.   Mwenda KudumuBiggs, the Fleet Science Center's Vice President for Community Service and Engagement, fell in love with science while growi...

It's Time for Science Podcast Episode 9   This month on It's Time for Science, it's time for extended learning! Host Tom Racine talks with Dr. Bryan Méndez about the upcoming solar eclipse and Erica Beck Spencer about getting kids outside.   Dr. Bryan Méndez is an astronomer at the University of California, Berkeley. He is the Planetarium Director at the Lawrence Hall of Science, creates education...

Welcome to It's Time for Science! For our first episode of 2024, host Tom Racine continues our conversation on equity in science education! Tom talks with Meagan Sternberg, a K-12 Science Instructional Coach in Oregon, and Channon Jackson, a Program Director at the Alameda County Office of Education.   We end the episode with a few words from Diana B. Vélez, author of this month's insight article,...

This month on It's Time for Science, host Tom Racine talks about equity in science education with Claudio Vargas and Holly Gil.   Claudio Vargas, a Science Education Consultant with a focus on Equity in STEM, works with Sci-Lingual Education and FOSS at the Lawrence Hall of Science. He provides keynote presentations on equity in STEM and professional learning experiences for educators in science,...

It's Time for Science! This episode Tom talks with Leonor Rebosura from Newark Unified School District and Kimberly Astle from the Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. We also remember FOSS co-director, Larry Malone.  Leonor Rebosura, the Director of Teacher Induction at Newark Unified School District in Newark California, talks with us about how to get families involve...

It's Time for Science--outdoors!  At the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) conference in Atlanta (March 2023), host Tom Racine interviewed two amazing educators about the importance of going outside when you teach. Autumn Rivera, the Colorado Teacher of the year, and a Finalist for National Teacher of the Year, talks about the importance of taking kids outside and on day trips to local...