QUEST 2021

QUEST Registration is now closed

All online programs are free of charge.

QUEST is designed to enhance teachers' knowledge of science and mathematics aligned with the New Jersey Student Learning Standards in Science and Math. Each session is co-taught by content experts, researchers and lead teachers so that participants develop skills to apply science/math content knowledge in their classrooms. QUEST seeks to increase teachers’ enthusiasm, knowledge and confidence in teaching science and math.

1. From Farm to Fork: Analysis of Food Systems for teachers in grades K-12 in all content areas, June 27 - July 2, 2021 online and offline between 9AM and 5PM each day. REGISTRATION CLOSED

Are you interested in outdoor or place-based learning? Do you wonder about the process and journey your food goes through from “farm to fork”? Are you curious about developing relevant learning experiences for your students based on the connections between food, farming, and the New Jersey Student Learning Standards in Science (NGSS)?

Food systems are composed of forces that shape crop and livestock productivity, distribution to the markets and consumers, and consumption. Each component has its own dynamic and each helps shape flows, both in terms of efficiency and waste. For example, throughout food systems the role of waste is present from the field to your refrigerator. Introductory discussions will provide background on the components of the food systems and the links to data collected from Princeton’s experimental farms. Participants will delve into the history of agriculture, problems farmers experience, environmental footprint, nutrition and diet. Teachers will observe the processes that affect farm productivity by engaging in science and engineering practices: asking questions and defining problems, designing investigations, collecting and analyzing data, and communicating scientific thinking. The emerging and/or archived data will be analyzed during QUEST to address individual questions about relevant phenomena or problems that teachers propose. Armed with the underlying concepts and an understanding of how to gather and analyze data, teachers will develop a lesson around a problem or phenomenon that they find interesting for their students to try out in the 2021-22 school year. Teachers and their students will have a deeper understanding and appreciation of challenges that face farmers and the intricate journey of their food from “farm to fork”.

Join us for this summer’s six-day virtual QUEST program from Sunday afternoon the 27th of June through Friday afternoon the 2nd of July 2021 and follow your curiosities through experiential learning. Seminal readings and discussions with Princeton University’s Daniel Rubenstein, the Class of 1877 Professor of Zoology, Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and a member of the Teacher Preparation Program’s advisory council, will introduce the components of the food system, beginning with agricultural production, distribution and marketing, to consumption and waste—that will help you design and carry out investigations in your own backyard, school garden, local farm or using archived data to explain a phenomena or solve a problem you find most relevant. Gina Talt of Princeton’s Sustainability Office, oversees and coordinates all the research taking place on Princeton’s experimental farms and will assist with data gathering. Professor Rubenstein, Dr. Anne Catena, Dr. Jessica Monaghan, Gina Talt, John Henry (NJSBA), and local lead teachers including Helen Corveleyn, and two TPP Alumni Ryan Herbert and Cory Picketts will guide you through the learning process and data collection that will culminate with the presentation of your lesson plan, giving you a chance to apply this learning experience to enhance your own practice.

QUEST 2021 From Farm to Fork Flyer

2. Climate & the Ocean for teachers in grades 3-8, July 6 - 9, 2021, 8:30AM-1PM via Zoom. REGISTRATION CLOSED

The ocean plays many important roles in our climate. The ocean records changes in climate, modifies those changes, and is significantly impacted by climate. We will explore various interactions between the ocean and climate systems.

This is an online program facilitated by Dr. Steve Carson, Princeton Unified Middle School and formerly with the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory and Danielle Schmitt, Princeton University Department of Geosciences, along with Lead Teacher Martha Friend, Princeton Public Schools.

In "The Ocean as a Buffer to Climate Change" video Princeton University Professors Laure Resplandy and Daniel Sigman explain how the ocean absorbs heat and carbon dioxide, providing a buffer against climate change. Researchers are modeling the long-term impacts to marine ecosystems and climate. Our QUEST Summer Institute will include experiments that address interaction of systems, not the specific research highlighted in this video.

QUEST 2021 Climate & the Ocean Flyer

3. Elementary Math: From Anxiety to Mastery for teachers in grades K-5, July 26 - 28, 2021, 9AM-11AM via Zoom. REGISTRATION CLOSED

For elementary students to embrace and excel at math we must spark their engagement, serve different learning styles, and enable the self-pacing that is critical to mastery. K-5 teachers will engage in hands-on math lessons that tackle all three of these goals while reducing math anxiety. The lessons tap neuroscience and behavioral research, and align with NJSLS-Math as the basis for best practices. Strengthen mental math visualization and develop understandings of place value, decomposition and number sense, as you equip yourself with tools to build the confidence of all students.

We recommend that teachers attend with a colleague within their school and across grade levels to build vertical integration concepts and differentiation strategies.

With Laura Overdeck ’91, Founder, Bedtime Math and Shayna Sackett-Gable, Director of Pedagogy, former elementary teacher, curriculum writer, and math coach. “Bring the Fun Factor to Math Class” is co-developed by the Bedtime Math Foundation and Columbia Teachers College.

QUEST 2021 Elementary Math Flyer

ALL QUEST 2021 Programs are FREE of charge. Space is limited and we may not be able to accept all applications. Registration is required no later than May 15th for From Farm to Fork and Climate & the Ocean and June 1st for Elementary Math.

Please contact Dr. Anne Catena or Dr. Jessica Monaghan with questions.