The Nature Museum offers a variety of professional development ranging from content-based graduate credit courses to science inquiry and pedagogy workshops. All workshops are designed to help teachers deepen their science content knowledge and address STEM learning, NGSS, and Common Core Standards.
For questions, please email teacherprograms@naturemuseum.org.
Jump To: Collections | Monarch Butterflies | Reptiles & Amphibians
Creating and Keeping Collections
June 19, 2021
9am-3pm
Program: ENTICE
For more than 160 years the Chicago Academy of Sciences/Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum has been assembling and maintaining a variety of natural history specimens and collections. Learn about the collections of the Museum and why collections are important for both scientific and educational purposes. We will discuss how to build and maintain a collection, guidelines for collecting natural materials and how to use living and preserved collections in the classroom. Participate in numerous hands-on activities and take home many supplemental resources. Educators will be pinning dead invertebrates as part of this workshop. Professional Development Hours are available. Sponsored by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, this workshop is part of the ENTICE (Environment and Nature Training Institute for Conservation Education) program. This workshop is suitable for teachers of all grade levels.
Monarch Club Virtual Educator Workshop
June 24, 2021
3-5pm
Come spend an evening with the Nature Museum and learn more about local pollination ecology, monarch butterfly conservation, and the biology behind this iconic insect! Workshop attendees will learn from experts, explore strategies you can use to connect these topics to youth audiences, and are eligible to apply to be a youth Monarch Club location.
Monarch Club locations receive the following:
Museum support and partnership
- Museum staff works closely with you and your group(s) to support monarch and science-based activities based on your program specific context
- Museum staff presents unique, interactive content to your group(s) through one in-person or live remote learning lesson and one virtual or in-person field trip.
- For groups with in-person summer programming, a 100% bus reimbursement for a field trip to the Nature Museum is available.
Materials
- Educational resources and materials to implement inquiry-based science activities with your group(s).
Community-based collaboration
- Program activities are designed to be inquiry-driven and participant-centered. This hands-on learning approach is designed to involve youth, educators, as well as parents and families to foster community-wide connections to monarchs, science, and the outdoors.
Illinois Reptiles and Amphibians
June 26, 2021
9am-3pm
Program: ENTICE
The slimy and scaly creatures of Illinois will be featured in this workshop for educators of grades prekindergarten through eight. We will learn about their life history and will take a hike to look for reptiles and amphibians. We will provide you with resources and activities. Regulations regarding keeping these animals in the classroom will also be discussed. Teachers of other grade levels are welcome to register for this workshop but may need to adapt the materials for their students, as appropriate. Professional Development Hours are available. Correlations between the information presented and Illinois Early Learning and Development Standards and Next Generation Science Standards will be addressed. This workshop is part of the ENTICE (Environment and Nature Training Institute for Conservation Education) program from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
