Keynote Address: "Introduction to micro-mechanics"

Prof. Sunil Bhave (Cornell University - Electrical and Computer Engineering)

You can be a Bird Sleuth!
Elementary and Middle School 

In this session, we'll give you a bird's eye view of how you can use your local environment and the birds who live there to engage students in inquiry investigations, citizen science, and content learning.  You'll discover some of our favorite hands-on activities for elementary and middle school students and learn about some of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's exciting resources for science teachers.  

Illuminating Science is a Breeze
Upper Elementary and Middle School

Teach about renewable energy while tapping into your students’ desire for hands-on science. Using inexpensive materials, discover how wind energy can be converted into electrical energy to power a light bulb.

How big is it? Determining the size of objects you can’t see
Upper Elementary and Middle School

Students often find it difficult to relate to scales less than the millimeter. But using a scale sorting activity, student will be able to compare using a known point of reference (the thickness of hair for example) of objects that are measured in micrometers and nanometers.

It’s all in the Genes!
Elementary and Early Middle School

We will talk about basic genetic concepts for elementary and middle school students, including DNA, inheritance, and alleles. One activity that we will do is called “Insect GENEration.” Students build a model insect based upon genetic information provided to them in the lab directions. Gene forms (alleles) contributed by each parent are determined by tossing a coin. Student teams then construct the insect using inexpensive, readily available materials.

Magnetic Messaging
Middle School

Hard drives save the text messages in your phone, the photos on your Facebook account, and the music in your iTunes library. How does your iPod transform the notes of a song into bits of metal? The answer involves tiny nanomagnets, numerical codes, and incredibly precise engineering. Come learn about the secrets of hard drives. You’ll even get the chance to send secret messages encoded in magnets!

Plant Biology Activities for Inquiry-Based and Socially Relevant Science Teaching
Elementary and Middle School

Bring authentic research into your classroom and position students to help overcome the challenges of NYS biofuel production. Students inquire into Switchgrass germination, its relationship to biofuels, then share results with scientists. Classroom materials provided.