Science Connections: The Podcast

To close out the year, we're revisiting some of our favorite moments from the first nine episodes of the Beyond My Years podcast – and looking ahead at some of what's to come in 2025! Listen to Beyond My Years: Subscribe to Beyond My Years on AppleSubscribe to Beyond My Years on SpotifyListen to Beyond My Years via web browser

Hi Science Connections listeners! Here's an episode from Amplify's new podcast, Beyond My Years, that we think you'll like. It features an incredible STEM educator from San Diego, California, named Khamphet Pease. Today on Beyond My Years, host Ana Torres learns all she can learn from the life stories and lessons of Khamphet Pease. As a refugee from Laos, Khamphet shares the difficulty she experienced navigating a home culture that did not encourage education or career ambitions for women. Despite that, she laughs over her stubbornness that she sees as an integral part of what has motivated her to chase her dreams, spend over 20 years as a STEM teacher, and what earned her the presidential award for excellence in mathematics and science teaching. Due to gendered norms and expectations, she almost lost out on the future she truly wanted. Since then, she has made it her mission to champion a learning environment where young girls feel they belong and can thrive in STEM fields. Khamphet takes Ana on a journey through all the lessons she learned along the way of managing work/life balance, creating a classroom culture of trust, and the importance of finding a mentor during the hardest teaching years of your life. Once back in the classroom, Eric Cross and Ana check in on Eric's first two weeks of back-to-school and discuss practical ways to take care of yourself first so you can then take care of your students.Remember to subscribe to Beyond My Years to hear more insights and lessons from people who have thrived over decades in the classroom: seasoned educators. Show notes:Subscribe to Beyond My Years https://amplify.com/beyond-my-yearsConnect with Khamphet Pease on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/phet-pease Connect with Khamphet Pease on X @PhetPeaseWatch: California Teachers Association commercial (short version)Watch: Steve Hartman's On the Road seriesFollow us on Instagram @amplify.education Connect with Ana Torres: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anayansi-ana-torres-m-ed-26a10654/Connect with Eric Cross: https://www.ericcross.org/ Quotes:“This next school year, she told me I'm up at 60 percent girls in my intro to coding classe,. and that's huge! I want to make sure that girls have access and they feel wanted and included and they can see themselves in these fields.” —Khamphet Pease“I remember one class that I had [with only] one female student, and she was just looking around and I could see in her eyes that she just felt like this is not a place for her. She dropped out of that class and after that I was like, no, this is unacceptable.” —Khamphet Pease“We just need more women. More of their voices. They need more seats at the table because if we all hear [only] male voices, then 50 percent of the population isn't going to have their problem solved as easily or as efficiently.” —Khamphet Pease

Check out Amplify's new podcast, Beyond My Years— host and educator Ana Torres seeks out educational insights and hard-won lessons directly from people who have thrived for decades in the classroom: seasoned educators.On this premiere episode, Ana soaks up wisdom from Joyce Abbott, an educator so passionate about her students that she inspired one of them to go on and write the hit show “Abbott Elementary.” Joyce tells all about her experiences working in a Title 1 school and what it means to know the community of Philadelphia. They also discuss how Joyce's time serving in the military informed her work as an educator, how she transformed a challenging classroom during her first year, how it has felt to witness the success of “Abbott Elementary,” and her driving force: passion. At the end, Ana is joined by Classroom Insider Eric Cross to discuss some actionable teaching tips for bringing Joyce's lessons into your classroom.Show notes: Subscribe to Beyond My Years on AppleFollow Beyond My Years on SpotifyWebsite: Beyond My YearsQuotes:“Sometimes your bad days are going to outweigh your good days, but when you see and remain focused and see what your goal is, and you look at those students and say, ‘This is my main focus,' that can be the greatest motivator.” —Joyce Abbott“A lot of times they are dependent upon you to teach them in every aspect of their life. When you understand the community, you can serve.” —Joyce Abbott“Me and my military buddies definitely had respect for each other. And we operated as a team, regardless of our differences, because sometimes you may not agree with every teacher on your team, which many times I did not. But you have to keep your focus toward our mission, [which] is to move a certain child or do this for the student body.” —Joyce Abbott“They know when you care. And they will have a whole different level of respect for you when they know you care. And you set the bar high for them. That shows that you care, because you know that they can do it and you believe in them.” —Joyce Abbott“I think it's so important in the schools that they embrace the younger teachers, because you only get better through learning and through support.” —Joyce Abbott“When you're passionate about a profession and committed to the goal of the whole school, you're going to do what you can to help these new teachers because they have to learn. So many leave because they're encountering so many problems and they don't feel that they're supported effectively.” —Joyce Abbott

Listen to this trailer for our new podcast, Beyond My Years, launching August 14th. Every day headlines tout something “new” in education—the latest research, the hottest tech, the trendiest new hacks for organizing your classroom. However, beyond all the hype there's one underestimated resource that's truly deserving of our attention: educators who've been doing this for years. In this trailer, you'll hear from host and educator Ana Torres as she explains her season-long journey of learning from the experiences and lessons of seasoned educators from around the world. Their stories will make you laugh, make you cry, and—just maybe—change the way you think. Subscribe now so you don't miss a thing.(Not an Apple user? Subscribe here via Buzzsprout.)

Tune in to the finale of Science Connections with elementary educator and recipient of the 2023 Anton Banko Award for Excellence in Teaching Elementary Science, Kate Bala. In this episode, Kate shares teaching tips on how she seamlessly integrates science with other content areas to give students an engaging, phenomena-based learning experience. Listen to hear about Kate's unique teaching style and the helpful tips she offers to make science the superhero of any classroom.To learn more about the resources Kate shares, check out the following:Dive into The Wonder of Science for list of phenomenon for each NGSS grade band.Read Sharing Books, Talking Science, to start integrating literacy into your own science lessons.

Join us as we sit down with doctoral student and 2023 NSTA keynote speaker, Minerva Contreras. Listen as Minerva tells her science story, discusses the benefits of storytelling in science, and shares how diverse representation and inclusion in science opens doors for students.For more from Minerva, check out these resources:Watch the latest episode of Crash Course en Español, BiologíaCheck out the posters Eric's students made that highlight Minerva.Hear more of Minerva's story by tuning into her episode on Story Collider.Keep up to date with Minerva by following her on Instagram and Twitter.Catch Minerva in person at the 2023 NSTA National Conference.

Join us as we continue our discussion on the importance of integrating critical thinking into the science classroom with former teacher and current director of education at the Center for Inquiry, Bertha Vazquez. Listen as Bertha shares her experience with engaging students through identifying pseudoscience, and how developing these skills creates an identifiable impact on the real world.For more from Bertha , check out the following resources:Check out Generation Skeptics to access some of the resources Bertha shared.Learn more about combatting pseudoscience at Science Saves.Find out more about the Teacher Institute for Evolutionary Science.Get your free back-to-school toolkit from Amplify Science.

Join us as we sit down with Melanie Trecek-King, college professor and creator of Thinking is Power, to explore how much of an asset science can truly be in developing the skills students need to navigate the real world. You'll learn about “fooling” students and the importance of developing critical thinking, information literacy, and science literacy in the classroom. We'll also share real strategies and lesson examples that help build these essential skills and engage students in learning.And don't forget to grab your Science Connections study guide to track your learning and find additional resources!

In the latest episode of the Science Connections podcast, we explore using AI in the classroom and its impact on our students.  Listen as I sit down with teachers Donnie Piercey and Jennifer Roberts to discuss ChatGPT and how we can use it to build science and literacy skills in K–12 classrooms while preparing students for the real world. And don't forget to grab your Science Connections study guide to track your learning and find additional resources!

We're continuing our investigations around science and literacy with Doug Fisher, Ph.D., professor and chair of educational leadership at San Diego State University. We talk about the importance of integrating science and literacy, as well as practical guidance for teachers who want to unite the two disciplines in their own classrooms.Listen as we discuss how science and literacy can be powerful allies and specific strategy areas to focus on when integrating the two disciplines. And don't forget to grab your Science Connections study guide to track your learning and find additional resources!

In our second episode of the season, we continue finding ways that science is overlooked and how it can be better utilized in schools—and as an ally to other subjects! We sat down with Dr. Susan Gomez Zwiep, former middle school science teacher and senior science educator and staff advocate at BSCC Science Learning. She shared past experiences and research that shows the benefits of integrating science and literacy, as well as strategies for applying these ideas in the classroom.  Listen now and then explore more from the Science Connections podcast!

It's time for season 3 of the Science Connections podcast! In our first episode, we unpack the research around our season theme of science as the underdog with Horizon Research, Inc. Vice President Eric R. Banilower and  Senior Researcher Courtney Plumley. Eric and Courtney dive into the research they've found and their experiences as former educators to show how science is often overlooked in K–12 classrooms. Listen as we discuss how the science classroom compares to other subjects in terms of time and resources, how schools are a reflection of society, and what's needed to change science and its impact on a larger scale. 

Listen to the last episode in our Winter Wrap-Up! In this conversation from season 1, Eric sits down with Shad Lacefield, 2021 Kentucky Science Teacher of the Year. Shad shares his experience teaching during the first year of the pandemic, which included dressing up in over 100 costumes to create unique and engaging online learning experiences for his students. Shad also explains ways he connects with his students to celebrate student success, as well as large-scale efforts he leads within his school to cultivate the love of learning science content.

While we're hard at work producing the exciting third season of Science Connections: The Podcast, we're continuing to share some of our favorite conversations from our first two seasons. This time we're revisiting a popular episode from season 1: Overcoming adversity in the classroom featuring Joe McCormick, director of engineering at Splitspot.Hear Joe's story about losing his vision at a young age, gaining new support and community, and paying thanks to the educators whose flexibility helped him along his journey to becoming a software engineer.

While we gear up for the next season of Science Connections: The Podcast, we're revisiting some of our favorite conversations from past seasons!In this episode, we join Eric Cross as he sits down with physicist and science education specialist, Desiré Whitmore. Listen in as Desiré explains her work at the Exploratorium, a public learning laboratory. Eric and Desiré discuss finding passion in science, the importance of meeting students we're they're at, and K–8 science instruction with real-life connections. Desiré chats with Eric about her work on supporting the science of teaching science content at the Exploratorium museum.Explore more from Science Connections by visiting our main page.

In this episode, Eric Cross sits down with TikTok star and podcast host Lauran Woolley about her experience teaching science content within her K–5 classroom. Lauran shares how she's learned how to make time for science, and what most K–5 teachers experience when creating their own science curriculum. Lauran also talks about her rise in popularity on TikTok, her podcast, Teachers Off Duty, and establishing strong relationships with her 5th-grade students.Follow Lauran on Tiktok!You can listen and watch the Teachers Off Duty podcast here!

In this episode, Eric Cross sits with K–5 educator, Janis Lodge to chat about building on her own science curriculum to create meaningful project-based learning experiences. Janis shares her work teaching Gifted and Talented Education (GATE), and how to use those practices to help accelerate the learning of all students. Eric and Janis also talk about making time for science within K–5 classrooms. 

In this episode, Eric Cross sits down with his colleague and friend Fabian Hofmann to talk through gamification in the K–8 classroom. They discuss Fabian's experience teaching outside of the United States, and the differences in classrooms outside of the country. Fabian explains how to integrate game mechanisms in the classroom, standard-based grading, and shifting student thinking about learning by forming strong relationships. Fabian also shares how he created a new STEM course at his school revolving around his own passion for Star Wars.Check out the Rebel Teacher Alliance Podcast, hosted by Fabian!Find Fabian on Twitter!

In this episode, Eric Cross sits down with Sharita Ware, Indiana State Teacher of the Year to talk about how to build meaningful student connections. Sharita shares her journey from a corporate career to becoming Indiana's 2022 Teacher of the Year, and her passion for creating project-based lessons for her students.  Together, Eric and Sharita discuss how educators can teach students to love science content by building strong relationships, how to add in other content areas and ways to support students' imagination.Join Science Connections: The Community on Facebook!

In this episode, Eric Cross sits down with veteran educator and former Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) Middle School Science Teacher of the Year, Marilyn Dieppa. Marilyn shares tips for new teachers, ways to inspire students, and how she utilizes her journalism background to develop literacy skills within her science classroom. She also shares her experiences developing a robotics academy, and the VEX IQ World's Competition.Check out VEX Robotics here!Join Science Connections: The Community here!

In this special solo episode, Eric Cross starts the season by sharing his personal journey as an educator, and how the difficulties of the last few years have shaped his mindset going into the upcoming school year. Eric also addresses teacher burnout and what inspires him to continue working as a classroom educator.

In the final episode of the season, Eric sits down with his friend and professional development facilitator, Jessica Kelser. During the episode, Jessica describes her passion for sharing high-quality, empathy-centered professional development for K–12 educators. The conversation also dives into Jessica's experiences teaching in Philadelphia, and how teachers' roles often involve more than just delivering content.Find free professional development with the TGR Foundation!Join Science Connections: The Community on Facebook!

In this episode, Eric sits down with Ricky Mason, CEO of BrainSTEM. Ricky shares his passion for inspiring students into science careers, and his path from an engineering career with organizations like the Department of Defense, NASA, and the CIA to starting BrainSTEM, an education program that develops creative digital tools to enable all teachers and students to dive deeper into STEM content. Ricky and Eric talk about representation in science classrooms and the importance of embedding fun within K–8 science content! Check out BrainSTEM here!Join Science Connections: The Community on Facebook!

In this episode, our host Eric Cross sits down with Miami-based educator, Valeria Rodriguez. Valeria shares her journey of serving in the Peace Corps, working a corporate job, and eventually finding her passion as a middle-school science teacher. Listen in as Valeria explains how sketchnoting, a form of note-taking that utilizes illustrations, encourages student choice and creativity in her classroom. Eric and Valeria discuss the importance of risk-taking within the science classroom, and how their own mistakes can be crucial in modeling resilience for students. Valeria also shares several teachers that have inspired her throughout her career.Check out Valeria here!Download a free poster created by Valeria here!Join Science Connections: The Community on Facebook!

In this episode, Eric sits down with Joe McCormick, director of engineering at SplitSpot. Joe shares his experience of losing his central vision in high school and the transition into college at Harvard. Eric and Joe chat about self-advocacy within the classroom, and scaffolds that worked for Joe as he learned how to navigate the world with his disability. Eric also learns about beep baseball, the adapted national pastime for the blind and visually impaired, and the importance of its community for Joe's journey to becoming an engineer. Lastly, Joe shares about accessibility tools, college acceptance, and how to motivate students to love computer science.Read more about Joe's story here.Join Science Connections: The Community on Facebook!

In this episode, Eric sits down with the Kentucky Science Teacher of the Year, Shad Lacefield. Shad shares his experience teaching during the first year of the pandemic, where Shad dressed up in over 100 costumes to create a unique and engaging online learning experience for his students. Shad also explains ways he connects with his students to celebrate student success, as well as large-scale efforts he leads within his school to cultivate the love of learning science content. Check out Shad on social media! Youtube Channel: Shad LacefieldFacebook: @TheCharacterEducatorInstagram: @slacefield_charactereducator

In this episode, Eric sits down with Aryanna Trejo, a professional learning specialist of Code.org. Aryanna shares her journey from working as an elementary teacher in New York City and Los Angeles to teaching other educators at Code.org. Eric and Aryanna chat about computer literacy within the science classroom, problem-solving skills, and ways to model productive struggle for students. Aryanna also shares ways to teach coding and computer literacy in schools, no matter the classroom's technology level.Check out Science Connections: The Community on Facebook here.Visit Code.org!

In this special episode, our host Eric Cross sits down with veteran middle school teacher Ryan Rudkin. Ryan shares her expertise after almost two decades in the classroom, discussing ways to incorporate aspects of problem-based learning into the K–8 science classroom. Eric and Ryan talk about how to increase parent engagement, involve community members, and add excitement to lessons.Connect with Ryan in our brand-new Facebook community here!Check out March Mammal Madness here!

In this episode, our host Eric Cross discusses the importance of integrating literacy skills into science instruction with Rebecca Abbott, Professional Learning Lead at the Lawerence Hall of Science at UC Berkley. Listen in as Rebecca challenges science educators to weave together vocabulary, background knowledge, and an understanding of language structures to help students make sense of complex science texts. Eric and Rebecca also chat about ways to use literacy in the service of science, and how educators can take the challenges of unfinished learning and use them to accelerate learning. Want to learn more from Rebecca? Attend a webinar with EdWeb!Read about the importance of great professional learning for teachers here.Check out some great resources from the Lawerence Hall of Science! You can read No More Science Kits or Texts in Isolation to lean more on integrating literacy into science instruction.

In this episode, we join Eric Cross as he sits down with physicist and science education specialist, Desiré Whitmore. Listen in as Desiré explains her work at the Exploratorium, a public learning laboratory. Eric and Desiré discuss finding passion in science, the importance of connecting with students, and science instruction with real-life implementations to inspire K—8 students.Quotes:"I think it's really amazing when we can realize as teachers... our job is not just to enforce rules on our students... our job is is to help students achieve more learning."Follow Desiré on Twitter.Learn more about the Exploratorium here!

In this episode, host Eric Cross is joined by supply chain engineer Juan Vivas of SpaceX to explore his "origin story" of moving to the United States to study engineering and become a successful engineer. Juan also shares the experiences that made a difference in his life and his appreciation for the teacher who inspired him along the way. Eric and Juan also discuss Juan's current work on SpaceX Project Starlink, a project to bring Internet access across the globe, as well as what it's like to work in the supply chain during COVID.

Welcome to Science Connections: The Podcast! Science is changing before our eyes, now more than ever. So...how do we help kids figure that out? We will bring on educators, scientists, and more to discuss the importance of high-quality science instruction. In this episode, hear from our host Eric Cross about his work engaging students as a K-8 science teacher.