This document provides an overview of a presentation about aligning science, math, and literacy practices and themes. The presentation discusses the challenges of limited resources in the classroom and opportunities for authentic interdisciplinary learning. It introduces the math and science practices and compares them to literacy capacities. The presentation encourages finding ways for these practices to inform instruction and provide coherence across subjects.

1. 
Where Practices COLLIDE
Introduction to Science, Math,
Literacy Practices and Themes
An Overview of Development, Research, and Outcomes
Sarah Young
K-12 STEM Liaison
Utah State Office of Education
STEM Action Center with the Governor’s Office of Economic Development

2. Agenda
 What are we currently doing in the classroom?
 What are the challenges?
 What opportunities exist for authentic STEM learning?
 Questions, Answers, and Additional Resources

3. Introductions
 Sarah Young, K-12 STEM Liaison, Utah State Office of
Education and STEM Action Center
 Role designed to support STEM education and projects in Utah
 Work with licensing, designing community resources, and STEM
Schools Designation for Utah
 sarah.young@schools.utah.gov or
sarahyoung@utah.gov

4. Disclaimer
 There are MANY items that we will touch upon that really
require additional investigation and discussion, but for the
sake of time we will not engage in that today.
 I speak fast, but I love questions.

5. What is the role of standards in
education?
 Talk with your colleagues about your thoughts on why we have
standards in education? Be prepared to share reasons at the
conclusion of the discussion.
 You have 120 seconds… yes, I’m serious.
 Ideas?
 Educational standards help teachers ensure their students
have the skills and knowledge they need to be successful by
providing clear goals for student learning.

6. What is your best lesson?
 Take 5 minutes to share your BEST lesson with the
individual next to you.
 Make sure you identify the standard/practice that is the goal
of your lesson.

7. Limited Resources
TIME

8. What opportunities exist for
authentic connections for
interdisciplinary learning?
 We need to find ways to get the best “bang for your buck”.
 However, it needs to be authentic and aligned with your
goals.
 Content can be challenging… but critical thinking skills are
the SAME across content.

9. MATH PRACTICES
 M1. Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them.
 M2. Reason abstractly and quantitatively.
 M3. Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others.
 M4. Model with mathematics.
 M5. Use appropriate tools strategically.
 M6. Attend to precision.
 M7. Look for and make use of structure.
 M8. Look for and express regularity in repeated

10. NEW Utah Science Standards
 The UT SEEd Standards – Science with Engineering
Education Standards
 These are still being developed… so guess what??? They
build on ELA and mathematics standards in Utah.
 Quick overview of ideas.

11. Three Dimensions of Science
Learning:
For both
SCIENCE and
ENGINEERING.
(PRACTICES not
skills.)
This represents for
knowledge from
Life Science, Earth
and Space Science,
and Physical Science.
These are the themes
that exist across all
science disciplines.
This is not currently
explicitly articulated
in our standards.

12. Science Performances
• Engaging Students in Science and
Engineering Practices
• Using Core Ideas as evidence in Science
Performances
• Clearly Defined and Meaningful Use
of Crosscutting Concepts

13. Change of approach
Isolated Science
Instruction
Bundling Science
Instruction

14. Science & Engineering
Practices
1- Asking questions or defining problems
2- Developing & using models
3- Planning & carrying out investigations
4- Analyzing and interpreting data
5- Using mathematics & computational thinking
6- Constructing explanations
7- Engaging in argument from evidence
8- Obtaining, evaluating, & communicating
information

15. Wait… Where is LITERACY?
 Right, what happened with literacy???
 Literacy has many of the same “practices” but they are
defined as student capacities.
 So what does that lens look like?

18. How does this help inform
instruction?
 #1 WHERE DO YOU GET THE MOST BANG FOR
YOUR BUCK???
 #2 Guiding authentic interdisciplinary instruction.
 #3 USING THE SAME VOCABULARY FOR KIDS
 Start building a framework for coherence.

19. What is your best lesson?
 What suggestions to do you have for incorporating practices
into your instruction?
 Take 5 minutes to discuss the inclusion of practices into
your BEST lesson with the individual next to you.

20. Questions and Comments
 If you have questions that come up later DO NOT HESITATE to
use my email to ask.
 Thank you for doing great work with our students, and this process
and new standards will give you a platform for goals that address
concerns and provide more clarity.
 sarah.young@schools.utah.gov or
sarahyoung@utah.gov