Professional Development

Explore CESTEM's hands-on and engaging STEM Education Professional Development Opportunities.

Hands-on workshops
PK-12 STEM Education Conference
Informal Training & One-on-One Consultations
Sandbox Sessions
Design Your Own PD
Team Meeting Space

Want to be notified of upcoming PD opportunities?

CESTEM Tour: Discover the Resources

New to CESTEM? Come for a tour and discover the resources. Browse the CESTEM storeroom and try out the technology that is of interest to you. Get inspired to engage your students in STEM activities that align with your curriculum.

Grades: K-12
Date: Monday, July 8
Time: 2-4 pm
Location: CESTEM
Fee: FREE
Register by July 6: bit.ly/cestem001-27

Simple Machines ft. Pepper Hill

Work = Force × Distance! Explore hands-on strategies that help students understand how simple machines, including the wheel and axle, lever, inclined plane, wedge, and screw, make work easier. Discover real-world applications of simple machines and explore resources from CESTEM's Technology Loan Program that can help bring these concepts to life in your classroom.

Grades: K-8
Date: Tuesday, July 14
Time: 9 am - 12 pm
Location: Sayed Hall
Credit: 0.3 CEUs
Fee: $15.00
Register by July 12: bit.ly/cestem002-27

Creating Code to Learn Activities Aligned to Your Curriculum

Learn how to use the Sphero BOLT+ to model science concepts such as the water cycle, rock cycle, human body systems, and more. In this hands-on workshop, participants will explore Code to Learn activities and begin developing curriculum-aligned activities of their own. Bring your lunch and stay for the afternoon design session.

Grades: 3-12
Date: Thursday, July 16
Time: 9 am - 3:30 pm
Location: Sayed Hall
Credit: 0.3 CEUs
Fee: FREE, supported by Friends of UNCW
Register by July 14: bit.ly/cestem003-27

Project-Based Learning Workshop ft. Manley Midgett

NCSLA is partnering with the Center of Excellence for Research, Teaching, and Learning (CERTL) at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine and CSTEM at UNC-Wilmington to offer a three-day workshop for Problem-Based Learning in the Science Classroom.All materials will be furnished and teachers who complete the workshop will receive free lifetime access to the repository of Problem Based Learning activities for their classroom use. Two units of teacher renewal credit will be possible.

Grades: K-12
Dates: Monday through Wednesday, 7/20-7/22
Time: 9 am - 3 pm each day
Location: Sayed Hall
Credit: Up to 2.0 CEUs
Fee: $25 for NCSLA members, $75 for non-members
Registration Link: www.ncsla.net/pbl

Micro:bits and Beyond!

Discover the micro:bit, a pocket-sized microcontroller designed to make coding and STEM learning fun. This hands-on workshop introduces coding through MakeCode blocks and provides opportunities to program the micro:bit with technologies such as the Finch 2.0 robot and Forward Education's Climate Action Kit. Participants will leave with practical ideas and activities for integrating these tools into their classrooms.

Grades: K-12
Date: Thursday, July 30
Time: 1 - 4 pm
Location: CESTEM
Credit: 0.3 CEUs
Fee: $15.00
Register by July 28: bit.ly/cestem005-27

Building with Purpose: Engineering Design in Action

Explore ways to integrate the Engineering Design Process using Keva Planks and the Chomp Saw. In this hands-on workshop, participants will engage in design challenges while exploring safe, age-appropriate tool use. Collaborate through the imagining, creating, and testing stages of engineering design and discover strategies for aligning these activities with curricular standards. Participants will leave with lesson ideas that connect creative problem-solving with scientific inquiry.

Grades: K-5
Date: Wednesday, August 5
Time: 1 - 4 pm
Location: CESTEM
Credit: 0.3 CEUs
Fee: $15.00
Register by August 3: bit.ly/cestem006-27

Science Notebooking ft. Manley Midgett

Discover how Science Notebooks can support student learning, scientific thinking, and formative assessment. Participants will explore strategies for encouraging student writing, providing meaningful feedback, and using notebook entries to assess understanding and promote science content knowledge. Bring your lunch; CESTEM will provide drinks and snacks.

Grades: 3-8
Date: Wednesday, August 5
Time: 9 am - 2:30 pm
Location: Sayed Hall
Credit: 0.5 CEUs
Fee: $20.00
Register by August 4: bit.ly/cestem007-27

From Concrete to Abstract: Using Manipulatives in Grades 6–12 Math ft. Shelby Morge

Explore the use of manipulatives in grades 6–12 mathematics. Teachers will investigate tools such as algebra tiles and geoboards and think about how to connect them to specific concepts and standards. The session includes hands-on activities, reflection on implementation challenges, and time to plan for integration.

Grades: 6-12
Date: Tuesday, August 11
Time: 1 - 4 pm
Location: CESTEM
Credit: 0.3 CEUs
Fee: $15.00
Register by August 9: bit.ly/cestem008-27

Starlab Planetarium System

Learn to operate CESTEM's Starlab Planetarium System, including setup, projector operation, and use of the projection cylinders. Completion of this training is required to borrow the Starlab from CESTEM.

Grades: K-12
Date: Thursday, September 15
Time: 5 - 8 pm
Location: Sayed Hall
Credit: 0.3 CEUs
Fee: $15.00
Register by August 9: bit.ly/cestem009-27

SeaPerch New Coaches Workshop

Participants will work together to build a SeaPerch ROV from start to finish, just as they will with their student teams. While supplies last, schools new to SeaPerch whose representative completes the training will receive one ROV kit to use with their team (limit one kit per school).

Grades: 6-12
Date: Friday and Saturday, 9/18 & 9/19
Time: 5:30 - 8:30 pm (f); 8:30 am - 1 pm (s)
Location: CESTEM
Credit: 1.0 CEUs
Fee: FREE
Register by August 9: bit.ly/cestem010-27

Creating Curriculum-Aligned Games with CESTEM's Jeopardy System

Learn to create and customize Jeopardy-style games using CESTEM's Jeopardy System. Participants will build curriculum-aligned review games, explore applications such as Family STEM Nights, and learn to set up, operate, and export games for use with the system's clickers and scoreboard.

Grades: K-12
Date: Friday and Saturday, 9/18 & 9/19
Time: 5 - 8 pm
Location: CESTEM
Credit: 0.3 CEUs
Fee: FREE
Register by August 9: bit.ly/cestem011-27

Complimentary Registration for WCE Faculty, Staff & Students

Sandbox Sessions

CESTEM Sandbox Sessions

Schedule a CESTEM Sandbox Sessions to get acquainted with the items in CESTEM's Technology Loan Program. We can accommodate a group of 8-12 teachers from your school for a 3-hour session of learning and fun.

Participants will:

Tour the CESTEM storeroom.
Pull some items of interest off the shelf and learn to use them.
Explore connections to curriculum standards.

If you would like to integrate more technology into your instruction, this session will allow you to see what is available to borrow for free.

Contact Michelle Hafey at hafeym@uncw.edu for more information about scheduling a CESTEM Sandbox Session.

Design Your Own PD

Design Your Own PD!

Let CESTEM help you design a Team Based Workshop. Here is your chance to participate in a session that is relevant for you and your entire team.

Do you want to learn how to operate a specific technology offered through CESTEM's Technology Loan Program?
Do you want to explore ways to integrate more student-centered activities?
Do you want to develop connections with your team as you work through STEM Challenges?

Contact Michelle Hafey (hafeym@uncw.edu) for more details about this unique workshop opportunity.

Team Meeting Space

Consider Having Your Team Meeting at CESTEM!

As you begin the school year, consider spending a few hours at CESTEM while you start planning activities for the new year.

Take time to browse the Technology Loan Program inventory, try out some of the devices you plan to use, ask questions about technology integration, and reserve items early.

For more details or to secure a meeting time, contact Michelle Hafey at hafeym@uncw.edu.