Teachers' Summer STEAM Retreat 2025
Teachers' Summer STEAM Retreat 2024
Our ABC CREATE Teachers' Summer STEAM Retreat 2024 is open to ALL teachers – ABC CREATE districts and others, any grade level – any subject area.
Join us as we...
Opportunities to work with colleagues to share ideas and resources, plan and design classroom lessons and activities, and explore relevant STEAM teaching resources. Peer-to-peer guidance and support aimed at increasing confidence and inspiring teaching. Wonderful for networking and becoming a part of a supportive, collaborative learning community.
Join us as we...
- learn practical strategies for collecting, analyzing, and displaying data across a variety of subject areas and grade-levels
- discover the power of the BBC micro:bit as a data collection tool
- explore tools and materials for implementing data visualization and STEAM integration
- take a closer look at data as it relates to all strands of the STEELS standards
- learn about upcoming CodeJoy PD offerings and more!
Opportunities to work with colleagues to share ideas and resources, plan and design classroom lessons and activities, and explore relevant STEAM teaching resources. Peer-to-peer guidance and support aimed at increasing confidence and inspiring teaching. Wonderful for networking and becoming a part of a supportive, collaborative learning community.
A special thanks to the ABC CREATE educators who helped design and facilitate this year's retreat:
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TUESDAY August 6th, 8:30AM - 2:30PM Location: Penn State New Kensington, 3550 7th Street Road, 15068 FREE. Act 48 eligible. Lite morning refreshments and lunch provided.
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PAST TEACHERS' SUMMER RETREATS
Teachers' Summer STEAM Retreat 2023
Come together with the ABC CREATE community to collaboratively refresh and re-imagine your teaching practices as you look ahead to the 2023-24 school year. With the premise that “technology is a tool for solving problems”, we will explore a variety of educational technologies and also interrogate our use of educational technology as a tool for supporting learners in the development of future-ready skills.
This 3-day (4 hours each day) in-person PD experience is FREE and ACT 48 eligible. We will also provide lunch.
Open to K-12 educators from any grade level – any subject area - any experience level. Space is limited to 40 participants with priority given to ABC CREATE partner districts through July 17, 2023.
Designed by educators for educators with an emphasis on engaging with peers, exploring other perspectives, and enriching your teaching practices - focusing on STEAM integration/future-ready skills.
This 3-day (4 hours each day) in-person PD experience is FREE and ACT 48 eligible. We will also provide lunch.
Open to K-12 educators from any grade level – any subject area - any experience level. Space is limited to 40 participants with priority given to ABC CREATE partner districts through July 17, 2023.
Designed by educators for educators with an emphasis on engaging with peers, exploring other perspectives, and enriching your teaching practices - focusing on STEAM integration/future-ready skills.
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MONDAY August 7th, 8:30AM - 12:30PM Location: Penn State New Kensington 3550 7th Street Rd, 15068 Investigate & Contemplate: How do we best use technologies in the classroom?
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TUESDAY August 8th, 8:30AM - 12:30PM Digital Foundry 851 5th Avenue, New Kensington, PA 15068 Interact & Explore: A mix of hands-on and thoughtful consideration.
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WEDNESDAY August 9th, 8:30AM - 12:30PM
Penn State New Kensington 3550 7th Street Rd, New Kensington, PA 15068 Rewire & Integrate: TIME designed for tapping into expertise, resources, and support from within ABC CREATE and for YOU to focus on planning your teaching practice for 2023-24.
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TEACHERS' SUMMER STEAM RETREAT 2022:
Peer, Perspective, and Practice
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MONDAY August 1st, 8:30AM - 12:30PM
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Jordan Mroziak
Senior Community Engagement Specialist, Center for Shared Prosperity, Carnegie Mellon University |
PANEL DISCUSSION:
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Katie Henry, M.Ed
Head of Partnerships, North America Micro:bit Educational Foundation |
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Dr. Demetrius Roberts
Special Consultant to PDE for STEM and Computer Science & IES Assistant Division Director for Teaching and Learning |
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Hakan Satiroglu
Founder - General Manager, XR Terra Vice President - Strategy, The Glimpse Group |
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WEDNESDAY August 3rd, 8:30AM - 12:30PM
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Rachelle Dené Poth, JD, MSEd
Spanish and STEAM Emerging Technology Teacher ISTE Certified Educator, Author |
PLANNING TIME: Incorporate ideas and inspirations during concrete planning time in a supportive space with peers.
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TEACHERS' SUMMER STEAM RETREAT 2021:
Reconnect, Reboot, and Re-imagine 
Open to ALL teachers – ABC CREATE districts and others, any grade level – any subject area - any experience level. Designed by educators for educators who are ready to (re)connect with their peers and with their STEAM teaching practices.
This ABC CREATE summer experience will focus on supporting teachers as they reflect upon their experiences teaching through the challenges of the past year+, as they refresh understandings of the changes in work, education, and society, and as they design pathways for STEAM integration and the teaching of future ready skills. Optional Extracurricular
This ABC CREATE Teachers' Summer STEAM Retreat will also focus on FUN! We will have some options for self-care that will promote physical and mental wellness through movement and camaraderie. 
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ABC CREATE educators co-designed our ABC CREATE Teachers’ Summer STEAM Retreat 2021 to be PD that they’d want to attend: in-person, fun, relevant, meaningful and filled with opportunities to connect with peers.
Our theme: Revitalization! Revitalization ties together the elements of this extraordinary professional development opportunity: Revitalization of YOU - as a person -- as an educator -- as you head in to the new school year
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2020 SUMMER STEAM TEACHERS' VIRTUAL RETREAT
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Open to ALL teachers – ABC CREATE districts and others, any grade level – any subject area. Designed for educators who want to reflect upon, share and reimagine their recent online teaching experience.
Opportunities to explore relevant STEAM teaching resources, professional development sessions and other self-selected topics of interest. Peer-to-peer guidance and support aimed at increasing confidence and inspiring teaching in both online and face-to-face instruction. Wonderful for networking and becoming a part of a supportive, collaborative learning community. This ABC CREATE summer experience will focus on supporting teachers through the challenges and opportunities presented by the pandemic with online/distance learning. Focal points for discussion, dissemination of resources, and areas of exploration will all be focusing on helping you to be better prepared for integrating online learning and/or STEAM education into your teaching repertoire so that you can best prepare students to navigate a digital world and will likely include the following: | ||
Educators working with Hummingbird Robots at Plum High School
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2019 SUMMER STEAM TEACHERS' CAMPS
ABC CREATE is hosting 2 3-day summer camps in partnership with Burrell School District. Students: June 16-19 info link. The ABC CREATE@Burrell Summer STEAM Teachers' Camp is specially designed for educators (from ABC CREATE, from other regional districts, and from informal spaces) who want to feel more comfortable integrating STEAM in to their classrooms or out-of-school time activities. No experience with STE(A)M required! Teacher-led, this camp will give educators of all grade levels and subject area, an opportunity to play around with technologies and ideas. |
ABC CREATE@Burrell STEAM Teachers’ Camp
Date: Wednesday, June 19 - Friday, June 21 from 8:30 AM - 3 PM
Location: Burrell School District (6/19 and 6/20) and Penn State New Kensington (6/21)
Open to ALL teachers – ABC CREATE districts and others, any grade level – any subject area. Educators who want to feel more comfortable integrating STEAM in to their classrooms. No experience required! Guided and supported by fellow teachers, tracks for elementary and for secondary teachers where you will be able to play around with technologies and ideas.
Explore STEAM teaching and learning concepts, strategies, and resources.
Camp activities will include exposure to and exploration of the following: STEAM Teaching and Learning * Hummingbird Bit – Robotics Build * ABC CREATE Lending Library Look-and-Learn * Data Fluency: Data Visualization and Analysis * Creative Design * Developing Entrepreneurial Mindset * Project Based Learning * Engineering Design * Coding + CSforALL *Opportunities for hands-on experiences and collaborative lesson planning
Free to participate. Lunch provided each day. Eligible for ACT 48 credits.
Camp costs supported by the Arconic Foundation, the Grable Foundation, Penn State New Kensington, and the 14 ABC CREATE School Districts.
Date: Wednesday, June 19 - Friday, June 21 from 8:30 AM - 3 PM
Location: Burrell School District (6/19 and 6/20) and Penn State New Kensington (6/21)
Open to ALL teachers – ABC CREATE districts and others, any grade level – any subject area. Educators who want to feel more comfortable integrating STEAM in to their classrooms. No experience required! Guided and supported by fellow teachers, tracks for elementary and for secondary teachers where you will be able to play around with technologies and ideas.
Explore STEAM teaching and learning concepts, strategies, and resources.
Camp activities will include exposure to and exploration of the following: STEAM Teaching and Learning * Hummingbird Bit – Robotics Build * ABC CREATE Lending Library Look-and-Learn * Data Fluency: Data Visualization and Analysis * Creative Design * Developing Entrepreneurial Mindset * Project Based Learning * Engineering Design * Coding + CSforALL *Opportunities for hands-on experiences and collaborative lesson planning
Free to participate. Lunch provided each day. Eligible for ACT 48 credits.
Camp costs supported by the Arconic Foundation, the Grable Foundation, Penn State New Kensington, and the 14 ABC CREATE School Districts.
Teachers tinkering with 3D pen at Plum High School
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2018 SUMMER STEAM CAMPS
In 2018, ABC CREATE in partnership with Plum Borough School District hosted a summer STEAM Camp for Teachers! 42 teachers from the Pittsburgh region (and a bit beyond) attended this camp designed specifically for educators who wanted to feel more comfortable integrating STEAM in to their classrooms. Teachers with no STEAM experience attended as did STEAM teacher leaders. All left grateful for the opportunities to enhance their comfort with STEAM and to increase their skills. Most appreciated was the opportunity to network and engage with other inspired educators! Recognizing the need for girls to explore and to develop a STEAM identity in order to persist against the current culture of underrepresentation, ABC CREATE hosted a Girls’ STEAM Camp for rising 6th – 9th grade girls. Read about the camp in this NSTA journal article, "Middle School Girls Gain Confidence, Competence, and Interest Through Summer STEAM Camp" |
