Do you teach 1st Grade Amplify Science? 

Have you been wondering how you could make Amplify more relevant, meaningful, and culturally responsive for YOUR students?

“My students seemed very engaged and excited by all the [localizing] adaptations. The slug defense was the first one I tried and they absolutely loved it. It was an instant conversation starter and many students had a lot of personal experiences with a slug they were excited to share about! ...The overall impact was an increase in excitement and engagement in science. A lot of my students have told me science is one of their favorite times in our day which I have not heard as much in the past." - Domini LaRussa, Thurgood Marshall Elementary School

This asynchronous course provides an opportunity to explore opportunities in a unit-specific Western Washington “localizing guide” that supports teachers in making meaningful and authentic connections between the science students are doing in their classroom and their region, community, and personal funds of knowledge. The guide was created and piloted by classroom teachers in collaboration with the developers of Amplify Science, school district leads, local ESDs, and IslandWood staff. 

The localizing guide has a wide variety of ready-to-use activities to choose from. You’ll find interviews designed to bring in related experiences from family members, a schoolyard scavenger hunt, photographs and videos that swap-in local examples, a student-created book to identify local defenses, and many other possibilities. You will also learn how local phenomena, such as sea turtles in the Pacific Northwest struggling to survive in too cold waters, connect the learning in this unit to animals and habitats in our region.

Clock Hours: 2.5 STEM clock hours for watching videos, reading the unit’s localizing guide, and reflecting on your first impressions. Optional topics provide an opportunity to earn up to 5 additional STEM clock hours (half of which can be claimed as equity clock hours if desired).

Timing: Progress through the course at your own pace.  Most topics can be done before you teach the unit. Clock hours will be turned in for those who complete a final survey by the closing date of the course (December 14th, 2026). You will then need to claim them through pdEnroller (with payment of a pdEnroller administrative fee). 

Important Note: This course is intended for Western Washington teachers who are teaching the 1st Grade Amplify Science Animal and Plant Defenses unit. One of the optional topics requires access to the unit, and another includes reflecting on your localizing efforts while teaching it.  If you are not teaching the unit, please consider taking our “Localize your Science Classroom Asynchronously” course or one of our “Introduction to Localizing” Workshops. They provide localizing strategies, examples, and scaffolding that can be used with ANY science unit at any grade level.