Kirstin Milks

The ISTE Live and ASCD Annual photo booth is a delight this year - and we are delighted to be standing in front of it. Text reads SPARK JOYFUL LEARNING in vibrant, Texas-inspired font with stylized plants and animals all around.

#ISTELive #ASCDAnnual is delightful - join @sayuri-neko.bsky.social and me for #PlaceBasedScienceTeaching tomorrow with our easy, ?-based framework for sparking #stemeducation that's relevant, rooted in community, and just plain FUN! See you Wed July 2, 11–11:30, HBGCC-Stars at Night Turbo Talk 💚

That is exquisite

hope this means i have your vote

@debbiekh.bsky.social @corwinpress.bsky.social👋😁

Place-based Teaching: Expeditions in the Schoolyard By: Kirstin Milks and Whitney Aragaki ISTE/ASCD Conference Wednesday July 2, 2025, 11:00 AM

Field Experiences: Blending Digital Learning with Authentic Outdoor Education in Biology By: Kirstin Milks and Whitney Aragaki ISTE/ASCD Conference Monday June 30, 2025, 1:00 PM

Excited to be back in action w/ Whitney, bringing the joy of #PlaceBasedScienceTeaching to #ISTELive and #ASCD this week! See you Mon for tech & authentic #STEM and/or Wed for the power of place-based curriculum in transforming education for students AND their teachers 💚 @sayuri-neko.bsky.social

Excitement is in the air – and soon an unforgettable scent Wally, the resident Amorphophallus titanum — also known as the corpse flower — at the Indiana University Bloomington Biology Building Greenhouse, is p...

Yay! 'Wally, the resident corpse flower at the Indiana University Bloomington Biology Building Greenhouse, is preparing for another bloom.' today.iu.edu/iub/live/new...

Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching Rewarding & Inspiring Great Teaching Since 1983 PAEMST Awardee leads Bloomington High School South to $125K STEM competition win In the span of a school year, a team of teenage scientists in Bloomington, Indiana, designed an athletic hearing-aid headband, pitched their invention on a national stage, and won a $125,000 prize package for their school. Kirstin Milks - a 2019 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching recipient - was the coach and mentor behind the team. Samsung Solve for Tomorrow is an annual contest that challenges students to leverage STEM to improve their community. The contest is multiphase: teams submit proposals and activity plans, work with Samsung employees to develop prototypes, and create videos showcasing their products. It culminates in a live pitch where finalists present their solutions to a panel of judges. "The goal is to honor and support student- led innovation," said Milks, who teaches AP Biology and introductory science at Bloomington High School South.

On the #PAEMST blog today: innovation education, featuring my students!

So thankful to the PAMEST network for showing me how it's done - and to #SamsungSolve for supporting student change-making through #STEM innovation & #PlaceBasedScienceTeaching

📲 paemst.nsf.gov/blog/post/147

Congratulations to David Renner, the 2025 ISTA ESP of the year! David greets the students and parents every morning with a handmade sign that brings them joy and laughter as he directs traffic, so the students congratulated him with handmade signs of their own. @ista-in.org

Bulletin board that says “words of wisdom” - it’s a collective mural for students to share what they’ve learned with next year’s incoming students

Today we celebrate the amazing class of 2025. It’s been a tremendous honor to be your teacher — thank you for sharing your wisdom, your courage, your empathy, and your wit with me (and next year’s students!)💜

I wanna see more classroom teachers delivering keynotes, facilitating workshops, and given space and larger platforms to talk about what’s working/not working with students in this moment.

Too many educator conferences, not nearly enough current teacher voices and experiences.

It Should Not Be Controversial to Plead for Gaza’s Children Israel’s limits on aid have put the region at “critical risk of famine.” Help is within reach. But it’s not enough—and it’s arriving too slowly.

www.theatlantic.com/family/archi...

a picture of a penguin with the word hello on it Alt: a picture of a penguin with the word hello on it - but not just any penguin - the little buddy from the penguins of madagascar, a classic film beloved by both john green and me. in this essay i will

@hnmalcolm.bsky.social

Amazing!!

Where does your weather forecast come from? Whether you get your forecast from an app on your phone, a website or a meteorologist on TV, most of the underlying information comes from the federal government.

Whether you get your forecast from an app on your phone, a website or a meteorologist on TV, most of the underlying information comes from the federal government.
By @rhersher.bsky.social

9 Federally Funded Scientific Breakthroughs That Changed Everything

9 Federally Funded Scientific Breakthroughs That Changed Everything www.nytimes.com/2025/05/16/s...

Hey so Palestinians, especially Palestinian children, do not deserve to starve to death.

If I had to pick a top five of posts you shared with me last night, it would be these, listed in no particular order. Credit to the original authors:

1. Debris lofted in the air bsky.app/profile/math...

2. Drone time lapse of the later storm moving over N. Monroe County bsky.app/profile/alex...

I’m so excited to announce that #biology education poster session proposals are now being accepted for the #WeAreNABT conference in St. Louis this fall! #Teachers, #students, and #professors, we’d love for you to share new lesson plans, lab exercises, or research data!
Link below ⬇️

same, friend, same

Seven high schoolers, one teacher, all smiles. The young women are holding their prototype

I’m so thankful to get to work with students like these amazing young innovators 🥰 Happy Teacher Appreciation Week!

Read more in this article from The Herald Times:

Bloomington South team wins national #STEM competition for athletic hearing aid accessory

www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/news/e...

On Teacher Appreciation Week, union leaders say teachers are underpaid and under attack The presidents of the National Education Association and American Federation of Teachers say the political climate has added to age-old money problems for teachers, such as underfunded schools.

The presidents of the National Education Association and American Federation of Teachers say the political climate has added to age-old money problems for teachers, such as underfunded schools.

Most Americans use federal science information on a weekly basis, a new poll finds Most Americans frequently use federal science information. But few are concerned that cuts to federal science spending could affect their access to such information, a new poll finds.

Most Americans frequently use federal science information. But few are concerned that cuts to federal science spending could affect their access to such information, a new poll finds.

Mentorship at IU leads to published study, career shift for high school senior IU Biology News: Mentorship at IU leads to published study, career shift for high school senior

For all in need of a break, an example of IU Biology at its best, fostering growth, knowledge, and opportunity through the agency of science and science education biology.indiana.edu/news-events/... @iubiology.bsky.social @ncse.bsky.social @drmilks.bsky.social

Want to see why #innovation matters in #STEMed?
Check in with our wonderful all-girl #SamsungSolve 🎉national winners🎉 on the local news ⬇️
Big thanks to @wrtv.bsky.social for highlighting what makes this team’s story and tech solution so special 💜

Three very happy young women clutch each other and an award from Samsung Solve for Tomorrow

Test reads: National Winner, Bloomington High School South, Bloomington IN. Photo shows three high school girls talking on a stage.

Text reads Rising Entrepreneurship Winner: Bloomington High School South, Bloomington Indiana, with a photo of three smiling high school girls in front of a digital display of school names

So proud of my student STEM inventors for winning a total of 🎉 $125,000 🎉 in technology for our school in #SamsungSolve for their sports accessibility device.

Want a brighter future? Support youth innovation!

More: news.samsung.com/us/samsung-a... #EduSky #STEMed #Innovation #SolveForTomorrow

if you know a lot of stuff i think it is your moral duty to be kind and excited when people learn stuff for the first time. the world is full of stuff we don't know about, don't be mean

They had an awesome visit to @iubiology.bsky.social and others!

I would love to know more about the choose your own adventure talk format!

Hi Alex! I took my HSers on a field trip and they had a lot of fun!

The anti-collective bargaining language has been removed from the final CCR for HB 1515. Thank you to everyone who reached out to their lawmakers on this issue over the last few days.