Upcoming Workshops

Past Workshops and Talks

HOA could not have been put together without the help of many experienced teachers and educators who participated in our two developmental workshops held in 1994 and 1995 at AAVSO Headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The project directors and staff will be holding several small regional workshops for teachers, educators, and others, who are interested in this curriculum.

The purpose of these series of workshops is twofold: first, we want to spread the word to science teachers about this unique and innovative approach to teaching science and astronomy, and second, we want to hear more comments, critiques, and suggestions from them about how HOA works, or doesn't, or how it might work better.

"I loved the Hands-On Astro stuff and would LOVE to see my jr. high use it. It integrates LOTS of stuff. It's obvious that although it was a struggle, the kit was put together with a teacher point of view." -- comments from a participant in a recent workshop in Texas.

So far, the response to the HOA project and objectives has been very positive and enthusiastic. Word has been spreading about HOA, and many are eager to begin using it in their classrooms.

The teachers we have met seemed to respond best to what we do best: the most positive response (both in the activities and in the manual) was for anything that dealt specifically with any aspect of variable stars (plotting, observing, light curves, the database, etc.)

For example, many like the idea of analyzing the light curve of their own variable star observations, saying this accomplishes much more towards understanding how conclusions can be drawn from a sample of data, rather than dwelling on the intricacies of statistical analysis as such.

Similarly, teachers like the idea of observing the night sky (even if observations can only be made off of the slides or prints) to search for a variable star and make magnitude estimates. They recognize that such a specific activity brings along with it all of the other lessons about celestial coordinates, the nature of light, the electromagnetic spectrum, and even the mythology of constellations and history of astronomy.

The major attraction of HOA for the teachers we have met is in the uniqueness of its approach: using variable stars and the database to teach fundamental scientific concepts.

Here are some comments from teachers who participated in two-day HOA workshop at the AASTRA summer leadership program in Texas:

"This was an excellent presentation and interesting because it covered a whole new area of astronomy for me."

"This was a great opportunity to learn *real science* and was done very well."

"This workshop provided me with some of the most useful activities I've seen in science workshops."

"Live interaction where the students (here teachers) went through the same mental learning blocks as the students (theirs) will. This adds perspective and insight into how to convey ideas."

Past Workshops and Talks:

This list is currently in development and will be completed soon.

• 2002 - Two-week workshop of HOA activity and variable star observing as part of the University of Hawaii's Toward Other Planetary Systems (TOPS) Teacher enhancement workshop for mostly Hawaiin and Pacific Island teachers and students.

• 2002 - Workshop for the public at the Davis Star Show (California) by Chuck Pullen

• 2002 - Workshop on variable stars using the materials of HOA, conducted by John Percy at the European Association in Astronomical research (EAAE).

• 2001 - Hands-On Astrophysics Seminar taught by Ray Berg and Chuck Pullen on August 24, 2001 in Davis, California as part of the larger Davis Star Show. They also had the AAVSO booth set up and presented a lecture on the AAVSO GRB Network Saturday (Aug 25) at 2 PM.
• 2001 - HOA Workshop at Sebring Middle School, Sebring, Florida
• 2000 - TOPS (Towards Other Planetary Systems) - 20 hour teacher workshop on variable stars and HOA: June 16 - 29, Hawaii.
• 2000 - Workshop on Variable Stars and Hands-On Astrophysics, with Ray Berg, Chuck Pullen, and Brian Rogan, April 12, 2000, Huntsville, AL.
• 2000 - "Hands-On Astrophysics," at the 195th Meeting of the American Astronomical Society, January 11-15, 2000, Atlanta, GA.
• "Hands-On Astrophysics," at Naugatuck Valley Community College, April 29, 2000, Waterbury, CT.
• 1999 - TOPS (Towards Other Planetary Systems) - 20 hour teacher workshop on variable stars and HOA, June 13-28, 1999.
• 1999 - Partnership in Variable Star Observing and teh AAVSO: An Example of Effective Partnership in Astronomy Research and Education," ASP Symposium, Toronto, Canada, July 5-7, 1999.
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• 1999 - HOA and Variable star activity and observing 2-week teachers' enhancement workshop in Hawaii, under the leadership of Dr. Karen Meech.
• 1999 - HOA Exhibit at the national meeting in Boston of the National Science TEachers Association (NSTA).
• 1999 - "Variable Stars, AAVSO, and Hands-On Astrophysics" at the United Nations (UN) workshop on Basic Space Science, held at Al al-Bayt Universtiy, Mafrq, Jordan.
• 1998 - "Variable Stars and HOA for Independent Student Research," during the workshop on Astronomy Research: Bringin Astronomy into the Classroom and Fostering Indepentdent Student Researdch, Making Connections, Baltimore, MD.
• 1998 - "AAVSO and Hands-On Astrophysics" and "Variable Stars" at the Space Science XII Workshop at the Wright Center for Innovative Science Education, Byfield, Massachusetts.
• 1998 - "Reach the Stars" event at the Science Competition program of the Science Olympiad National Science Competition program
• 1998 - "Space Science XII Workshop," teachers' workshop held at the Governor Dummer Academy in Byfield, MA
• 1997 - "Hands-On Astrophysics Project" and its activities at the Space Science Workshop for Teachers at Wright Center, Tufts University, Medford, MA.
• 1997 - "Variable Stars, AAVSO, and Hands-On Astrophysics," at the Teachers Workshop at Colorado University.
• 1997 - AAVSO's Hands-On Astrophysics Educational Project" at the Special Education Session at the 86th Spring Meeting of the AAVSO in Sion, Switzerland.
• 1996 - Workshop on Variable Stars, AAVSO, and Hands-On Astrophysics, with John Percy at the NSTA meeting
• June 1994 - Teacher/Student Workshop in Hawaii entitled, "Towards Other Planetary Systems (TOPS)

• 1994 - Astronomy Education Symposium at the Astronomical Society of the Pacific Meeting, College Park, Maryland. "Hands-On Astrophysics: Variable Stars in the Math/Science Lab," with John Percy, Michael Saladyga, and Lynn Anderson (poster)
• Two Developmental workshops in 1994 and 1995, Cambridge, MA.