Idaho Annual STEM Conference: The Magic of STEM 2026: Full Schedule

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10:45am MDT

Bringing the Real World to the Classroom: Career-Connected Math Tasks

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:45am - 11:45am MDT

Engage students with authentic mathematics that fits seamlessly into your daily instruction! Join our hands-on showcase of career-connected tasks, bringing local industries directly to your classroom.
Built by Idaho educators, these materials follow one strict rule: "The math project has to be something these industry folks actually do for their work." Step into the shoes of a forestry engineer, a high-tech drone pilot, and a good old Idaho potato farmer to get a taste for these projects and plan to use them in your own classroom.
Leave equipped with ready-to-use materials to finally answer your students' favorite question: "When are we ever going to use this?"
Co-Facilitators / Task Designers: Co-Facilitators / Task Designers: Nicole Anderson, Steve Palmer, Callie Rose, Russel Seay, Lesley Marks, David Repke, Rebecca Owen, Emily Wasemiller, Mandy Simpson, Austin Duerksen, Kristen Montague, Nathan Cardon, Landon Belnap, Mitchell Parsons With: Josh Watson, Kathy Prummer, Veronica Blackham, Carol Hicks, Jayce Bell, Katie Bosch-Wilson

Speakers

Kristen Montague

Teacher, Rigby High School

Kristen Montague has been a dedicated mathematics educator for 19 years and currently serves as a teacher leader at Rigby High School. Passionate about improving math instruction and supporting professional growth, Kristen also works with the Department of Education as a badging mentor... Read More →

Nicole Anderson

Math Teacher, Priest River Lamanna High School

Josh Watson

Current ICTM Member, Lewis-Clark State College

Josh is a Regional Mathematics Specialist on a mission to help students discover fun, engaging, and useful math—not just an endless grind of computation and memorizing. He cultivates and defends environments where learners safely disassemble their preconceptions, clean, and upgrade... Read More →

Veronica Blackham

Idaho State University

Dr. Veronica Blackham is in her seventh year as a Regional Mathematics Specialist for Idaho Educational Regions V and VI and currently serves as the Idaho Math Badging Project state lead. Her experience teaching and leading professional development on mathematics education has shaped... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:45am - 11:45am MDT
107 300 N College Rd W, Twin Falls, ID 83301, USA

Math, 6-8, 9-12

global Y

10:45am MDT

Math Tech That Connects: Intentional Technology in a Thinking Classroom

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:45am - 11:45am MDT

106

This session, led by Senior STEM Product Specialist Cassondra Kauppi, explores how technology can be paired with Building Thinking Classrooms (BTC) practices in the math classroom. Through intentional design, technology is used as a bridge for connection, communication, and collective sense-making in the mathematics classroom.
Rather than positioning technology as a replacement for interaction, this session centers technology as a way to amplify student voice, connect multiple representations, and make thinking visible. Students are able to see, compare, and build on one another’s ideas, strengthening both their understanding and their sense of belonging in mathematics.
Educators will leave with ready-to-use tasks that help transform technology from a potential distraction into a driver of community, reasoning, and deep mathematical learning.

Speakers

Cassondra Kauppi

Senior STEM Product Specialist, Amplify

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:45am - 11:45am MDT
106

Math, 6-8, 9-12, 3-5

global Y

1:00pm MDT

College of Southern Idaho, Genna Poytner along with STEM ambassadors lead CTE programs to include: Welding Simulation, Binary Code Bracelet, Auto Body Repair, Build a Cow, Rad Tech and Wood Burning.

Wednesday July 29, 2026 1:00pm - 2:00pm MDT

Innovation Playground

Experience a variety of hands-on activities that showcase the exciting world of Career & Technical Education (CTE) at the College of Southern Idaho. From Binary Beads and Build a Cow to welding simulation, autobody repair, radiology technology, and wood burning, you'll explore engaging experiences that connect classroom learning to high-demand careers. Discover how CTE programs prepare students with the technical skills, industry knowledge, and real-world experiences needed for success in college, careers, and beyond.

Speakers

Genna Poynter

Wednesday July 29, 2026 1:00pm - 2:00pm MDT
Innovation Playground 300 N College Rd W, Twin Falls, ID 83301

1:00pm MDT

Modernizing Mathematics: Integrating Future-Ready Skills into the Standards for Mathematical Practice

Wednesday July 29, 2026 1:00pm - 2:00pm MDT

105

The Standards for Mathematical Practice (SMPs) were designed to describe how students engage with mathematics, yet in many classrooms they remain disconnected from daily instruction. This session introduces a modernized vision of the SMPs that integrates them directly with grade-level content, emphasizing coherence, student agency, and real-world application. Participants will explore practical frameworks for embedding the SMPs into lesson design, with a focus on sense-making, discourse, and purposeful use of representations—including data visualizations tied to audience and context. Through concrete examples, we will demonstrate how aligning content and practice creates richer learning experiences without adding instructional burden. Attendees will leave with actionable strategies and a visual planning tool to support immediate implementation in their classrooms or districts.

Speakers

Shelbi Cole

None of the above, Leading Educators

Deeply committed to ensuring that children have opportunities to experience mathematics that is meaningful and relevant to the world that they will continue to shape.

Wednesday July 29, 2026 1:00pm - 2:00pm MDT
105

Math, K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12 | Technology, K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12

global Y

1:00pm MDT

If We Don’t Name It, Students Can’t Use It: Making STEM Skills Visible Through Competencies

Wednesday July 29, 2026 1:00pm - 2:00pm MDT

116

STEM classrooms are full of problem solving, collaboration, and critical thinking, but those skills are not always named or reinforced in a consistent way. When that happens, students complete the work without always understanding what they are building or how it applies beyond school.
This session explores how the Idaho Career Readiness Competencies can serve as a shared language for making STEM skills more visible and transferable. Participants will look at how competencies already exist within STEM instruction and how small shifts in language, reflection, and feedback can help students recognize and apply those skills across contexts.
Examples from K-12, postsecondary, and workforce settings will highlight how a common language strengthens alignment and clarity. Participants will leave with one practical way to name and reinforce a competency in their own classroom. The goal is not to add more, but to make what is already happening more intentional.

Speakers

Jacque Deahl

None of the above, Idaho Department of Education

Jacque Deahl serves as the GEAR UP Idaho Statewide Coordinator at the Idaho State Department of Education, where she works with colleagues and partners across the state to support college and career readiness efforts for students. Her work focuses on strengthening career connected... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 1:00pm - 2:00pm MDT
116

global Y

1:00pm MDT

Sentences & Sensemaking: Critical Thinking Made Visible

Wednesday July 29, 2026 1:00pm - 2:00pm MDT

122

Experience how sentence-level writing can transform passive observers into active sensemakers. Bring the joy of having something to say into your classroom writing experiences! In this session, you'll experience lesson activities that use powerful strategies from The Writing Revolution 2.0 and explore practical techniques that strengthen critical thinking, academic discourse, and writing across all content areas. Whether you teach upper elementary, middle, or high school, you'll leave with ready-to-use strategies that make student thinking visible and deepen conceptual understanding.

Bonus: Thanks to the Idaho Department of Education, every participant will receive a complimentary copy of The Writing Revolution 2.0.

Speakers

Lee Slichter

ISTA Board Member Elementary Rep, Idaho Science Coach

Here's what other people say about Lee Slichter:
Lee brings warmth, enthusiasm, and a genuine passion for education to everything she does. (Andrea Baerwald) Lee is by far one of the most effective educators with whom I’ve worked during my educational career…She never wavers in her belief that all students can improve. She al... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 1:00pm - 2:00pm MDT
122 300 N College Rd W, Twin Falls, ID 83301, USA

Science, K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12 | Engineering, K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12 | Environmental Education, K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12 | Math, K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12

global Y

2:15pm MDT

Reaching More Students in Less Time, Secondary

Wednesday July 29, 2026 2:15pm - 3:15pm MDT

Auditorium (322)

Join me to teach differently than how we were taught AND differently than how we were taught to teach math. Let’s shift the focus from memorizing / mimicking to reasoning and math-ing. And get results. Math is Figureoutable!

Speakers

Pam Harris

Founder, CEO, Math is FigureOutAble

Pam Harris is shifting the way we view and teach mathematics. She is a mom, former high school math teacher, university lecturer, and the founder of Math is Figureoutable. Math teachers around the world rave about her online Building Powerful Mathematics workshops. For over 20 years... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 2:15pm - 3:15pm MDT
Auditorium (322) 300 N College Rd W, Twin Falls, ID 83301, USA

Math, 6-8, 9-12

10:45am MDT

10:45am MDT

1:00pm MDT

1:00pm MDT

1:00pm MDT

1:00pm MDT

2:15pm MDT

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