Institute for Biology Education
445 Henry Mall, 1st Floor
Madison, WI 53706 (map)
608-265-2600
FAX 608-890-0576
biology@biology.wisc.edu

Home > K-12 Educators

K-12 Educators

Let us know how we can help. Our K-12 Educator programs and resources are designed to partner with educators in K-12 science education, providing training, activities, volunteer help, and other support. Together, we can get children engaged in the scientific enterprise and support and encourage an ongoing love of science. Follow these links to information on the following topics:

Teacher Professional Development

We offer credit and non-credit Courses and Workshops for K-12 teachers, and we offer links to other programs providing opportunities as well. These training opportunities can give teachers more confidence in teaching scientific subjects and provide a thorough grounding in inquiry-based methods of science teaching that give children critical thinking skills.

These classroom Science Activities are for children in grades K-12. While they are primarily designed for classrooms, they are also great for families to try at home. The activities are designed for specific age/grade levels, but most of them can be modified for other levels.

After-School Programs, Classroom Volunteers and Family Science Events

The Adult Role Models in Science (ARMS) program builds long-term partnerships to connect community and university volunteers and undergraduate students to K-12 classrooms and coordinates after-school science clubs and family science events.

UW–Madison Science Outreach

To find out about UW–Madison community outreach science events for adults and for families, visit the science.wisc.edu page and the UW–Madison calendar of events. Here are some favorites:

Arboretum (many educational opportunities including the Earth Partnership program)
BioTrek (Biotechnology Outreach)
Geology Museum
ICE (Institute for Chemical Education)
Sea Grant
Space Science and Engineering Outreach
SPICE (Students Participating in Chemical Education)
Synchrotron Radiation Center
Wisconsin Fast Plants (Fast Plants were bred by Professor Paul Williams (now Emeritus) of the
Wonders of Physics

Museums and Other Fun Places to Visit

UW-Madison offers a number of science and discovery sites to let you explore everything from dinosaur bones to physics. There are also a number of fascinating gardens and other natural areas. And if you're interested in cows, at the Dairy Cattle Center on Linden Drive you can see cows milked every day at 4:30p.m. without an appointment.

Programs for K-12 Students and Families

We also offer programs that directly serve pre-college students and younger K-12 students and their families, as well as outreach projects that involve the general public. To find out more about programs that directly engage these audiences, please visit the other sections of our website.