Inspiring Science Teachers

Chris Stoker

Bite-sized PD from classroom teachers. We interview awesome science teachers and try to capture some of their best lessons and strategies in addition to insights they've learned along the way. We hope to share some of their passion and expertise in a way that motivates, encourages and inspires you to try new things and get better at the art of teaching science.

  1. Aug 28

    Elevating Student Voice with the Idaho Ecosystem Student Ambassador Program

    Title: Elevating Student Voice with the Idaho Ecosystem Student Ambassador Program Host: Chris Stoker Guests: Darrell & Cohen (Student Ambassadors), Sonya McGruder & Ashley Schaffner (STEM Hub Coordinators) Welcome to the kickoff of Season 5! Host Chris Stoker explores the Idaho Ecosystem Student Ambassador (IESA) program—a flexible initiative for 6th–12th graders that empowers students to lead in STEM without adding heavy workloads for educators. In This Episode: Part 1 (Student Perspective): Recent grad Darrell Libbe and rising senior Cohen Adams discuss stepping into leadership roles, judging elementary 3D-printing projects at the Idaho Design Expo, and bringing genuine student feedback to regional education leaders. Part 2 (Program Breakdown): STEM Hub Coordinators Sonya and Ashley explain how IESA works and how teachers or community advisors can easily integrate it into existing clubs or classes. Key Takeaways: Student-Driven STEM: Projects range from daily morning announcement science jokes to researching local invasive species. The 3 Program Pillars: Every ambassador completes a student-led project, a leadership interview with a local mentor, and a STEM industry tour.Zero Extra Teacher Workload: Operates as an "umbrella" framework for existing robotics/science clubs and can even be advised by parent volunteers. Timestamps: 00:00 – Season 5 Kickoff & IESA Overview 01:51 – Student Ambassadors Darrell Libby & Cohen Adams 04:20 – Behind the Scenes: Judging 3D-Printing Competitions 08:56 – Advocating for Student Voice at Education Panels 13:51 – Advice for Middle & High School Students 15:39 – Program Deep-Dive with Coordinators Sonya & Ashley 17:05 – The 3 Core Pillars: Projects, Interviews & Tours18:50 – Low-Workload Integration for Teachers Link for students, parents or advisors to apply:EcosySTEM Student Ambassadors | EcosySTEM

    Elevating Student Voice with the Idaho Ecosystem Student Ambassador Program

  2. Jul 8

    Ambitious Science Teaching book study roundup

    What does it really take to shift a science classroom from covering content to helping students make sense of phenomena? In this episode, Chris Stoker talks with Emily and Jamie about the lessons they learned while leading an Idaho Science Teaching Association book study on Ambitious Science Teaching (AST). Practical tips discussed about AST strategies: they force students to think more deeplythey work k-12 and you can start off smallthey raise state test scores link to Idaho Science Teaching Association book study page

  3. Apr 30

    Connecting With STEM Opportunities - Branzell and Amanda

    For this episode Becky and Chris interview Branzell Porchia, STEM Program Manager, and Amanda Paterson, Computer Science Program Manager with WDC + STEM.  They have a great passion for connecting  teachers and kids with stem resources in our state.  Two take aways: 1) the big impact we can have on students when we give them powerful learning experiences and 2) the vast number of opportunities that Idaho offers to help prepare students for STEM and the workforce. Resources links:   Idaho STEM Action Center https://stem.idaho.gov/ Next Steps Idaho https://nextsteps.idaho.gov/ Launch Scholarship https://nextsteps.idaho.gov/launch STEM Diploma Scholarship https://stem.idaho.gov/stem-id/ Learning Blade https://stem.idaho.gov/learning-blade/ Code.org https://code.org/en-US EngineeringbyDesign https://www.iteea.org/engineering-bydesign Idaho Science and Engineering Fairs https://stem.idaho.gov/idsef/ Hour of AI https://stem.idaho.gov/csedweek/ ISTEM https://stem.idaho.gov/istem/

  4. Feb 1

    A February Reset For Science Teachers

    In this episode Chris shares 4 things he would do if he were jumping back into a classroom to start February. These are ideas that would hopefully help when your class (or you) are starting to drag before spring break.  They are 1) stop explaining so much, 2) simplify and streamline, 3) protect your energy, and 4) double down on what works.

  5. 12/31/2025

    Students talk about the STEM Student Ambassador program

    In this episode, Chris interviews 5 students about the Idaho EcosySTEM Student Ambassador program. Through this program, students in 6-12th grade engage in hands-on projects, participate in industry tours, and build collaboration and leadership skills while making a meaningful impact in their school and community. It is modeled after the Chief Science Officer Program. Learn more here .

  6. 10/15/2025

    "Be Courageous in Making Changes for Education" with Carrie and Camp

    In this episode, Becky and Chris interviewed Carrie and Camp, two educators from the New England Innovation Academy (NEIA) near Boston.  They are doing some great things with students, and we are excited to share the conversation with you.  Even though they teach are a small innovative school, almost all of their ideas could be implemented in any school setting.

  7. 09/23/2025

    Billy Almon's keynote "Winds, Waves, & Tides: Why Now is the Time to Dream Big"

    Billy Almon was a keynote speaker at the 2025 Idaho STEM Conference in Meridian Idaho on July 30-August 1st, 2025. Billy's bio: Over the last 10 years Billy has been traveling the globe exploring how biological strategies can be used to inspire solutions for humans, a concept known as Biomimicry. Billy is also the co-host of Little Giants, a tv series on Animal Planet. For more than a decade Billy worked as an Imagineer for the Walt Disney Company, where he honed his talents as a storyteller, inventor, futurist, and world-builder. He has a Bachelor of Architecture from Howard University and a Master of Science in Biomimicry from Arizona State University. In addition to his strong storytelling efforts, Billy also uses insights from biology to highlight ideas for space exploration. Learn more at his website:Billy Almon, The Astrobiofuturist | STEM, Space & Biomimicry Speaker

    Billy Almon's keynote "Winds, Waves, & Tides: Why Now is the Time to Dream Big"

  8. 05/21/2025

    Get Inspired! with Lingpei Zou

    Hi and welcome to the Inspiring Science Teachers' Podcast. My name is Chris Stoker and on this show, we love to interview teachers and pick their brains for some of the great lessons and ideas they've developed for teaching science. For this episode, Becky and I interviewed Lingpei Zou, a middle school teacher in Rigby Idaho. Lingpei has an interesting story of coming to this country from China. She now teaches in a dual emersion program and gets to teach robotics on Fridays. Lingpei shares was got her excited from attending the NSTA national conference a few months ago in Philadelphia. Here are some great quotes from the keynotes: "embrace your 1% uniqueness" and "Leadership is not about being in charge. It is about taking care of those in your charge." She shared many things that resonated with her from the sessions and the vendor exhibits. But for me the biggest thing was she got us excited about continuing to learn as adults and to take every opportunity to attend a local conference. Let's jump into it.

See All (34)

Trailer

About

Bite-sized PD from classroom teachers. We interview awesome science teachers and try to capture some of their best lessons and strategies in addition to insights they've learned along the way. We hope to share some of their passion and expertise in a way that motivates, encourages and inspires you to try new things and get better at the art of teaching science.

Information