Join us this July for the virtual WestEd AI Summer Sandbox—a no-cost, exploratory, practical professional learning experience where K–12 and postsecondary STEM educators will deepen understanding of how to use AI tools to enhance classroom instruction.
Each Wednesday in July, educators will meet via Zoom with a WestEd facilitator and fellow Sandbox participants to learn a new AI strategy or concept, spend time experimenting and creating independently, and return to share their ideas and insights. The Sandbox will be facilitated by a WestEd expert in STEM learning, professional development, and emerging trends in the use of AI in education.
Our growing Sandbox group welcomes a range of experiences and familiarity with AI, whether you’re just starting down your AI path or are already actively using AI to enhance teaching and learning. The Sandbox is designed to provide space for experimentation. You will be able to collaborate and learn from colleagues in your content area, at your grade level, and at your AI familiarity level, while also exchanging ideas with those in different grade levels and subject areas.
The goal is simple: Build engaging, student-centered lessons using GenAI tools—and have fun doing it. Walk away with more tools, inspiring creations, and some supportive virtual friends you can connect with on your AI journey.
Dates: Wednesdays, July 9–30
Time: 1–3 p.m. PT/4–6 p.m. ET
Who Should Attend
- K–12 math, science, engineering, and technology teachers
- Postsecondary math, science, engineering, and technology educators
Logistics
- Four 2-hour online sessions: one per week in July from Wednesday, July 9, through Wednesday, July 30
- Format: Short intro → Independent exploration → Collaborative share-out
- Participants can use their own AI tools and be introduced to new ones, will learn sample prompts, and will receive research-based coaching support
Program Structure
Week 1: Designing for Mathematical Practices
- Learn how new AI tools can help design mathematics classes that get kids justifying their reasoning, building real world models, and persevering to solve problems relevant to their lives.
Week 2: Designing for Student Discourse
- Explore how AI can support collaborative learning and your facilitation of rich classroom conversations.
- Design tasks and routines that position students to talk, justify, and make sense together as you anticipate their reasoning to seed synthesis.
Week 3: Designing for Relevance and Engagement
- Use AI to codesign problems grounded in students’ lives and interests.
- Focus on authenticity and intellectual curiosity.
Week 4: Designing for Innovation and Agency
- Design learning experiences that position students as powerful sense makers in the math classroom.
- Use AI to prototype activities in which students take ownership, explore freely, and build their voices as doers of mathematics.
Want to Join Our Summer Sandbox?
This summer is your chance to explore, create, and connect with other teachers—no pressure, just possibility.
Questions? Contact Dr. Drew Nucci at [email protected]