All of COA's summer courses for teachers combine lecture and discussion with a variety of hands-on activities. Some courses are primarily field-based, and students can plan on being on field trips most days. Others are more classroom oriented with occasional outings.

Most classes meet from approximately 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday; however, there may be days when your class runs longer due to field trips, tide schedules, etc. All classes end on the last Friday of the summer session, and students housed on campus may leave anytime after 3 p.m. or depart Saturday morning by 9 a.m.

Select your course(s) and register online using our secure online registration system.

2012 summer courses for k-12 teachers

June 24–June 30, 2012
Biomechanics
Strengthening Wabanaki Content for the Classroom NEW!

July 1-July 7, 2012
Animal Behavior NEW!
Operational Weather Forecasting
Drawing From Nature In and Out of the Classroom NEW! 
THE DRAWING FROM NATURE COURSE IS NOW FULL
Environmental Photography II NEW!

July 8–July 14, 2012
Field Ecology and Natural History
Climatology and Climate Change
Examining the Evidence: Classroom as a Crime Lab I NEW!

July 15–July 21, 2012
Evidence Never Lies: Crime Scene to Crime Lab II NEW!

July 8–July 21, 2012 (two week courses)
Marine Mammals II: Advanced Marine Mammalogy
Field-based Introduction to Geology

August 5-11, 2012
Exceptionalities: Supporting Students with Disabilities in the Regular Classroom  NEW!
Letters from the Summer Place

Courses may be taken for either continuing education/CEUs or for graduate credit (additional per credit fee). One-week courses are eligible for 2 graduate semester credits, two-week courses for 4 graduate semester credits.

Biomechanics

Course #SG5093
June 24-30, 2012

Why do we get shorter and more wrinkled with age? Could T. rex really outrun a jeep, as Steven Spielberg imagined in Jurassic Park? What keeps an eagle aloft? Why do elephants have such thick legs? How do geckos stick to a glass window, and can human technology mimic their mechanism? These diverse questions are all within the realm of biomechanics. Biomechanics examines the form and function of living organisms through the lens of physics and engineering. This interdisciplinary approach has led to new insights about the evolution of organismal diversity on Earth. It can also be a tool for making mathematics, physics, and engineering more accessible to young students and adult learners alike. Through lectures, readings, and lab activities, we will explore fluid dynamics, including the fluids organisms live in (air and water) and the fluids transported through their bodies (water-based solutions and suspensions such as sap and blood). We also will investigate mechanical properties of the materials that organisms make and are made of (bone, tendon, wood, shell, chitin, silk, hair, etc.) and how those materials are organized into working structures. We will be using Steven Vogel’s Life’s Devices as our main text to support this course, and additional short readings will be provided.
Lab fee: $25

Dr. Helen Hess received a B.S. in Biology from UCLA in 1985 and a Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of Washington in 1991. She has been on the faculty at COA since 1994. Helen teaches a variety of biology courses at COA, most of which involve a significant field or lab component. Her formal training as an invertebrate zoologist has led her to develop courses that take her and her students wherever invertebrates are found, including local rivers, Maine's rocky intertidal shores, and Caribbean coral reefs. She also teaches a course in bio mechanics, where students explore how the laws of physics have played a role the evolution of living organisms. Helen also has strong interests in teacher education and spends part of every summer involved in courses and workshops aimed at K-12 teachers as well as COA students who are pursuing a teaching credential. Helen's research interests focus on the reproductive biology of marine organisms, and she has studied parental behavior in worms, mating systems in mouth brooding in fishes, and the evolution of self-fertilization in hermaphroditic invertebrates. Helen also occasionally writes science articles for popular magazines.
e-mail: hhess@coa.edu

Course Syllabus

Strengthening Wabanaki Content for the Classroom

Course #SG5118
June 24-30, 2012

Teaching about the Wabanaki is an unfunded mandate for all Maine teachers, grades K-12th. This course will provide content and resources for teachers from all grade levels to better teach about the history and culture of the Native people of Maine. The course will focus on life prior to European contact, the science of archaeology and what it can and cannot tell us about life in Maine; stereotypes surrounding Wabanaki people and Native Americans; contemporary issues; teachers will develop skills in learning how to detect and understand the representation of Native people in media; create a lesson to use in the classroom; learn new techniques and resources for teaching about Native people; and have the chance to learn from Wabanaki artists, scholars, and cultural leaders. Lab fee: $75

Raney Bench, Curator of Education for the Abbe Museum has a BA in Native American Studies, and a Masters in Museum Studies. She has worked with Native American people and issues for over 18 years, specializing in federal Indian policy, with tribes across the country.
e-mail: educator@abbemuseum.org

Donald Soctomah, Passamaquoddy, is the Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the Passamaquoddy. Donald is a historian and former representative to the Maine State Legislature, and sponsored the Offensive Place Names Act which removed “Squaw” from the landscape of Maine, and the Wabanaki Initiative, which requires that all teachers grades K-12 teach Wabanaki content.
e-mail: soctomah@ainop.com

Course Syllabus

Animal Behavior

Course #SG5117
July 1-7, 2012

This course will introduce students to the fascinating and challenging adventure of studying animal behavior. It will show them how far we have come in understanding some behaviors, while others are still a mystery. The purpose of the course is three-fold: 1) Find out about the history, basic concepts, theories and methods that make up the modern science of animal behavior. 2) By going out into the field and observing animals (birds, insects, seals, whales, …) students will start observing animals around them with a scientists eyes and mind by thinking about possible questions and answers for their observations . 3) Develop approaches and tools to teach aspects of animal behavior in their classes. Students will be presented with the basic concepts and theories of animal behavior; be introduced to basic methods used in animal behavior research; and taught techniques and approaches to teaching animal behavior in high school classes. Students will be evaluated based on regular and active participation in the course program, as well as through the design and development of a teaching unit. Lab fee: $95

Christoph Richter, Ph.D., Marine Science and Zoology, University of Otago, New Zealand; M.S. Biopsychology (and Graduate Program in Teaching), Memorial University of Newfoundland. Christoph is currently a lecturer for the Biology Department at the University of Toronto at Mississauga, Ontario Canada. Previously, he was an Assistant Adjunct Professor at Queen's University where he taught courses in animal behavior, vertebrate zoology, and data management and analysis . His graduate research investigated means to reduce bycatch of harbor porpoise in the Bay of Fundy and the impact of whale watching on male sperm whales off Kaikoura, New Zealand. Currently, he is part of a team assessing whale watching impacts on sperm whales off Kaikoura, New Zealand.
e-mail: christoph.richter@utoronto.ca

Course Syllabus

Operational Weather Forecasting

Course #SG5106
July 1-7, 2012

This course will introduce the student to the basic concepts of weather and the atmosphere, their properties and tendencies, changes over time, and the daily process of producing and delivering a weather forecast. Basic atmospheric processes will be introduced, and general planetary circulation will be addressed. Web resources will be discussed and sources of information assessed. Field trips will include natural weather observation and forecasting techniques, and a factory that makes weather instruments. Working in teams, the student will gain real-life experience in producing and delivering a daily weathercast, and will acquire the skills needed to integrate daily weather information into curricula at all levels. Actual live delivery of a self-produced weathercast on a statewide radio network will be included as part of the class. This course is best suited to middle or high school teachers, graduate students and adult learners. Lab fee: $25.

Lou McNally received his Interdisciplinary Ph.D. from the Climate Change Institute at the University of Maine. He is currently Assistant Professor of Applied Meteorology at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, FL, and a broadcast meteorologist for Maine Public Radio and Television. Additionally, he heads up L. K. McNally & Associates, which has been advising private and public clients in operational and forensic meteorology for 30 years. Recent research centers on forensic synoptic analysis, or reconstruction of the weather from anecdotal source information, and recent publications include invited papers for History of Meteorology, and Weather, a publication of the Royal Meteorological Society.
e-mail: loumcnally@me.com

Course Syllabus

Drawing From Nature In and Out of the Classroom

THIS COURSE IS NOW FULL AND NO LONGER ACCEPTING REGISTRATIONS
Course #SG#5119
July 1-7, 2012 (1 week, 2 credits)

Art and science may seem to be worlds apart but artists and scientists share many common skills and goals. Curiosity, observation, exploration and discovery are just a few of the ways artists and scientists think and work alike. This course will lead students through a series of exercises that tap into the artist’s “tool box” (conceptual as well as tangible) to make creativity and visual expression accessible to the classroom teacher. Drawing can lead to better understanding, focus and perception. The art of seeing with an enlightened eye can lead to discovery and innovation as well as foster pure joy in the exploration of the natural world. Learn to combine our natural curiosity with skilled observation and the artist’s language to communicate an idea or concept. We will work indoors and outdoors utilizing nature as inspiration, whether botany, biology, marine or geology focused, and explore a variety of mediums from graphite pencil to colored pencil, pastels, watercolors and more. No prior drawing experience is necessary, but artists wishing to enhance their abilities will find plenty of challenges. Learning to observe and record what we see, whether in the controlled setting of a classroom, in a boat on a rolling sea, or on the ocean shoreline, provides the artist and science student alike the opportunity to adapt, observe and problem-solve in order to make their observations visible. An independent assignment will be introduced early in the week. Lab fee: $75

Jean Carlson Masseau received her BFA from Rhode Island School of Design in Illustration, with special interest in the areas of printmaking, photography and textiles. She is a freelance illustrator and photographer working for a variety of clients nationwide from her studio in Hinesburg, Vermont. She received her teaching certificate from the University of Vermont and began her career as a full time high school art teacher at South Burlington High School in Vermont. She has taught a wide variety of community art classes for students of all ages over the years and occasionally teaches a Botanical Illustration workshop for RISD’s C.E. Department. Some of her clients have included Vermont Life Magazine, Vermont Magazine, Horticulture, Fine Gardening, Gardeners’ Supply Catalog, National Gardening Magazine, Delta Airline’s SKY Magazine, Lake’s End Cheeses, Garden Design Magazine, GARDENING FOR DUMMIES (IDG Books Worldwide), Chapters Publishing (EVENING GARDENS), and Women’s Day Gardening among others. Her recent work has focused on fine art painting in watercolor and gouache (opaque watercolor) and creating limited edition prints of her paintings. One of her favorite artistic activities is drawing from nature in a variety of mediums. Her work has received recognition from the NY Society of Illustrators, and Print Magazine in their Regional Design Annuals’ “Best of New England” category. She is a regular practitioner of figure drawing and portraiture from life.
e-mail: jcmasseau@gmavt.net

Course Syllabus

Environmental Photography II

Course #SG5120
July 1-7, 2012

This class will impart a high level of digital photography skill and graduate-level aesthetic theory. This will be accomplished through the mastery of advanced field and lab techniques including night, infrared, and time-lapse photography, as well as painting, compositing, bracketing, merging, filtering, layering, and masking using Adobe PhotoShop. The coursework is designed for the intermediate to advanced digital photographer and will concentrate on using the latest digital techniques to create stunning images of the natural environment - images that inspire environmentally responsible behavior. Since this course includes a field and laboratory component, students will not only learn the logistics of managing their equipment in the field but will also learn how to create an effective and efficient workflow in the laboratory for managing their image library. Students will have the opportunity to concentrate in the area of photography specific to their content area, learning about core principles related to photography for use in their classroom. Participants will be encouraged to create photographs that will have a practical application for the subjects they teach. Examples might include a portfolio of images concerning a particular species, environmental concern, or habitat. Applications to the classroom will vary with each participant however examples of how the images can and have been used to enhance learning, incite creativity, and conserve natural environments, will be shared with the class. Student assessment will include the creation of a portfolio that illustrates the student’s proficiencies of the techniques covered in the field and in the lab. Each portfolio will be peer reviewed and critically assessed by the instructor. Strong conceptual and technical knowledge will be the basis for portfolio evaluation. Lab fee: $75

Randall Fitzgerald is a biologist, behavioral ecologist and environmental educator at Montclair State University's School of Conservation. He has pursued the fine art of photography for over 40 years, using many different photographic techniques. His love of the natural environment has permeated both his academic and photographic life, and consequently most of his fine art images reflect the intimacy he enjoys with the natural world. Natural and rural landscapes comprise the bulk of his work, however he also enjoys creating still-life photography and capturing images of wildlife. Regardless of the subject matter, he strives to create images that stimulate our undeniable connection to the planet and the cultures that have populated it. His goal is to strike that universal cord of understanding, through imagery, that is innately present in each of us. Dr. FitzGerald currently exhibits and sells his images at several galleries in the northwestern region of New Jersey. A sampling of his images can be viewed on his website: http://randallfitzgerald.com/
e-mail: fitzgeraldr@mail.montclair.edu

Course Syllabus

Field Ecology and Natural History

Course #SG5103
July 8-14, 2012

Field Ecology and Natural History is a course that integrates concepts of ecology, natural history, and environmental science using examples from Acadia National Park on Mt. Desert Island. Daily field exercises will focus on natural history of the Maine coast and ecological analysis of local streams, forests, lakes, bogs, marine intertidal systems, salt marshes, and montane granite domes. Participants will collect and interpret evidence regarding forest stand history and disturbance patterns, ecological zonation of organisms in different habitats, influence of soil and geologic conditions, adaptations in a coastal bog ecosystem, biodiversity patterns in different ecosystems, and indicator species in stream benthic communities. Class projects will focus on developing teaching tools, visual aids, mapping techniques, methods of data analysis, and lecture materials for use in middle school and high school classrooms. It is expected that course content will provide substantial enrichment for teachers seeking to meet national science education standards in life science, earth science, and scientific inquiry. This course is best suited to middle and high school teachers and adult learners. Lab fee: $50

Christopher Cronan, Ph.D., Dartmouth College, is Professor of Biology and Ecology and Director of the Program in Ecology and Environmental Science at the University of Maine.
e-mail: cronan@maine.edu

Course Syllabus

Climatology and Climate Change

Course #SG5109
July 8-14, 2012

This course will introduce the student to the study of climate, the beginnings of the science, changes over time, and its perception in the media and public today. Beginning with a historical approach to climate, students will learn the science of climatology as practiced today. Basic atmospheric processes will be introduced, and general climate classifications and changes over various time scales will be examined. Students will be prepared to bring back explanations to their classrooms for exploring and explaining climate change and developing exercises for daily weather forecasting. Web resources will be discussed and sources of information assessed. Field trips will include an instrument factory and climate research laboratories. Guest lecturers have included legislators, researchers, and editors for the IPCC. Recommendations for further study will be discussed as well. Students will gain an appreciation of how the science is done today. This course is best suited to middle or high school teachers, graduate students and adult learners. Lab fee: $25

Lou McNally received his Interdisciplinary Ph.D. from the Climate Change Institute at the University of Maine. He is currently Assistant Professor of Applied Meteorology at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, FL, and a broadcast meteorologist for Maine Public Radio and Television. Additionally, he heads up L. K. McNally & Associates, which has been advising private and public clients in operational and forensic meteorology for 30 years. Recent research centers on forensic synoptic analysis, or reconstruction of the weather from anecdotal source information, and recent publications include invited papers for History of Meteorology, and Weather, a publication of the Royal Meteorological Society.
e-mail: loumcnally@me.com

Course Syllabus

Examining the Evidence: Classroom as a Crime Lab (Part I)

Course #SG5121
July 8-14, 2012

Part I: Forensic science is the application of science to those criminal and civil laws that are enforced by police agencies in a criminal justice system. Specifically, forensic science deals with the analysis of evidence. This interdisciplinary course will serve as an introduction to the incorporation of forensics into middle and high school science curriculum. The major areas of science will be used in determining the evidentiary value of crime-scene and related evidence. Use of the scientific method will be key and lab activities will accompany each topic. Time will be devoted to discussing the practical aspects of using crime scenes/forensics as a teaching tool. Included will be the logistics of setting-up "crime scenes" in the classroom, as well as the discussion of ideas for implementing the material presented. This course is best suited to middle and high school teachers. Part I of this course will focus on the content areas most commonly covered in a one semester course including the following topics: observational skills, crime scene investigation, hair and fibers, fingerprints, toxicology, serology and blood spatter. Participants will be exposed to both the science content as well as the methodologies commonly used in the classroom in teaching forensics. Lab activities will accompany each topic. Guest speakers will be used to enhance the workshop experience where appropriate. Each participant will receive a comprehensive resource CD. Lab fee: $45

Howard Schindler, M.S., Education, Johns Hopkins University, B.S.E., School Health Education, SUNY at Cortland. Schindler teaches forensics, health, biology and human anatomy and physiology at St. Paul's School in Brooklandville, Maryland and forensics at Stevenson University in Stevenson, Maryland.
e-mail: hschindler@stpaulsschool.org

Course Syllabus

Evidence Never Lies: Crime Scene to Crime Lab (Part II)

Course #SG5122
July 15-21, 2012

Part II: Forensic science is the application of science to those criminal and civil laws that are enforced by police agencies in a criminal justice system. Specifically, forensic science deals with the analysis of evidence. This interdisciplinary course will serve as an introduction to the incorporation of forensics into middle and high school science curriculum. The major areas of science will be used in determining the evidentiary value of crime-scene and related evidence. Use of the scientific method will be key and lab activities will accompany each topic. Time will be devoted to discussing the practical aspects of using crime scenes/forensics as a teaching tool. Included will be the logistics of setting-up "crime scenes" in the classroom, as well as the discussion of ideas for implementing the material presented. This course is best suited to middle and high school teachers. Part II of this course will focus on the content areas most commonly covered in the second semester of a full year course including the following topics: questioned documents, DNA, pathology & physical anthropology, entomology, ballistics and forensics in the courtroom. Lab activities will accompany each topic. Guest speakers will be used to enhance the workshop experience where appropriate. Each participant will receive a comprehensive resource CD.
Lab fee: $45

Howard Schindler, M.S., Education, Johns Hopkins University, B.S.E., School Health Education, SUNY at Cortland. Schindler teaches forensics, health, biology and human anatomy and physiology at St. Paul's School in Brooklandville, Maryland and forensics at Stevenson University in Stevenson, Maryland.
e-mail: hschindler@stpaulsschool.org

Course Syllabus

Marine Mammals II – Advanced Marine Mammalogy

Course #SG5107
July 8-21, 2012

This advanced course in marine mammal biology will build on material covered in "Introduction to Whales, Porpoises and Seals" and examine a select range of topics in more detail. In particular, the course will provide insight into the scientific methods and tools used to study marine mammal behavior, ecology and population dynamics, and an overview of the most current developments and topics in the field. It will give teachers the opportunity to explore some of these methods during boat trips. The course will also allow teachers to improve or update existing teaching materials on marine mammals or to develop new tools and materials. Although well-suited for graduates of the "Introduction to Whales, Porpoises, and Seals" course, anyone with a strong science background would benefit from this course.

The goals of a Marine Mammals II course are as follows:
• introduce teachers to standard research methods in marine mammal science
• provide the opportunity to explore research methods on boat excursions
• experience how field observations translate into research findings in a range of topics
• discuss new and advanced topics
• develop new teaching materials or improve/expand existing ones.
Lab Fee: $195

 Christoph Richter, Ph.D., Marine Science and Zoology, University of Otago, New Zealand; M.S. Biopsychology (and Graduate Program in Teaching), Memorial University of Newfoundland. Christoph is currently a lecturer for the Biology Department at the University of Toronto at Mississauga, Ontario Canada. Previously, he was an Assistant Adjunct Professor at Queen's University where he taught courses in animal behavior, vertebrate zoology, and data management and analysis . His graduate research investigated means to reduce bycatch of harbor porpoise in the Bay of Fundy and the impact of whale watching on male sperm whales off Kaikoura, New Zealand. Currently, he is part of a team observing sperm whales in the Gulf of Mexico to assess the impacts oil exploration has on their behavior and basic biology.
e-mail: christoph.richter@utoronto.ca

Course Syllabus

Field-based Introduction to Geology

Course #SG5073
July 8-21, 2012

The goal of the introductory geology course is to provide K-12 educators with a variety of experiences that will enhance their teaching of earth, life and/or physical science. We will investigate an active beach, salt marsh, diverse glacial features, various levels of an ancient caldera and vestiges of volcanic seafloor erupted early in the development of the Appalachian mountain system. Learn how geologists function as forensic scientists in order to decipher the geologic record of climatic, sea-level and tectonic changes. Significant time will be devoted to the practical application of these experiences in the classroom. This course is best suited to K-12 teachers and adult learners. Lab fee: $75

Douglas Reusch, Ph.D., Geological Sciences, University of Maine; M.Sc., Earth Science, Memorial University of Newfoundland. Dr. Reusch an Assistant Professor of Geology at the University of Maine at Farmington was recently a National Science Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow in Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology Education. His doctoral research examined relationships among plate tectonics, CO2 sources and sinks, and long-term climate changes. He has participated in Antarctic research, Ocean Drilling Project Leg 183 to the southern Indian Ocean, and has taught 9th grade earth science.
e-mail: reusch@maine.edu

Course syllabus

Exceptionalities: Supporting Students with Disabilities in the Regular Classroom

Participants in this course should anticipate additional contact time and assignments in order to provide the three semester credits required by the State of Maine for teacher certification. All contact time will take place during the one on-campus week, but participants should expect significant work on assignments after the on-campus portion of the course is over. Due to the increased contact time and credit, base tuition for this course is $850 (plus $160/credit for students who choose to take the course for graduate credit).

Course #SG5123
August 5- 11, 2012

This course is designed as an introductory course in special education. We will explore the needs of children with disabilities and techniques for meeting these needs in the regular classroom. The course will emphasize both the social and instructional aspects of the concepts of inclusion, differentiation and serving students in the "least restrictive environment." Participants will be introduced to concepts central to understanding the role of regular classroom teachers in meeting the academic, social, and emotional needs of students with disabilities. This course is designed to leave general educators with a positive anticipatory set about mainstreaming/inclusion, their responsibilities as a team member, and the skills for teaching children with disabilities in the regular classroom. Emphasis is placed on practical materials and methods that can be used to adapt instruction for Special Education students. Course content is also devoted to the role of regular education teachers in referral, assessment, IEP development, the instruction and evaluation of students with disabilities. Lab Fee: $25.00.

Kelley Rush Sanborn, M.A., Wheelock College is a certified Special Education Administrator and teacher. She currently works as the Director of Special Services for Mount Desert Island Regional School Systems and is responsible for the coordination and oversight of member schools "special service" programs, including Special Education, 504, Title 1. ELL (English Language Learners), and Gifted and Talented. She oversees support programming for students in Grades K-12, provides ongoing professional development opportunities for teachers and support staff, and collaborates with an administrative team to assure positive established goals for school improvement in assessment, curriculum and instruction, and supportive services.
e-mail:ksanborn@mdirss.org

Course Syllabus

letters from the summer place

Course #SG5016
August 5-11, 2012

The pace of a day. The details that hold us. The life suspended in a moment. How does a writer’s voice capture these and send them directly to a reader in a genre that—as our options for communication speed up and proliferate—some consider an endangered species and some consider an art? This week-long seminar will address that question as we take time to read and write, hear and savor, and exchange letters from correspondents (including us) summering in and out of Maine. How do we locate ourselves on the page in this season of our lives? Consider these lines from a letter E.B. White wrote to a college friend in July 1935: "I have just painted a pair of oars (French gray) and the existence of New York seems questionable. The tides run in and out, clams blow tiny jets of seawater up through the mud, a white line of fog hangs around the outer islands, days tumble along in cool blue succession, and I hate the word September." The collection of letters you’ll gather will travel with us to public gardens, an outlying island, a nature conservancy, and other sites in and around Acadia National Park as we discover letters on the rocks and by the water from this summer place. This course is suitable for teachers, graduate students and other adult learners. Lab Fee: $50.00.

Candice Stover is a native of Maine who has traveled and taught widely, including two years in Shanghai, China and workshops in New Zealand. A former reporter for The Boston Globe, she is the author of three poetry collections, Holding Patterns (Muse Press), selected by Mary Oliver for a Maine Chapbook Award, Another Stopping Place (Oyster River Press), and Poems from the Pond (Deerbrook Editions), as well as appearing in a variety of anthologies, journals, and magazines. She lives on Mount Desert Island where she teaches at College of the Atlantic, designing courses that focus on the short story, women’s poetry, and great letters and in a team-taught class on the mountain poets of China and Japan. Candice also designs and facilitates independent writing workshops, including a women’s writing group that has met on the island for 20 years. The intersection of words and place is central to her work.

You may contact Candice through the Summer Programs office: summer@coa.edu

Course Syllabus