Activate Learning

We're heading to the Louisiana Department of Education Teacher Leader Summit 2026 (May 26–28), and we'd love to see you at Booth #814! We're also presenting four sessions of "From Mystery to Meaning: Using Crosscutting Concepts to Make Sense of the Unknown in OpenSciEd" - for both K–5 and 6–8 educators across all three days. If you're trying to figure out how crosscutting concepts actually land in the classroom, this one's for you. Come say hi, ask us anything, and let's talk science. 👋

We're so excited to be joining educators from across Pennsylvania at the MCIU Learns STEELS Expo 2026 on May 19th! This is such a great event for anyone working through the new STEELS standards, featuring a full day of hands-on learning, real classroom strategies, and connecting with people who get it.

Make sure to stop by our booth and add our session to your schedule 🗓️
OpenSciEd K-12: Addressing Key Challenges
Time: 10AM-11AM
Presenters: Ron Antinori and Scott Oste
Location: Room A108

Whether you're just getting started with STEELS or looking to learn more about our three-dimensional
phenomena-based K-12 science programs, we'd love to see you there.

That means when a teacher calls with a question about a lesson that isn't landing, they're not talking to a script. They're talking to someone who has felt that exact moment — the one where a class goes sideways, and you have to pivot in real time.

Activate Learning's team includes former teachers and administrators.

That means when a teacher calls with a question about a lesson that isn't landing, they're not talking to a script. They're talking to someone who has felt that exact moment — the one where a class goes sideways and you have to pivot in real time.

That's what Kimberly Mulvena, Science Instructional Coach at Colonial School District, noticed right away. She described the Activate Learning professional learning team as people who "understand the workload and stresses of teachers" and adapt their support accordingly.

Support that actually gets it is different. And it makes all the difference.

🔗 https://hubs.li/Q04gcR3G0

May is the sprint to the finish line for teachers everywhere, and we see you. If you're looking for a science curriculum that keeps students engaged through the end of the year AND sets them up for next fall, OpenSciEd is worth a look.

Share this with a science teacher who needs a win today.

R.E. Davis College Preparatory Academy is a Title I school in Sumter, South Carolina. 325 students. Limited resources. Two science teachers carrying the weight of real instructional change.

And this is what they did:
📌 6th Grade Science Proficiency
2023: 19.5%
2025: 40.5%

That's more than doubled in two years because a principal trusted her teachers enough to give them autonomy and time. Because a district coordinator stayed accessible and kept fidelity front and center. Because two teachers were willing to be uncomfortable and let go of the way they'd always done things.

And because the tools they were given — Activate Learning's certified version of OpenSciEd — actually worked.

When science stops feeling like memorization and starts feeling like real problem-solving, students show up differently. They engage differently. They perform differently.

These results are early momentum. Not the finish line. But they are proof that the right conditions create real change — even at schools that the system has historically underserved.

Read the full Sumter School District case study and see exactly how they built this.

🔗 https://hubs.li/Q04fkVrq0

Sumter School District OpenSciEd Implementation Case Study Sumter School District offers insights for leaders considering OpenSciEd science curriculum and how thoughtful implementation can empower sustainable change.

Here's a question a lot of science teachers ask when they first encounter OpenSciEd: What exactly is a unit storyline — and how do I actually teach it?

It sounds like a simple question. But the answer changes everything about how you plan, how you pace, and how your students experience science class.

A storyline isn't just a themed unit. It's a coherent sequence where every lesson connects to the one before it — where students are always working toward figuring something out, not just covering content.

OpenSciEd's On-Demand Teacher Support Library has a free video dedicated to this: Teaching with Storylines — breaking down what it is, how it works, and how to teach it so students stay engaged and keep building ideas over time.

If you've ever felt like your lessons were islands instead of a journey, this is the video to start with.

Watch free 👉 https://hubs.li/Q04fkXLf0

Read more: https://hubs.li/Q04fl1hN0

On-Demand Teacher Support Library - OpenSciEd Get practical support for leading discussions, building classroom culture, engaging students—and keeping learning going with absent students or substitutes.

Big news from our team.

Virtual Investigations® for OpenSciEd K–5 are officially live.
We've heard it from elementary educators across the country — time is tight, students miss class, and repeating a full physical investigation isn't always an option. These Virtual Investigations® were built with exactly those realities in mind.

What makes them different? They aren't supplemental tools that approximate the OpenSciEd experience. They are the same investigations, delivered digitally — same storylines, same driving questions, same sense-making approach. Every student gets the intended learning experience, whether they're in the classroom or at home.
The first set is available now on the Activate Learning Digital Platform, with more on the way.

Read more: https://hubs.li/Q04fkK5N0

👉 Learn more or schedule a demo: https://hubs.li/Q04fkV870

Grading is one of the most time-consuming parts of teaching. And for a lot of science teachers implementing OpenSciEd, it's also one of the most confusing.

How do you grade sensemaking? How do you assess a process, not just a product? And how do you make it sustainable so you're not drowning in papers every weekend?

OpenSciEd tackled this head-on with a free webinar in their On-Demand Library: Grading Smarter Not Harder — Grading That Works for Students and Teachers.
Not just theory. Actual approaches teachers are using that align with OpenSciEd's instructional model and are manageable in real life.

Watch free 👉 https://hubs.li/Q04dWDT00

Back to School 23 - Grading Smarter not Harder This is "Back to School 23 - Grading Smarter not Harder" by OpenSciEd Account on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

We're giving away an Activate Learning tee and a $50 gift card to show some well-deserved appreciation.

👉 Visit our Instagram page to enter
📅 Winner announced 5.5.26

Know an amazing teacher? Tag them below so they don't miss out! ⬇️

Science class shouldn't be a one-way street.

But in a lot of classrooms — even really good ones — the teacher does most of the talking. And students do most of the listening. And then we wonder why they can't articulate their thinking on an assessment.

OpenSciEd flips that dynamic entirely. Student talk isn't a bonus activity at the end of a lesson. It's the engine of the whole learning experience.
Their On-Demand Teacher Support Library just dropped a video specifically on this: Why Student Talk Matters in OpenSciEd — and it's worth every minute of your time whether you're new to the curriculum or deep into implementation.

Because when students talk through science, they're not just communicating. They're building understanding in real time.

Watch it free 👉 https://hubs.li/Q04dLFBY0

Why Student Talk Matters in OpenSciEd - OpenSciEd In OpenSciEd, students learn by explaining. This video unpacks why discussion is central to deep science learning—and how to move beyond guessing the teacher’s answer and into true student-driven sensemaking.

"I don't want to switch. What I'm doing is working." That's a completely valid thing to feel. As a Teacher, you've built something, refined it, and found your rhythm. The idea of starting over with a new curriculum — and another round of training and adjustment — sounds exhausting.

Our Activate Learning team hears that. And we’re not here to tell you everything you've been doing is wrong.

But, here's what we do say: science is always evolving, and so should our instructional practices. The shift to 3-dimensional, investigation-centered learning isn't about throwing out what you know — it's about adding a framework that makes what you do even more effective for every student in the room.

If you've been on the fence, this is worth a look.

🔗 https://hubs.li/Q04d4l7t0