Presented by Karrie Berglund, Director of Education, Digitalis Education Solutions, Inc.; and Kyle Doane, Education Specialist, Digitalis Education Solutions, Inc.
Moderated by Jim McVety, Managing Partner, First Step Advisors

Sponsored by Digitalis Education Solutions, Inc.

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Closed captioning will be added to the recording within 2 weeks of the live presentation.
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Stargazing is as old as human history. Our earliest ancestors looked to the sky and imagined heroes, monsters, animals, and more residing in the stars. Often there were stories created to accompany the pictures; these stories explained how those constellations came to be in the sky.

In this recorded edWebinar, we explore:

• What a constellation is
• Several practical reasons why people created constellations and constellation stories
• How different peoples from around the world connected the dots in the sky to make constellations—or in some cases, how they created constellations without connecting any dots
• What constellation pictures and stories can tell us about the people who created them

Using planetarium software, we virtually visit several different locations on Earth. You will see the stars and constellations from each location, and we will share sky stories and fun facts for each location. We will also provide recommendations on resources for learning more.

This recorded edWebinar is particularly applicable to kindergarten through sixth-grade teachers but will be of interest to anyone teaching history or social sciences. 

About the Presenters

Karrie Berglund is a co-founder of Digitalis. She is passionate about science education and its power to encourage critical thinking and engage the imagination. Prior to Digitalis (founded in January 2003), Karrie held numerous positions at Seattle’s Pacific Science Center. She supervised the on-site Willard Smith Planetarium and live stage science programs; traveled to K-8 schools with the Science On Wheels outreach program; and planned and led science-based summer camps.

As Director of Education for Digitalis, Karrie helps customers use Digitalis’s tools to their fullest extent. She develops curricula for Digitalis’s Digitarium planetarium systems, ensuring that lessons are aligned with learning standards. She is also the primary contact for marketing and sales at Digitalis. Karrie founded and acts as Chief Instigator for the Live Interactive Planetarium Symposium (LIPS), a movement dedicated to professional development for presenters of live planetarium programs, regardless of what tools they use or where they live.

Kyle Doane is a starry-eyed idealist, dreamer, traveler, student and sometimes, teacher. He finds the immersive environment of the planetarium to be the most powerful tool for changing perspectives and deeply exploring our human connection with the cosmos through science, culture and art. He has over 20 years of experience teaching (and learning) in the planetarium environment all over the world, including Ghana, Kenya, the United Kingdom and even Texas. Kyle has been an education specialist with Digitalis since 2015.

About the Moderator

Jim McVety is Managing Partner of First Step Advisors and Senior Advisor to Digitalis Education. A lifelong advocate for innovation in education, Jim brings 20+ years of research and analysis experience to this discussion on the importance of astronomy across disciplines. Jim has hosted numerous webinars, expert panels, and keynote presentations during his career, and his focus is on building the capacity of service organizations to better support educators and students.

Closed captioning will be added to the recording within 2 weeks of the live presentation.

Join the Teaching Next Generation Scientists community to network with educators, participate in online discussions, receive invitations to upcoming edWebinars, and view recordings of previous programs to earn CE certificates.

Digitalis staff are science education experts and technologists. We develop our own simulation and interface software, and all of our sales staff have taught in planetariums. We understand science educator needs, and we use our own products to present programs to ensure they will meet your requirements.