Summary:
Shawn and Troy talk about PD, AI, student success, teaching the parents, and more. Dave scientifically explores AI.
Jokes:
Technically the overall goal of golf…
- is to play less golf…
Elevators terrify me.
I’m taking steps to avoid them.
I’ve started a sarcasm club.
- It would mean the world to me if you joined.
I’m glad I know sign language;
- it’s pretty handy.
My friend quit his job as a reporter and left town by railway.
- It was an ex-press train.
Middle School Science Minute
by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)
K12Science Podcast: AI and Scientific Information
I was recently reading the July/August 2026 issue of “The Science Teacher” a publication of the National Science Teaching Association.
In this issue I read the section “Fact-or-Faux” written by Jonathan Osborne. He wrote an article entitled “AI – Friend or Foe?.”
Can AI help in detecting misinformation? Can it sort fact from faux? Here is a three-step process to help:
1. Get it In — Put the claim into AI
2. Track it Down — Track down the source
3. Follow Up — Follow up by asking more questions of AI about the source of the claim.
MDSTA Conference Song Choices – Please Vote:
Choice A: https://suno.com/s/tQPAOee5q4WgFBTd
Choice B: https://suno.com/s/kGthv6WH8IQRUuz5
https://k12science.net/ai-and-scientific-information/
Reports from the Front Lines
PD Plans
Google AI Educators Series – https://edu.google.com/intl/ALL_us/learning-center/google-ai-educator-series/ – Master AI with snackable and stackable training from Google and ISTE+ASCD – available to all educators free of charge. These 15-45 minute sessions give you the flexibility to build an AI literacy learning journey tailored to your unique schedule.
H5P and Teacher Autonomy
Student Success
The Social Web
ICYMI: Why do some students seem disengaged one day and fully invested the next? 🤔 AMLE and NAESP member Jennifer Otte explores the science behind the adolescent brain and what educators can do to foster stronger engagement, focus, and success: ow.ly/sw2q50ZRAXx
Etymology of the day: the expression ‘you have another thing coming’ was originally ‘you have another think coming’: today’s version appeared within a year of the original, back in the 1800s. A short piece on the joyful messiness of linguistic evolution. susiedent.substack.com/p/another-th…
Eric Curts @ericcurts.bsky.social
Join me today for Promptcraft: Building a Better AI Prompt – www.controlaltachieve.com/2026/09/prom… 🏆 10 tips for better prompts 💡 100’s of examples 🛠️ Tools for building prompts 🗓️ Sep 24 @ 3pm ET ▶️ Live-streamed & recorded ✅ Register at link above #EduSky #EduSkyAI #EdTech #GoogleEDU
💎 New EduGem: www.edugems.ai/gem/when-wil… 🤷 When Will I Use This? – Answer the question of “When will I EVER use this?” by connecting your lessons to real-world scenarios and classroom-ready tasks #EduSky #EduSkyAI #EdTech #GoogleEDU
🤝 Kagan Strategy Planner – Transform any lesson, topic, or learning target into an active, collaborative experience using structured Kagan Cooperative Learning strategies
Resources:
Backpack Studio Podcasting App
Soundboard and podcast app that lets you record on your iPad or iPhone.
AXIS The Culture Translator
Verity: The Meme
If you guessed that this meme would be about the controversial movie adaptation coming out next week, good guess, you are wrong. To understand the meme “verity,” you first have to understand a particular Minecraft subculture, which involves installing “horror mods” to add additional scary elements to the game. A YouTube series by ThatMob depicts (strong language) the installation of a mod called Verity™ into Minecraft, which is represented as an AI-powered smiley face in the game who helps you find useful items—only to eventually transform into a horrifying monster. The series led to the creation of an annoyingly catchy song, and is why your 13-year-old might now be calling all smiley faces “verity” and/or adding -ity as a suffix onto a wide variety of words.
Web Spotlight:
How Our Teacher Lives Change as We Mature
https://www.middleweb.com/54289/how-our-teacher-lives-change-as-we-mature/
Harry Wong reference: https://www.harrywong.com/
Random Thoughts . . .
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