A very happy end of the semester to you all. And what a semester it was! This past spring we once again had the privilege to share curriculum and resources with pre-service education students in colleges and universities all across the country. During each workshop, tailored to specific grade-levels and subject areas, students participate in the hands-on lessons which provides them the ability to see the activities unfold. Having students be able to interact with the activities, and discuss both the content and pedagogy of each, prior to using them in their own teaching is one of the great advantages of the workshop’s design. We so enjoyed working with you and from the feedback we received, the feeling was mutual.

“Wasn’t expecting the workshop to be as interesting as it was. Very cool!” – Pre-service Science Education Student, Emporia State University

“Thanks for the awesome day! I’m excited to use these lessons and to pass them along to my other teacher friends!”  – Pre-service Social Studies Education Student, Minnesota State University-Mankato

“Everything we learned we can apply in the classroom.” – Pre-service Elementary Education Student, University of Central Florida

Thanks in large part to the amazing educators in our volunteer trainers’ network there were over 125 Population Education pre-service workshops this spring.

That means that there are now over 3,000 additional soon to be teachers with access to some of our favorite lessons and activities! And though the workshops are wrapped up, don’t let that be goodbye. Here are a few of the many ways to stay in in touch:

• More curriculum! You now have one of our curriculum bundles (either Counting on People or Teaching Population) as part of your library. We have many more lessons and activities for K-12 audiences, and develop new items all the time so let us know if there is something in particular you are looking for. Our product catalog is searchable by grade-level, subject, and state/national standard(s).

• Encourage your students participate in the World of 7 Billion video contest! If you will be teaching grades 9-12 this is a wonderful opportunity for students to tackle global challenges, thinking critically about sustainable solutions. Oh, and prize money is involved.

• Join our trainers’ network! Having participated in a workshop you can now join the ranks of our incredible trainers corps, made up of K-12 teachers, professors, and non-formal educators. Because of the program’s reach and demand for workshops we rely on this network to facilitate workshops when opportunities arise in their respective state or region. You could even present to your alma mater!

• Say “hello” at a conference! As you take part in other professional development opportunities, look out for our booth (follow the sound of a spinning wheel) and in-conference workshops. We’d love to see you again and fill your arms with as many resources and you can hold – see our World Population Map, which was a big hit, literally, at the most recent National Council for the Social Studies Conference.

• Follow us on social media. Facebook and Twitter are two great ways to always be in the know about upcoming curriculum, general Pop Ed news, and gather additional resources we share.

Congratulations, graduates, and best of luck in your teaching endeavors!