Teachers, much like anyone else, revel in the comfort and stability of established relationships, be it with colleagues, students, or the educational community at large. These connections form the bedrock of support, collaboration, and shared experiences that enrich both personal and professional lives.  I always begin to exhale a bit during the month of November, as classroom routines have now been established, and relationships with my students have a bit of a history on which we can build.  So does that mean we coast to the end of the year?   Well, of course not.

Teachers, driven by a passion for lifelong learning and growth, often seek fresh perspectives, innovative ideas, and diverse networks that can invigorate their teaching methods and broaden their horizons. To that end, I'm super-excited that NESTA was asked to host a coffee hour by our new friends at the American Association of Physics Teachers, AAPT.  I cherish the enthusiasm of our NESTA community to immediately volunteer to help, support, share and collaborate with new friends.  Many physical science teachers are now being called upon to cover the Earth and space science curriculum standards at their schools.  So on November 27th, I invite you all to join in on the conversation to help our collegues with their newfound challenge.  (Sign-up Here).   The event is free and open to the public.  We anticipate this to be just the first chat that opens doors to a much longer conversation.  

Make time to care for your professional journey.  Embrace a balance between nurturing those respected, longstanding relationships while propagating new connections that bring with them both excitement and inspiration.  I hope you'll join us :)

Natalie Macke
NESTA President