Teacher Workshops at McDonald Observatory

For over 20 years, McDonald Observatory has offered a spectacular setting and enriching content for teacher professional development. In summer 2023, we hosted five onsite workshops, complete with telescope tours, discussions with resident researchers, and nighttime observations.

In total, 72 teachers joined us for these workshops. Most traveled from cities across Texas, but we also had participants from Oklahoma, New Mexico, California, Florida, Minnesota, New Jersey, Ohio, DC, Maryland, and Kentucky.

Workshops provided a collective 1,440 hours of Continuing Professional Education credits. We estimate 3,600 students could benefit from materials covered in the trainings this school year. 

Summer 2023 Workshops

Participants experienced inquiry-based activities aligned with science and mathematics teaching standards, practiced astronomy skills under the Observatory’s famously dark skies, and worked with nationally recognized astronomers. 

• Mysteries of the Universe: Dark Matter, Galaxies & More – The mystery of dark matter and how it relates to the emergence and evolution of cosmic structure.  
• Galaxy Formation: The Faint Frontier – How galaxies form and evolve, what distant galaxies were like in the past, and how the James Webb Space Telescope is helping astronomers study the early Universe.
• Searching for ET: Planetary Habitability and Exoplanets – What new planetary systems are telling us about habitability and the possibility of life in the Universe.
• Eclipses and Planetary Systems – The characteristics and properties of our own and other planetary systems, eclipse science, and how to safely view eclipses. This workshop helped prepare educators for the solar eclipses crossing Texas in October 2023 and April 2024.
• Explore Our Solar System – The Sun and Moon, their characteristics, and the reason eclipses occur. Activities covered how to read star charts and how to make models of the night sky, solar system, and Moon phases.

An Immersive Experience

Each workshop took place over a period of four days and included both day and night instructional sessions, daytime tours, and evening observing (weather permitting) that lasted until late hours.

There was a lot of learning packed into long hours. Even so, some teachers choose to get up as early as 5:00 a.m. to look at the Milky Way on their own.

Teachers were provided onsite housing, meals, and workshop materials. Except for transportation, all expenses were covered by grant and endowment funding, plus a modest participant fee. 

Workshops in 2024

In the coming year, McDonald Observatory will hold more teacher workshops. To read full workshop descriptions and access the application form, please visit mcdonaldobservatory.org/teachers/profdev. 

There is a separate workshop application form for the winter workshop and the summer workshops.

Winter Workshop

Application deadline: December 12

• All About Stars, Including Ours, February 2-4 - Learn about stars in general, and the Sun specifically. Try out our favorite scientific models, visit our research telescopes, and use our 36-inch telescope to observe of some wintertime celestial favorites that illustrate the various stages in a star’s life.

Summer Workshops

Application deadline: February 12

• Explore Our Solar System, June 10-13 - Learn about the Sun and Moon, their characteristics, and the reason eclipses occur. Activities will cover how to read star charts and how to make models of the night sky, solar system, and Moon phases.
• Searching for ET: Planetary Habitability / Exoplanets, June 24-27 – Astronomers are finding and learning about new planets around other stars all the time. What do we know about these exoplanets and how do we know what we know? Explore what these new planetary systems are telling us about habitability and the possibility of life in the Universe.
• Galaxies and Cosmology, July 5-8 – What were the first stars and galaxies like? What is "dark matter," and how does it influence the cosmos, from our own Milky Way Galaxy to the largest scales we can observe? Learn how scientists are attempting to answer these questions. Plus, explore how galaxies form and evolve through hands-on activities. 
• Lights, Color, Optics! Exploring the Properties of Photons, July 10-13 - Astronomers use optics, color, and properties of light to analyze distant objects. We will perform hands-on, engaging classroom activities related to reflection, refraction, and diffraction to learn how scientists use the mighty photon to better understand our Universe.

All workshops include a tour of McDonald Observatory and opportunities to learn how astronomers use the research telescopes to explore the Universe and make ground-breaking discoveries.