It took a few minutes for the groups of teachers at Casper College's annual Math and Science Teacher's Conference to figure out how to program their Lego robots.

Last year, a sixth-grader figured out the programming in about 15 minutes, said presenter Susan Franklin. Teachers leaned over the small machines, pushing buttons, pulling on parts and searching for the on switch.

"It's incredible what our students can do when we put professional tools in their hands," Franklin said.

Five minutes passed, then another 10. Suddenly, robots beeped and buzzed to life. A man burst into laughter when his robot nearly zoomed off a table.

The two-day conference held in Casper offers a wide variety of sessions for math and science teachers. They can learn about the robotics program at Casper College, take a training on using GPS devices or hear about projects their peers and fellow schools are working on.

One such project was Mary Moler's dissertation on the relationship between curriculum and teacher instruction and the performance of eleventh-grade students for Adequate Yearly Progress.

Moler, a math teacher at Kelly Walsh High School, hoped that researching the relationship would offer ideas on how she and her fellow staff members could improve student achievement.

What she found was there were no major differences between schools making AYP and those that did not.

"That was really surprising to me," Moler said. Her research did not find exact reasons why no differences exist, though teacher readiness and student test preparation might be two areas that affect achievement.

Teachers attending the conference said the sessions offered a lot of new ideas. Ed DeCastro, a math teacher from Rock Springs, said the robotics session was a particular favorite of his.

"The conference has been really helpful," DeCastro said. "We're getting some good information."

Reach education reporter Jasa Santos at (307) 266-0593 or at Jasa.Santos@trib.com. Read her blog at my.trib.com/jasasantos.