I have had the pleasure of connecting with a number of talented educators throughout the country via Twitter. A common topic that many are eager to explore and experiment in their own classrooms, but may be hesitant to do so for a variety of reasons. My advice to those that are curious about STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math) in the classroom is for you to do one thing: TRY IT! I was not an expert in the field outside of the personal research and networking via social media when I first started experimenting with it, but I have found that my students are enamored with the type of experiences STEM activities can provide. I am going to give a brief overview of how STEM works in my classroom with examples of challenges we have done in my room and how my students take ownership of their learning.
Multidisciplinary Challenges
I typically look for, tweak, attempt to create STEM challenges that incorporate a number of academic subjects. In an era when our time is precious and more and more mandates, many people may think I would love to do these type of activities in my classroom, but how do I have time with Reading, Writing, and Math to teach as separate entities. There in lies the problem as STEM is the perfect opportunity for students to see that all areas of the academic are intertwined and more importantly relate to the real world. One great example of an interdisciplinary STEM challenge I have done in my class is the story of "The Three Little Pigs". We were able to address the story elements of the story, specifically the Problem/Solution by creating a challenge in which students were asked to work together with a partner to design a house using materials of their choosing to be tested against the strength of the Big Bad Wolf. Writing and Speaking/Listening standards were addressed as students were asked to explain how they built their houses, ask/answer questions about their houses/peers houses, and discuss why a house was successful or not. In one challenge, I was able to address a number of Literacy standards in addition to science inquiry skills, engineering, and the 21st Century Learning skills of Creativity/Collaboration. In short, STEM does not have to be something done on top of what you already do, but easily done by way of incorporating it into what you already do in your classroom.
21st Century Learning Skills
One reason I feel so strongly about doing STEM related activities in my 1st Grade classroom is the reality of how well they lend themselves to incorporating 21st Century Skills. My class is often challenged to work with a partner to solve a problem (such as How can we build a boat that will hold the most unifix cubes using a limited supply of tin foil.) Not only do my students have to think critically and creatively to solve a problem, they have to work together with a peer in doing so! Working peacefully with a peer can be a challenge for any early elementary student, but I feel STEM activities provide an engaging scenario in which students are motivated to work together because they are having fun and are eager to conquer the challenge posed. Many challenges require my students to get up in front of their peers and present their creations to the class. This allow them to explain the process they took in solving the problem and ask/answer questions of their peers. I absolutely love this aspect of it as my students rise to the occasion of "running the show" and do a marvelous job of leading the discussion as they present their knowledge.
The Power of Choice
In my class we call our STEM activties "Genius Hour" similar to other experiences in education based around Google's 20% Time in which their employees were allowed to spend a portion of each work week on a project of their choosing. Some "Genius Hour" activities have allowed students the individual freedom to choose a topic they wish to learn more about and present it to the class in a manner of their choosing. I feel it is imperative for students to have the power of choice because it is THEIR learning, not YOUR learning so if a child deems a topic worthy of further exploration by all means let them. I often try to limit the number of restraints on place on my students creations in the challenge based activities. I try to pose a problem, state expectations of how I expect them to go about working together with their partner, but I do not tell them HOW to solve a problem or WHAT something should like. Sometimes I feel we get too caught up in things being neat, clean, organized because it pleases us, but in the process we may be squelching a child's creativity in placing limits on what they can and cannot do. As part of a book study we are conducting at my school, one of the most powerful quotes I took away was "A student isn't refusing to do work, they are refusing to do YOUR work!". We eliminate that battle and do wonders for student engagement when we allow students the opportunity to have the freedom of choice.
Multidisciplinary Challenges
I typically look for, tweak, attempt to create STEM challenges that incorporate a number of academic subjects. In an era when our time is precious and more and more mandates, many people may think I would love to do these type of activities in my classroom, but how do I have time with Reading, Writing, and Math to teach as separate entities. There in lies the problem as STEM is the perfect opportunity for students to see that all areas of the academic are intertwined and more importantly relate to the real world. One great example of an interdisciplinary STEM challenge I have done in my class is the story of "The Three Little Pigs". We were able to address the story elements of the story, specifically the Problem/Solution by creating a challenge in which students were asked to work together with a partner to design a house using materials of their choosing to be tested against the strength of the Big Bad Wolf. Writing and Speaking/Listening standards were addressed as students were asked to explain how they built their houses, ask/answer questions about their houses/peers houses, and discuss why a house was successful or not. In one challenge, I was able to address a number of Literacy standards in addition to science inquiry skills, engineering, and the 21st Century Learning skills of Creativity/Collaboration. In short, STEM does not have to be something done on top of what you already do, but easily done by way of incorporating it into what you already do in your classroom.
21st Century Learning Skills
One reason I feel so strongly about doing STEM related activities in my 1st Grade classroom is the reality of how well they lend themselves to incorporating 21st Century Skills. My class is often challenged to work with a partner to solve a problem (such as How can we build a boat that will hold the most unifix cubes using a limited supply of tin foil.) Not only do my students have to think critically and creatively to solve a problem, they have to work together with a peer in doing so! Working peacefully with a peer can be a challenge for any early elementary student, but I feel STEM activities provide an engaging scenario in which students are motivated to work together because they are having fun and are eager to conquer the challenge posed. Many challenges require my students to get up in front of their peers and present their creations to the class. This allow them to explain the process they took in solving the problem and ask/answer questions of their peers. I absolutely love this aspect of it as my students rise to the occasion of "running the show" and do a marvelous job of leading the discussion as they present their knowledge.
The Power of Choice
In my class we call our STEM activties "Genius Hour" similar to other experiences in education based around Google's 20% Time in which their employees were allowed to spend a portion of each work week on a project of their choosing. Some "Genius Hour" activities have allowed students the individual freedom to choose a topic they wish to learn more about and present it to the class in a manner of their choosing. I feel it is imperative for students to have the power of choice because it is THEIR learning, not YOUR learning so if a child deems a topic worthy of further exploration by all means let them. I often try to limit the number of restraints on place on my students creations in the challenge based activities. I try to pose a problem, state expectations of how I expect them to go about working together with their partner, but I do not tell them HOW to solve a problem or WHAT something should like. Sometimes I feel we get too caught up in things being neat, clean, organized because it pleases us, but in the process we may be squelching a child's creativity in placing limits on what they can and cannot do. As part of a book study we are conducting at my school, one of the most powerful quotes I took away was "A student isn't refusing to do work, they are refusing to do YOUR work!". We eliminate that battle and do wonders for student engagement when we allow students the opportunity to have the freedom of choice.