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What You’re Missing By Not Hosting a STEM Career Day Event [ep.144]

by Naomi Meredith

What You're Missing By Not Hosting a STEM Career Day Event [ep.144]

STEM career day event

Check out the full episode on What You're Missing By Not Hosting a STEM Career Day Event:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Have a STEM question? Leave a voice message for the podcast!

Episode Summary

Last week, I shared how to host your own STEM Career Day Event at your school. Now, you may be wondering about the benefits of hosting a STEM Career Day Event, which is what I'm talking about today. I'll be diving into how a STEM Career Day Event can greatly benefit the students at your school, the significant impact these types of events can have on students, and more.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Why students benefit from attending a STEM Career Day Event
  • Behind the scenes of the responses from both the students and guest speakers when I hosted a STEM Career Day Event
  • Why we should encourage students to start thinking about their future careers early

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:

You want to host a STEM career day event for your students, but it just sounds like a lot of work. What are your students even missing out on anyway by not having a STEM career day? I hosted a STEM career day in my 5th year of teaching STEM, and this was the first time I had ever done this event for my students. And I was so bummed that I hadn't put on this event before. Well, what did my students even miss out on? Why was I so sad about it? Let me explain inside this episode. 


Naomi Meredith [00:01:13]:

In the last episode, episode 143, I talked about all the things that you need to do to set up your STEM career day for success. If you haven't taken a listen to that episode, make sure to go back and listen to it after you listen to this one. It's okay if you listen to them out of order. Now, an event like this, when it's something for your entire school, could be a lot of prep work when it comes to all of the little details, the scheduling, making sure everybody knows about it, communicating with your guest speakers, and getting the guest speakers. How do you organize it all on top of all of the lesson planning that you are already doing for your school and even all of those after-school clubs and everything in between? I totally understand and was 100% in your position, but also knew that this was extremely important for my students to experience in elementary. So, while I was planning my STEM career day event, I saved every single thing for you. Yep.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:22]:

I saved every template, system, routine, and even examples of what went on that day so you wouldn't have to go digging and figure it out on your own. You can just plug and play, adapt what you need, and have a successful event in no time. I am spilling all the secrets and letting you steal all my ideas for your own event, and you can find this in my audio workshop at naomimeredith.com/stemcareerdayworkshop. You don't need to join me live. It is audio only, so I will talk you through it in short segments. With all of those templates and all of that planning, you have me in your back pocket, and you will be on your way with this awesome day for your students. This is linked in the show notes for you so you don't miss out on this awesome resource. So, what are you missing out on anyway by not having a STEM Career Day? You don't have to put it on.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:23]:

It's probably not required of you. Why does it even matter? Why should you even do something extra? Who cares? Here's what your students are missing out on. The first thing that they are missing out on by not having a STEM career day is learning how to dream big. Okay. So maybe your kids are dreaming big already about the cool projects that you're doing, but dreaming big in a different way. I had a parent presenter at my STEM career day that I hosted for my students and she's actually a guest on my upcoming kid podcast that will be coming out sooner than later. But she was saying even in that episode that the first Experience that she had at a career day wasn't until early college, and she already had an idea of what she might have wanted to be when she grew up, but she had this experience, this career day experience, and it actually changed the trajectory of the career that she went into her pathway, and because of that career day, this is the job that she is actually doing today and is super passionate about it. Now, thankfully, that experience happened for her.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:37]:

Everything happens for a reason. But what if she had known? You never know. But what if she had known about this career and learned about it at a career day in elementary school? Our kids are already thinking about what they wanna be when they grow up. They're not waiting until college to think about what they wanna be when they grow up. This can definitely change. Absolutely. Jobs are going to change. But even as a little kid, they're not too young to think about the possibilities and the passions and the interests and the things that they might wanna do when they get older.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:20]:

And how cool is that where you're bringing in these different experiences and jobs that they might not have ever heard of and even jobs you might not have even heard of as an adult to help them dream big in these different ways. We're always hearing as teachers, and you are probably told this as a kid, that as teachers, we are preparing our students for jobs that don't even exist yet. And some of those jobs and those careers that are being presented on this day might not exist when your kids get to be older, but it doesn't mean you need not to have them come in. These jobs now that are currently happening are evolving, and they are changing and they are sparking new jobs that your students might be in whether they're ones that are being created or maybe they're they are a job that those students actually create. You never know what it's going to be like. My teachers never told me, hey, maybe one day you could be a podcaster. No. They never said that.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:27]:

I always knew that I wanted to be a teacher, but also I never knew as a kid there were all these other pathways and things that would end up putting me in this position of teaching in a different way with the involvement with technology and all of that. However, I did have experiences that led me to where I am today, so you never know what types of experiences are gonna Spark that passion and that interest for your students, and a STEM career day is a great way to do this. One of the parent presenters Even emailed me after the event, after we sent home all of the thank you notes. And one of the parent presenters sent me this really kind email, and they said, Thank you so much for putting all that work into STEM career day. My son and their cousins are all still talking about it. They were kids at the school. And that was also very sweet of the kids to write thank you notes for you to send them home with my son. They were fun to read.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:26]:

1 kid said, I would consider this a career option as I age. Hope you're enjoying your last couple weeks at the end of the school year. So it's pretty cool to hear that from one of the parent presenters that kids were thinking about what they were saying and presenting to them. The second thing that your students are missing out on by not having a STEM career day is having a different way to connect STEM to the real world. This can often be tricky in the elementary STEM space, thinking about, okay, we're doing these really cool hands-on projects, But how is this connecting to a bigger picture? Because our little kids their worlds are small to them. So, how can we make those STEM projects come to life in a way that actually makes sense? A STEM career day is a really great way to do this. You might even get that question all the time, why are we learning this? What does this have to do with anything? Why is this even important? A ton of my parent presenters, because I had the chance to go around and watch them, so many of them said how they use math and why math is important in their jobs. And so it was really cool to hear parents and their parents, But hearing them say, here's how I use this skill in my job.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:49]:

This is why it's important. Here's how I have to work together with others. Here's how I need to know how to present because I present projects all the time in front of a team and have to share my ideas in a way that makes sense to others. So those tidbits that all of the presenters were sharing were so important. Students had the opportunity to ask them questions about their jobs and the things that they do, and the things that are exciting for them. It wasn't just a set and get kind of day. Kids were able to interact with the presenters in all of these special ways. In one of the presentations, one of the parents is in finance, and she was talking about her job, but then she did an interactive activity where the students had a budget, and then they had to actually figure out where all of the different funds would go And thinking about rent and taxes and all of those things, they did a budgeting game and to see how much money was left over at the end.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:57]:

An absolute real life challenge. She paired it down definitely based on what she does for her job. But this was really cool, too, because in my STEM classroom, We also used a budget when it comes to purchasing Makerspace supplies and where the funds are allocated, how much money have left, how to make returns and get money back and change. So it was really awesome to hear her give this presentation and make it interactive because it definitely reiterated what I was doing in the STEM space, but, also, I know for a fact a lot of those math problems that classroom teachers were doing as well. So this was a really cool way to just really touch upon those real world examples. It's also cool in this STEM career day experience. It's twofold in a way when you're talking about how it all connects to the real world. First, students learn about projects that happen in the real world.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:56]:

So many of the parents shared, hey. This is what I work on in my career. And then they're also learning how the career is supporting the project, so they're hearing about the projects and how the career is supporting the projects. There was 1 session where there was a parent whose company is a STEM company, and her job isn't necessarily a STEM job, but it's supporting the STEM company. So her skills are really valuable in this company where she does marketing for this business and also works on creating content and podcasts and all of those types of things to help support what that company is doing in a STEM space. So that was really cool to hear that type of perspective where Not everything is a STEM job, but there are ways that those kinds of things can collide together based on the passions and the skills that you have. The third thing that your students are missing out on by not having a STEM career day is having a unique opportunity to learn from multiple perspectives. I hate to break it to you, but as a teacher and as a STEM teacher, you don't know everything.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:16]:

And guess what? Neither do I. I definitely don't. I do a lot of research on things, but I don't know everything either. And I can't share everybody's perspective of what they are experiencing in the STEM space. I can't. And oftentimes, there are a lot of people in STEM that we're constantly sharing about, but we're not broadening that perspective from students to learn from. And some of us might not even be sharing about other STEM careers and jobs at all. So this is really helping break out of, okay, I am the teacher in the classroom, I teach STEM, but I'm not the only person who knows about all these things.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:59]:

There are a lot more people out there who are way smarter than me and who can explain these topics and bring them to light in a way I could never dream possible. This type of event is so cool because it really is brought to life. It's in person. Students are learning from industry experts who are doing this in their day to day jobs. These people are doing this all the time, and so they get a break out of here's what I do all day, and you can learn more about it. That is pretty darn cool. Bringing this into your school building really provides that access for students where they were already there at school. It was during the school day.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:42]:

It wasn't an after-school opportunity. If you are in school that day and making good choices, you have to come to STEM career day. It was brought to them. We didn't have to go on a field trip. We didn't have to think about the funding. I planned everything out for them. They literally just had to show up with their classroom teacher. And so when you're thinking about all of those details, that's all inside the workshop for you.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:05]:

So it's all laid out. Not too bad. There is careful planning, but such a cool way for them to learn from people who are doing amazing things every single day. These people that you are bringing in are doing cool things, and they are immersed in this STEM space And they're using those up to date things where I probably don't know about all of them. For example, there was a parent who did a lot of coding in their job. And they were showing the kids how they use Computer coding, so that was actually pretty cool too to see some of the lines of code that he writes, so saying that advanced level of coding. But he was actually showing them how he uses the AI tool, chat g p t, to actually check his code, Make sure there are no bugs in it, and then it will actually give him suggestions on how to make the code better. This is also when chat g p t was, like, a really big buzzword.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:08]:

It Still is, but people are getting more accustomed to it and its capabilities. So not only did kids get to see real life code for a project, and the dad explained what it was and what it's used for and, like, kinda what he does in his job, but then also talked about A real life AI tool and show them how he uses it to check the code. I could not have done that. I never would have thought of doing that. I wouldn't have known how to talk about it. Now I can share about it because I watched it at STEM career day. But even something like That is something I could not give the kids as a teacher. And so it was just so cool where there were moments like this constantly throughout the day where something you never know is gonna stick with a kid, and they might want to explore that more.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:58]:

So It's just so cool that they can actually learn from these people and hear their passion in what they do And it really rubs off of them and helps those kids say, I never knew that was possible. Kids definitely need to see people like them doing amazing things. If we want our kids to get involved in STEM, we need to be providing diverse opportunities for diverse people so they can dream big. We can't wait until middle school or high school to provide opportunities like this. It could be too late. We never know. Better late than never, But why not start it in elementary? If you're thinking, we've never done an event like this, my school hadn't either, But I made it possible where, oh, this is something that we can do in the elementary space. I'm not gonna wait for somebody else to host it for us.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:59]:

I'm not gonna wait for my principal to give me the idea. You need to get it started. Be bold, Get an event like this up and running on the ground, and you'll be so thankful that you did and wish you did it before like I did because I wish that I had done this every single year because it was such a powerful, powerful day. As a recap, here are those Three major things that your students are missing out on by not hosting a STEM career day event. 1st is the opportunity to learn to dream big. Next is connecting the real world to STEM. And finally, students are missing out on that opportunity to learn from multiple perspectives. If you are nervous about all of those details skills, where do you even get started, and how do you fit this all in? I save you so much time inside of my STEM career day workshop, where you get all the planning templates, all of the emails that I wrote, all of the posters, and all the video examples where you don't have to think about this from scratch, you can edit and make this work from your school so that You will have a successful day for your students and an event that they will always remember.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:19]:

You can grab that link in the show notes or jump on in at naomimeredith.com/STEMcareerdayworkshop.

 

STEM career day event

 

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Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is an online K-5 STEM Coach in Colorado supporting elementary teachers world-wide navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there. With over a decade of experience teaching, 5 years teaching elementary STEM, along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM Certificate, Naomi helps teachers world-wide to navigate best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She offers a variety of tools to help teachers feel successful teaching STEM to their elementary students through lesson plans, online courses, coaching and speaking events.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM, innovation and hands-on learning in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

3 Must-Haves When Hosting a STEM Career Day in Elementary Schools [ep. 143]

by Naomi Meredith

3 Must-Haves When Hosting a STEM Career Day in Elementary Schools [ep.143]

career day in elementary schools

Check out the full episode on 3 Must-Haves When Hosting a STEM Career Day in Elementary Schools:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Have a STEM question? Leave a voice message for the podcast!

Episode Summary

Have you been thinking about a STEM career day for your students? Although It's a fun and exciting event, it can be a lot of work. In today's episode, I'm sharing the top 3 things every STEM teacher should know when hosting a STEM career day in elementary schools.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 3 things to be considered when hosting a STEM career day in elementary schools
  • My experience with hosting a STEM career day with 500 K-5 students and 15 guest speakers
  • The importance of having guest speakers for a STEM career day in elementary schools

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:

Ready to set up a STEM career day for your elementary students? Setting up an event like this is so exciting, but it can be quite a bit of work to make sure that the day goes along smoothly. But I will be sharing with you 3 main things that you should consider when hosting a STEM career day that is super successful at your school. Take it from me, when I was a K-5 STEM teacher, I hosted a successful STEM career day for my K-5 elementary students for over 500 students in 15 presenters, and it went along beautifully. How did the STEM career day do so well? Let's jump into the episode. 


Naomi Meredith [00:01:19]:

I know how important it is to bring guest speakers into your elementary space. Guest speakers are able to provide something that you, as a teacher, can't always give them, and this isn't a bad thing. Saying this is just the reality of it. These guest speakers are able to bring in multiple perspectives for your students, share that industry experience that they have, and even talk about things that they are super passionate about, which in turn might be things that your students are passionate about too or things that they never knew that they would be passionate about and want to learn more. It is so important for kids to see other people like them who are doing amazing and great things for our world, especially in the STEM space. I remember my 1st career day experience that I got to attend as a student. I was in middle school, and we rotated throughout the school to learn from different people and all of their super cool jobs.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:38]:

At this point in middle school, I was in 8th grade, so almost in high school, I already knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. I knew I wanted to be a teacher, and truly, I have wanted to be a teacher ever since kindergarten. So the STEM career day was super cool and really awesome to learn about these different jobs, but I already knew what I wanted to be when I grew up anyway, so it didn't change my mind. Now, I might be an anomaly. You probably have students like this already, but having a STEM career day in the elementary space isn't too young. We often hear about these events in middle school, high school, and even college. We can do this in elementary school. A lot of times at those kindergarten graduations, we even ask them, what do you wanna be when you grow up? Well, let's give them different options to think about. There are so many jobs that even I, as an adult, have never heard of, and most likely, your students haven't either, so let's bring them that experience with a STEM career day.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:43]:

Now I know it's a lot of work getting this set up, and we're gonna talk about those top 3 tips. And when I did this for my school. I kept you in mind the entire time. Yes. I kept the event in mind, but I kept you in mind while I was planning this, and I saved every single template and every schedule and every video that I used to prep this day because I knew there were other teachers like you who would wanna do an event like this, but maybe all of that planning and prep work behind the scenes, is actually holding you back. Now think about this, if you're listening to this episode live when it comes out or whenever you're listening to it. Do you think it's actually crazy that if you were given all of the things to help you be successful, the templates, the way to schedule, how to set up your guest speakers? If you had all of that for you now, would it be so crazy to say, oh, I could actually get this set up to have an event in the next month or 2? I don't think that's crazy at all.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:54]:

And if you don't think that's crazy at all, I have it all ready for you in my newest workshop, my STEM career day workshop, where everything is laid out, and I walk you through the whole process from behind the scenes, from start to finish, and after where this event will be a piece of cake and a breeze. To get all of that info, it'll be linked in the show notes, but you can also get started with this workshop if you head on over to naomimeredith.com/stremcareerdayworkshop. It will be this audio workshop format for you where I will walk you through everything you need to know and help you for success. I did a poll over on my Instagram at Naomi Meredith underscore, and 83% of you said that you have never done a STEM career day before. So let's change that perspective. When I ask again in a year, have you ever done a STEM career day? Let's have that percentage, that 83%, be a yes instead of a no, and I am here to help you out along the way. The first thing to do when you are setting up your STEM career day is to think about the guests that you are having and have a variety of guests who are going to speak and formats. This kind of evolved on its own. I had an idea in my head of having different throughout this day, and I did provide different options for the parents while I was emailing and getting interest for this event.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:27]:

I was giving ideas to the parents right off the bat in my emails. You could do something hands-on. It can be a presentation or anything else you can think of because I did want the day to have a lot of different things where students can experience these careers in their own unique way. Instead of just having a parent stand up there, just talking to the kids, hello, here is my job and what I do. These parents brought in the coolest things and the coolest ideas to make this day come to life. I had 15 parent volunteers, and they were so gracious enough to be with us on the higher school day for K-5. They did so many different cool things with our students. And what was really awesome too is a lot of them at their jobs, they said that their bosses didn't either make them take the day as a personal day or some of their companies even have volunteer days and really encourage them to go do events like this.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:36]:

So, if you are scared even to get people to come into your building, these parents were more than willing to come in. And I had others who were interested, and they just had things going on that day. And so if you can get at least 10 parents to come in and do an event like this, you're gonna have a really successful day. Here were some of the types of jobs, some of the 15 that I had Khan speak to our students, and it was super, super cool. We had a systems engineer for Lockheed Martin, and they work on a lot of different things that get sent up into space. We had a clinical pharmacist, we had a husband and wife couple who are founders of an Art Academy, so you could even call this a steam day, and they had a really fun presentation. The kids really liked theirs. There was a hacking engineer, so showing the students how things are packaged before they get shipped and how they are packaged in specific ways to really help save room and cut down on cost.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:43]:

We also had a mechanical project designer. And like I said, these are only a few of the amazing people who came in to speak with our students. Some of you might be wondering how much you paid them. How much did this event cost? This day was absolutely free, 100% free. These parents volunteered their time. It happened during the school day, so I wanted my students to be able to experience all of these careers and not be limited by, oh, my mom and dad won't bring me in. No. Everybody, if you were at school that day and making good choices, you got to come to STEM career day, which was absolutely amazing.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:27]:

I did host in the morning as parents were coming in. We had some leeway leeway time. I did host some coffee and donuts for the parents. My PTO actually did not have fun with that. I personally paid for the coffee and donuts for the parents for their time had that little station available. It was the least that I could do for their time. But otherwise, the event was absolutely free, which is so important and so amazing that all the students got to experience this day. When it came to the actual presentations, there were a variety of things that were presented.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:05]:

Some parents had presentations up on the screen where they had pictures of them working in their jobs, and some had presentations even provided by their companies where, again, they encouraged them to do some community outreach and have those resources already available for them. One of the parents, who is a financial planner, had a whole comic book and video that went along with what they were talking about provided by their company, which was so amazing. There were also some hands-on stations where kids actually got to feel and touch things or look at things up close. 1 parent had actual computers that were taken apart, and students loved seeing the inside of electronics. They absolutely love that. 1 parent had a connection with their old company where they had a real working Enigma machine from World World War 2, which is a cipher that decoded messages from different places and things in World War 2, and the kids actually were allowed to touch it. So that machine was definitely built to last. It was absolutely amazing that they were touching history.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:20]:

There was also a station where a parent at their company had an intern who designed and illustrated a children's book to share more about that career and what they do in that career, and then the parent had the book and read it to the students, which was so cool. So like I said, I gave some options for parents of what they could present, but they really took off with it and had a lot of fun with this. And the kids absolutely loved the variety of different things that they got to experience in each of these stations. The second thing to do when setting up a successful STEM career day is to have a set schedule. Events like this definitely need to have clear cut times and locations of where everything is happening. If you don't plan this beforehand, that can be an absolute disaster. And so I worked with our PE teacher, who had an indoor field day schedule. And if you don't do indoor field day, ours was a backup day where the Colorado weather is very up and down, and we always needed a backup option to do field day inside.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:38]:

She had already created a schedule that worked with the lunch schedules we already had, and so I worked with her when it came to the scheduling piece because it was already done and how students would rotate in the building. So I had that set time schedule of where every class would be at which time and at which station, and then we also had a map of the locations of where they would visit each speaker. The sessions were only 10 minutes long, and it was interesting hearing from the speakers because they were the same people all day. In the morning, they had the older students, 3rd through 5th grade, and in the afternoon, they had kindergarten through 2nd grade. They all said the same thing where they felt like the 10 minutes was too short for the older students and they felt the 10 minutes in the afternoon was too long. And that is the transition time built within that 10 minutes, so I thought that was really interesting. So when you're planning this event, maybe consider that point of it where, if you want to, the students have a smaller amount of time. I kept it the same because the way the rotations worked, the teachers still had their planned time during this event, and the kids actually didn't have specials that day.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:00]:

And the kids and the teachers were like, oh, I'm so sad about it. Why aren't we having specials? I want to experience everything. Well, you don't have to go to your planned time, you get to experience most of the stations, but you actually get more time away from teaching than you do with actual specials anyway. And the same for the kids, you're getting more time doing something fun than you do in special. So it's one day out of the year. I don't think it's a big deal. I was a classroom teacher, but you might have some teachers like that, so just keep that in mind. For the fun stuff, you know, I like to add a little bit of flare.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:44]:

I also made signs with each of the parents' pictures on them and their job descriptions, and those were hanging in the locations where they would be. This was really helpful when students were traveling to the different classrooms and also for the parents to know where other people were and all of that. So that was actually a really nice touch, and the parents could keep their poster as a souvenir if they wanted to. Along with printing all of the schedules and the maps for the teachers, I also made class sets of a thank you card template that I created for them. We had 3rd through 5th grade go in the morning and k through 2 in the afternoon, as I said. So, for half of the day, the other grade levels were not participating in some career days in terms of the stations. This was a great opportunity for them to write a thank you note about their day if they wanted to do this during that time. I also collected all of those thank you notes back, and then me and the substitute I had covering my station for the day.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:53]:

I had a sub cover my stations, so I could be running around and help troubleshoot or anything like that. But we sorted all of the thank you notes based on the presenters if there were specific ones. Then, we just sorted the ones that were more generic out evenly. And so by the end of the week, the parents were given a stack of thank you notes to thank them for their time. I did read every single one, and I actually took pictures of the ones that were really amazing and powerful. They really made me tear up because I knew that this day was going to be really successful and really powerful for the students, but hearing their perspective talk about STEM career day was so powerful to me. Here are a few of the thank you notes that they said, and they were so cute. 1 student said, thank you for helping us learn, and this is to the presenters, not to me.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:53]:

But they said thank you for helping us learn. I can't wait to tell my family all about it. Another student said, thank you for sharing such cool stuff with us. This is one of the most fun events we ever had at school, which I'm all, oh, compared to field day, I'll take that. And then this one was really, really sweet, and they had a picture of a rocket in the bottom. Really, really good handwriting. And they said to one of the parents, thank you so much for taking time off work to come teach us about your job and how it uses STEM. I learned a lot about rockets and all their parts.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:31]:

I really liked how you let us touch some of the parts of the rocket and showed us a timeline video of the rocket being made. Thank you for teaching me and my class here. I think when I'm older, I want to be a systems engineer like you. How amazing is that? And knowing this student, I never actually would have guessed that might be something that they would be really passionate about, so that was really, really cool. The last thing that you definitely wanna do when setting up a successful Strum career day for your school is build hype and promote it. You are setting up an event, and just like any event, you want to build up that hype. I did this for my own wedding. You do this for events. I am that kind of person.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:23]:

If I am passionate about something and there is a project that I'm working on, first of all, I won't start a project unless I am passionate about it. You betcha. I'm gonna build hype about it because I want everybody to have an amazing experience and really be into what we are doing. And you wanna do this for STEM career day. It's not just 1 little email. Hey, guys. We're gonna do STEM career day on April 5th. I hope you have a good time. No. You are building this up.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:54]:

If you're not hyped up about it, nobody else is gonna be hyped up about it. When at first glance, it actually might sound boring. Hey, you're gonna hear parents talk about their jobs. No, you need to make this a whole thing. You wanna build that hype. And I did save everything I did for this, and so inside of that workshop, you get all the templates and all the things to help you hype up your day, so you don't have to think about all the words. I was putting a bug in people's ears, like talking to some of the teachers. What do you think about this idea? They're like, oh my gosh, that's amazing. I'm thinking about doing a STEM career day. What do you think about that? So, putting a bug in the air like months before this was actually gonna happen.


Naomi Meredith [00:19:41]:

Talking to our admin. Hey. I wanna put on this event. I will plan the whole event. It'll be during the day. It'll be educational. It'll be amazing. And just getting those dates confirmed, putting it in parent newsletters and classroom newsletters, and getting interest.


Naomi Meredith [00:20:00]:

Once I had that interest from parents, then I could collect more information. Here's how you can present that day. So, really building that hype. Also, as a teacher, I always talked about this with kids. And once I kinda knew the people who would be presenting and it was connecting what we were learning, I was like, oh my gosh, you guys. We have somebody, somebody's parent, who's actually going to talk about their job that relates to this project that we are doing. Isn't that amazing? And they're like, oh my gosh, that's so good. So you definitely wanna hype this up.


Naomi Meredith [00:20:35]:

Another huge thing, too, when it comes to events and hyping up is I promoted this all the time on our school-wide video news. And if you're interested in how to do this, I have a workshop about this, too, which we will link in the show notes. So, if you wanna know how to do a school-wide news team, I will show you every single thing in there. All the templates are in there as well. As I said, I kept you guys in mind when I set all of these events up. But anyway, I made videos for the news. I would say, hey, guys, here is the session that I am presenting on. I did have a backup session just in case anything were to happen, but I put that on the news.


Naomi Meredith [00:21:15]:

I even had parents who were presenting. They made videos that went on the news, and the kids went insane when they saw their parents on their screen in their classroom talking about their jobs. How cool is that? So, really building up this hype, sending those email reminders, having all the materials prepared for teachers. So it's like you get you don't have to teach for 2 hours this day. A little side note, I actually plan mine. It worked out perfectly. We had our STEM career day on Pi Day, so 3.14, pi, the mathematical pi, you know. We had it on that day.


Naomi Meredith [00:21:53]:

It's also Star Wars Day, so that was pretty cool. And the next day was a teacher workday, and that was just such a lovely treat for the teachers. So, even the timing of STEM career day was hype in itself. So, really building this up to be an amazing event and why this is so important will even help it go a lot quicker because the kids know, oh, Miss Meredith is so excited about this. We should be excited about this too, and we should really behave and do a good job because this is a very special event. So, really build up that hype. It does make a difference. It really, really does.


Naomi Meredith [00:22:33]:

Get pumped, and everyone will get pumped about it and support you on this amazing day. As a recap, here are those 3 main things that you should keep in mind when setting up a successful STEM career day for your elementary students. First, have a variety of guests and formats. 2nd, have a set schedule. And 3rd, don't forget about this part, build hype about your event and promote it. If you are so pumped up, just like I am, to get started and set up a STEM career day in no time at all and not have to think about all the details and how all of this works and how did it all go, how do you collect this information. I have every single template and everything laid out for you where I will walk you through this step by step in this workshop this is an audio workshop, so it is really special and different from other workshops I've done in the past where each little thing will be broken up into a segment that you can listen on the go, where you will have all of those digital templates and all the things need to get set up, but you will hear me and listen to me while you are on the go, and I will talk you through the whole process. You don't need to join me live.


Naomi Meredith [00:23:50]:

I know you are busy, and you all have different schedules of when you would set this up, so I kept this in mind where this is ready to go for you to get into this special day and set it up for your students and feel confident that it is going to work. You can grab all of that information in the show notes or check it out at naomimeredith.com/STEMcareerdayworkshop.

career day in elementary schools

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

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More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

advocating for girls in STEM

Inspiring and Advocating for Girls in STEM with Alexandrina Satnoianu [ep.141]

by Naomi Meredith

Inspiring and Advocating for Girls in STEM with Alexandrina Satnoianu [ep.141]

advocating for girls in STEM

Check out the full episode on Inspiring and Advocating for Girls in STEM with Alexandrina Satnoianu:  

 

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Episode Summary

With so many studies and statistics out there signifying that there is a significant gap of women who work in the STEM fields compared to men, advocating for girls in STEM is important. By closing this gap, we are giving more opportunities to various careers, creating a more diverse workforce, and helping limit bias in various projects. In today's episode, I interview Alexandrina Satnoianu, who is a gender equality expert and communications professional. Alexandrina shares about her work in advocating for girls in STEM and so much more.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Why advocating for girls in STEM is important
  • How Alexandrina Satnoianu is advocating for girls
  • Tips and strategies for encouraging girls to participate in STEM

Resources Mentioned:

Some items are linked to my Amazon Affiliate account. When you purchase through my link, there is no added cost to you, but I receive a small commission in return.

Meet Alexandrina Satnoianu:

Alexandrina Satnoianu is a gender equality expert and communications professional, running communications campaigns at the European Institute for Gender Equality. She’s originally from Romania but has been living and working in Vilnius for the past 13 years and calls Lithuania her adoptive country.

She is the mother of two girls: a 23y glider pilot, aerospace engineer and commercial pilot in training, and an 12y intrepid and creative girl, whom she also raises with an interest in science and technology.

Inspired by her background in gender studies and parenting experience, Alexandrina is currently working on an innovative concept for STEAM education that aims to empower girls to feel they have the right, the skills, and the confidence to pursue a STEAM career. Her dream is to open a STEAM centre that would bring her ideas about girls’ science education to life.

This year, she took one step closer towards her dream and volunteered to run a STEAM Girl’s Club for 6th graders, at her daughter’s school. She is an active member of the international school community, gives lectures to parents on opening STEAM opportunities for their children and documents the journey towards her BIG dream on a #STEAMparenting blog.

Alexandrina loves hiking, pole dancing, running, biking, strives for a healthy work-life balance and a reduced carbon footprint.

Connect with Alexandrina:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:

Why is it important to advocate for girls in STEM? There are so many statistics and studies out there that show there is a significant gap of women in STEM careers compared to men. By closing this gap and making it smaller, we are giving an abundance of opportunities to various careers in the STEM fields. This also helps create more diverse work environments and limits bias when it comes to the different types of perspectives when working on various projects in these spaces. For us as educators, we have the opportunity to inspire our young students, especially girls in our education space, to bring to light these amazing opportunities that are out there, specifically in STEM. And our guest today definitely has that same passion as we do in this elementary STEM space. Today, we are hearing from Alexandrina Satnoianu, and we first connected over on Instagram. And what is so amazing about this virtual world is, well, we've never met in person, son, and she's all the way in Lithuania, and we have the opportunity to connect and chat on Instagram. She is also a member of my STEM teacher bookshelf membership.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:35]:

And when I had her in on a call, she was so amazing. It was the middle of the night for her, but just hearing her story and her passion and what she is doing, advocating for girls in STEM is absolutely amazing and I knew that I needed to have her as a guest on this podcast. Alexandrina is a gender equality expert and communications professional and the work that she is doing is so important for not only girls in her community but her own children. She is the mother of 2. One of them is an adult, and one of them still is a child. And it is so amazing to hear all of the things that she has done to raise her girls where one of her daughters, her adult child, is actually in the STEM field today where her daughter is an aerospace engineer and also a pilot. Likewise, Alexandrina is doing amazing work for her younger daughter to advocate for her in STEM and is also starting up and continuing a STEM club for her daughter and girls at her school to expose them to lots of different ways to collaborate, critically think, and get excited about STEM. Alexandrina finds her inspiration from her experience of gender studies and also her experience as a mother and providing those opportunities in the STEM and STEAM space where we can close that gap when it comes to women in STEM and make a positive difference.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:15]:

She is working on so many more projects that I am mentioning here. So when you are done listening to this episode, make sure to go and check out her bio, which will be linked in the show notes because her full story and also the things that she'll be describing today are absolutely amazing and powerful and also inspirational to help us as educators and also other parents who are out there listening to this, how we can make STEM more accessible for all children but specifically girls in this space. I am so excited for you to listen to this episode. So let's jump on in and get inspired.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:55]:

Well, thank you so much, Alexandria, for being here today. We have connected over on social media, and you send me some blog posts. And, I know that you are a listener of the podcast and even join in our STEM your bookshelf community, and I'm so glad that you're here as a guest because when I knew what you were doing was so impactful and powerful, but when I heard you speak about what you're doing, advocating for girls in steam, and we'll get into that. But just, like, hearing your story, just a little snapshot in our book club call.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:00]:

I knew I had to have you as a guest, and then, side note, I'm grabbing your daughter for some other secret project coming up. But I'm really curious as to you have such a big background in the business world and everything that you've done. How did you get into the actual work of advocating for girls in STEM or STEAM?


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:05:23]:

Yes. STEAM is, what I, prefer. So thank you so much, Naomi, for your invite and having me here. You know me. I'm really passionate about the STEM education, and I have to thank you and the amazing content that you are putting up for deepening my interest and knowledge into STEAM. Actually, my background is in, gender equality. I graduated from gender studies, and I think that's the start, with my interest in in STEAM. Having access to the evidence and having, seeing that there are not enough, women professionals Working in science, technology, engineering, art, and math altogether. Actually, made me, become more of an advocate.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:06:18]:

I am of a curious nature, always, passionate about scientific discoveries. I think I got this from my father and from my mom, the appreciation for math. She was a seamstress. So, basically, thanks to her measurement and calculations, she was making dresses, and I've witnessed this, in my childhood. So I think because we do not have enough, women working in these areas, we are not yet that 40% gender balance, then there is not this critical mass, that, would help them Push through the innovations and take advantage of the existing technologies. So the work that they are doing, does not actually end up, representing, different, realities and needs of of women. And I can give a very trivial example. I think many of us, women, passing through the airports were queuing at the toilets.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:07:17]:

Yes. You have 2 toilets for women, 2 toilets for men, but the reality is that we need more time. This is a physiological reality, and sometimes due to our caring responsibilities, We also come in with with children, so that takes us even more time. But maybe there are not enough women to reflect on these needs, and there are maybe not enough women in the decision making positions to actually approve The constructions of 2 extra toilets that would be solving these needs. So I guess this is a very simple, out of everyone's realities type of an example of why we need more women in STEAM.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:01]:

That is a great example and so true. I actually was just at the airport last night, but I even listened to this book. It's not a STEM book, but it's great. It's called Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg, who is the CEO of Facebook. Right? Book. Yeah.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:08:20]:

Right?


Naomi Meredith [00:08:21]:

Yeah. And she talks about that in her book. She's not an engineer. She has a STEM job, but she advocated for, having parking spots that are actually closer to the building for women who are expecting because she didn't ever think about that until she was super pregnant, and she said that her pregnancies were horrible. And she was so uncomfortable, and she advocated for that, but she's, like, being in an industry that's male dominant that that wasn't ever something that was talked about or even thought about, and she felt bad not even noticing that because she was experiencing it, and they actually kept the parking spot. So that's really great that that's something. But like you said, like, trivial but also important, it's daily life


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:09:07]:

too. Yep. Yep. Yep. And, I think women, just because they are encountering the situations, are more prone to finding solutions or innovative, solutions to solve these issues. So that's why I think, it is a matter of Democratic representation, but it is also a matter of having, women working in these fields having access to the resources and opportunities to bring in big change, that would solve some of the problems. And I think You and I and all other women, viewers and listeners can come in with many other examples, but these are, Yes. Just 2.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:09:50]:

So let's push for having more girls and women in STEAM because, honestly, just the numbers are going to be saving or changing the situations.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:02]:

Oh, absolutely. I even notice with girls, even in my LEGO, robotics club that I'm hosting right now at different schools. It's so interesting, and I've seen this too in other clubs where the girls, they can definitely tackle a challenge no problem, but they always not always, but very often, they add these artistic elements in the design part and the storytelling And just that little bit of creativity, not to say boys can't, but I've noticed that as a trend especially where, Oh, we need to have this part here so that the kids can wash their hands, or we need this part for the family. And so there's that element of that empathy and realizing how everything's connected together. So the next time you are doing a project with girls, Listen to how they're talking about things because the way that they discuss their, projects and their ideas have a different flow than typically what groups of all boys do, and I don't know if you've seen that in your STEM clubs with your girls.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:11:12]:

Actually, I was, thinking whether to start the STEAM club as a girl's club or not, but it was the book of Gitanjali Rao, an innovator's guide to STEM. Yes. This is hard to refer the acronym, that she kind of convinced me that the girls need a safe space in which they could have the freedom and feel they have the right to tackle, problems a bit differently or at their own pace or If they want, however they want, because it might be that sometimes, they don't know how to do it, and they are questioning, and They are turning the problem, to see it from different angles, and only once they have some sort of a deeper understanding, they actually work on developing the solutions where the boys are more prone to taking action, Testing and improving and testing and improving. There are different, approaches to to innovation that girls and boys take. And in the mixed class at this age, just because boys, they also might feel more confident. They could have even taken more space. Girls could be feeling more intimidated, and they would not get involved as much. So in the end, I decided to run a STEAM girls club, and I have to say that there are issues that they are bringing to the table that I think pertain to their experiences.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:12:47]:

And I'm super happy because, in my opinion, it's not only about having the skills and knowing how to work with the tools in the case of girls just because, as I said, they are a minority in all these, Fields, they also need to feel they have the confidence and the right, and they need constant empowerment From my point of view, from my gender studies, from my reading, from my parenting experience, yes, it kind of led me to believe that we need a bit of an Innovative approach with, with STEM education that takes this, empowerment into account.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:27]:

I agree with you, and I actually ran an all girls STEM club at my school, my 1st or couple years in that position, and it was a wonder workshop, wonder lake competition where it was robotics and building to solve the problem, and that was really important for me to start off with that because The kids don't really have STEM anyway as a class, but having that where it was girl specific and just really and I even recruited some girls where They didn't actually sign up. I sought them out knowing that they would I really wanted to push them in that direction. So if that's something as a teacher. I know it can be hard if you're teaching all the kids in the school or you have your own class. Maybe if you're a classroom teacher, you do a girls' STEM club, like a lunch club, and you do it once a week, or, you do run an after school club because I think those connections where girls are empowering other girls too, like, we're empowering them as the teacher, but also Them empowering each other is so important for them to learn at a young age so that they can be supportive and, like, it's healthy to have good disagreements and come to a conclusion, and so it's really teaching them those soft skills that are essential in whatever career they decide as they grow up. What are you doing in your club? What are your what kinds of things are you guys doing in your girls' club?


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:15:00]:

Well, you know, it's, fresh. We've just started this, year. So this the school year started in September, And it is actually open to girls, from the 6th grade. Also, because my little one, I have two daughters. So my little one, she's a 6th grader as well. So, yeah, I kind of had this Double agenda on one hand, to put my ideas in practice, on the other hand, to create this entourage which, my daughter and some other girls, they feel safe to develop their kind of interest in science and Get to play with the tools and get to experiment. So, yeah, we started by, I started by introducing the girls to Gitanjali Rao, and they were very, very surprised that a girl almost their age. Well, they are 12.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:16:03]:

She and Gitanjali were 15, at the age she received the prior. But they were really impressed that you can be an innovator at such young age, and we discussed about The problems that they encounter in their real life and which would be the ones they would pick, for which they would like to work for their own developing solutions. And, I was really surprised that most of them in one way or another said climate change. It's either fighting pollution or, mitigating climate change effects or, getting to improve the rights of the of the children in Africa working in in mines, Also a bit connected. So we kind of agreed together, took a bit of, democratic approach. So we took climate change, as a topic, and the girls, wanted to work on developing Scratch, animations or videos through which they would be kind of inspiring their colleagues on, what they could be personally doing to mitigate the climate change effects. Like, really, don't take the elevator, compost the, organic, leftovers. Don't buy new clothes, sell your games, and board games on Vinted.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:17:38]:

We have here an application, an app that is quite successful for, commercializing secondhand items. All sorts of ideas they came up with, and this is what we are currently working on. But just because it was Halloween, we had a very special edition Inspired also by your podcast on, how to work with pumpkins, for steam activities, And we developed, pumpkin batteries, which was super, super cool. So let's see.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:16]:

Definitely send pictures if you have any, and we can put them on here. This could be a whole blog post for you. You could write a blog post about each of those.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:18:26]:

I do have. I do have tons of pictures because the girls, they were honestly So involved and so happy. And it was for real estate project because, it was the Electricity part, the surprise part in which we got to connect the pumpkins. We had 4 pumpkins. We connected, In in a series, and they add, altogether, they had enough voltage for light up, LED, like, and then it was actually the whole, pumpkin battery experiment for, a pumpkin competition, pumpkin contest at school, and they created a poster. So there was also the artistic, aspect of it. And they were really, really, really Well together, and, I was super proud of them. Unfortunately, they did not win, but they are winners to me.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:19:24]:

Yeah. And I have a prize with them. Oh, that's so


Naomi Meredith [00:19:27]:

sweet. Oh, I'm sure they love it. How many girls are in your group?


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:19:31]:

Well, this is it. I was not so I'm sure how to take it. We started with 5 girls, and I was a bit bummed, but Then I thought, well, this is the reality. It's true that the club was announced a bit late. So 3 weeks after school started, many many of the kids have already enrolled to some, after school activities. And there was also this perception that, it's not so much for girls even if it's dedicated to girls. So there is this issue that girls do not see themselves, as working or studying or being passionate about this area. But I'm super happy also because I do not have the hands on experience.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:20:22]:

I don't know if I would have handled a bigger number of girls. So 5, he's already quite a lot, to be honest, because I'm not I'm more than teacher, and I do not impose, the authority of a teacher. And sometimes it's really they it's after school, and they are so relaxed with me that, I have to say, yes. I I need to improve also my way of getting them, involved and keeping them focused on what it is that we are actually working on. But the battery experiment was a super hit. I think they love this kind of activities.


Naomi Meredith [00:21:03]:

Oh, definitely. And they're gonna talk about it more and more. Like you said, it's not they don't see themselves in this type of club, which is why you should have that. So you're doing great work. Yeah. And having a small amount, you can for you as the teacher, you'll learn your tips and tricks, and I'm sure more girls will want to start joining, and they'll talk about it. And, I mean, it's great you have your daughter in there so she can help promote for you.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:21:31]:

Yes. Yeah. I was actually not sure how she would see it because it's the age that we, you know, kids, they tease each other. So I was very gentle, to be honest. Really asking her if she wants to join, if she's okay with it. And she's a big, big Support her. I think she does a great job talking about this the STEAM club with with the other girls, and She seems very cool and at ease with it. So just because she's, so authentically seeing herself as a steam girl, I think it it is convincing for the other girls.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:22:12]:

And to be honest, I've also read in a study that this is what makes the difference. So they looked back in the study, and asked the girls that they graduated and become engineers. What exactly made them, choose this, career? And they had some some options. And among The most important factor, it was also that they saw themselves as engineers. They picture themselves in this role. Besides having good math skills, having a good impression about education in general, an interest in natural sciences. So I think it's very important to normalize. That's why I say that we have to give the girls this feeling that they have the right to be in this air in this area.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:23:05]:

They don't need to be special in many ways. I also think the parents expect the girls to be geniuses, but that's not the case. Any normal Girl can be a steam girl. And, yes, I know what I'm talking about since I have a graduate girl who graduated aerospace engineer at home. So yeah. She's very normal.


Naomi Meredith [00:23:30]:

Yes. Yes. Well, tell me. Okay. You told us in the book club, the STEM teacher bookshelf a little bit more about this, and your daughter's actually gonna be helping me with a project that is aligning with exactly what you're saying, helping kids see themselves in STEM. So you have done some things at home since that you're so passionate about this, but also just to help your daughters. What types of things have you done for your daughters? Because your daughter didn't just step into aerospace engineering. I know you were doing some things at home to kinda help her see that could be a possibility for her and also your little one too.


Naomi Meredith [00:24:07]:

You told me you do things with her as well.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:24:09]:

Yeah. Yes. Well, I am happy that I've overcome my negative experience in high school, where I encountered a misogynist teacher who was telling us, the girls in the class, You are beautiful but stupid? Well, those were the times. You know? Many, many years


Naomi Meredith [00:24:31]:

ago. Bitch.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:24:32]:

Yes. And, of course, it stirred me away for good because I was studying math and physics high level in in high school, but encountering On daily basis because I had math day daily classes of math, encountering this type of an attitude, it's Totally steered me away from, studying sciences or math. But somehow, it it It remained with me and this appreciation for for math. I passed it on to my daughter. Actually, we were, solving problems together as a mother daughter activity, helping her out to participate in some math competition that she wanted to to score the highest, 1 100 points, and she had very good math skills and confidence in her math skills. So there is a bit of a difference because girls nowadays, they do have good math skills, but they don't have, the confidence. So I think it it makes a big difference. Other than that, both myself and my husband, I think we took, nongender stereotypical, bringing, approach in a sense that, She got really exposed early on to robotics classes, coding classes.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:25:57]:

She was taught how to fix her bike. We treated her not really as as a girl that should be in a certain way, but this a child that should have many, many opportunities. And we opened up, I think, in this way, and her interest in STEAM, but that onwards, it's her own merit for Keeping up, for not being intimidated. Of course, I was coaching her and supporting all the way, But sometimes it's difficult since you are the only girl in the or there is another colleague, in the computer science class are, later on when she decided she wants to study, aerospace engineering to be among the few girls in in, in her group or in the hangar or whatever project it can be deterring. So this empowerment, I think it's very important. It played a huge role. And I wanted to learn or to think in retrospect and see what can I learn from this experience of raising my older daughter that I can apply with my little one, but she's totally different? She's an alpha generation child, digitally native. She doesn't do things just because I say so or give, the example of her older sister doing stuff.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:27:32]:

So I had to take a bit of a different approach. So with with her, again, very gentle, giving examples, providing opportunities to do things together, just to Play along to tease her interest, but no real push. Stepping aside if I see that it It's something that she doesn't like, so totally honoring, and respecting her her interests. And so far, it worked Well, and this is what I'm writing about in my STEAM parenting blog. Yeah. This generation is totally totally different, and we raise them. I think to have a voice, to be aware of who they are and their interests, and you cannot overstep that.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:28:30]:

So I think yeah. STEAM education has to take into account, their interests. Yeah.


Naomi Meredith [00:28:39]:

Oh, you're doing you you're a great job, mom. Like, I love that. Like, if I ever had kids, like, that's like, feel like I'll call you up. Hey. Can you just, like, raise my kids for me? Can you just do it


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:28:52]:

for me? Well, you know, every kid is different. Then they, I don't see this with my girls, so you have to you have to adjust. But, you know, there are some Principles, and I also know that I don't want to do things that I wouldn't want to be done to me. So I think that's that's the basics.


Naomi Meredith [00:29:17]:

Yeah. You're doing great, and you're sharing that with other kids in the school community, and that's going to grow. Yeah. What are all the different projects that you have going on that teachers and parents can check out?


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:29:31]:

Yes. I've mentioned that I am documenting my parenting experience with my little one on a teen parenting blog. I am fully admiring, the pace with which you are developing content and podcast. I am still catching up. Oh, good. But I would love I would love to to, to write and post, With an increased frequency at the moment, Yeah. It's, it's still a project to to grow. I started, as you also said, to talk with parents at school.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:30:11]:

So I'm, I'm involved. I'm a school counselor. I'm involved, with the community. I held presentations. Also, I kind of became aware of maybe 10 small improvements that we could make or micro adjustments to our parenting. I've made a a presentation, at the Spring International Steam Summit. I always seem to forget the title. And the presentation is on the ten things, or 10 steps you could be taking for more intentional STEAM parenting.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:30:58]:

Mhmm. I'm sure that many of us are doing all these. Just to give you an example, not, restricting, steam, or connecting STEAM only to Lego Robotics coding. STEAM can be just because of the use of technology can be any area. Something I said earlier, do not expect your girl to be showing, signs of genies. She can be very, very much herself with her interest in unicorns and, pink, fairies, whatever, take her from, where she is and just, provide her with an opportunity to know more. So include visits to museums in your travels or in your Weekends routines, make experiments, integrated scientific vocabulary, or, prone, conversations that lead to more inquiry. So there are many small things we can do that in a way leads to a big change.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:32:19]:

So I think This is, one of my, my strengths, my interests overall, having, As I said, my background in gender equality, the, reads, the studies, and then my Parenting experience, it kind of led me to believe that we need this innovative approach in STEAM education where we make the girls feel they have the confidence, the right and the skills to pursue a STEAM career. And I'm working on this innovative concept of steam education. I will I will see how I will be, able to develop it yeah. Presented at conferences or just study more, but it's definitely, I need an interest, a a passion, for me. So, yeah, this would be, my interest, I'm talking about it on my blog, on my Instagram. So I think, peer viewers, parents, teachers, if they have questions, interested, want to reach out to me, I'm fully open. I'm really, really happy to be part of this team community.


Naomi Meredith [00:33:45]:

Well, you are definitely walking the walk, not just talking the talk. You are doing great work, and you should be so proud of what you're doing. And you're doing this in such a kind way, and not you're it's just like a very welcoming way in the way that you are presenting this where it is so needed, did, and it's not making people feel bad, but making others be aware. And we'll have the links to everything in the show notes. So the International Steam Summit, by Wonder Workshop. You might still be able to watch it. I think they leave them up. It's free.


Naomi Meredith [00:34:20]:

Yeah. You might still be able actually to go and watch it. But then if not, you guys have to follow her on her blog and Instagram and see what where she's presenting next. So, I appreciate all the work that you're doing, Alexandrina, and, definitely a topic that isn't talked about enough, whether it's in the parent community or even in the STEM teacher community or teacher community in general. And so I'm So grateful that, you are a guest on our show. Thank you so much for being here.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:34:53]:

Thank you so much for the invite. It felt really, like, long needed conversation between the 2 of us, and I hope that, many more will follow. And thank you once more for everything that you are doing. It it's really inspirational. So much of my work is also, thanks to you.


Naomi Meredith [00:35:15]:

Oh, thank you. That's so kind of you. We need we need a big community to help keep this going in our world. So, we'd


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:35:24]:

Yeah.


Naomi Meredith [00:35:24]:

I can't do it alone. So we need everybody to, raise up their voices and keep doing great work in our STEM world and overall world for kids.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:35:36]:

Yes. And this is how we will be actually bringing In the change that we've talked at the beginning that it's so much needed. So, yeah, let's, let's promise each other that we will be talking in 5 years From now and hopefully with improved statistics and Yes. More positive outcome.


Naomi Meredith [00:35:56]:

Absolutely. And I can't wait to see what your little one ends up doing, how she pursues her dreams and uses her talents. So I'm excited to hear. She'll be way older in 5 years, so she might always be done in high she'll be close to being done at high school. So I can't wait to hear what she ends up doing too.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:36:13]:

Yes. Correct. That would be a perfect timing. So by then, I think she would have to be decided on what she wants to study because now she is so much gravitating between, different careers. But honestly, I don't feel…how to say? I'm not worried at all. I feel like I'm doing my best. I'm opening up my heart's interest in STEM. As I said, many of the areas, they are potential team areas.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:36:46]:

So whatever she's choosing or will be choosing, it's going to be fine. She's going to be great.


Naomi Meredith [00:36:53]:

Well, I can't wait to hear it. I know we'll keep in touch over the next 5 years, but I thank you so much again for being on the podcast. You're amazing, and keep up the awesome work that you're doing as an advocate.


Alexandrina Satnoianu [00:37:05]:

Thank you so much. I will.

advocating for girls in STEM

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

stem professional development books 2024 list

12 STEM Professional Development Books 2024 List [ep.140]

by Naomi Meredith

12 STEM Professional Development Books 2024 List [ep.140]

stem professional development books 2024 list

Check out the full episode on 12 STEM Professional Development Books 2024 List:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Have a STEM question? Leave a voice message for the podcast!

Episode Summary

Is one of your New Year’s Resolutions to read more this year? I got you covered! In today's episode, I am sharing my list of 12 STEM Professional Development Books for 2024 that you definitely want to read this year!

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • My STEM professional development books 2024 list
  • An overview of each STEM professional development book from my 2024 list
  • An overview of the STEM Teacher Bookshelf Membership

Resources Mentioned:

Some items are linked to my Amazon Affiliate account. When you purchase through my link, there is no added cost to you, but I receive a small commission in return.

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:

Is one of your New Year's resolutions to read more this year? I got you covered. In this episode, I am sharing my list of 12 STEM professional development books for 2024 that you definitely want to read this year. Over on Instagram at Naomi Meredith underscore, I got an extremely kind message from 1 of you, and I wanted to read it here on the podcast.


Naomi Meredith [00:00:58]:

It's kind of like a way for me to keep track and remember these special moments. This is what this teacher wrote to me. I have really appreciated your support. You have been my biggest supporter and have helped me so much. I am loving STEM and just got a bunch of praise from my admin today with how things are going. I have shared what I've been working a lot on with your professional development, and they love that your lessons are higher level. You know who you are that wrote this and absolutely made my day. So thank you so much, my teacher friend.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:36]:

The goal of this podcast and all the resources that I create is to make a positive difference in STEM education for you and your students. I know this, and that is why I am doing this. But when you guys write to me or leave reviews on the podcast or share with me all of these things, it absolutely blows my mind that things are really working. And I know it's going to work, but it just, like, makes my day, and just hearing from you, and I appreciate it so much. I read a lot, a lot of books, and I mean a lot. I am such a nerd and enjoy reading more than I like watching Jing TV. Now my teacher, Honey, and I do watch some shows together, but when it's up to me when I'm by myself, I'd rather tip back and read a good book rather than watch some TV, and I was even the same way as a kid. On my Goodreads account, which is an app. I think it said that my end of the year book count for 2023 was 77 books, and I'm usually reading 3 books at a time, an educational book, a business book, and one just for fun.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:50]:

And I do mix in audio and physical books, and so that's how I can get all of that reading in, which I absolutely love. So, I am excited to be sharing with you my 2024 STEM professional development book list, and you can definitely read all of these on your own, and these are books that are excellent for you to keep going with your STEM professional development, but it's way more fun to read a book with a group and be able to talk about it. And this list that I'm going to be sharing with you are the books that we are going to be reading inside of my STEM teacher bookshelf community. So, of course, in the group, you have that private teacher community to discuss the books and other STEM topics that are related to the things that you are reading and what you're seeing daily, but there's also more to it. You also will get a monthly pacing guide that will help you easily read the book within a month and also a curated workbook that I put together that applies to each book that focuses on ideas in that and also help you brainstorm new ones to apply to your classroom. So it just gives you that tangible takeaway to really dive into each of the readings. There are often bookmarks related specifically to the book that you can print out and create, any related classroom handouts if they work with that book, and shareable quotes for social media because we know that we love to share quotes as teachers. Also, a monthly live call with me and other teachers to connect with and have opportunities to share the book with others and help you save on your membership.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:31]:

A new bonus within the STEM teacher bookshelf community is something that I added, but is a unique collection of LEGO education building directions, and right now, there are a bunch for LEGO WeDo 2.0. So that's just a fun bonus that I've added at the end of 2023. For this episode, I'm gonna share about each book, a short description, and why I chose this book. This list took me a while to put together. I've been creating a running list over the last year, previewing different books, and really deciding what would be the best fit to create a cohesive book list for the 2024 year. All of these are gonna be linked in the show notes, so don't feel like you have to memorize them and pause and write them all down. You can see all of them listed out for you, and I even created an Amazon shopping page where all of the books are there for you if that's how you purchase your books. So don't feel like you have to write this all down.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:33]:

I've got you covered. Alright. So I'm gonna go in order based on the order that we are gonna read them throughout the year, and, of course, you can read them at any time, but I did put them in specific months 4 specific reasons, so let's get into it. Our 1st book is Visual Thinking by Temple Grandin, and this book a friend recommended to me. And funny enough, Temple Grandin is based in Colorado, which is where I live. I have not met her yet in person, but I absolutely love to. And when I read this book, I listened to the audio, and it's actually not read by the author. And she gives an explanation at the beginning, which is really interesting, where she just really doesn't wanna read it.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:19]:

And if you don't know about Temple Grandin, she is a person with autism, but she is an awesome autism advocate and how people with that ability are able to do great things, and she also advocates for animal rights and many of her inventions, has to do with that. So she's amazing. She is absolutely brilliant. And in this book, Visual Thinking, she talks about how people think differently and how everyone has the capacity to think visually. But for some people like her, this is their greatest strength, and this is amplified for them. She relies heavily on it to communicate and think through problems. She even talks about how visual thinking is an asset in STEM careers, and when people work together as a team, having this ability where everybody thinks differently and being able to see the problem from different angles is a really huge asset and definitely needed. And I love this book for our starting off the year because it's really awesome to hear from other perspectives and a voice from an author who is using what they were born with to be an advantage to what they are doing, but also advocating for how it is a strength and how she uses it as her strength and how others should use it as a strength. And it's just an excellent, excellent audiobook for this time of year to kick off the year.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:50]:

Our 2nd book is AI for Educators by Matt Miller, and AI stands for artificial intelligence. I know that AI is a big buzzword right now, but for good reason, and it is something we shouldn't shy away from as educators. What I like about this book is that it is actually pretty current. Matt came out with this book fairly recently, and it also talks about how AI impacts education and how we can see it from a teacher's lens, especially in the STEM field, and being an educator in this realm, we shouldn't be shying away from new technology. Test teachers. We shouldn't be shying away from new technology anyway, but especially in a STEM field, you gotta brave it and try it out. And we should be educating ourselves about it so we can educate others. It doesn't mean that you have to be an expert in AI or all the new technology, but we do need to be able to prepare our kids for jobs that don't exist. And thank you to all of my past teachers who helped prepare me to go into STEM education.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:57]:

I had no idea. I had no idea as a kid that I would be a podcaster, but thanks to my teachers. They help me out. Our 3rd book for the year, just getting into that springtime, is Mathematical Mindsets, the 2nd edition by Jo Boaler. This book is all about that m in STEM, and there are some really cool ways that it will get your wheels turning on how you can apply this to your lessons. I read the 1st book of Mathematical Mindsets years ago and even attended a conference that Joe hosted at Stanford when I was a 3rd-grade teacher. I got picked by the admin at the time and all of that, and I actually did meet Jo, which was pretty amazing. And absolutely changed her book and this conference absolutely changed the way that I taught math and also helped me as a teacher the way I can show students to think about the way they think about math and how they should have that positive mindset towards it.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:04]:

You can totally read the older version. I actually still have my older version, and it's all written up with notes, but there are some good updates as well that will help you think through the math component in your STEM lessons and how to get students in that, well, mathematical mindset. Moving into our 4th book, we have Engaging Young Engineers by a collection of authors. So we have Angela Stone McDonald, Kristin Wendell, and Anne Douglas and Marylou Love. And what I hear a lot from STEM teachers is that they really struggle with engaging their youngest learners in the STEM space and what actually to do with them, and how to have effective lessons. And so this book is really beneficial because it has those tips and tricks to help you rethink how you're going to teach STEM to your younger students and really help them shine in this space just as much as those upper elementary students. So, definitely will give you that boost, especially the time of year that we're reading this where you're like, I just don't know what to do with the little kids anymore. Well, this book will have you covered.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:15]:

Going towards the end of the school year, we have the book Creating Innovators by Tony Wagner, and this also has an audio component, which I thought would be a really good refresh for the end of the year going into the summer. I really like listening to audio all the time, but especially at certain times of year, audiobooks work really well when you feel like you just can't sit down and read. So, if that's one way you want to read more books this year, get into audiobooks. It is a skill you have to this, but the more you do it, the better you're gonna get at it. In this book, Creating Innovators, it gives real examples from people who have made an impact in the STEM field and what characteristics they have as an actual innovator. And in turn, this can help us as educators provide those opportunities for our own students. So a really good way to round out the year. This book and the next book really do go hand in hand.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:15]:

There are some overlaps, but also there's even more to it. And the next book is Thrivers by Michele Borba. And continuing with that same theme of creating innovators, it's going more into that growth mindset. And I like in the description for this book, it said how thrivers are different. They flourish in our fast paced, digital driven, but often uncertain world. Why? Which is an excellent question. And so I love how they're taking a look at those qualities of these types of students and people and how we can cultivate that for our own students, so a really great way to dive into that. Alright.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:00]:

The next one jumping into that summertime is STEM, STEAM, Make, Dream by Christ Emdin. And this book examines the need for the arts, including culture, to serve as an anchor for our instruction in the STEM space. And it also talks about the ways and the needs for having making or that Makerspace or hands-on creation to really establish that relevance in learning. And this book is super powerful, but also perfect for if you are at a school or school district or have admin who are hesitant to add STEM into your school or thinking about adding STEM or even thinking about taking it away. This book will support all the reasons why you need STEM and how it is beneficial in today's world. It's not just playing with cool tools, it's doing something more than that. So this is a really powerful book to support that evidence. Moving into the end of summer, we have Launch by John Spencer.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:10]:

Launch is a really great way to teach problem-solving and critical thinking, and it's similar to the engineering design process. I read this book when I first got into the STEM space, and while I didn't use the actual launch cycle, there are some elements that can definitely apply and connect with the engineering design process. I also have a friend who was teaching at a school where they all used the launch cycle as a way to problem solve. So whether or not you use it in the specific cycle, it mentions or takes bits and pieces from it. There's a lot of great information as it pertains 2 problem-solving and projects in general. Alright. The next set of books, I got really creative with this book list. And for that second half of the year, when it gets into the back-to-school time.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:00]:

I chose books that would be really fun and light for you to read as a teacher, but, also, there are things in these books that you can pull and use with your own students because they are also written for kids, but it has that good balance where it's engaging for adults. So this next one is one that I loved when I taught 3rd grade, and it's still definitely relevant today, but it's The Kid President's Guide to Being Awesome by Robbie Nowak. And I know the kid president is grown up. He's probably in college now, but your students don't need to know that. They can think the kid president is still a kid. And the book is really, really fun and encouraging. It's not one that you have to read from cover to cover. It has a lot of images and short stories that are inspiring, and even just the intro about the kid president himself and the actual child who plays the kid president has this whole journey of growth mindset as it pertains to his health.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:02]:

So I'm not going to give that away. Pick it up. Join our group. Read it. It's so great. Next to that, still that back to school time is I actually have 2 books by the same author on our book list this year. And this book is Calling All Minds by Temple Grandin, and this is, again, another book that you can chair with your students, and it is made for young learners. And I really like to learn from so many different avenues, and one way I like to learn is to hear how others speak to children about complex topics.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:41]:

I did this when I went to Chicago. I took a 3D printing class made for kids, and I just really wanted to hear the language that they used with kids when it came to explaining how 3D printing works. So similar vibes for this book. It is made for kids, but it's gonna help give you the language when it comes to teaching them about being an innovator. Alright. Finishing off our list, we have The History of the Computer by Rachel Ignatofsky, ski, and this is again one that is made to be read with adults and children. And the illustrations are absolutely beautiful, but they are well researched. And the author, Rachel Ignatofsky, I actually had on the podcast and she is extremely passionate about what she does.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:28]:

And not only is she an amazing artist, but she researches so so so much for her books to make sure that they are accurate in not only the words, but also the pictures. And so this is such a boring topic, the history of the computer, but it's put in a very fun way that is comprehensible and fun. And so I picked this book for November because then it can you can read it and be prepared for computer science week at the beginning of December. And then finishing off our year is a very fun book, an excellent, excellent, excellent audiobook. It is not read by the author, but the person who is reading it is amazing. And Creativity Inc. by Ed Catmull and Amy Wallace is that Ed is the president of Pixar Animation and Disney Animation. And when I listened to this, I was building and taking apart computer carts in 2020, and I was super engaged. And not only did I love hearing the history of Pixar and how it was created and invented and not everything was figured out right away, but it's good to hear these types of stories as a teacher to help build your background knowledge and also share an example to your students.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:39]:

So there you have it, our full list of STEM professional development books for 2024. I'm not gonna read them all out loud again. Remember, go and check out the show notes. They are all listed and linked for you, and you can read these all on your own this year, but it's way more fun in a group. Trust me. And I invite you to join my exclusive STEM teacher bookshelf community, where we will read these all together and also have those fun bonuses to go along with it. Happy 2024, and I am excited to see you all in the membership and also all of the more things to come.

stem professional development books 2024 list

stem professional development books 2024 list

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

would you rather STEM teacher

Would You Rather? – STEM Teacher Edition [ep.137]

by Naomi Meredith

Would You Rather? STEM Teacher Edition [ep.137]

would you rather STEM teacher

Check out the full episode on Would You Rather? STEM Teacher Edition:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Have a STEM question? Leave a voice message for the podcast!

Episode Summary

This time of year is such a busy time for STEM teachers, so I decided to do something fun in today's episode. Today we're playing Would You Rather STEM Teacher edition. A while back on Instagram, I asked you all to vote on these would you rather questions. So today, I'm sharing the results and my answers to the questions.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • The Would You Rather STEM teacher edition questions I asked on Instagram
  • The results of the Instagram poll
  • My answers to these questions

Resources Mentioned:

 

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


It's a busy time of year, and I have a fun episode and game that we are going to play together, and it is Would You Rather STEM edition. Get ready to think of your answers and laugh along with me with these STEM specific questions. And some of them are a lot harder than you think. For this episode, I knew I wanted to do something fun for this time of year.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:03]:


I love sprinkling in these fun and more personal episodes. It is so much fun for me, and I knew I wanted to do something really cool during the holidays when this airs. And it popped into my head one day when I was walking my dog, Frederick, just like everything I plan, it pops into my head when I'm walking him. And I thought, oh, it would be so fun to play a would you rather game and get all of your responses and then share them on the podcast. This is what I do. I just, like, think of stuff, and I say we should, and then I just do it. A while back, I actually asked the questions. I came up with some STEM specific questions for this would you rather game, and I did post them on Instagram.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:55]:


And 50 of you answered and played along with me, and it was so Funny reading the messages that you guys would write to me after you would vote. Like, a lot of you would vote, and then you're like, I'm not sure what to say or, Oh, that was a hard one or, oh, I need to change my answer. It's not what I thought. Or you guys would just send me emojis about the questions. And so this is so much fun to put together and I wanted to release this episode even sooner because I knew it would be a lot of fun to record and see the final results. And I was even sharing the final results with my teacher honey, which one of the fun episodes that I did is I interviewed him the week of our wedding, so you can actually listen to that interview. There's no video. I told him we won't do video, But he actually was laughing at the answers, and he teaches high school Spanish and so completely different than the world of elementary STEM.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:55]:


But he was laughing. He thought they were pretty funny. I asked him if he would vote, and he said no. So, at least he listened to the questions, which is props to him. That's good. So what I'm gonna do for this episode is I have a handful of questions, and I'm gonna read them. And I want you to think about your answer. How would you answer this? And maybe if you did play, is it the same answer at this time of year? Think about your answer.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:23]:


I'm going to share the results, And then I'm gonna share with you my answer and probably some side comments or stories that I have related to all of these because all of them, while I was writing them, I was making myself laugh, and that's a daily thing for me. I do all sorts of stuff to make myself laugh. So let's get into these fun would you rather STEM teacher questions. Alright. The first one is, would you rather have unlimited tape or hot glue? Really think about it here. Unlimited tape or hot glue? They will get progressively harder, by the way. Alright. So 79% of you said you would like unlimited tape, and 21% of you would like unlimited glue.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:12]:


And some of you are messaging me, is it any kind of glue? Yes. Unlimited glue of anything. I would also agree on the tape, and I talk about my tape love, hate relationship very much here on this podcast. And one trick that I figured out actually during COVID was creating baby tape rolls, And I have a couple videos if you scroll way back, in my feed on Instagram, but baby tape rolls are essentially a baby version of a big tape roll. So what you do is you take the amount of tape that you want students to use, like, a couple of feet, And then you wrap it on a popsicle stick around itself, and it doesn't lose its stickiness, and students can save their baby tape roll for future projects. You do have to teach the kids how to rip the tape, and also the younger kids like to squish the tape in their hands. I'm like, no. Don't do that.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:11]:


Like, I can't I can't fix it. So baby tape rolls are my thing. I called them baby tape rolls, and it's something that actually stuck after COVID because we weren't allowed to share materials. So I'm really, really fast at making baby tape rolls, and you can actually see me, like, Do it, like, mindlessly. I have a 1 Instagram reel where it's, like, explaining STEM teaching through Taylor Swift songs. And in one of them, I'm actually making baby tape rolls because I've made probably thousands of them. So, I definitely would go for unlimited tape because I swear the kids eat tape more than they eat pencils. Alright.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:50]:


Second question, would you rather have Your classroom magically clean itself every day or plug in all of your devices each day. Magically clean itself or plug in your devices each day. 85% of you would like a magically clean classroom every day, and that left The 15% of you would like the plug in devices. I would pick the plug in devices. My room, I actually would keep pretty clean, and people would know that about me. I'm not like a scrub kinda clean, like, get on my hands and knees, like, scrub stuff. But I'm actually very, very, very organized, and so I didn't have an issue with having, like, a super messy classroom, and I made my students clean and Do all of that. So I really hate the plug in in devices.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:49]:


I think it's so annoying, especially if you were teaching all the kids in the school and then you have shared devices. It is one of the most annoying things. I hate it. Like, You develop, I swear, you develop these pet peeves as a STEM teacher that you never thought you would have before. Definitely developed pet peeves when I came into the K through 5 STEM space. 1 was plugging in devices, and another one was when Kids would come into my room, and the first thing they would ask me is, what are we doing today? And my response was, I'm gonna tell the whole class at the same time. So plug in devices is what I would choose for that question. Alright.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:29]:


Next question. Would you rather teach August kindergartners or May 5th graders. August kindergartners or May 5th graders? And I got the most comments on this one. This one, you guys cannot The side. So here's the results on this one. For kindergarten, 47% of you said You would teach August kindergartners, and that left the remaining 53% of you who would teach May 5th graders. And I would say both are very, very comparable, and those results make sense to me. I would rather teach August kindergartners.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:15]:


I love the little ones. I was so close to getting my degree in early childhood, but went a different pathway, thought there'd be more opportunities in elementary. I actually did teach at a preschool and college, and I just love that age group. If you hear squeaking, by the way, that is little Frederick, who is acting like a toddler and wants me to play with him right now. So he keeps throwing toys at my feet. But I would definitely teach August kindergartners. May 5th graders are so annoying. No.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:47]:


Like, I would take a little kindergartner who pees their pants any day over a stinky 5th grader in May. Alright. Next question. Would you rather go on a field trip with Miss Frizzle or have an in house field trip with Bill Nye, the science guy? I told you the questions are going to get progressively harder. Alright. 46% of you said Bill Nye, and 54% of you said Miss Frizzle, and I feel the same way. I am so torn on this question.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:29]:


I'm obsessed with Bill, and I loved that show as a kid, and I want him on my podcast. And I have reached out through Instagram before and didn't get a response, which he has so many followers. It probably was in the, the hidden messages. So I need to try a different avenue know, because ever since I started this podcast, I've wanted Bill Nye on this show. I think it would be amazing. It'd be a childhood dream. I've told my Students, I want them on the show.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:00]:


I have been manifesting Bill Nye to be a guest on the Elementary STEM Coach podcast. So go, like, at him on Instagram. Go message him. Tell him to be a guest because that would be an absolute blast to have him on this show. But on the flip side, Miss Frizzle's not real now. I guess Bill Nye is not real. He's a person playing. Well, Bill Nye is no.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:22]:


Bill Nye is real. That's his real name, But he, like, plays kind of a character. Anyway, miss Frizzle's a cartoon, and I'm talking about the original Miss Frizzle. Okay? Not the new one, but the new one's good. I was Miss Frizzle for Halloween 1 year, so I was Miss Frizzle, and Frederick was Liz, the lizard. I found a little lizard costume, and we dressed up as them for 1 Halloween. And I also had my 1st keynote speech. It was all based on lessons from Miss Frizzle, which is episode 100.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:57]:


You can hear my 1st keynote speech that I did for Wonder Workshop. So I took a lot of lessons from her, and her field trips would be pretty cool, but also I think really scary when she does the field trips where she's really, really tiny. So I would take Bill and I probably a little bit more over miss Frizzle because, like, that's a little bit dangerous. And also okay. Question. Would you rather go on a field trip where Miss Frizzle by yourself, or would you wanna go on a field trip with Miss Rosalynn all the kids, because some of those kids are freaking whiny. What's what's his name? Ralphie or Ronald or something? The one with the orange hair and glasses is So whiny and so annoying. He he I'll take his spot.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:39]:


You know what? I'll go with the kids, but he has to stay back. Like, he can't come. That kid's so annoying. So Bill Nye for me, but Miss Frizzle a close second. Alright. Last question. Would you rather teach year long STEM on topics you're unfamiliar with, but have unlimited resources. Okay? So, this is a little confusing.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:06]:


Or teach your favorite stem topic with minimal resources. So we have Unlimited resources, but you're teaching stuff you've never taught before, or limited resources and you know what you're gonna teach. That one's pretty hard. Unlimited, but you don't know what you're gonna teach. Limited, you do know what you're gonna teach. And here for this one, I thought it was interesting. So 61% of you said you would rather teach unlimited resources with unfamiliar topics. And then 39% of you said you'd rather teach familiar lessons with limited resources.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:45]:


And I feel like I've been in kind of both situations. Now I wasn't with unlimited resources when I taught Stan. But when I first got started, I had a really big budget and I don't know why. So I was really lucky and was able build up my program and trial these materials and, in turn, give my students a lot of experiences, but also I remember those and can share those with you. And a lot of us who are in the STEM space don't know anything we're teaching, and so I think I would be, like, the majority on this question, I would definitely want the unlimited resources and don't know what I'm teaching, but I like that open ended, like, What if, what could we do, what are the possibilities? That's why I like Miss Frizzle, but, I definitely thrive in those types of environments. And when I feel really restricted, I can actually do a lot with limited materials, but if I'm teaching the same thing over and over and over and over again, I get really, really bored. I think partly why I got a little bored teaching 3rd grade because it's the same topics every year, but that's just my personality. I like keeping it up and make it get fresh.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:54]:


So that's definitely a hard question, though, because I can definitely see the other side. Alright. Well, that is it for this fun Would You Rather game. If you liked it, send me a DM. If you're watching the video, put it in the comments below. But I love doing these fun episodes, sprinkling them in for you. Thank you so much for playing along and voting on Instagram when I posted these. And, also, for those of you who are listening along with me wherever you're at, I know you were playing along too, and you were thinking of your answers.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:26]:


And I appreciate you guys so much, and I can't wait to do more fun episodes like this and keep bringing in All of those fun STEM concepts for you in the new year.

would you rather STEM teacher

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

hour of code lessons

3 Last Minute Hour of Code Lessons for Elementary [ep.136]

by Naomi Meredith

3 Last Minute Hour of Code Lessons for Elementary [ep.136]

hour of code lessons

Check out the full episode on 3 Last Minute Hour of Code Lessons for Elementary:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Have a STEM question? Leave a voice message for the podcast!

Episode Summary

Another year of hour of code has arrived. Are you ready for it? If not, that's okay because, in today's episode, I am sharing three hours of code lessons you can implement in your classroom. These lessons do not require you to be an expert coder, and they are easy to implement.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 3 hour of code lessons you can implement in your elementary classroom
  • How I implemented each lesson for K-5
  • Strategies and resources for implementing these hour of code lessons

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


It's another year of the Hour of Code. Are you ready yet? It's okay if you're not because in this episode, I will share a 3 hour of code lesson that you can try last minute in your classroom. Before we jump on in, I wanted to read another awesome podcast review from 1 of you.


Naomi Meredith [00:00:53]:


If you haven't already, I would love for you to leave a review. So go in on Apple Podcasts and write a review. It would mean the world to me. Not only will let me know if you're enjoying the show but will also help other teachers like you find this show to learn all about the world of elementary STEM. This is from n c meg 1118, STEM power. If you are a STEM teacher or just a teacher who wants to incorporate more STEM into your classroom, this Elementary STEM Coach podcast is for you. Naomi is full of tried and tested and revised ideas and is a joy to listen to and learn from. Go no further if you are new to teaching STEM and want to learn and be empowered by one of the best. That is so nice of a review and it just makes my day.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:50]:


Like I said, I am in my cute little pink office when I am recording these. My little dog, Frederick, listens to me the whole time, and I'm just talking to my camera and to my microphone. So, reading these reviews totally make my day and just lights up a fire for me knowing that what I'm doing is especially important for you out there in elementary STEM and also, in turn, your students. If this is your first time hearing about the Hour of Code and you're wondering what this is, let me give you a little snapshot of what the Hour of Code is. This is like your Spark Notes version. If you know what I'm talking about, you know I'm talking about millennials, and the Hour of Code got started in 2013 as a way to engage kids and get them excited about computer science and coding. Now, I don't know about you, but with my series when it comes to computer science.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:48]:


I had a lot of it growing up, especially with my dad being a computer engineer. I had a lot of experience with having new technology all the time and problem solving with that technology. About one thing I for sure did not grow up with, and maybe this is unique to me, but also maybe you have a similar pathway, is I did not learn how to code as a kid. And it's so funny because when I talked to my dad, a little bit about elementary STEM, and I've joked about this before. When I first got my K through Five STEM job. He was like, how did you get that job? You don't know anything about computers. I'm all dad. This is basic stuff for little kids, like, if a little kid can do it, I can do it.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:35]:


So we joke about it now, and he'll ask me questions about what coding is like for little kids. But, anyway, this isn't always as common in the elementary space to teach younger students how to code, and even to this day in 2023, it's still not that common And so the hour of code is just one of many ways to spark this in a school of any kind. The 1st time I experienced the hour of code itself as an event was when I taught 3rd grade. It was one of those 1st couple years that I taught 3rd grade, and I was so amazed by what this actually meant with coding. Again, typically, with coding for younger students, you start with arrows or directional coding. There is no reading involved. Oftentimes that will move into still that directional coding but with some words attached to those arrows, and then they move into different forms of block coding where the block coding, they are blocks, like, just like you think of. They look like puzzle pieces, the block coding will move into blocks that have images on them that represent the action. Oftentimes, they are put together from left to right, but not always, it depends on the coding language, and then from there, the coding language will get more advanced, and it will be more of that traditional block space coding that you see in Scratch or a lot of popular programs where students are dragging the codes, and there are words that represent the action, and they are put together from top to bottom.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:19]:


You don't have to be an expert in coding to implement the hour of code. I will say I'm not an expert coder, but I can effectively teach younger children how to code and what this all means. And if you haven't done this with your students yet, you don't have to be a STEM teacher. This is a great way to get kids excited about this world of coding, how important it is in our lives, how relevant, and how much behind the scenes coding actually is. I've put together for you an hour of code freebie where I break down different examples of lessons that you can get started with your kids k through 5. Again, it's absolutely free. These are things that I've tried with my students over the years. That will be linked in the show notes, but you can also grab it at nami meredith.com/tpthourofcode.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:14]:


It breaks up different lessons and different little things that you can try with your students, different websites or apps, or maybe you find a similar website that has a certain language that aligns with that, but it's just a great way to help you get started because I know the Hour of Code website is an amazing, amazing resource, but it can also get very overwhelming. And we'll refer back to that because that is very important to remember when you launch this with your students. Also, go ahead and check out episode 38 of this podcast, where I talk about even more ideas when it comes to hour of code lessons that you can use in your classroom. Alright. So, if you haven't started planning yet and you're wondering how I should implement this in my classroom. Do I still have time? Yes. You still have time. I did hour of code for a month because I had 4 groups of kids, and I saw them 5 days in a row for 45 minutes each for each class.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:15]:


So I did Hour of Code for a month, and I usually started in mid-November because that's just the way it lined up with all of my lessons. So you can do this at any time, but all of these are easy ways that you can implement this, and honestly, it is the easiest unit that I have ever taught in STEM because everything else I've created from scratch, no pun intended, Scratch is a coding program, but everything else I created from scratch, the arrow code for me is so nice because I can just fit it in and everything is done for me. So, let's jump into those ideas. The first great way to implement Hour of Code in your classroom is to create a very, very simple choice board, and I did this in a couple of different ways for k through 5. For my 2nd through 5th graders, I created a 6 choice board with different coding challenges that went from a beginner level to a more intermediate experience for my students. I tried to pull in a variety of different coding languages that they could experiment with, especially for my students who had had me for many years. This is really great for them to experience different types of coding languages. So what I would do is I would start off my day with a coding video that would teach more about a concept.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:44]:


BrainPOP and BrainPOP Junior have a lot of great options when it comes to computer science and coding and different backgrounds of how different things came to be. I couldn't even finish all of the videos within the week, but there are so many amazing things on there. So, if you have a subscription to BrainPOP or BrainPOP Junior, check those out. There are so many different ones. You can also browse things on YouTube. SciShow Kids has some fun things about computer science that you can implement as well. So what I would do is we would introduce a coding concept, and then I would go over some of that key vocabulary.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:25]:


Most of that vocabulary is actually in my vocabulary cards or little anchor charts that I created that are in my hour of code bundle. So, I put together a bundle of activities that you can use and be ready to go. I even have a bulletin board in there for you where it's winter-themed, and you can hang that up as well. We would start with that video, we would go with the vocabulary, and then I would introduce the choice board. And I pre-created this choice board because, as I said, the Hour of Code website is absolutely amazing, but it is very overwhelming. It is pages and pages and pages of different coding programs. The one thing that is a little bit tricky on there is you do have to test them out or read more about that activity when you click on them because it will let you know what types of devices it's compatible with or not compatible with. There are some search features that you can click through that will help filter out those activities, but still, double check if you can even try to test it on your student devices just to make sure it will work.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:40]:


I initially made a choice board for my students where I linked all of those activities on the choice where it had an image of the game and then I had the link. That was it. That's that's the choice. And I made it at home, and one of them was so cool. It was about the FIFA World Cup, but the game actually didn't end up working at school, for some reason, it was blocked by our Wi-Fi server. So I was super bummed about that. So, just double check. It will help with the search features, but just make sure it will work on your student devices.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:17]:


So, on the 1st day, a little more talking, but I would talk through the different towns just kinda show them how they would all work, and then I sent the choice board into their Seesaw accounts. The cool thing about having this shared with them is if I had a substitute or something last minute, I could refer them to the hour code choice board for the second half of the year because I knew they already used it when they were with me. If you don't use Seesaw, you can share it on another platform of your choice, like Google Classroom, Schoology, or any of those types of places as well. But make it very, very simple. Have a picture. You can link the picture if you even make it in Google Slides. You can even make it in Canva if you want to, but having that 1-page grid, no more than 6 challenges. Even 10 is overwhelming because kids are just gonna click around and test them the whole time, and they're not gonna sit and focus.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:12]:


Six is plenty, and they can have at it. I also recommend having students bring their headphones, or if you have a class set of headphones on hand, especially if you teach all the classes in the school, the game sounds get super annoying when you hear at least 4 classes a day. I definitely recommend having the kids bring headphones. It will keep your sanity. For k through 1, I actually did something similar. I had access to iPads, and I had the students experiment with different apps I found that would work well for their grade level. So check out the different apps I mentioned in episode 38. I'm not gonna go through all of those, but definitely, if you can just search for great free coding apps for younger children, there are a lot of great options for you.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:04]:


But I would do the same thing where I had certain apps loaded on the iPads for this hour of code time, and then I had the same thing on the screen just on my TV screen, where I have the different pictures of the apps and then the students could all try them during our class time together. So I also did the video and the vocabulary thing, but when it came to the actual devices, we used the iPads. Another tidbit with this is I actually didn't keep my iPad loaded up with apps all the time. I only kept certain apps on the iPads for very specific units. And if we were done with that unit, I would actually take the app away because I knew I wasn't gonna be using that, and I wanted kids to be focused, and I didn't mess with any of that management software because also we weren't allowed to use that in my district. But I actually would take away applications, so the iPads weren't very fun because I didn't leave any games on there throughout the year. So we did that the 1st day and then the 2nd and 3rd ish days, we would do half and half. So half of the class would be coding on the iPad, trying those different applications.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:17]:


For the other half, I did something screen free, coding related or or not. It might even have been free building with Lego bricks just to help them, you know, get their energy out, and then they would switch halfway through. Then the 4th and 5th days, I would have them on the iPads, and then I also use the Osmo coding kits, which is so much fun, and it is a great tactile way for kids to actually do coding hands on and what they do in real life. It's augmented reality. So what they do in real life is like a backward augmented reality, what they're doing with the little chips. It reflects back onto the iPad, and then it checks their work, and the kids absolutely loved it. I did that half-and-half method, or I might have even done, like, 3 groups of kids just because I didn't have enough of the Osmo kits.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:14]:


But that was a really cool way to implement those coding kits, and it comes with 3 different apps that actually work with the same pieces. So if you're looking for something to buy, I recommend those. That was a lot. That actually was only one of the 3 ways, but the other 2 won't be as long for you. The 2nd way that you can have some last minute prep ideas for Hour of Code is look for what edtech companies are promoting and providing. Hour of Code is a really cool event where not only teachers who are in this space come together and are bringing this experience for their students, but EdTech companies like to give back during this time and help show you other ways that you can implement coding in your classroom during the hour of code and also beyond. And a lot of times, they're offering free workshops or free resources or things to try. So definitely follow your favorite brands on social media because I'm sure they're talking all about it and want to give that support to you.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:23]:


One of my favorites that I have seen is with Wonder Workshop. Again, they actually have a whole landing page of things to support you with the Hour of Code. Now during the time, the week of Hour of Code, on Monday, so in the afternoon. If you're listening to this live, my episodes come out on Monday. But Monday in the afternoon, they actually have a live webinar from Brian Miller, who I've had on this podcast, you've actually heard from a couple of times, who works for Wonder Workshop and he's hosting a free webinar that is actually for your students. So it's pretty cool where he'll actually chat with the kids, they'll learn a cool coding concept, They'll plan that concept of the code and then they'll actually be able to implement the code and see it in action with virtual dash. So we all know, Dash the Robot is my absolute favorite robot, but they actually have a virtual dash option in their Make Wonder paid platforms, which is so much fun. And I know that they are giving free access to virtual dash for the week of hour of code, which is a huge deal.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:31]:


You can have 1 to 1 robotics coding. So pretty cool. They have some other resources of coding activities, short term thing, and they also have some past challenges from their WonderLink robotics competition, all for free for you to use to help empower your students. So I definitely recommend I'm not sponsored by them to mention all this. I just really love what they do and how they help support teachers in this coding space. So definitely check out Window Workshops and what they're providing and also see what are your other favorite EdTech companies offering and how they can support you in our code. And the last idea to help you with your hour code is trying coding unplugged options. The kids don't have to be on the devices the whole time.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:16]:


They don't. And it's okay if you give them options that are off of the computer. I like to use this station if I did a 3 station rotation with my younger students, is doing a human robot coding where the students are coding their friends to perform different actions, which this is another activity that I have in my hour of code bundle where it has all the cards and all the directions ready to go. I might try this with my dog and see if he will listen to me if I can code my dog unplugged, but we'll see. I don't know if he'll like it very much. I've also seen this too where you have printed block codes that students can create a code and actually plan what their robot might do or plan what the code would do and then implement it with the device. Another fun way that I've done this with my students is we did a Goldilocks game. It was actually it goes along with the story where, for digital citizenship.


Naomi Meredith [00:19:17]:


Goldilocks isn't very safe. She shares unsafe information, and the bears catch her and it's a whole big deal. With actually talking about private and personal information and you create a whole coding unplugged game, which is also in the bundle too. So there are some really neat things also on the hour of code website where it is coding unplugged, so check that out. It is a nice break for students to think through those big problems, how to can they have that computational thinking, and really be hands on with their coding experience where it doesn't always have to involve technology. As a recap, here are my 3 last minute ideas when it comes to our code activities that you can try with your elementary students. 1st is you can create a choice board where there are specific activities that you want your students to try out for the week. Next, look for some online events and resources from your favorite EdTech companies.


Naomi Meredith [00:20:17]:


And finally, try some coding unplugged options where computer devices or robots aren't always needed. I hope you have so much fun with this amazing event and spark that interest when it comes to coding in all sorts of forms for your students. And if you need even more help, I've put together a free hour of code guide that you can download, which will be linked in the show notes. Also, there is a brand new bundle that I put together of Arab code activities and resources. There are many coding unplugged options and vocabulary in there to help support your week and make it not overwhelming but a very fun experience in your classroom.

hour of code lessons

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

earth science curriculum project

Earth’s Engineers Makerspace: Earth Science Curriculum Project [ep.135]

by Naomi Meredith

Earth's Engineers Makerspace: Earth Science Curriculum Project [ep.135]

earth science curriculum project

Check out the full episode on Earth's Engineers Makerspace: Earth Science Curriculum Project  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Have a STEM question? Leave a voice message for the podcast!

Episode Summary

Makerspace projects are so much fun for kids to build and explore. When they are thoughtfully planned with standards in mind, you can make a bigger impact on the types of projects students can explore. Take, for example, Earth science curriculum projects. In today’s episode, I’ll be sharing with you what I teach inside of my Earth’s Engineers lessons for K-5 and how they connect to Makerspace.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • How to plan and implement Earth science curriculum projects
  • Strategies for creating Earth's engineers Makerspace units
  • Implementing Makerspace units for different grade levels

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


Makerspace projects are so much fun for kids to explore with recycled materials. When these types of projects are thoughtfully planned with the standards in mind, they can explore the world in so many different ways than from the traditional science classroom. Take, for example, Earth science. In today's episode, I will be sharing with you the lessons that I teach k through 5, as it relates to Makerspace inside of my Earth's engineers lessons. 


Naomi Meredith [00:01:04]:


Before we jump on in, I wanted to read another awesome podcast review from 1 of you. These mean the world to me and also for other teachers who are also looking for a podcast that fits their elementary STEM needs. This is from a stegosaurus teacher, and they say standing out in STEM. I'm leaving 2nd grade this year and moving into a k through Five STEM position. It's exciting but also overwhelming. I'm grateful for all the tips and advice you share through your podcast. I'm looking forward to listening to more. Thank you for sharing this content.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:45]:


Thank you so much again for this review. If you haven't already written a review for this podcast, pause this podcast if you're on Apple Podcasts. Go on over there and write a review. I think you can also actually leave star ratings on Spotify. I'm not 100% sure about that, But that would mean the world to me, and it costs absolutely nothing. And, again, help other teachers like you find this podcast. If you have a very limited budget when it comes to purchasing your stem supplies, Makerspace projects are an Excellent way to go. In fact, you could do Makerspace projects all year if you really wanted to.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:29]:


I was really lucky when I was a k through 5 STEM teacher, and I had a fairly flexible budget. And I was very strategic in my purchasing, so the years where it was really low, I really zoned in on those consumable products to build up my maker space. I also think that it's so important for kids to explore with recycled materials, and I don't think kids do that enough. For a while, when I wasn't able to do STEM clubs Due to COVID restrictions, I actually had some take home STEM kits that I sent with students because parents were asking me, what can I do at home? What can I do at home? And a lot of the materials where recycled materials are very simple things that kids could get their hands on, and they absolutely loved it. I'm in the works with something else with this right now, but I'm currently not doing those kits, at the time of this recording. But it's So cute. I would always give my neighbor's kids a set of these kits. I did it for 6 months, and they are still asking me, it's a couple of years later, do you have any more of those STEM kits for us? We love them so much.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:45]:


So think about your students and how Makerspace can be so much fun. It doesn't have to be Crazy. And it can also be really purposeful in the way that you present this to students. I don't see it as a free for all. I'm not like that when it comes to anything that I do in the classroom. It's not a free for all, but I do allow a lot of choices in strategic ways. In the terms of the flow of my k through 5 STEM year long plan, which you can get the whole year long plan for free at Naomi Meredith.com/yearlongplan and see all the lessons that I taught to my students k through 5 in the order that they happened. Here is how the beginning of my year would go.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:31]:


I would start off the month and kick everything off with STEM survival camp, which you can listen to in episode 4. Then we would go into a digital citizenship unit where I utilize A lot of the digital citizenship curriculums that are out there and also integrated my own hands on way to implement those themes. You can hear more about all of those in episode 28. Then moving into the 3rd unit, this one that we're going to talk about today is my Earth's engineers Makerspace unit. And this is where we were really diving into my entire Makerspace of supplies. STEM survival camp had little bits of Makerspace, but it wasn't open to everything that students can choose from. There were very limited supplies in each grade level that students could use. So Earth's engineers, we are gonna be exploring today all the things in my Makerspace accessible to students? But again, not a free for all.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:33]:


Now how did this entire unit come to existence. Some of the origins of my units are really creative and some are just, Well, here's how it is, and this is just what happened. And so with Earth's engineers, I knew I wanted to do Makerspace for my 3rd month of the year. By this point, let's say, they come to school August, September, October, They're ready for some Makerspace time. And so I knew I wanted to do Makerspace. And as I was mapping out my whole Prior year, my k through 5, 7 year long plan, I was taking a look at all of the standards k through 5, and I noticed that there was a lot of standards in all of these grade levels that have to do with Earth science, which makes sense. That's a really important topic to talk about. But I also knew that I didn't want the kids to do the same thing that they were doing in their traditional classrooms during science time as they were in STEM.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:37]:


I was always thinking of how can I do this differently where maybe some of the Concepts are repeated? There is nothing wrong with that. I would even tell my students, if you are hearing things over and over again. It must be important and it must be something that you want to remember. So the concepts, Sure. Maybe they have learned about it before, maybe they hadn't. I didn't always line things up with classroom teachers because, again, If they're building a background knowledge with me, great. Or if they're hearing it in a different way in STEM, great. So I took upon on those standards and thought of ways how I can make this more hands on and implement Makerspace, which I knew at my school was something that wasn't happening in all of the classrooms.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:24]:


And so I had a safe bet that these lesson ideas were going to be good to go. Implementing these lessons during the 3rd month or the 3rd unit of the school year was awesome because by this point, My Makerspace was set up and ready to go. So that's a good little trick for you. If you don't have everything set up yet, Don't plan lessons with those items. And then if you know it's gonna come up, then you can take your time to get it all set up. And this is actually there was 1 year where I Was working on the labels with my Makerspace labels that have words and pictures, which you can get all of those. There's even options to create your own, All the colors, all the things. So when I was switching out labels, I was so thankful that this unit was 3rd on my list because my labels weren't ready to go until that 3rd unit.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:14]:


Also, I just made sure that all of my supplies were ready to go, so all the recycled things were stocked inside of their drawers. If I needed to ask for any donations, that was something that I would do. If there were things that I knew I Could just personally collect at home, I started doing that. I even put in the teacher's lounge a box collecting thin cardboard from all of those teacher lunches, And teachers were, like, hey. No problem. And they're just throwing their cardboard in there, and I had more than enough for this unit and many more units to come. So knowing that, not starting off the school year with a full fledged Makerspace project, it does, again, give you time to collect and organize those materials, so we were good to go as well. Now I'm also gonna talk about in when I'm explaining the lessons that each of them had certain materials that were specialized to them.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:06]:


So I also gathered those materials as well that were reusable that were being added to those designs. So when you're thinking about your Makerspace projects, not every single little thing in their project has to be consumable, meaning when they use it up, it's all gone. You can even think about depending on the project, But you can even think about if students don't want to keep their project or if that's not even an option, They have to deconstruct those things and put the items back if they can be reused again. And it's a great way to even teach a simple way of conservation, and how things can have more than 1 life. I also for this unit, because it was a full fledged, you get all access As to everything in my Makerspace, I did use my Makerspace money and menu where students, when part of their planning process, would create a shopping list of what supplies that they wanted to use within their budgets, and then they would purchase their supplies before they would start building. If you wanna hear more about those 2 systems that I use in my classroom, so how I set up my Makerspace, labeling with pictures and words, And also the Makerspace menu and money, I recommend for you to go back and listen to episodes 5 and 6. Alright. So what are the things that students did in this Earth's engineers unit? Well, They, I, I would tell them you are studying the earth and you have a different role of being an engineer to learn all about it.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:44]:


We're gonna start with 5th grade and go all the way down to kindergarten so you can see the whole scope of how this entire unit went with my students. 1st up with 5th grade, we talked about ecosystems and how there is a transfer of energy within those different food webs. I did know that my 5th graders actually had some background knowledge when it came to ecosystems coming into my classroom. This is a 5th grade standard normally when it comes to the ecosystems and, by diversity in ecosystem and transfer of energy in the Next Generation Science Standards. At the time, my district actually wasn't requiring us to teach the new standards. So for Colorado, in 4th grade is when they would learn those things, and we were still teaching them. Now for me and my STEM classroom, I was teaching the current standards. So I was really trying to do that for them because That's what they're being tested on anyway.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:43]:


But I just wanted to make sure I was teaching the current next generation science standards. But my students did come in with a background all about ecosystems, and they did a whole project. I even helped the teachers do a whole project on this. But I did also create the resources about those different ecosystems if they wanted to research or explore more about them. This Makerspace project was very unique because they did have access to those consumable items, so cardboard, paper, tape, but they also had specialty items that they could purchase from and use over and over again. So their challenge was how can you create a Rube Goldberg machine to show the transfer of energy within an ecosystem. When I proposed this challenge, the kids were like, what did you just say? And I'm all, okay. Trust There's 2 things going on.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:36]:


You're making a Rube Goldberg machine, and you are showing the transfer of energy in an ecosystem, and you're putting them together. And I did have to give that background knowledge on what a Rube Goldberg machine is. And once I started showing them videos and all of that, they're, oh, okay. That's what it is. And even 1 student said, You know in home alone, there's a Rube Goldberg machine. I said, oh my gosh. You were so right. Let's look that up.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:05]:


If you are to do that in your classroom, there is a video about the child setting up the whole Rube Goldberg machine for the robbers. Don't play the video of it actually hurting the robbers. It's not a 100% school appropriate. But, I mean, you can kind of infer what's going to happen when he's setting it up. So just Just beware. But I had different resources to share with them what a Rube Goldberg machine is and also the research resources for them to pick out the ecosystem that they wanted to represent in their Rube Goldberg machine, and then they set up a small version of the Rube Goldberg machine that would show the transfer of energy. What was really hard about this challenge is that they had to set it up and take it down every class time, And so they really had to be strategic in the way that they built their designs. Hence, I had them take a lot of videos and photos in Seesaw because they could rewatch their work and help them remember what went well, what didn't, and how did we set this up the day before.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:05]:


For 4th grade, they took on the role as a civil engineer, and they were to design a city based off of the data that they were given, and also what are the needs of that city. So they're kind of creating a model using fake data or GIS data, geographical information systems data, that I gave them. So we learned about different roles that civil engineers can have, how they can work with architects in a space, and what are those things that Communities typically need to get started to run effectively. So we combine that knowledge, And then with the data that I gave them, the data showed them where certain things in their landscape were located, where the grassy fields were, where a muddy pit was, where the river ran through, where there was a tiny lake. They had that data, and then depending on the time I had with them, there was also data showing how High, each of the features were in inches, and they had to add on the clay to show the landscape. You don't have to do the 2nd part. It's really up to you and the time that you have. The 1st time I ever did it with the clay, I I had the most disastrous experience.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:26]:


I personally made salt dough at home, and I made it way too sticky, like Extremely, extremely way too sticky. It was all over the place. The kids are screaming. I was laughing because I thought it was really funny. It was all over the place. I skip the clay part just with time, but it's actually a really, really cool part of the experiment because it does actually change how they will build things in their landscape. Using their landscape and using the list that I give them, then they create their tiny city and also how it would function in a, well, functional way. For 3rd grade, we touch on different natural disasters, and then we really zone in on flooding and different flood inventions.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:08]:


And they are challenged to create an invention that will help keep the house safe from the flood. Through that research, we look at current inventions, and they can even improve those inventions that already exist or create an entirely new one. And then I even taught students this is a math standard, but I taught students how to measure with measuring cups to gather the water and pour it in increments to see how much of the house can withstand when it comes to the water. This is a fairly new update, so if you do have this lesson or you have the k through 5 semi learning bundle or a variation of that bundle, the 3 through 5 or 3rd grade bundle, Then I would go and read down that lesson because that math piece is added where students actually keep track of those increments and if the house actually got wet. The kids are actually way more excited about pouring water and measuring the water because I showed them how to do that. A lot of them have Done that before, which is exciting. And then they were excited to keep track of how much water that their house could handle. In 2nd grade, their challenge was to create an invention that will help slow down or possibly stop water erosion.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:23]:


We did talk about the other ways how erosion can happen, but like 3rd grade, we zoned in on one type of erosion and that was water erosion. I've done this one a couple of ways. It depended on the weather. Colorado has really crazy weather, but I have had buckets of soil where I actually reuse it each week because on Friday, it would dry out over the weekends, and then throughout the week, it'll be dry for all the students. But I had buckets of soil that students could actually put their inventions in to help test and then using the water. But I also have taken students outside, and they carried a cup of water and a measuring cup, and then we went outside. A little tip for both of these lessons, because they do involve water, is I asked classroom teachers if they had any measuring cups in their science kits, And I knew not everybody was doing an experiment with this in their classroom at the time, and so I got a ton of of donations where I could borrow their measuring cups and then give them back when we were finished. I also always kept on hand a ton of dry wicking towels, So they would soak up the water.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:35]:


I always seem to be using these a lot. I did a lot of experiments and things with water. Having those on hand is extremely helpful. Going into 1st grade, their challenge was to learn more about Earth's light and how this can be seen naturally through bioluminescence. The 1st graders were super impressed with themselves that they were learning the word Bioluminescence, which, yes, that is a very big word. We researched about that, and I actually wrote articles, Short little articles for the students where has my voice reading to them about different things in on Earth that have bioluminescence. From that research, students were thinking of a living thing that they wish had bioluminescence, and then they had to explain how the bioluminescent would actually help that living thing. So I always would give the example that I always wish that my dog, Frederick, his big little ears, he's a 10 pound chihuahua mix, so I call his big little ears, would glow because if we take him out at night to go to the restroom, then we would more easily be able to see, you know, what that comes out of his body.


Naomi Meredith [00:19:47]:


So, that was my example. I can draw a little Fred pretty good. And so the kids really enjoyed that project using the Makerspace, and then Depending on the year of my budget, I would have glow sticks that they could use to show the bioluminescence. If I didn't, they would use shiny aluminum metal or shiny bubble wrap or yellow paper to show the parts that would glow. Really, for 1st grade, we talked about how different animals change the land to create their homes, and we zone in you get the theme here. I really zone in a part of that standard, but zoned in on ants and how ants, they change the land to create their home. I always make them laugh when I would say, you know, A little ant and their ant friends, they don't have a Home Depot where they can go get some shovels and say, hey, let's build our house right here. They literally have to figure it out and create the homes themselves.


Naomi Meredith [00:20:42]:


So we talked about Anthills and how different rooms have different purposes, And then they created a marble cardboard maze that shows a different anthill, the different homes, and then the marble represented the ant. For kindergarten and 1st grade, I did bits and pieces of the engineering design process, and we finished their projects in in 2 to 3 days. And then my other 2 days of the week, because I did see them 5 days in a row, I played around with some different stem stations, which I don't have available quite yet. But I played around with some different stem stations, and that worked out really, really well. You do get your hands on those lessons. I always give you more than enough than what you have to teach because I don't even know what of your teaching. A lot of you are in the STEM space, but some of you are in library or maker spaces. Some of you teach homeschool.


Naomi Meredith [00:21:34]:


Some of you teach gifted and talented. And even a growing number of you are in the classroom and you need more of that support. So I always give more than enough in my slides, but then pick and choose what would work best for you. As a recap, here are the 6 lessons that I taught in my Earth The engineers Makerspace lesson that you can try with your students, and they're also included in my k through 5 STEM year long plan or also bundled in their own little bundle. 1st, we have 5th grade, and they created a Rube Goldberg machine to show the ecosystem, and the transfer of energy. So we have 4th grade, and they were creating a model of a tiny city using GIS data. Then we have 3rd grade. We zoned in on the natural disaster of flooding, and they had to build a structure to keep the house safe.


Naomi Meredith [00:22:27]:


Then we had 2nd grade where we talked about water erosion, and they had to create an invention to either slow it down or stop it. Then we have 1st grade and we studied Earth's light, and they did that by creating a living thing that could possibly have bioluminescence. And finally, in kindergarten, we talked about how animals changed the land to create their homes, and we zoned in on anthills and Made a little cardboard marble maze for that. If you haven't tried Makerspace yet or you're hesitant, this is A great way to integrate those standards in your classroom and also get the hang of doing a Makerspace project. It isn't perfect. It might not turn out exactly how you want it, but again, this is a really cool way for students to floor the world in a different way, and also hit those important standards.

earth science curriculum project

 

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More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

force and motion projects

Welcome to STEMusement Park: Force and Motion Projects for Makerspace [ep.134]

by Naomi Meredith

Welcome to STEMusement Park: Force and Motion Projects for Makerspace [ep.134]

force and motion projects

Check out the full episode on Welcome to STEMusement Park: Force and Motion Projects for Makerspace  

 

 

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Episode Summary

Are your force and motion projects in need of a refresh? If so, I have just the project for you! In today's episode, I'm breaking down my STEMusement park force and motion projects for K-5 STEM. These projects are engaging, and your students will look forward to them every year.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • The inspiration behind STEMusement park force and motion projects
  • Why doing Makerspace at the end of the school year is a good idea
  • How I set up my classroom for STEMusement park force and motion projects for Makerspace
  • An overview of how I implemented the STEMusement park force and motion projects with each grade level

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


It seems when teachers teach force and motion, you see the same science experiments over and over again. A lot of times, the kids see the same experiments over and over again, and they get a little bit bored. Well, your force and motion lessons are going to change with this fun STEM twist. Welcome to STEMusement Park. 


Naomi Meredith [00:00:53]:


Before we jump on in, I wanted to read an awesome podcast review from 1 of you. This is from ARC610 and they say, “Binging this podcast. This podcast has been so helpful for me to listen to this summer before I step into the role of STEM teacher for the 1st time. It's helped me feel more confident instead of overwhelmed. Thank you.” Thank you so much for your review. I love seeing these, and they don't always automatically pop up In Apple Podcasts, so when they do, it absolutely makes my day.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:37]:


I don't always know who is listening out there. I am here in my home office talking to my phone when I record these, and my audience is my little dog Frederick, and that's about it. So, reading these reviews is so amazing to me and also really helpful to other teachers like you out there. So, if you wouldn't mind taking a moment, pausing this podcast, and writing a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts, that would absolutely mean the world to me. What in the world is STEMusement Park? Well, here we are with another STEM themed unit of lessons, and you all know that I am the type of person and teacher who loves a good theme. This was my way of teaching a force and motion to my students k through 5 in a more creative way that can also build up those connections. So the benefit of teaching in units where you have a theme for all of your lessons And also looking at similar trends when it comes to standards, students can have that progression of learning and differentiation year after year. It does take some time to set this up and really think through your lessons, but when you do, it is So powerful and you're also creating an experience for students that they will always remember.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:06]:


So where in the world did STEMusement Park come from? Now, with any of my lessons, there is always some inspiration for why I do what I do. For this unit, I actually was in the process of teaching my K through 5, 7-year long plan that you can actually teach to your students as well that is in my t p t shop, Naomi Meredith. And I was in the process of teaching and refining those lessons and figuring things out, and I typically taught at the end of the school year, my LEGO education kits because they took 0 prep, they were ready to go, and students were engaged. Well, I ended up moving my LEGO education kits to when students do state testing because in my role when I was a k through 5 STEM teacher, I was also the technology point of contact. When it came to state testing season, I was basically on call like a doctor, and I had to run and handle a situation. When I had the LEGO Education Builds going during this time, I could leave the classroom, or oftentimes we would get a substitute for those 2 weeks of testing, they could handle that lesson, and then I was available. With that, since I moved all of those lessons, this freed up the last month of school. Just like the crazy teacher that I was, I decided that it was a great idea to start something brand new that I had never taught before at the end of the school year.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:49]:


Thank goodness this was not the year that I got married. I don't think I would have done that. But, hey, here we are. I tried it all out. When I was exploring the standards, I noticed that there was some sort of variation when it comes to force and motion. And I always wanna try to give my students a way to connect our learning to the real world. And amusement parks are a great example when it comes to force and motion and how it is used in a lot of different ways. And so, as I was planning and as I was brainstorming, I came up with the theme of STEMusement park.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:31]:


So STEMusement park. Not amusement park, STEMusement park. And the kids loved it when we did STEM survival camp at the beginning of the school year, which you can hear back in episode 4. The kids loved that unit so much. They kept asking me throughout the year, are we going to do some survival camp again? I said, no. That's not until next year. But I knew that they loved that so much and it was something interesting for them. So I came up with STEMusement park, and all of the lessons built off one another.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:07]:


Now, you might be listening and thinking, “That is absolutely insane. Why would you do Makerspace at the end of the school year?” And I'm going to propose the question to you: why not? It's actually a really good time to do a Makerspace project because the kids are doing a lot of things with their hands. And the way that I had my classroom set up, all of my Makerspace supplies were ready to go at all times, so it wasn't really extra work for me in terms of prepping materials because the way that I have students gather supplies is through my whole Makerspace menu and Makerspace money. All I had to do was think of the lesson and the progression of the lessons and how that would go and then we would figure it out. So that actually didn't worry me at all and this was a good time to actually go through my supplies and get things organized so that I knew what I needed to order for the next year or different types of donations I would be looking for or even things that I would just be collecting over the summer so I could replenish my Makerspace for back to school. We know that students, before long breaks and before summer, they have a lot of energy. This is a really good time to do Makerspace projects because the possibilities are endless, and they can always add to their designs and make it better. It is collaborative and hands-on and so this actually turned out to be an awesome time for this project.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:41]:


But you could really teach it at any time of year, this is just what worked best for me with my schedule and how things laid out throughout the year. So what did I do in terms of setting up the classroom? While I didn't do a full-fledged room transformation since it was the end of the school year, There were some pops of things that I added within the classroom to make it really exciting. I did make sure that I had plenty of storage space. So I emptied out my shelves, made sure that we would have room for all of our amazing projects, and then I did a little bit of classroom decor. I created a bulletin board that was all about different things along with force and motion and had a fun roller coaster design on there. I also hung up some balloons so that it could look more like the carnival section of the amusement park. I also played some carnival music and had a roller coaster going on the TV the 1st day when kids came in so that they would be curious and wonder what are we going to do in our STEM week. When I proposed this challenge to the students, STEMusement Park, I let them know that they were creating 1 section of the amusement park and they're going to be in charge of that.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:05]:


Students actually thought that we were going to combine all of our projects And we didn't do that but I also thought that was a really cool idea. So if you are doing some sort of STEM showcase or a STEM night, this unit would actually be perfect for this because when we get into all of the projects that are in this unit, They're very interactive and this would actually really do well in a showcase where the parents and the families can interact with the actual projects. So if that is something that you are thinking about for this time of year at the time of this recording for midyear, I would definitely recommend this unit for that. Also, for setup, I had all my materials ready to go and I also made sure that all of my Makerspace money, I had enough, I had enough wallets, And that was all set up along with my Makerspace menu. If you wanna hear more about my organization of my Makerspace and the management system that I use. Go back to episode 5 and episode 6 and you will find a lot of useful information there. Now for each of the grade levels, what did they actually do and explore in STEMusement Park? I'm gonna go through each of the challenges and give you a snapshot of all the things that the students did k through 5, And you can find those all within my TpT shop, Naomi Meredith, where all of the lessons are individualized for you. There is a bundle of STEMusement Park, and these lessons are also included in my big overall k through 5 STEM year long plan of lessons.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:49]:


In 5th grade, we explored force and motion and potential and kinetic energy with our rockin' roller coasters. Now, this isn't a completely new idea, but I did have more parameters on their designs so that they were not ginormous and took up the whole classroom. Their roller coasters had to be able to fit on 2 pieces of printer paper and so they had to really get creative with their designs so that they could fit those restrictions. As a class, we researched all about potential and kinetic energy. We looked at different examples of roller coasters, and students had to figure out a way to get their marble through their track. Now, as students' designs were progressing, they even tested their designs with different mathematical tests to see how fast the marble would go through their racetrack and keep track of all of their designs and some other math connections. For 4th grade, they were in charge of the race car ride. Now mind you, this is entirely a Makerspace project.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:06]:


We did not add any electronic components to these cars that they created. But if that is something that you are looking for, that can definitely be implemented in this lesson if that is something that you want to explore with your students. In this challenge, students were designing a race car That could be part of the race car ride section of the amusement park and we explore the different physics when it comes to race cars and what makes them really fast, Why do they have certain things on their designs? And then we actually design our own race cars that would roll. I taught them a technique that actually would help them with their wheels and axles where those would stay in place and attach to their car but then still be able to roll on their design. We did race their design. Students created a track that they would race each other through the use of having an inclined plane. So they were able to, have their cars roll down the track, but it was such a cool experience, and students came up with some really fun and creative designs for the race card ride. In 3rd grade, we explored magnetic energy by creating transportation within our STEMusement Park, and students created maglev trains that would transport people throughout the park while providing a different form of energy that could be used in this situation.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:37]:


We looked at different examples of different maglev trains in real life, and they were so amazed that they can go really really fast because of the use of these powerful magnets and the way that they are engineered. Students had large pieces of paper where they design a mini amusement Park like kinda like a prototype or tiny city of an amusement park so that their train could travel throughout the park and get the people to their different destinations and where they wanted to explore in that area. It was really fun having students collaborate on these and they did make everything three d and pop up, And they're actually able to have the train move around in the park and really explore with those magnets. For 2nd grade this design specifically I was inspired by my teacher honey because he loves to golf. And he is also a golf coach at his school and I thought that he would be really proud of this lesson. And he also has a ton of golf balls in our garage and so I donated those to my students every single week and they could actually keep them because that helped keep the golf ball situation a lot smaller in our garage. But anyway, 2nd grade their challenge was to design A mini golf game and all of the games could actually be a whole mini golf course which is pretty cute. And students Actually created a game that their golf ball could roll through a real golf ball, and we explored different properties of matter where different things might Speed up or slow down the ball and different ramps and different obstacles could do that as well.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:30]:


It was a bit of a challenge because the A golf ball is a lot heavier than they thought and they wanted to think of creative ways to demonstrate their part of the mini golf course. I was lucky enough that our PE teacher had some putters that we could use where students could actually putt the golf balls for real. But if you don't have that type of situation, you can even have students design a putter, which could be another part of the challenge. In 1st grade, we talked about light and sound communication and how in STEMusement Park, specifically in this section where there's all of the carnival games, light and sound is relied upon heavily to get the attention of people to come play the games. And also a lot of light and sound happens while people are playing the games Whether they score a point or whether they're playing, there's music going or maybe they lose a point. So light and sound is constantly communicating ideas and it gets really crazy when you get to that part of an amusement park because there is a lot of light and sound going on, and can be very overstimulating. Kind of the same thing with our challenges. So, students in 1st grade were tasked to create a carnival game that use some form of light or sound communication to get an idea across.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:59]:


So maybe if somebody scored a point, something made a sound, maybe certain balls had different sounds when they threw them and it meant something, maybe there were lights around the biggest scoring point of the game. Students had a lot of fun and creative ideas, and they loved playing each other's games, just like they loved playing each other's mini golf games as well. And so they were really proud of their designs because they had to really get into the rules and how to play the game and make sure that it makes sense to other people. And finally in kindergarten, we talked about force and motion and how different things can change the direction of the ball by creating wall mazes. This was the only project out of all of STEMusement park that students weren't able to keep their designs, but we were able to keep them up throughout the week. I invested in a lot of tape during this time of year and a lot of different materials. And students were building their wall mazes and we left them up on the wall. The students really loved being able to test each other's designs and try different marbles and different balls in their different wall mazes And even a fun challenge, they thought it was super fun in kindergarten, was chasing the ball across the classroom because it went really really far.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:28]:


So that was a good learning opportunity where I told students we might want to have something at the end of our wall maze where it could actually catch the ball. So this whole STEMusementement Park experience was an absolute blast. Again, students would look forward to this experience year after year and it was another great way to incorporate those standards while also making it hands on. As a recap, here are the 6 different challenges that students were able to experience in STEMusementement Park. 1st, we had the Rock and Roller Coaster Challenge for 5th grade. Next was the STEM Race Cars for 4th grade. 3rd, we had the MagLev transportation for 3rd grade. Then we had the mini golf course creations for 2nd grade.


Naomi Meredith [00:19:21]:


5th were the light and sound communication carnival games. And finally, the different cardboard wall mazes in kindergarten. If you're looking for a different way to teach those force and motion standards and want to make it hands-on, I encourage you to try out this STEMIUSEMENT PARK challenge. This one is so much fun, can harness your students energy but also help them learn those important STEM concepts. Thank you so much for being here, and I'll see you in the next episode.

force and motion projects

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

STEM project rubric

3 Strategies for Grading with a STEM Project Rubric [ep.133]

by Naomi Meredith

3 Strategies for Grading with a STEM Project Rubric [ep.133]

STEM project rubric

Check out the full episode on 3 Strategies for Grading with a STEM Project Rubric:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Have a STEM question? Leave a voice message for the podcast!

Episode Summary

Is grading STEM projects a task you don’t enjoy? If so, I can relate. Trying to figure out the best approach for grading STEM projects can feel overwhelming. In today’s episode, I’m sharing three strategies for grading using a STEM project rubric.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 3 strategies for grading with a STEM project rubric
  • The why behind each strategy
  • Things to consider and do for successful grading with a STEM project rubric

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


Grading STEM projects. I don't love it; you probably don't love it, but in reality, this is increasing in popularity the more we gain elementary STEM in our spaces around the world. So, how do you even grade a project like this? In this episode, I will give you some strategies on how to grade a STEM project using a rubric. 


Naomi Meredith [00:01:01]:


Before we jump into the episode, I wanted to read another amazing 5-star podcast review from one of you. This is from ParksTeam, and they say, “So helpful. I especially love the 6 part series broken down by grade level. I struggle with finding things appropriate for kindergarten, so this episode was so helpful. Thank you, Naomi.” Thank you so much for your review. Reading these definitely makes my day. I absolutely love that this podcast is making a positive difference in your teaching and, therefore, your students.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:38]:


If you wouldn't mind taking a moment and heading on over to Apple Podcasts and writing a 5-star review, that would mean the absolute world to me. It costs nothing and helps other teachers like you find this podcast. Over in my Instagram DMs at Naomi Meredith_ I got a message from 1 of you, and you wrote me saying, “Hi Naomi, just found your podcast and loved it. I tried to see if you already talked about this, but my STEAM is struggling with grading. Do you have an episode on how you do grading in your room?” This is an excellent question, and I have actually received similar questions from a lot of you out there over in my Instagram DMs and also by way of email. And it is an important concept to consider. Now, spoiler alert, I technically didn't have to grade and give grades when I was a K through 5 STEM teacher. I know that sounds absolutely insane, and you might be saying what, that's not fair.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:47]:


I know it kinda wasn't fair because the PE, art, and music teachers did have to give grades, and I did not. I was told because there aren't any STEM standards in Colorado that, I wasn't required to give grades, so I didn't. But I always thought about it if they ever changed their minds or they ever said when grading times came around, I had a plan in mind if that was something that I needed to do. And have no fear, this isn't a fluffy episode where I just pulled something out of thin air. This is literally exactly how I would grade projects. When I taught in the classroom, I would grade projects like this. And I also was on committees to grade things using rubrics and also to design them for these types of things. I did a lot of project-based learning when I was a classroom teacher, so I would be using that experience if I ever were to grade.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:43]:


So don't write me off saying you don't know what you're talking about. I do, and this is exactly how I would grade a STEM project and really any hands-on project. First, you want to make your STEM projects standards-based. Now, when you're thinking about backwards design and planning your lessons, you should be looking at the standards anyway because this will make it a lot harder to grade if your lessons aren't standards-based, to begin with. You do wanna keep this in mind, which is why in my entire K through 5 STEM year long plan of lessons, they are all rooted in NGSS standards along with an integration of common core literacy and math standards and the ISTE standards for students. All of my projects that I do k through 5 are revolved around this. And if it ever came down to grading, I wouldn't be stressed or stopped because I knew my lessons were standard space even when we were doing something with robots, even when we were doing something with Makerspace or coding.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:50]:


It all connected together. So you need to go and start there. I do have some episodes that talk all about how to plan a stem lesson. So those will be linked in the show notes if you need some help with that, but you need to start there. You need to have your lessons be standards-based because what are you gonna grade them on? Now, maybe your school grades on character traits like collaboration and critical thinking. Amazing. Awesome. There actually are some common core standards in speaking and listening that talk about explaining ideas and working together as a group.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:24]:


But if you're gonna have to really grade, think about your lessons. You might need to start there with the grading piece. If you're just doing surface-level activities where they're just playing with robots for the day. You might need to rethink what you're doing with your kids. From there. So let's say, okay, Naomi, I do this, I plan with standards in mind. How are we gonna do this? How are we going to assess these projects? And like I mentioned, I like to use a rubric because it has a whole variety of things when it comes to an actual project.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:59]:


And when you are designing a rubric, I highly recommend creating a rubric that involves the process versus the product. It has both of those intertwined. So again, if you are planning with the standards, you might have ways where students are demonstrating a specific science standard in their actual project, and that might be the grade level indicators that you put in the rubric, and then, of course, you go up from there. So I like to use a 4-point rubric, four being the highest, 1 being the lowest, and then 3 and 2 are in the middle. So 3 would be what I would expect for a grade level 2, they need to do it with support. Four is above and beyond. 1, they didn't do it all, like, they might have some things or were absent. And so, having those indicators maybe have those specific science standards.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:52]:


How are they demonstrating this in the project? How are they demonstrating specific math concepts in their project? Are they doing specific parts of the engineering design process? Are they demonstrating those things? So you're merging those standards together where they maybe have 5 different levels. Some of the standards actually would overlap. So, just the way that you write the rubric is really important as well so that students can find success. Also, if you create this rubric while you are planning, you know how you should teach the lesson so that students can succeed in this overall grade. You could give honestly whatever points you want. If you had 5 categories, each category is worth 20. That is correct.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:40]:


That is the correct math. That is the m and stem. Good job, Naomi. But if you do that, then you could have a score out of 100, and you would be good to go. Creating standards-based rubrics is actually one of the 2 updates that I am putting in my k through 5 stem year long plan of lessons because this is actually a really highly requested nature that I told you a lot of you have been asking about. So this is something if you see the lessons, my lessons are $10, if you see that price difference, then that means I have updated those lessons with me teaching the lesson. So you actually get to hear how I teach the lesson to students. I create a video about me actually explaining the whole thing in the product, and then there's also an update with standards-based rubrics and more math connections.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:31]:


So, the sooner you jump in on those, the better. You get all the updates for free, so you can have a rubric already set up for the main grade level that I plan it for. And then, if you need to adjust it for other grades, you can have a sense of what that could be like. And finally, when you are creating rubrics for your students, I highly recommend writing them in kid-friendly language. If you have students in 2nd through 5th grade, this actually might be a little bit easier because you're writing in a way that if they read the rubric or if they were self-assessing, they could understand what is happening. I recommend doing a self-assessment on these rubrics with your students that can be a whole other topic, but that way, you're not creating 2 different rubrics. When I taught writing, we graded on the student-friendly rubric, so there wasn't any miscommunication about what they needed to add, and then it made sense. This might be a little more tricky for k and 2, maybe a little bit of 2nd grade, where you might have to add some images on this student-friendly rubric.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:40]:


But honestly, you could do the same thing. You could still grade them on the same thing. It doesn't have to be this whole overcomplicated thing when it comes to creating a rubric for students, write it in a way that a student would understand. And that way, you as a teacher be like, okay. They did this, or they didn't do this. So then you don't need to create 2 different things. That is my philosophy on it, especially if you're making it standards-based anyway, why do you need to have the teacher's language? Now, maybe you have student examples on the side of, oh, here's what a 3 looks like, here's what a 2 looks like. Awesome.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:16]:


But really, it saves a lot of time. You're getting at the same idea. If it's standards-based, you'll be good to go. If you are interested to see in exactly how to create a rubric from scratch where it is a 4-point system, learning how to put the standards together, and putting together that Process First product, I invite you into the self-paced signature course of mine, STEM teacher 101, where there's a new module that is all about how to grade using a rubric. So there's a section already about self-assessment and explaining rubrics and different ways to do that and examples for you. And then the new module is actually going to walk you through how I create a rubric with that process first product and really the whole explanation of that. As a recap, here are the 3 ways that we talked about how you can grade students' STEM projects using a rubric. 1st is making sure that your lessons and the rubric itself is standards-based.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:25]:


Next, we talked about creating a rubric that combines the process of how the project is made and the final product. And 3rd, we talked about writing those rubrics in kid-friendly language. It will save you time. And also, as the teacher understands, hey, this is what is expected for this type of project. As a reminder, don't forget to jump in on my signature course, STEM Teacher 101. It is never too late to jump on in our community of teachers, and I am continuously listening to you and seeing the needs that you want for your stem space and adding in those modules. Also, the cool thing about it, I added a private podcast feature. So, if you are busy on the go like most teachers, every module has a podcast pairing.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:18]:


So when you sign up, you get that private podcast, and you can actually listen to the entire course and not feel like you have to be stuck on the computer watching my cute little face. So I invite you in there. The link will be in the show notes, and I will see you in the next.

STEM project rubric

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

how to teach students to work in groups

How to Teach Students to Work in Groups for STEM Projects [ep.132]

by Naomi Meredith

How to Teach Students to Work in Groups for STEM Projects [ep.132]

how to teach students to work in groups

Check out the full episode on How to Teach Students to Work in Groups for STEM Projects:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Have a STEM question? Leave a voice message for the podcast!

Episode Summary

Have you been wanting to implement group STEM projects in your classroom but aren’t sure of the most effective approach? As educators, we understand the importance of collaboration in fostering teamwork skills. However, it's not always easy teaching students how to work in groups. In today’s episode, I’m breaking down how to teach students to work in groups for STEM projects and sharing examples of each approach.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • How to teach students how to work in groups
  • Tips for effectively implementing these strategies to teach students how to work in groups
  • Examples of how I implemented these various methods for teaching students how to work in groups

Resources Mentioned:

Some items are linked to my Amazon Affiliate account. When you purchase through my link, there is no added cost to you, but I receive a small commission in return.

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


We know as teachers that it is important for students to work in groups when they are creating collaborative projects, But it doesn't always go the way that you hoped and planned. In this episode, I'll be sharing with you ways that you can teach your students to work in groups on their STEM projects and the types of tips that I have used in my own classrooms to help students work together successfully. Before we jump into this episode, I wanted to read an awesome podcast review from 1 of you.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:08]:


This is from mamabarker0616, and they say, life saving. This podcast has given me so much Actionable tips. I cannot even begin to express how thankful I am that you put in your time and energy to help so many people. Any STEM teacher or teacher implementing STEM should listen. It is worth it. Thank you so much, mama Barker. If all of you out there haven't taken the time to write a review, I would absolutely appreciate it. If you wouldn't mind going over to Apple Podcasts, write a 5-star review.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:49]:


It would absolutely mean the world to me. It costs nothing, and it helps other teachers like you Help them find this podcast. More and more teachers these days are getting into elementary STEM, and I definitely wanna be in their back pockets like I am for you each and every week. I recently wrote an article for an upcoming publication in a STEM magazine for teachers and parents. and I was asked to give my perspective on really anything as it relates to elementary and maybe some lessons that I learned in that type of position of being a k through 5 STEM teacher. Now, I knew exactly right off the bat what I wanted to say, and one of the points that I made in the article was how collaboration is so important for students and a really big thing that we try to teach in the elementary STEM space. Once that article comes out, we will link it in the show notes. Not sure when the time frame is, but keep an eye out for that.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:59]:


Of course, especially as a STEM teacher, working in groups is so important, and continually sharing examples with students of how people work together in real life, especially in STEM roles, is extremely important so students can actually visualize why we're having them work together. One example that I like to use with Students is thinking about rockets built by NASA or really anybody who makes rockets. and I asked the kids, Do you think that 1 person built that entire rocket all by themselves? They built the rocket, they planned the rocket, they got all the pieces, they launched the rocket, they've tested it, and the kids giggle, and they say no, like, exactly. So when we are working together on projects, we need to use all of our skills and work together so that it can happen. This isn't a by yourself activity. I want you to talk and collaborate. Well, easier said than done in a lot of instances, but it doesn't mean giving up on having students collaborate in groups, we as teachers know it's important, but outside of teaching, in the books that I read in my book club membership, the STEM teacher bookshelf, 2 other business books that I listen to, Many of these books either directly or indirectly talk about ways that they collaborated with others. These people outside of the classroom are telling us how important collaboration is and how it is a vital skill that we teach our students so that they can be successful in the real world.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:55]:


Two books in particular that are on the top of my head that are related to STEM and one we read in the STEM teacher bookshelf, and one sneak peek that we will be reading, first one is Limitless Mind by Joe Bowler and the other book is Visual Thinking by Temple Grandin. That's not the whole base of their books, but they do talk specifically about why we need to have students collaborate together. Jo Boaler actually really gives some good suggestions inside of that book that you can check out. You can still join my book club at any moment. I have a reading guide that goes along with this book, and there's a whole section about collaborating with students. Okay. So we know it's important for students to work together in groups, but how do you teach them to do it? It's more than, alright, you're working in a group today, and the end. We need to be more specific in the ways that we teach students to work in groups, and we have to continually do it even if it's not working out the first time.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:03]:


Just like we tell our students, we don't want them to give up when things don't work, they need to continue working on being together in a group. and I do have some stories that I'm gonna share with you along the way. The first way that you can teach students to work in groups is to have a gradual release of how big the group sizes are. I don't recommend starting groups in groups of 4. That is a lot of kids, especially if you are starting this out at the beginning of the year, mid-year, where you haven't seen these students yet before. They don't really know each other, and there's a whole trust thing going on, and it might be an actual disaster. Likewise, if you are a specials teacher, you need to know the dynamics of their classroom coming into this space. This might be a little tricky if you don't ever leave the classroom.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:00]:


I recommend that you have an administrator or even a sub come in where you can actually observe students in their classrooms. I was lucky enough to do this because when I first had my role in k through 5 STEM, I did STEM as a specials, and then I also got to co-teach in the classrooms, and I was brand new to the school. I didn't know anybody. I didn't know the teachers. I didn't know the students. So I actually took the 1st week to see the teaching styles of the teachers in the building because I didn't know what was going on and also how students were in their classrooms. and throughout the year, I did have the opportunity to see how it grows because it is different at the beginning of the year, but that was extremely insightful for me. I had a 5th-grade class who could never collaborate together.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:52]:


They weren't allowed to be in their classroom. When I would go into that teacher's room, they actually sat in rows, and it wasn't a testing season. They sat in rows, they sat by themselves. When I would teach a lesson, I wanted them to work together, and the teacher didn't want them to work together. and it really wasn't a behavior thing where, oh, they can't be with this, they can't be with that. This teacher didn't believe in having students collaborate together. They always thought that it should be an isolated task and not group work. So that teacher is getting really stressed out when the noise level is going up a little bit because I wanted kids to work together, they didn't like that.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:33]:


Likewise, when these students came into my classroom, They really had a hard time collaborating because they didn't know how to do it. They weren't allowed to do it. and the art teacher saw the same thing, and so did the PE teacher. and I gave them that insight, this is something we're not allowed to do in their regular classroom. So we had to take a step back, and STEM and also PE, art, and music, where they had a lot of chances to work together, we had to take a step back and have them work in smaller groups. We had to figure out how to have them work together in just a simple partnership, and that was a great start. Eventually, I could get into bigger groups of 3 and 4, but we had to start small, and that's where that class was at. Sometimes, some classes might not ever get to work bigger than a partnership, and it might be a behavior issue.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:29]:


This was a teacher's philosophy. This was because they weren't allowed to do this in their classroom. I had a class when I taught 3rd grade, and I knew I was meant to be their teacher. I definitely was the right teacher for them, But having all those students in my classroom mixed up together was a horrible combination. I tried everything, classroom community, all the things. It was just oil and water every day, and the biggest groups we could ever have were partnerships. That's the best that we could do. That's literally where we were at with that classroom. So you just have to be comfortable engaging your classes to see where they're at.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:11]:


It might be smaller groups the whole year, like my 3rd-grade class, or it Might be something you start off small, and you work up to it. So keep in mind the sizes of your groups. The next way that you can teach Students to work in groups is hosting STEM stations. I am a huge fan of doing STEM stations with my younger students, kindergarten through 2nd grade. But I also did play around with STEM stations with my older students in 3rd through 5th grade, my 1st couple of years in STEM. In fact, this is something that we explored and planned for in my group coaching program, which will open back up in the summer, But this is something that we did where we actually planned out specific STEM stations that would relate to an overall theme. I really like this especially for the younger students, because working on a project for little kids doesn't take the whole week. I've tried it.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:10]:


It is like pulling teeth. It takes way too long. So, mixing in projects and STEM stations is a really great way to help them with their group work. With STEM stations, I see it as a form of parallel play. Sometimes, the task that they are working on at their station is something that they could work together. But a lot of times, they each have their own set of the same materials where they can talk together about what is happening, but they don't necessarily have to collaborate on the same task. So a lot of that parallel play where they're kinda working together, but not really. You see that a lot with toddlers.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:54]:


Now the older kids, they kinda older, meaning, like, kindergarten through 2nd grade, they learn to kinda help Each other out a bit better and they're more aware that there's other kids in their group. But this is a really great way to help them understand, okay, We are working on the same task together. We have about 4 to 5 kids in this group and we are going to get the job done. This also helps when they're cleaning up materials, making sure that they are on task, but there's not as much pressure when it comes to working in a STEM station as it is on a project where you have to really finish that. These Stem stations, the way that I do it, they have more of a flow where you get as far as you can and that's amazing. If you're interested in learning more about STEM stations, I have my on demand workshop all about primary planning. You can grab that at nami meredith.com/primaryworkshop and also one of the modules in my guided STEM teacher 101 course. There's also a whole section about STEM stations as well.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:01]:


and finally, the third way that you can teach students To work in groups is assigning roles. This really helps too if you have those smaller groups, you can actually assign roles when you are teaching them how to work in groups. and there's a couple of ways that you can do this. 1st is giving them the language of how they should talk to each other in certain situations. You can practice this as a whole class. This can be a mini lesson or it can also be something in the moment. Maybe you even have a different sentence starters that they can use when they talk together, which I do have that in my STEM teacher one zero one course where I actually give you the language that students can use with each other when they're working in groups. But having them have that language of how to speak is extremely important for all students, All of them.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:58]:


Not just students who are learning English, all students need to learn how to talk to one another. I had this situation happen the moment, you probably already do this more than you think, but I had a student in one of my LEGO after-school clubs that I host, and they were frustrated because there was a misunderstanding on the directions where the group actually was following directions. In the LEGO Education lessons, there's a little story, and I wanted kids to listen to the story, and then it connects to the LEGO build. Well, the student who was upset didn't get that part, and they knew that one of my roles is to stay on task so that they could get the work done. and that student was upset because they thought that the group wasn't staying on task when they actually were. They're doing exactly what they're supposed to do. So I went and talked to this student and finally clarified that, and then I was like, Okay. You can go back.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:55]:


Like, that's part of the challenge. and they really wanted the other group to welcome them back. and so I the other kids in the group were really, really sweet. I helped give them the language in that situation where I'm frustrated right now. Here's why. and hey, we're working on this. Do you wanna join us? Or even things like, Hey, how can I help? So a lot of times kids will shut down and if they're frustrated they don't know what to do. If there's a disagreement where this was a misunderstanding but if there's a disagreement That's okay.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:32]:


How can we problem-solve through this instead of shutting down and screaming at each other? So giving kids Specific language in certain situations, whether it's in the moment or something you guys even talk about as a mini-lesson is extremely important and also aids to that social and emotional learning. I have a whole episode that I talked With a guest, Jill Loesch, where we actually talked about SEL in the STEM classroom, we'll link that in the show notes. That's a really great one for you to keep in mind especially when you are talking about group work and how it actually just STEM projects in general does take that level creativity where it is more of a vulnerable situation. So assigning those certain roles, giving them that language and also having different roles for different tasks. It depends on the project that I'm working on, but I would say most Of my projects, I have specific jobs, especially if they're very hands on and everybody wants to do something at once, which great you want them to be involved, But you also want them to be involved in productive ways. So for different types of things like Lego kits, Lego building kits, they have different jobs. For robotics, I give them different jobs. Sometimes when we do makerspace projects, I'll give them different jobs depending on the class and what level of support that they need with group work and also when it comes to coding, I will give them different jobs.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:03]:


So this helps students realize, okay, when I have this role, I am responsible for this. and it also really, really helps kids who need that actual visual of how to work with someone. Again, in one of my Lego after-school clubs, I have a partnership of these 2 boys who take their roles very seriously, and they're extremely productive. They work Amazing together. But I have a student who needs that explicit level of support where I have a job, this is what I'm doing in the job, When we turn the page, we're going to switch jobs and they actually physically switch spots which is absolutely adorable. They don't need to do that. Maybe not the most efficient, but they are very clear on the roles that they have. and some students, they're just like, okay.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:54]:


Like, I'm gonna do this job for today. You can do it tomorrow. But there are some students, you could probably think of them right now, who need that explicit, this is my job and this is what I do and I am going to do it until we switch. You can think about switching if it's page by page, if it's like a Lego education build, Maybe when a timer goes off, you could set a timer. They have that job for that amount of time. When the timer goes off in the class, they switch or even day by day. and, again, it depends on the class and the groups, and also the project that you're working on. So inside of my STEM teacher 101 course, I actually give you different roles with visuals, a definition of what the job is, and how you can actually use it in different projects along with those sentence starters that are really helpful for kids when they are working in groups That could be something that is laid out for them or even things that you print out and hang on your wall that you can refer to.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:57]:


As a recap, here are the 3 different ways that we talked about how you can support students in your classroom When working on STEM projects and working in groups, first is starting small and building up to those larger groups. Next is trying out STEM stations, maybe with everybody, but really for those primary students. and finally, consider assigning roles. Having students work in groups is definitely a process but a very important one that we as teachers, I know can be really frustrating, especially when there's classes that it doesn't seem like that they can get along, But try out these things. It is worth it. I promise you. and for those different visuals and levels of support and considering the types of roles that you can have in those STEM groups, I invite you to join in the self-paced course by signature course, STEM teacher 101, where not only this is a lesson inside of the modules, but we also talk about systems and routines, so giving those a refresh in your classroom, different types of planning structures, and even ways that you can Have students self assess and have ways to help you with grading. Thank you so much again for being here, and I will see you in the next episode.

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More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!