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5 Dot Day STEM Activities to Try [ep. 16]

5 Dot Day STEM Activities to Try [ep. 16]

dot-day-stem

Check out the full episode on 5 Dot Day STEM Activities to Try:  

 

Watch the video version of the episode here on YouTube:

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Episode Summary

Dot Day is an international celebration of inspiration and creativity. This is a fun one-day celebration that you can implement within your STEM space. 

In today’s episode, I will be sharing with you five Dot Day STEM activities that you can implement in your classroom to celebrate this fun day. 

 

In this episode you’ll learn five Dot Day STEM activities you can implement in your classroom:

  • Augmented reality dots
  • Chalk dots
  • Spiral graph dots
  • Dot launchers
  • Stop motion animation dots

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

00:00

Dot Day is an international celebration of inspiration and creativity. This is a fun one-day celebration that you can implement within your STEM space. After reading the book, The Dot, by Peter H. Reynolds, students have the opportunity to create their Dot that represents them. In today’s episode, I will share with you five STEM activities you can implement in your classroom to celebrate this fun day. 


00:55

Dot Day, as described on their website, is celebrated on September 15ish. So really, this means you can celebrate on the day of or choose the day in which you want to celebrate creativity, which can be year-round. I have seen all sorts of posts all over social media over the years. There are schools that go all out on Dot Day and even celebrate for a full month. These activities might not take you a month to complete. They’re fairly simple, but they’re also engaging and can inspire creativity in your classroom. 


01:41

I tried to choose a variety of things and a variety of media to help you celebrate in a way that would work best for you and for whatever grade levels you teach. Don’t worry, there are going to be a lot of links and resources that I’m going to be talking about in this episode. I will link all of them in the show notes so you don’t have to pause and write them down. I have done all of the hard work for you. So let’s jump into these five Dot Day activities. 


02:11

The first activity is Augmented Reality dots. Just to clarify, here is the difference between Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality. Augmented Reality is seeing things in our world. So it looks like things are popping up right in front of our eyes on our screen. It seems like they are there with us. Virtual Reality is when we are entering a world. So it feels like we are in that space. This activity is about Augmented Reality, bringing these dots to life, and making them pop out on the screen. This activity does require tablets, preferably iPads, and you will download the free app called Quiver. 


02:58

In addition, there is a free coloring sheet where students can design their Dot using markers. When they scan the Dot using the app, it looks like a magical 3D sphere is sitting on the table. This activity is so magical for students, and they love it. It’s especially great for the younger grades because there is high engagement and low prep. I recommend for your coloring pages, instead of printing one full page, print four to a page and make sure to have extras because kids want to create an extra to try out other designs. This is also a great takeaway because students can take their coloring sheet and download the app at home to try it out with their families. 


03:51

The next Dot Day activity is sidewalk chalk dots. Of course, you’re going to read this story before you do all of these activities. Then you will take your students outside to have them design a Dot that represents them. You can also have them decorate the outside grounds of your school. This is especially great if you teach multiple classes in the day and you can take them to different locations around the building. So by the end of the day, there are colorful dots that are just covering your sidewalks. This activity reminds me of the book The Questionnaires, that I truly love, and the book Aaron’s Slater Illustrator, where he designs things in his way. So if you want another book pairing to the Dot, I highly recommend these books. Sidewalk chalk is very easy to get your hands on. My favorite couple places to grab it besides Amazon is the Dollar Tree and the Target dollar spot or even clearance sections. 


04:56

This next Dot Day activity has a couple of different options depending on your available resources. This is all about spiral graph dots. Spiral graphs are so beautiful and have so much symmetry. With the way the lines curve and using different colors within those designs, you can do this activity by using a free spiral graph maker. It didn’t require a login when I last used this with students. Students can choose different colors within the palettes on the computer and then choose different spiral graph templates or those spiky things and create different spiral graphs within the different kinds of symmetry. I also found a really cool video that shows different artists and how they use spiral graphs within their artwork, which I also recommend adding in that connection. 


05:55

You can even make this an even more hands-on activity if you have spiral graph templates in your classroom already. I’ve been lucky and have been able to find some in the Dollar Tree. But also check out Amazon as well because you might be able to find those. So this is a great math and art connection to teach students about symmetry and how it’s used in this artwork, and how they could design a fun spiral graph to express their creativity. Now, with the online version, there isn’t a way to technically save the spiral graphs. So what I recommend is having students take a screenshot and share it within a platform that you use in your classroom, like Flipgrid, Seesaw, or Google Classroom. 


06:39

The next Dot Day activity is Dot ball launchers. One of my favorite robots to use in the K through five STEM space is the Dash robot by Wonder Workshop. This is not sponsored by them; I’m just recommending this robot. If you want to purchase something for your classroom, the Dash robot is so much fun. There are a lot of different coding options. You can also purchase the external accessory, which is a ball launcher. This is a one day activity. The ball launchers are a little bit finicky. And it’s not an accessory I use for a ton of different activities. But it’s a whole lot of fun, and the kids love it. 


07:24

Set up the ball launchers, download the ball launcher app that connects to the Dash robots, and have different cups or a one-page target sheet with different identifiers and STEM that students can relate to. These things can be like I am a mathematician, I am a creator, I am an illustrator, and they can be the targets that students are launching the ball toward or the thing that they are identifying with for the day. I have a whole collection of these made. I use these light bulbs with these identifiers in my affirmation station that I talked about in the back-to-school episode of the podcast. So make sure to go back and listen to that episode. But this is a fun way to use that same resource with a hands-on encoding activity. 


08:14

For the launcher, there isn’t a whole lot of complicated coding. So if you haven’t introduced robots or coding within your classroom yet, you can still do this activity. Again, it’s a fun one-day thing to try. I like to put students in groups of three and give them specific jobs, which I like to do with robots. Here are the three jobs that I like to assign in their small groups. First, we have the driver, and they are the one who is holding the device and tapping the code that will launch the ball. The second is the navigator. They aren’t necessarily touching the device, but they’re watching the driver to ensure they’re using the right code to launch the ball correctly. The third job is the retriever, and they’re the one, like the name says, who will retrieve the ball. Wherever the ball lands, they can switch off jobs based on their own decisions. Or, if you have groups who have a hard time hogging certain jobs, you can set a timer on your screen, and when the timer goes off, that can signify the switch. So a fine coding activity to bring the Dot Day balls to life. 


09:30

The fifth and final Dot Day activity you can try in your classroom is stop motion dots. I love teaching with stop motion animation. It is a really old filming technique, but it pushes kids to think critically, and problem solve in front of the camera. There isn’t much screen time when it comes to stop motion animation. It requires so much patience to make the characters and objects move smoothly in front of the camera. In reality, it is just a click of a button to put all the pictures together. My favorite app for stop motion animation on tablets is Stop Motion. I will link that in the show notes. There is a paid version. You can get it, but you don’t have to. It works a lot bthan just having kids take a bunch of pictures all at once and just scrolling through the camera roll. 


10:27

If you’re using Chromebooks, laptops, or tablets, there are a couple of Chrome extensions that I’ve played around with before. Or you could get the Hue Document camera. There is actually a whole line of software that goes along with the stop motion animation. For their Dot, for this activity, students can use modeling clay. My favorite clay is the Crayola modeling clay because it’s super cheap, and it doesn’t dry out, which is awesome. You can reuse it over and over again. Students can create a Dot that will roll into the screen, transform it into something that represents them, and then roll off of this screen. So if I were to create my Dot, I would, of course, have a hot pink Dot, but you all knew that by now. I’m sure I would have a hot pink Dot ball that would roll onto this screen, and possibly transform into a podcast mic. I could add other colors, and then it could squish down back into its pink little ball and roll off the screen. This will be a great way to introduce stop motion animation. It’s a pretty easy activity but will take a lot of patience and collaboration to make it all work. 


11:43

As a recap, here are the five STEM inspired Dot Day activities you can try in your classroom. First is the Augmented Reality dots. Next, the chalk dots. Third, the spiral graph dots. Fourth, Dot launchers, and fifth, the stop motion animation dots. Again, all of the resources I mentioned will be linked in the show notes, so you don’t have to remember them. If you try any of these in your classrooms, tag me on Instagram at Naomi Meredith underscore. I would love to see how I helped inspire creativity in your classroom.

dot-day-stem

dot-day-stem

dot-day-stemdot-day-stem

 

 

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!

Stages-of-Engineering-Design-Process

Planning Lessons with Stages of the Engineering Design Process [ep. 15]

Planning Lessons with Stages of the Engineering Design Process [ep. 15]

Check out the full episode on Planning Lessons with Stages of the Engineering Design Process:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Episode Summary

Have you tried using the Engineering Design Process in your STEM classroom? 

Maybe you’re wondering what the Engineering Design Process is and what its stages are.

Should you be teaching the Engineering Design Process in elementary STEM?

In today’s episode, I will be answering these questions about the stages of the Engineering Design Process so you can get started implementing it into your STEM lessons.

 

In this episode you’ll learn:

  • What the Engineering Design Process is
  • The stages of the Engineering Design Process
  • Why you should be teaching the Engineering Design Process in elementary STEM
  • How to implement the Engineering Design Process if you see students multiple days a week or once a week

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

00:00

Have you tried using the Engineering Design Process in your STEM classroom? What is it and what are the different stages of it? Why should you be teaching with the Engineering Design Process in elementary STEM? In this episode, I’ll be answering all of your Engineering Design Process questions, so you can get started implementing it into your lessons. 


00:56

Before we dive into today’s episode, I have a free Engineering Design Process poster and planning guide that you can download for your classroom. You can grab it at Naomi meredith.com/podcastEDP. I’ll also link it in the show notes. A side note: EDP is short for Engineering Design Process poster. I may or may not use this acronym within this episode, but just so you know what I’m talking about, that’s what EDP stands for. 


01:28

When I first started teaching K through five STEM, I actually had never heard of the Engineering Design Process. However, the more I started researching and developing my own curriculum, I quickly realized that this is a process that I definitely needed to be teaching in my STEM space. Today, I’m sharing with you how you can easily implement this within your lessons. 


01:51

First, let’s go over what the Engineering Design Process is, and a snapshot of what it actually means. The Engineering Design Process is the real process that engineers use to build, test and create their designs. It’s all about that iteration and testing it repeatedly. When you think about it, this process is the heart of trying lots of different ideas and failing, which is definitely something that we want to be teaching our students. STEM is a great place for it. So naturally, the Engineering Design Process has a perfect fit within your STEM classroom. And yes, this is applicable for Kindergarten on up. In fact, there actually are Next Generation Science Standards, NGSS, that are all about the Engineering Design Process. There is a set of these standards for K through two, and also a set for three through five.  If you use the Next Generation Science Standards, not only are classroom teachers going to be using the Engineering Design Process, but in your STEM space, you have the opportunity to use it too. 


03:12

I also get a lot of questions about whether or not the Engineering Design Process is replacing the scientific method, project based learning or PBL, and design thinking. In my opinion, you are not replacing those methods. Those are all different and important methods, which we can do future episodes on. I even have a few people in mind that can talk to you about some of those topics. The Engineering Design Process is its own thing, and has its own place alongside of these processes. It’s definitely up to you if you want to teach with the Engineering Design Process all year long, which I typically do. Or maybe you want to mix it in with the scientific method, PBL, or design thinking. This is your call, or, if you’re on a planning committee, what the committee wants to do, or what your administration is hoping for you to do. So this is just a another format and another way to teach these amazing STEM concepts to your students. 


04:18

Now, when you research the Engineering Design Process, there are a lot of different stages, but they pretty much are saying the same thing. So here’s how I have broken it up into six stages for you to teach to your students. I’m also going to be talking about how you can teach with this method and give you a sample of how I break up these stages along with a sample lesson plan and how these stages are implemented along the way. The six stages that I have divided the Engineering Design Process into, which is in that free poster for you to download, is first ask what is the problem. Second, imagine what are the possible solutions. Third is the planning stage, so what could your solution look like? Fourth is the Create stage, so bring your plan to life. This is student’s most favorite part. The fifth stage is experiment and improve meaning test your solution and make it better. Finally, the sixth stage is share what happened. 


05:23

Just like when you’re thinking about the writing process, or even those other methods that I just talked about, these aren’t one and done type of stages. These are things you can always go back to if something doesn’t work or go back to a previous stage. I always tell my students this as well. I am teaching them in phases throughout the week. But if they’re not done with this stage, they can continue in that place. Maybe they don’t even get to that next stage? That’s just where they’re at in the process. Likewise, if a creation doesn’t work, they can always go back to that planning stage, create a new one, and then go through the the creation and experimenting again. So these steps are not set in stone. They can’t since they’re very fluid. It is also good for students to have structure so they know where the project is going. It’s not always just creating, which you can do. However, you are bringing more meaning into your lessons when planning with this process, and using the standards alongside it. 


06:31

Now that you have a basic understanding of what the Engineering Design Process is, let’s talk about a sample structure that you can use in your classroom, and how you can teach each of the different stages. Currently, I teach K through five STEM five days a week with the same students for the entire week. I know in past episodes, like we talked about in episode 12, some of you teach STEM to all the kids in the school, but you only see that same group of kids once a week. You can break this up how it works best for you. So let’s talk about sample structures for both. 


07:09

First, let’s talk about if you’d see the kids five days a week in a row or something similar to that structure. On day one, I present students with the question. Now you can have students help develop this question with you, but I know in this special space, you are very limited for time. So I actually develop the question ahead of time based on the science standards that I want to target. If you’re curious about how I actually get to the planning piece, make sure to listen to episode 14 where I discuss how to create your year long plan with the standards in mind. 


07:49

So we are in that ask stage and I asked students the question that we’re trying to solve. Then we move on to the imagine. The imagine is where we are thinking of different possible solutions. This isn’t actually their formal plan. This is the part where you want to tie in lots of different resources for kids to explore. This can be in the form of videos, websites, ebooks, like epic books, podcast, infographics, or real books. This is a time where students are exploring all of these different resources to help them gather ideas of what can work for their invention. This is also a great time to talk about the science behind the experiment. This can even be part of the research. So this is where you’re really boosting up that background knowledge and getting kids excited for what they’re hoping to create. On day two, this is where I might finish up some of that imagining, depending on the structure of how that’s presented to kids. Sometimes it is more guided where I am sharing the information, and we are writing down our ideas together. But further along in the year, especially with the older students, the imagined stage is more independent, and they might have a graphic organizer where they’re capturing their thoughts and accessing the resources on their own. 


09:16

Day two, we’re finishing up that imagining and then we’re really focusing on that plan. Plans can look different in various ways. We usually think of plans that can be a simple draw and label your plan type of thing. I recommend starting here. There are a lot of different ways that you can plan, which we will talk about in future episodes. So you can really build up the different planning methods when you use the Engineering Design Process. Day two students are working on that plan, maybe even have a shopping list, which we talked about in episode six where you’re managing that maker money, and then they’re ready when they come in on day three. See where they get into the create, experiment, and improve stage. This is where you can step back and see how kids are problem solving and trying to bring those plans to life. This is always our most exciting day. I always teach with the Engineering Design Process.  


10:20

Let me tell you how this paid off in my classroom. We were working on a STEM survival camp challenge, I believe it was fifth grade. We only had three days. I think it was something with this schedule where I only had three days with them. Anyway, I wanted to make sure they actually had time to create. So we did some imagining, and then I told them, okay, you can just talk about your plans totally fine. You can draw if you want. I’m not kidding you. Every single group decided they wanted to draw their plan. They were very thoughtful and were labeling. They were drawing more than one side, and they were really involved in that planning process. This was a proud teacher moment, I must say, because I didn’t even force them to plan and they wanted to plan. 


11:11

Keep going, this process is a year long thing that you will continue to work on. You might get some whining at first, but you are the teacher, your job is to teach them and to help them research and gather ideas. STEM isn’t just the creation part. There’s some stuff you have to do before that, and hopefully your invention even makes sense. I feel like the creation part is the easiest part of your job. Getting kids to understand why they’re doing things is going to make their projects even better. On day three, the kids are experimenting and improving. Moving on to day four, they’re still creating and improving, but also consider giving them ways that they can improve their designs. Instead of saying, “Oh, just do this,” have a checklist that is related to the project, which can be very powerful. The checklist could be things they may or may not have to do, but it will help them think about their designs in a different way, which we’ll talk about in the example lesson I have in just a little bit. 


12:20

Finally, on the last day, they are doing any finishing touches and sharing their work, which could be just talking to other groups about what they did. My personal favorite is to create videos and pictures within Seesaw, and having reflection questions where they can talk about what went well, what would they try again, and what was actually challenging for them. This is a great way to be reflective and really think about the entire process throughout the week. 


12:52

Now, if you don’t see kids five consecutive days in a row, here’s how I would break up the Engineering Design Process for you. Day one, you can start with a question, the ask, do a quick imagine stage where you are guiding, so it might not be as independent for the kids. But you’re still providing that information for them to build some background knowledge, and then dive into the planning. That way when kids come back the second week with you, they have a plan that they’ve already started. You could watch another video to trigger their memories and then students can begin planning and creating. On day three final day they can finish creating their designs. They can of course experiment and improve when they’re creating. Then they can share their work some of the ways that I discussed earlier. You’re going to actually want to condense things even shorter, but you definitely can still fit this process in. It just takes a little modification and careful planning on your part. 


13:56

Let’s talk about an example of how I actually use these stages with a third grade lesson in my STEM classroom. I picked third grade because it’s right in the middle. You can definitely flex this lesson up or you can flex this lesson down. I do use the Engineering Design Process with K through five. So I want you to visualize how this could work in my classroom, but also in yours as well. We started off on day one with the ask: how can you create an invention that will reduce the impacts of flooding? This connects to the NGSS standard that is specific to this third grade unit. From there we went into the imagined stage where I had a variety of resources for kids to explore to see how flooding is actually a problem and different ways that people have already been able to and are continuing to solve the problem. Now flooding isn’t going away, but there are some inventions already out there that I wanted kids to see. So I included pictures and videos for them to explore, to see what inventions are working and ways that they could maybe create something similar, but also trigger ways that they can improve those designs that are already out there. 


15:17

We also talked about what flooding is and how it can be a part of severe weather. I also provided them with links to some websites about different places in history where flooding was a huge problem, what the effects were, and success stories within those pieces of history. This was all within our day one. We completed some of the imagining on day two. On day two, once that imagining piece was in place, we focused on their plan. Students used the imagining information to help them develop their plan of how they could create the invention that will help reduce the impact of flooding. 


16:10

We did talk about reducing instead of stopping the impact.  We discussed how they could get it to where it’s not ruining a home and how to slow it down. Students were thoughtfully planning their designs by drawing, labeling and explaining how it works. I had the kids still plan on paper for this project. But then I had them take a picture and add it to Seesaw where they could record their voice or type their answers to the questions I asked. On day three we dove into the create stage. For this project, they received a little house made of paper that they could tape onto a plastic block. They also received a plastic bucket that they could build their design in. When we experimented towards the end of the week, that’s when we added in the water. 


17:06

This project also involved the maker menu that I talked about in episode six. So make sure to go and check that out because that is a game changer for this lesson. Day three is all about having that plan, grabbing and chopping materials and starting to create the invention and their plans. Day four is a little more shopping and more experimenting and improving. I also give them a modification checklist where they can look to see how they might want to improve their designs. This one is a little bit different because they are actually testing their design with water. So not only does it include different modifications that they can use in their design, but it also includes what their guesss is as to what will happen. There’s another column for what actually happened. You don’t have to do this for all of your checklists. But when it makes sense, having a before and after type of checklist is really helpful. Kids can think forward as to how their invention will respond to this situation. On the final day is our real experiment, so we add in the water. I do have the kids take a picture or video of their design again in Seesaw to show what it looks like before and after it gets wet. 


18:31

Students are having such a blast not only looking at their designs, but noticing how other designs work in the class. So it’s some friendly competition. But it’s just so much fun to see how their inventions work. When we’re finished and clean up, there are some reflection questions. I use the same questions all year, so students are used to that format, but they have different responses because the projects change. The three questions that I like students to reflect on either through writing, typing, recording their voice or a video are: I am proud of; if I were to try this challenge again, I would change; and they explain something that was challenging for them. So within five days, we get through all of this content, we clean up, and there aren’t any projects left in my room. But it’s cool how we can zone in on the impact of floods, and go through the Engineering Design Process together. 


19:35

As a recap for today, we talked about a whole lot. Let’s review everything we discussed. First, I explained what the Engineering Design Process is and each of its stages. Next, we talked about how you can teach using the different stages depending on when you see your classes. Finally, I shared with you an example lesson on how I use the Engineering Design Process from start to finish. 


20:04

Over the next few episodes of the podcast, I’m going to be diving deeper into those different stages of the Engineering Design Process, and share with you different ways that I like to implement each stage. This can really impact your planning and make it meaningful and it will keep you from doing the same thing for every single lesson. You’re mixing it up and keeping kids engaged. Also, don’t forget to grab your free Engineering Design Process poster and Planning Guide, which will be linked in the show notes so you can definitely dive on in and get started. You can grab that at Naomi meredith.com/podcastEDP.

Stages-of-Engineering-Design-Process

Stages-of-Engineering-Design-Process

Stages-of-Engineering-Design-Process

 

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

STEM Favorites That You’ll Enjoy:

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-curriculum-scope-and-sequence

How to Write Your STEM Curriculum Scope and Sequence [ep. 14]

How to Write Your STEM Curriculum Scope and Sequence [ep. 14]

stem-curriculum-scope-and-sequence

Check out the full episode on How to Write Your STEM Curriculum Scope and Sequence:  

 

Watch the video version on YouTube here:

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Episode Summary

When you first become a STEM teacher, you most likely weren’t given any curriculum. This was my experience when I left the regular classroom and jumped into teaching K through Five STEM.

Through trial and error, I have written a year’s worth of K through Five STEM lessons connected to the STEM standards.

In today’s episode, I share the behind-the-scenes of my method for creating STEM curriculum scope and sequence.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn the three major steps in how to write your STEM curriculum scope and sequence:

  • Review your overarching themes
  • Backwards plan and find relevant standards that connect to your theme
  • Brainstorm lessons related to those standards

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

00:00

When you’re first walking into your STEM classroom, you are most likely met with zero curriculum. Like many of you, I left the regular classroom and jumped headfirst into my K through five STEM role with a handful of supplies and zero curriculum. Yet, through trial and error, I have written a year’s worth of lessons for K through five connected to standards. I’m going to be sharing

 

with you my behind-the-scenes method in this episode. 


01:01

Some schools are fortunate enough to purchase a specific curriculum for their STEM programs. If that is you, that is absolutely amazing, and I hope that works well for you. Now, based on teachers I have talked to on various platforms, most teachers in the STEM world have to write their own curriculum and start from zero. I know where you’re coming from since that was me. So, through trial and error, I built a K through five STEM program that has a progression of learning and standards and a mix of different themes and topics that students learn throughout the years when they come into my STEM space. Now, I will say this isn’t perfect. But, this is what has worked well for me in my classroom. I am constantly updating and trying new things with my students as the years go by to ensure that I am teaching relevant and meaningful lessons to my students. You can get a whole view of this year-long plan for free. This will be linked in the show notes. You can find it also at this link, naomimeredith.com/yearlongplan. 


02:18

I also want to mention that my first year teaching K through five STEM was all about building relationships and basic skills. The things my students do five years later compared to when I first started are completely different. I had to backtrack and build up the skills of my students, even when it came to basic technology like logging into the computer, learning how to use Seesaw to document their work, and how to collaborate with others, which collaboration is something we are always working on. So don’t feel like you have to do all the things you plan in one year. You can build up to all these lessons and perfect them as the years go on. So this is the future you that we are talking about. But at least you will get a great foundation for your year-long plan and where you want your STEM program to go. 


03:18

When first starting your year-long plan, you want to brainstorm the overarching themes that all students K through five will be learning in your classroom. In Episode Two, we talked about what STEM education means in the elementary space. I highly recommend this episode to help you build your background knowledge on what STEM is and what STEM should look like in the elementary space. When thinking about those themes, I am talking about Makerspace robotics and Hour of Code. Hour of Code is a freebie, and there are tons of resources out there already that are free for you. So you might not have to do much planning on that theme, but add it to your year-long plan. Your overarching themes can also include video and audio production, digital citizenship, and LEGO education kits if you have the funds. When you purchase the LEGO education kits, they come with their own curriculum that is connected to standards. So, if you are looking for something to purchase for your STEM space, I would save all of your money for LEGO education and kits. Also, if you can, add 3D printing to your lessons. If you don’t have 3D printing, you can still have students plan and go through the process of creating a 3D design online, but they might not have the opportunity to print it, which is okay. But, again, that is something to save your budget for, if possible. Once you have a well-balanced mix of those themes, plan them out for the month you will see kids or works best for you.


05:00

In Episode 12, I talked about creative ways to plan your lessons with students, especially if you see groups of kids one day at a time. When planning this year-long plan, I saw students five days in a row. This overarching theme can vary for you. I use the same theme for the whole month. But if you see kids once a week, maybe you want to keep the same theme for two months. But again, have an overall balance of themes you’re going to teach your students. 


05:34

For the purpose of this episode, I’m going to be using my theme of maker month and earth systems as an example to help you see how I planned out this overall unit. I wanted students during the third month with me to dive into our Makerspace and use that space independently. This is where I taught students how to gather supplies, use our money system, and plan a budget. This is a big part of this unit when it is connected to Earth System standards. Also, go back and check out episodes five and six, where I talk about how to set up your Makerspace and how to use the money, menu, and system. So for this theme, in my third month of STEM, students use Makerspace. Once you have all of your themes planned out for the year and you have a balance of different topics, you will backwards plan and tie in those relevant standards. In my opinion, you’re not going to teach all of the standards in your classroom. Most likely, you are an extension of the general classroom, especially regarding science. I don’t think STEM should be a replacement for regular science lessons. In fact, science in the regular classroom is so much fun. That is something I do miss sometimes, planning a fun science experiment. 


07:01

Your role as a STEM teacher is taking the science standards, integrating other standards, and giving them your own STEM twist. Now, maybe your principal and district have a different opinion. This is just me and how I interpret what STEM should be when the students come into my classroom. When planning my lessons through backward planning, I like to use science as my base and build on my other standards. From there, I use the NGSS, the Next Generation Science Standards. You may use your state standards for this planning. Start with your base for science and then integrate your common core state standards, including English, language arts, and math. I like to look at the English and language arts standards when reading informational text. When students build their background knowledge and research, they use a lot of informational text in different formats to gather that information. Check out those standards that will help you plan those imagined stages in your lessons.


08:22

When it comes to your math standards, you may be using specific standards regarding geometry, fractions, and telling time. But you might also want to consider the mathematical practices recognized in your classroom. For example, there’s a mathematical practice that talks about making sense of problems and persevering when solving them. That is a huge concept in STEM. So don’t forget about those mathematical practices. They are very relevant in the STEM space. Also, when you’re in those common core state standards, look at those speaking and listening skills. Again, there are so many things that you are working on in this STEM classroom when it comes to sharing work, participating in a discussion, and being able to collaborate with others. These are some great standards that you can target in your STEM space. 


10:19

I also like to integrate the ISTE standards for students. These are technology standards that have their own overarching themes. There is also one about digital citizenship, which you can easily tie into your digital citizenship lessons. They have their overarching themes and then little themes within those. Definitely become familiar with those. Those are also a must in your STEM space. Again, keep the science standards as your base, and then integrate the ELA, math, and ISTE within that to create well-balanced lessons. When thinking about assessing your students, when it comes to the standards, I would probably assess them how they show proficiency with the science standards. The other ones are skills that will help them to get there. But my assessment tool would be the science standards. If you are doing grades in your classroom, pick one or two that students can attack. You’re zoning in on that specific standard in your STEM way. For this example, for my maker month and Earth Systems, I was looking for standards related to earth systems when possible and standards that talked about students demonstrating through building a model, creating, or building, which made the most sense to me for a Makerspace standard. Those connected well. I went through and highlighted those on my computer and then really brainstormed ideas from there. 


11:53

That leads me to my third part, which is to brainstorm your lessons. Now that you have your overarching themes planned for the months, you know which standards you want to teach each grade level. This is where you can bring all those ideas to life, all of those different things you have been saving on Instagram, that you have been pinning on Pinterest, and that you have been googling. This is where you are going to bring in those ideas that are connected to standards. If you don’t feel like brainstorming, I have all these lessons made. It’s in a growing collection in my TPT shop. It’s also in my monthly membership where you can access the year-long plan lessons and other monthly lessons and resources to help you in your classroom. If you don’t want to do this part, I know it’s overwhelming for K through five; that’s six different grade levels. I have it all set up for you. I’ll link that in the show notes. When brainstorming your lessons, think about how you can bring a different experience to your classroom that is different from the regular classroom. You might have tools that a regular classroom might not have, so play upon that. Can you show lifecycles by using robotics? Can you use Makerspace to demonstrate a model that classrooms might not always have? Take those standards in another direction so you’re not repeating the same ideas for students, and they get to explore differently. 


13:29

I’m going to be sharing with you two different lessons in this maker month and the Earth Systems lesson and how you can see how I approached this standard with a STEM angle while the teachers are still covering it within their science and reading instruction.


13:46

Here’s what I did for the Kindergarten NGSS standard that discusses constructing an argument about how plants and animals can change the environment to meet their needs. I zoned in on ants. I was kind of a little unsure about talking about ants with Kindergarteners. I wasn’t sure if they were going to like it or not. Now, if you know, you know, with Kindergarteners, they might love something or they might not. They’re a complete mystery, and I love them. They’re my favorite grade. I could do a whole podcast about Kindergarten. But we talked about how ants change their environment to meet their needs. It is amazing how ants build their whole colony underground and above ground that comes literally from nothing. When you look deeper at their colony, they have a space special for the queen, a different room for their eggs, a different place for the baby ants, and another room for their food. It is amazing how they change the environment from literally nothing to meet the needs of their entire colony. So as a class, throughout the week, we looked at different videos, books, and images about ants. Then students, in their own Makerspace way, built a cardboard maze that showed the different spaces that ants have in their colony and then had a little marble that would roll through the different rooms to go and check them all out. This was appropriate for Kindergarten. I knew that my Kindergarten teachers weren’t talking about it specifically. They could still teach that standard while I taught it differently in my STEM classroom. For fifth grade, in this same unit, I picked two related standards that go together and how they could demonstrate their knowledge. It was the first NGSS standard that talks about developing a model to describe the movement of matter. The second related standard was to use models to describe that energy. For the standard within this Maker month and Earth Systems, fifth grade made a Rube Goldberg ecosystem. The students researched an ecosystem of their choice using the different tools I provided. This is a great opportunity to use epic books within your STEM classroom. Students researched their ecosystem and all the different components that come in it. Then we learned about Rube Goldberg machines and how it forms a chain reaction. With both of these pieces of information, students used materials from the Makerspace and other supplies I had on hand to build their Rube Goldberg machine to show the chain reaction of the movement of matter within their ecosystem. It was a very simple Rube Goldberg machine, but it was a great way for kids to be talking about that movement of matter and how different reactions should hit other or multiple chain reactions depending on what their ecosystem was. They were so excited about these Rube Goldberg machines. Many kids went home and started making their own and sent me videos that I could include on our school-wide news. 


17:09

These examples are two different ways, from the littlest kids to the oldest, we can take these science standards, integrate other standards within them, and have a progression of learning where they can show it in their own STEM way. As a recap, here are the three major things we discussed when planning your K through five STEM year-long plans. First, look at your overarching themes. Second, backwards plan and find relevant standards that connect to your theme. And finally, the super fun part, brainstorm lessons related to those standards. Of course, everything is linked in the show notes for today’s episode, including the free year-long plan, the ultimate STEM resource library, and the lessons that I talked about, so you can get a better idea of how this can work best for your classroom and your students.

 

stem-curriculum-scope-and-sequence

stem-curriculum-scope-and-sequence

stem-curriculum-scope-and-sequence

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

STEM Favorites that You’ll Enjoy:

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!

back to school night ideas

5 Back to School Night Ideas for STEM Teachers [ep. 13]

5 Back to School Night Ideas for STEM Teachers [ep. 13]

back to school night ideas

Check out the full episode on 5 Back to School Night Ideas for STEM Teachers:  

Watch the video version of this episode here on YouTube:

Episode Summary

Back to school night for STEM teachers and classroom teachers can look very different and so are the expectations for each school. As a STEM teacher, what should you set up for Back to School Night? In today’s episode, I will be sharing 5 Back to School Night ideas that STEM teachers can incorporate into their classrooms.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn 5 Back to School Night ideas for STEM teachers:

  • Create a hand-on building station
  • Make a digital meet-the-teacher letter and collage
  • Create your clubs’ signups or summaries about the clubs you’re hoping to host
  • Share your wish list and donation list
  • Create a STEM affirmation station

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

00:00

Back to school night can look different for STEM teachers compared to classroom teachers. So what in the world should you actually set up? In today’s episode, I will be sharing with you five easy things that you can add to your STEM classroom for back to school night. 


00:49

Each school has a different style when it comes to back to school night expectations for STEM teachers. It has always changed for me and my STEM classroom. So try what tips work best for you, and even consider using some of these tips for parent-teacher conferences or doing the same thing, and you have it ready to go for these situations throughout the school year. 


01:15

Idea number one is creating a simple hands-on building station. You can set out things like mixed LEGO bricks, planks, hashtag blocks, playdough, and other easy things that encourage the kids to be hands-on with the materials. This is also a great distraction for kids when they’re in your space. You can chat with their families a little bit and get to know them better. You can add small images for the kids to inspire them, like an engineer inspiration board. I have one that is for back to school that my kids love doing. It can get them talking about back to school night or back to school in general and encourage them to have a fun conversation with you. 


02:02

Idea number two is to create a digital meet the teacher letter. You can create a one-page letter that lets families know a little about you, has a picture and lists some of your favorites. To take the favorites page even further, you can create a collage that visually shows all of your favorites. One way I like to do this is to make the collage on Google Slides or Canva. I use a background removing tool for the images that I find online. There is a cool website called remove.bg. It’s free to use, and you can upload any image, and it will remove the background for you. It’s pretty good if everything is clear in the picture. It makes it so that you don’t have to do extra editing in Canva. Another option is if you create your collage in Canva, you can upload the image or use images that are available in Canva. When you click on the image, there is a tool that allows you to remove the image’s background. A digital meet the teacher letter is a fun way for families to learn more about you and your favorites. You can share this all on the screen in your classroom instead of printing a copy for each family. You can also repurpose this letter and have it in your school-wide newsletter or send it on a parent communication platform your school uses or on Seesaw. 


03:42

Another idea for back to school night is to share your club signups. I have done this in the past while the signups weren’t open yet. I had a summary of each club I would be hosting. We will have future episodes about clubs because I am very passionate about after-school clubs. Even as a classroom teacher, this was something that I loved doing. We will explain more about clubs in the future. But think about when you’re planning your clubs and how you can have a balanced selection and involve various grade levels. Think about if you could have a Makerspace club, a robotics club, maybe a LEGO building club, or my personal favorite, a school-wide news recording Club, which I will do an episode about that in itself. You can send home that information, so parents are aware. You can include that information if you know when the signups will open. This is a great time to promote your clubs and allow parents to get to know you since you will be the one hosting the clubs with their kids. 


05:53

The fourth idea for your back to school night is to share your wish lists and donations. In episode three, we discussed creative ways to gather supplies for your STEM space. Those ideas can apply to your back to school setup. This is a great opportunity to share links or QR codes to your Amazon wish list, or a donors choose that you have set up in your classroom. Double-check your school guidelines to make sure this is something you are allowed to share. I know different schools and districts have different restrictions. So just make sure you are following your school and district policies. If you need help with setting up an Amazon wishlist, I created a short tutorial video that is up on my Youtube, Naomi Meredith. It will also be embedded in today’s show notes.


Another thing that you can share and include with your Amazon wishlist or donors choose, or if you can do this instead, is having a donation for Makerspace supplies. Often these supplies don’t cost anything, like cardboard and paper towel tubes. Maybe people have a roll of tape that they can donate. Back to school night is a great time to share this with parents. You can create a list, print it out, and send it home with the families. Or you can create a QR code of the digital list where parents can scan that. Another option is to give them a tiny QR code card with this information they can take home. So think about creative ways that you can get families involved. I know that it’s hard as a specials teacher not always knowing who the families are. So this is a great time to chat and interact, sharing what your space is about and how they can help contribute to that area. 


07:42

The fifth idea for your back to school night is one that you can keep up all year round: having a STEM-styled affirmation station. Now Secretly, I love my affirmation station because I can check my hair and outfit in the middle of the day. Mine is outside my classroom door, so when classroom teachers come and pick up their classes, they’re also fixing their hair. So the teachers and I are affirming ourselves with this affirmation station. It is for the kids, but we all know it’s also for the teachers. You can go to Walmart since they have some cheap ones for about $7. Grab them here, grab some Gorilla Glue tape, and hang them on your wall. Then create little light bulbs that you can hang up around the mirror with little phrases like, “I’m an innovator, I am an entrepreneur, I am a maker.” Create a positive way to look at STEM and help bring to light the whole purpose of your class. It’s not just about the tools and the toys, but the experiences for kids that you are creating. The affirmation station is a great reminder of that. 


08:55

Today’s episode is short because your back to school night prep shouldn’t be overwhelming. These are some fun ideas you can set up and repurpose at various times throughout the school year and annually. The five back to school night ideas that we discussed are creating a hands-on building station, making a digital meet-the-teacher letter and collage, creating your clubs’ signups or summaries about the clubs that you’re hoping to host, sharing your wish lists and donation lists, and creating a STEM affirmation station. All of this will be linked in my show notes for today’s episode. You can even see pictures of some of these ideas to give you some inspiration to make your planning so much easier for this special day.

 

Video: How to Make a STEM Affirmation Station

 

back to school night ideas

back to school night ideas

back to school night ideas

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

STEM Favorites That You’ll Enjoy:

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!

5-different-stem-classes

Help! I Teach 5 Different STEM Classes a Day! [ep. 12]

Help! I Teach 5 Different STEM Classes a Day! [ep. 12]

5-different-stem-classes

Check out the full episode on Help! I Teach 5 Different STEM Classes a Day!:  

Watch the video version of this episode here on YouTube: 

Episode Summary

Are you a STEM teacher that teaches 5 different classes a day?

Do you feel overwhelmed with figuring out how to structure your time throughout the day?

Teaching 5 different STEM classes a day is the equivalent of teaching the entire school.

In today’s episode, I share different ways to structure your STEM lessons when you teach different classes daily. Using these strategies to restructure your STEM lessons will help you feel more confident in the lessons you teach and less overwhelmed.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Three ways to structure your STEM lessons when you see different classes daily
    • Challenge of the day lesson
    • Condense larger projects into 1-3 day lessons
    • Create STEM sessions where students have four total stations to rotate to but only do two stations a day
  • Examples of STEM lessons you can incorporate into your classroom

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

00:00

Help! I am a new STEM teacher, and I see five different classes a day with a total of 25 different classes for the week. I am feeling a little overwhelmed with how to structure all of this time. Any advice? 


00:17

Does this sound like you? In today’s episode, I will be sharing with you different ways to structure your STEM lessons when you see different classes every day to help you feel more confident in the lessons you teach and less overwhelmed. 


01:03

Before we get started in today’s episode, I want to read another review that I got on Apple podcasts. Like I said before, I read these reviews, which make me smile. You guys say the sweetest things, encouraging me to continue this podcast. This one is written by M Kircher 04. They said, “What a great idea. I can see myself growing my new STEM program now. Thank you because you always have fun and practical ideas.” Thank you so much for your review! That is so kind of you. Like I said, I do read all of these. So if you listen to me on Apple podcast or watch the episodes on YouTube, leave a review or comment.  I read these, and this helps encourage me to continue to create content for you that will be valuable in your STEM space. 


01:57

I’ve been talking to many teachers on social media and through email. Many of you teach STEM with five different classes a day, which equates to seeing all the kids in the entire school! I completely get it. In fact, within my five years of being in the STEM space, my schedule has been different and ever-changing all across the years. So let me give you a little snapshot of what my role has been in STEM. Currently, I see the kids five days a week, K through five, with a total of six different classes a day for 45 minutes. I see them Monday through Friday, the same classes, which I feel like I’m fortunate because I can continue and go deeper into those bigger projects. However, it hasn’t always been like that. Actually, the year I first started in STEM, my first few days of the week, I was co-teaching with teachers in their classrooms to help them integrate technology and innovative practices.

Then, Wednesday through Friday, I would teach K through 5 again for 45 minutes a week. So my lessons were a lot shorter when it was only three days. Another year on Mondays, I would teach eight classes a day. I think it was about 35 minutes per class with no passing time. Then Tuesdays, I would co-teach in the classrooms. I would teach K through five STEM 45 minutes a day on Wednesday through Friday. So I’ve had a mixture, which means I totally understand when it comes to seeing a lot of classes in one day and not seeing them again for the rest of the week. 


03:42

When I had that schedule where I saw the eight classes a day on Mondays, it didn’t always line up with the kids I saw Wednesday through Friday. So I treated my Mondays more as isolated lessons rather than combining them with my regular instruction. Because I felt like the times always didn’t line up, and it didn’t always just make sense. Oh, and not to mention, I have always been our technology lead at my school. We don’t have a tech teacher, so that is me. So I completely get it when you feel overwhelmed with things because I sometimes feel it too. So that is real life, and I’m here to share with you some tips that have helped me in the classroom that I know will also help you. Here are three different ways you can structure your one-day-a-week class with kids, where it can still be a meaningful experience for students, be rooted in standards, and be meaningful with your short time with them. 


04:43

I feel like this first way to structure your lessons is the most common way to start with planning. I recommend you start with this, especially if this is your first year in STEM or your time has also been shifted. These are one-day lessons if you see the kids once a week. These lessons allow you to start and end on that same day. I like to call them a challenge of the day. So even though you have that one day, name it the something challenge of the day. So here are some ways you can plan a challenge of the day lesson. One way you can do this is by having a STEM in stories lesson. Now there are a ton of picture books out there that are geared towards STEM. For example, the questionnaires with Rosie Revere Engineer and Ada Twist Scientist fit perfectly in the STEM space. Also, consider other stories that aren’t always used in STEM that could also have a place. So books that have a clear problem and solution are great to integrate into your instruction and allow you to hit those ELA standards in your classroom. Sometimes it is tough to get through a whole story, especially when kids are transitioning in, you’re getting to know them, and they want to chat with you. 


06:06

So try this little hack when you are reading stories in the classroom. Of course, you could look up the story on YouTube. However, I think it is more meaningful when you, the teacher, are the one reading the story. I have a whole blog post about this. I will link this in the show notes, Different Ways That You Can Create a Virtual Read Aloud. I know you’re in person, but still, use those virtual teaching tools in person. Here’s what I mean by this, I recommend getting an e-book version of the stories you want to read or even taking pictures of the hardcover version and adding those to your Google Drive. Have digital pages of the story you want to read to your students, and then share that on your screen and screen record yourself with your picture and video in the camera. You can play that with your students. You will be surprised by how much more quickly you can read this when you are online instead of in person. This will help speed up the time when you have a really short time with your kids. I do this still even though I have 45 minutes with the kids. I still screen-record myself reading specific stories. They are not on my YouTube for copyright reasons. I save them in my personal Google Drive. I read the stories with my little dog Frederick, and I introduce him to the camera. So that’s fun, too, for the kids to see. So I highly recommend recording these stories at home because you can add in your little pets, and the students can make that connection with you. Screen recording yourself reading the story can help speed up the time when you’re planning a STEM in stories lesson.

When you plan your lesson, you might not always get to the part where they’re planning and drawing their design. Instead, their plan could be talking to a partner about how they would like to attack the problem. Then they can build the solution using reusable materials like blocks, LEGO bricks, hashtag blocks, anything reusable that they can build, possibly take a picture in seesaw or Flipgrid cleanup. Then there’s no storage at the end of class. So you are done with that whole thing from beginning to end: story read, the creation is built, they share in some way, and they are on their way. So this is a great way where you don’t have that storage issue.


09:47

Another way to plan a challenge of the day lesson is to create it in a somatic theme. One way that I did this on Mondays with my eight classes a day is Dot Day, which is coming up. Now, we will have an episode about Dot Day. This is September 15ish. The website even says ish, but Dot Day is September 15. This is a great one-day celebration in the STEM space where you can have a quick activity; again, tie it into the book that the kids can do with you, have a short experience with STEM, and be on their way. When planning STEM and story or even thematic lessons, I recommend combining grade levels. So for Kindergarten through Fifth, you can combine lessons that can help you save on the materials you need to plan, shorten the cleanup time, and the amount of time it takes to prep things. This is especially helpful if you have a short transition time between all those classes. 


10:54

Another way to plan your lessons is by condensing longer projects spanning one to three days. In my K through five STEM year-long plan, I have a year of different lessons you can teach K through five. You can find this year-long plan at naomimeredith.com/yearlongplan. It will also be linked in the show notes. When I originally planned these lessons, they could span about five or more days. However, you can choose what works best for you and your classroom. I always provide more than enough content because I know everyone’s situation is different, and you all have different needs for what you need to teach in your space. There are also digital materials included in the year-long plan. So you don’t have to make many copies every time unless you want to. 


11:53

The other day, I was talking to a teacher about this on Instagram. We discussed how she has the year-long plan and is picking and choosing what works best for her within her first year of STEM. Shout out to her. This is a great way to save time when you’re planning. When looking at a lesson that spans about five days following the engineering design process, you may wonder how you could do that when you have limited time with kids. The first day could be all about building background knowledge and doing some research about the challenge at hand using all of those different research tools that we’ve talked about in the past, like podcasts, videos, ebooks, epic books, to lots of different materials to get the kids excited and build background on the topic. During that same day, have students plan their designs. They can do that by drawing, labeling pictures, and possibly making a shopping list. In episodes five and six, I talk more about the management and setting up of your Makerspace. If you haven’t listened, go back and check out those episodes. That will help you with your management for all these classes that you see. On day one, you have the background built, and then they create a plan the next week that you see them, day two, maybe three, this is definitely up to you. Day two can be looking at their plan, reviewing that information, and building their creation. I also recommend keeping those projects very small, so small enough to fit in a gallon-size Ziploc bag if you want to store them. This also helps you save on materials and all of that prep work. You can build day two, and if needed, keep them and go on to day three. Or you can even be done with building day to try it out. But that’s not much storage for you over the long term, and you could fit it in over that week. 


13:53

The last way that you can plan your lessons when you have an interesting schedule with five classes, different classes, and a day is you can implement STEM stations. This strategy isn’t something I would recommend starting immediately at the beginning of the year. As a classroom teacher, Stations are built up during those first couple months of school. As a STEM teacher, I recommend following that pattern and getting into the stations around the fall when students are used to routines and following multi-step directions. I like to use STEM stations with my K-One students. When I started my STEM role, I used stations with K through five. This helped me as a teacher learn how to use the tools and how things worked with different grade levels and test things out with minimal materials. Again, you can do this with K through five yourself or if you want to do this for the younger students. Definitely up to you. I recommend only having up to four stations and completing two stations a day for your short time. That way, you can have students complete two stations on day one and the following week, complete stations three and four. You could even carry on the following two weeks, three and four, or days three and four, and repeat those stations. That will help save you time on planning. You may get a little bored with explaining the directions 25 times, but it will be a new experience for the kids. 


15:33

Here’s one way that I plan first-grade stations in my classroom. Each station follows each letter of STEM, so science, technology, engineering, and math. There is a station that goes along with each one. Of course, these are very integrated stations, so they don’t necessarily have to be that letter. It’s a good way to help remind students what station they’re at and what STEM means. One station was constellation creations, where the students built different creations using geoboards. They had the images at their station and then a laminated sheet with a list where they could check off the ones they created that day. Another station was a space engineering inspiration board where students had different images related to space. They could build those different things with LEGO bricks. The third one was moon phase puzzles, where students had all eight moon phases cut up into puzzle pieces. They had to layer them on top of the full images of the moon phases and learn about them along the way. The fourth station was day and night robotic coding. So using robots, students rolled a dice, and the dice said day or night. On the grid they were coding on were different things that could be seen during the day, during the night, or during both, which was fun for them to think about those conversations and things that they have background knowledge about. At the beginning of class, I reviewed all of these stations and how to do them, then students had enough time to go to two stations the first day and then two stations the next day. If you’re interested in these stations, these will also be linked in the show notes so you can check those out and modify those for your classroom. 


17:28

As a recap, here are the three ways you can plan your STEM lessons when you see different classes every day. The first way is the challenge of the day lessons. The second way is to condense longer projects into one to three-day lessons. The third way is creating STEM stations where students have four stations to rotate through two stations a day. I go into more detail about these lesson planning methods in my STEM teacher 101 course, and it has different examples for you to check out. You can get all that and all the links from today in my show notes for this episode. Thank you so much for joining me today. Let me know if there are other ways to support you, and I will chat with you soon.

5-different-stem-classes

5-different-stem-classes

5-different-stem-classes

5-different-stem-classes

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

STEM Favorites that You’ll Enjoy: 

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-teachers

Why Classroom Teachers Make Great STEM Teachers [ep. 11]

Why Classroom Teachers Make Great STEM Teachers [ep. 11]

stem-teachers

Check out the full episode on Why Classroom Teachers Make Great STEM Teachers:  

 

Watch the video version of this episode here on YouTube:

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Episode Summary

Are you a former classroom teacher who has made the switch to a STEM teacher? 

Maybe you are thinking about switching to STEM, but you are unsure if you are qualified to teach STEM? 

Making a major change in the teaching world can be scary, especially when switching from general education to STEM teaching. 

In today’s episode, I will be sharing with you why classroom teachers make great STEM teachers and how your past teaching experience is actually an asset in the STEM space. 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • How your past teaching experience is an asset in the STEM space
  • 3 reasons why classroom teachers make great STEM teachers
    • Classroom management experience
    • Skilled in lesson planning
    • Understand the classroom teacher’s perspective

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

00:00

Are you a former classroom teacher who has switched to the STEM space? Or maybe you are thinking about switching to STEM, but you are unsure that you are qualified for this position? I get it. Making a change in the teaching world can be scary, especially in a topic like STEM, which has abundant resources but really limited support for teachers. 


00:27

In today’s episode, I will be sharing with you why classroom teachers make great STEM teachers and how your past experiences are an asset in the STEM space. 


01:10

Like many of you, I am also a former classroom teacher turned current K through five STEM teacher. I taught in the general education classroom for six years. My first two years were in second grade, and my next four were in third grade. I loved the classroom setting. In addition, I had the opportunity to attend many conferences in my area, including ITSE when they came to Denver and InnEdCo. With these experiences and other online trainings, I found a spark and passion for technology in STEM and hands-on learning. I also loved the school I was teaching at when I was teaching third grade. It was an amazing school, but sadly, my district didn’t pay very well. I knew if I went to a neighboring district, I could teach third grade again but make significantly more. However, I was even more interested in having a STEM position and furthering my teaching career differently. Luckily for me, there was a position for a K through five STEM teacher. 


02:19

Today, I am here to tell you why your experience in the classroom is an asset in the STEM space. I am so grateful for my six years in the classroom before this STEM position because there are a lot of skills I don’t think I would have gained without that prior experience. Now, if you aren’t a former classroom teacher and you’re listening to this, and you’re sad that you don’t have previous experience as a classroom teacher, don’t worry. It is okay. I will say that many teachers I have talked to by email, through my online courses, and social media have been in the classroom before, and then they are thrown into this role of STEM. So, much like I was, I’m here to tell you that that experience is super valuable. 


02:19

If you go back to Episode One, I talked about my interview for the STEM position, how I thought I didn’t even get the job, and how I was very sad about that. Well, here I am. I am a K through five STEM teacher. When I got this job, I got a newly remodeled classroom, a school and district that was new to me, and zero curriculum. I know how it can be very overwhelming to have this brand new experience. You may feel scared and like an impostor or think you’re not qualified for this position. 


03:49

Here are three major reasons why your previous classroom teaching experience will help you when you step into a STEM role. First, when teaching in the general classroom before your STEM role, you have the power of your classroom management skills. This is an extreme asset that you will be so lucky that you have when you teach multiple classes a day. With your teaching background, you understand that structure, systems, and routines are important in your classroom setting. The same is true in the STEM special space. Even though it is a fun and amazing creative class, having those rules and routines will greatly improve your classroom’s success. 


04:36

In my STEM teacher 101 Course, I share with you a checklist of ideas of things to go over with your K through five STEM classes that you’ll enjoy implementing in your new position. Also, with your classroom management strategies and teaching experience, you understand that behavior management is extremely important. You understand the importance of building relationships with students, parent communication, and communication with the classroom teachers, which we’ll talk about in a little bit. 


05:11

Back in Episode Eight, we talked about behavior management strategies. So go back and take a listen. With your experience, you will understand where I’m coming from. In addition to your prior experience, you know how to be flexible and adapt. We know in teaching that it can get crazy. It won’t always go as planned, even if you have a plan. So you have to be creative and quick on your toes. Whether this comes to the lesson you’re teaching, a fire drill that is happening, or you might have to write sub plans at the last minute, you have that experience that will be extremely helpful in your STEM space. You’ll be so grateful for all those tips and tricks you’ve learned along the way that you can be successful in this new classroom setting. 


06:01

Another great benefit of being a classroom teacher before becoming a STEM teacher is you know how to lesson plan. I didn’t realize how big of an asset this was until, again, I was given a classroom with a handful of tools and zero curriculum. Having a well-thought-out lesson plan that is aligned to standards is still important in the STEM space, and if you already know how to do it, you’re going to be so grateful for all the different types of lesson plan templates and ideas that you have come up with over the years. Then, you can pull from that experience to help you plan your STEM lesson. 


06:39

Now, you might not have had the same amazing tools as before, but you have experience with lesson planning that will make a great and important impact on your students. You also understand what the flow of a lesson should be. So, instead of having kids run into your classroom and get started right away, you know the importance of having a short mini-lesson to teach the skills that students will be using in their lesson and giving students that independent work time with conferencing along the way. 


07:12

We will do future episodes about specific lesson planning, but you are way more prepared than you think. So trust your instincts and teaching skills, and remember that you are in this position for a reason. You have the skills it takes to be a STEM teacher. Along with that, you also know how to research ideas and collaborate with other teachers. I highly recommend reaching out to other STEM teachers in your district or neighboring districts. You can meet collaboratively to gather ideas and bounce things off one another. 


07:48

It can get a little lonely in the STEM space if you are the only STEM teacher in your building. Although I am the only STEM teacher in my building, I have an amazing team of other specialist teachers, but we do teach different subjects. We can help each other a little bit, but what we’re doing is completely different. So it is a little tricky when it comes to wanting to bounce ideas off of each other. They’re not always the go-to people for those specific lessons. If you can, reach out to other teachers in your district. I also recommend joining my free Facebook group, the Elementary STEM Coach group. I’ll link that in the show notes. In my free Facebook group, you can chat with other teachers from all over the world and bounce off ideas in there. Also, in the STEM teacher one-on-one course, there’s even a more private course, so you guys can talk about the things you’re learning together and dive in deeper. 


08:42

The third way that classroom teachers make excellent STEM teachers is you understand a classroom teacher’s viewpoint because you were one. I was very surprised by how fast the time went coming into the STEM space. I grew more of an appreciation for this specials teachers. You know that the time the kids are away in specials or whatever you call them, we call them specials in my school, but you know that time away is so sacred to you as a classroom teacher. So you, on the other side, understand where classroom teachers are coming from and how you can protect their time, engage your students and provide them the best experience, even though that time is super limited. 


09:31

You also understand how to talk to classroom teachers about specific academic or behavior needs. You know that time is really quick. You’ve been that classroom teacher dropping off your students. So you are on the other side now, so you know when you should talk to them immediately or discuss an issue with them later. It’s having that partnership with the classroom teachers instead of being isolated part of the day. You have a full perspective of what the whole day as a teacher looks like since you’ve been a classroom teacher, and you know what’s happening in specials. I feel like the conversations I have with specials teachers who were classroom teachers and those who have only been specialist teachers are completely different. It even impacts how we think about the schedules in the buildings and the different types of duties that we have outside of the classroom. It shifts your perspective, and it is a huge difference. So don’t worry. You being in the classroom is definitely a good thing. 


10:33

Today was a quick episode but needed to help you stay encouraged and know that you are in the right place. You have that spark in you. STEM is the next path of your education journey, so don’t get discouraged. You have the skills to do it, especially if you have already been hired. You have something in you that your hiring committee sees in you, and you are going in the right direction. 


11:01

Here’s a recap of the three reasons why classroom teachers make great STEM teachers: you have classroom management experience, know how to lesson plan, and understand a classroom teacher’s point of view. I am so grateful that I get to help support you with my podcast and provide various types of resources for you. This is why I am on a mission to help change STEM education. I would love to help you even further with my self-paced course, STEM teacher 101. Within this course, you will get access to a private community where you can chat with other STEM teachers who are also in the same position as you and dive deeper into certain topics. Also, you will receive the materials to help you build a strong foundation through your systems and routines in the STEM space, learn integrated planning models that can change the way you teach STEM, and bring higher-level thinking to your classroom. This will be all linked in the show notes for you, so you can check it out and join us today. Again, I am so glad that you are here. You are on the right path! I will chat with you in the next episode.

 

stem-teachers

stem-teachers

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

STEM Teacher Behavior Management Strategies [ep. 8]

I’m a new STEM Teacher, what should I focus on? [ep. 1]

For People Wondering “What Does a STEM Teacher Do?

How to Teach STEM During Back to School

Why You Need a Station Rotation in STEM

STEM Favorites that You’ll Enjoy: 

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!

technology-skills-for-elementary-students

Top 7 Technology Skills for Elementary Students [ep. 10]

Top 7 Technology Skills for Elementary Students [ep. 10]

technology-skills-for-elementary-students

Check out the full episode on the top 7 technology skills for elementary students:  

 

Watch the video version of this episode here on YouTube:

Episode Summary

Although most of our students are comfortable with technology, we still need to teach them rules and routines when it comes to using technology in the classroom.

What are the main technology rules and skills we should teach our elementary students?

In today’s episode, I will be sharing the top seven tech skills to teach your students, whether it is back to school, coming back from a long break, or your class is in need of a refresh.

In this episode, you’ll learn the top 7 technology skills for elementary students:

  • #1-Reviewing general technology rules
  • #2-Caring for your headphones
  • #3-Understanding schoolwide technology norms
  • #4-Being a problem solver and troubleshooting with technology
  • #5-Learning how to clean devices
  • #6-Knowing your username and password
  • #7-Logging into various platforms that will be used throughout the year

Resources Mentioned:

Free Technology Skills Badges & Mini Lesson

Classroom Rules for Technology 

Technology Troubleshooting Tips for Students

Episode Transcript: 

00:00

We all know by now that our students are comfortable with technology may be a little bit too comfortable. But, like everything we teach in our classrooms, we still need to set up those rules and routines regarding using technology. So, here are the top seven tech skills to focus on with your students, whether it is back to school, coming back from long breaks, or if your class needs a little bit of a refresh. 


00:31

I can’t believe that we are already here on episode 10. I am just so excited about what this podcast has already grown into and all the positive feedback you have shared with me as listeners and people on social media. I knew this podcast was needed but didn’t realize how needed it was. I am just so thankful for all of you that you are listening to me each week and letting me help you with your STEM routines in your classroom. With that, I wanted to read one of the reviews I received on Apple podcasts. I read these; they just light me up and help me keep going. So thank you so much to Bree Smith 13. Here’s what Bree had to say, “Just what I needed. I am so excited about this podcast. I’ve seen Naomi speak at conferences and follow her on social media. She has wonderful ideas, tips, and resources for implementing STEM in a meaningful and purposeful way. Now, instead of having to spend all the time researching STEM ideas and lessons, I can just listen to your podcast on my way to work.” Thank you so much for this review! It means the world to me. If you want to share a review, go ahead and do that on your podcasting platform. I love to see what you guys think of the podcast. These reviews help other teachers like you find this because I know there are few elementary STEM podcasts. So we can reach more teachers, and I can help create content for exactly what you need. 


01:44

So let’s dive into this episode. There is a purpose when using technology for academics, fun, and entertainment. Sometimes it’s hard for our students to differentiate between the two. It doesn’t always mean that their technology skills will always transfer to the classroom in those academic settings. They probably can learn all those academic skills more quickly, but we just can’t assume that kids know how to use technology in school. These skills need to be reviewed and explicitly taught throughout the year so that students are using technology appropriately and for their intended purposes. 


03:25

This episode will be slightly different from the others; it will be more of a list style. If you read blogs, it’s called a listicle. I’m not sure what it’s called for a podcast, a podcast listicle, maybe a popsicle. I’m not sure, but in this episode, I will list seven skills you can teach your students. These would all be mini lessons to teach your class throughout the day or one a day, depending on the time you have with kids. Now, I created a freebie for this, and it is in my TPT shop completely free. Inside this freebie is a list of videos that I made. You can see my beautiful face and teach these mini lessons to your kids. You could show these videos to the kids, or you can watch them and teach them on your own. For each of those videos, there’s a badge that you can print or share digitally with students to help them keep track of the lessons they have learned. There is also a little organizer, a little placeholder for those badges that kids can put in digitally or printed. This will help them remember the lessons and ensure they use technology appropriately in your classroom for success. 


04:40

The first tech skill you want to teach your kids is your basic technology rules in the classroom. Don’t have more than 10 rules. Having more than 10 rules can be a lot for you and the students to remember. The rules should be your basic rules when using technology in the classroom, no matter what the tool is. So this can be things like we always carry devices with two hands. So that could be related to laptops or robots. I also like to include the rule we’re respectful of everybody’s work. This includes helping each other when you’re working on the same device and commenting on other students’ work. That’s important as well, that digital citizenship piece. So think about the classroom rules you want to have in your classroom and teach those to your kids. 


05:26

In episode seven, I shared some Back to School activities you can use in your classroom. One of those was a fun activity that you can use to help review and teach the rules in your classroom. So if you haven’t checked it out, go back and have a listen. This activity will make your rule reveal much more fun concerning this tech skill. This may or may not be a rule, but a general routine in your classroom is to show kids how to store and plug in the devices properly. Whatever they are using, kids need to have this responsibility in your classroom. I recommend giving students a number in your classroom that you can use for various activities and their devices. So just number kids one through 24 plus. That would be so nice to have a class of 24, right? But number them one through 24 plus and then have the devices go in that slot that matches with their number that can make things a lot easier whether you have the kids for specials or in your regular classroom. 


06:27

So teach the proper care of how to carry, store, and plug in those devices, whatever kind that you have. Also, make sure you’re following any district or school guidelines. Our school computers have some little quirks to them when putting them away and the logging out process. Make sure to teach those to your kids as well. 


06:49

The second tech skill you want to share with students is taking care of their headphones and wrapping up the cords. Those cords, I don’t know how many I have untangled over the years. Teaching the kids how to care for those headphones and cords is important. I have a couple of ways to store headphones in my STEM classroom, making it easy for the students to grab. I have those shoe organizers from Walmart or Amazon that have clear pockets. Once students wrap up the headphones, they can put them in the pocket. It’s great because it’s long, but it can fit the needs of all heights and students of all ages, which is great. I have some other headphones on this side that I just wrap up and put in gallon ziplock bags. These are just extra headphones from storage spaces; sometimes, students will leave fancy headphones behind. I will hold on to those first just in case a few students might need headphones in their classroom for the school year. 


07:51

A little tip, I know this isn’t headphones, but I do have a bunch of computer mice with tails. That’s what I call them, at least a bunch of computer mice with cords. I have another hanging shoe rack for the computer mice. Now, you’re probably wondering why in the world I would have computer mice when I’m not even in a computer lab. I love having computer mice on hand because some students prefer using a mouse. I prefer using a mouse. So I completely understand that some students prefer it. This is especially true when we get into coding or 3D printing lessons. A computer mouse is a lot more efficient than a touchpad. So this is a great asset to have on hand. You could go out and purchase them or even reach out to local businesses if they have extra computer mice with the tails that they could donate to your classroom. So again, teach your students how to care for these things in your classroom and where to store them when they are finished. 


08:49

The third tech skill to teach your students is your school-wide norms when using technology in your building. This might be site-specific, and you probably want to modify the lesson I have linked in the freebie. What are your school’s expectations when using technology in your school building? Is there a specific checkout system for that? Our kids bring the devices to and from school, or the students using devices from their classroom bring them into the STEM classroom. 


09:21

A big thing that I like to tell my students is that we’re not changing the backgrounds. That is just so tempting for them. I know some teachers are okay with that. Now, you might be the technology lead in your building, just like I am. I’m our K through five STEM teacher, but I’m also our school-wide tech person. So whether that’s your role or the tech teacher’s role, think about those school-wide technology norms that all teachers follow so that you can relay that information to the students. 


09:58

The fourth tech skill you want to share with your students is troubleshooting tips and tricks that they can use. In general, with most pieces of technology, this is extremely helpful to teach all students instead of just having one or two tech experts in your classroom. I don’t like having that role in a class because I think all students can learn. Some kids are more comfortable with technology, but these are all basic things that all kids should know, even teachers. So teach kids those basic skills like refreshing a page, closing a page out or closing something out when it doesn’t work, turning something on and off, and unplugging and plugging back in a device. So it’s those basic troubleshooting techniques that can work with most pieces of technology that are helpful to teach kids and keep referring to throughout the year. Whenever there’s a technology problem in the classroom, instead of me touching on the issue, I always ask, “Well, what did you do? Talk me through the steps you took.” So if they didn’t try anything, we could think of a solution to solve the problem. My role is to teach them how to troubleshoot these things, not just to be their superhero. I want to help kids troubleshoot those issues. So go through those things. You’ll have to go through them all the time, but trust me, it will be so worth it throughout the year when you have kids who are problem solvers and not problem makers. 


11:30

The fifth technology skill you want to share with students is cleaning devices. Another important part of digital citizenship is ensuring that we care for those devices and use them the right way, but also clean them periodically so that they look good and are the best they can be. You could make a cleaning video with students and have this on your school-wide news. I’ve done that in the past. You can email the video to teachers, so everyone knows the proper cleaning methods for your school devices. When I have students come to STEM, I try my best to have kids help clean devices at the end of the week, so they’re ready to go for the next group of kids. If they bring in their own devices from their classroom, they will also clean them with me. So again, this is a great skill to teach kids to keep your technology squeaky clean and looking good. 


12:28

The sixth tech skill to teach your kids is knowing their username and password. Depending on your school, there might be one username and password used for multiple platforms, or you might have a bunch of usernames and passwords for other platforms. Now, it’s okay if they don’t know all of them. That can be a lot, even as an adult. I have probably at least 100 usernames and passwords. They need to know how to get that information and type it correctly. As a STEM teacher, I don’t hold on to all of the kids’ usernames and passwords. I know this sounds very counterintuitive. However, my role is not to be the gatekeeper of knowledge. If I always have their usernames and passwords, they’re always relying on me for that information. 


13:27

In episode nine, I talked about how I have students in grades second through fifth who bring their devices from their classroom. They use them so they can connect that the same device can do the same things that we do in STEM and their classroom. The big thing I tell kids and their teachers is that if they bring their device and still need support with their username and password, they need to get that information from their classroom. It’s taken a lot of training in my school to ensure students have access to their usernames and passwords independently instead of relying on the teacher to pull those out for the kids. So this has helped students be independent and responsible for their username and password and know where to gather that information. Some classes have them taped in their pencil boxes, homework folders, or planners. Wherever that information is in their classroom, the classes will bring that in if needed, so I’m not the gatekeeper of all the knowledge. I just can’t keep track of that information, so do what works best for you. Teaching kids their usernames and passwords and how to get that information and login will be a great success. 


14:52

The final tech skill to teach your students is how to log in. Now, you could make a separate badge for specific platforms you like using with kids. For example, I use Seesaw with all of my classes, so I might want to show them a couple of ways that we can log into Seesaw. You might use Google Classroom, Schoology, or epic books and make a separate badge for each platform. You can keep adding in badges throughout the year. Working on those systems and routines using those same tools repeatedly will help build the independence and responsibility of the students. I don’t always expect kids to be the experts at logging into unique platforms, such as when we’re using LEGO education tools or 3D printing. That will come with time. Instead, I want to be explicit in teaching those platforms that we will repeatedly use so that they know that’s a resource they can get to and be successful for our projects.


15:57

Let’s review the seven tech skills you want to teach your kids and be explicit about what we discussed in today’s episode. Number one, going over those general technology rules. Number two, caring for your headphones. Number three is understanding school-wide technology norms. Number four, being a problem solver and troubleshooting with technology. Number five is learning how to clean devices. Number six is knowing your username and password and how to gather that information. Number seven, logging into various platforms that will be used consistently throughout the year. Of course, you can add in more skills, but these are the skills I have taught with my K through five STEM students throughout the years and when I have co-taught in their classrooms. You can refer back to these things and have that consistent language with kids so that they can be successful when using academic technology in your classroom. 


17:07

Also, don’t forget to get the freebie for this episode. It can be found in my TPT shop using this link: Naomi meredith.com/tpttechskills. In this freebie, you can get all the badges that relate to the skills that we talked about in today’s episode, video sample lessons of me teaching that you can share with your students or watch on the side and teach the lesson yourself, and a system where students can collect those badges either digitally or in the printed form. Thank you so much again for listening to today’s episode! I can’t wait to chat with you on the next one.

 

technology-skills-for-elementary-students

technology-skills-for-elementary-students

technology-skills-for-elementary-students

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-manage-transitions-in-the-classroom

How to Manage Transitions in the Classroom [ep. 9]

How to Manage Transitions in the Classroom [ep. 9]

how-to-manage-transitions-in-the-classroom

Check out the full episode on How to Manage Transitions in the Classroom:  

 

Watch the video version of the episode here on YouTube:

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

 

Episode Summary

Being a STEM teacher is so much fun, but going from teaching in a general education classroom to a STEM classroom usually means time goes by faster.

Your transitions between classes might only be a few minutes long or nonexistent. While you can’t change the time that you are given, you can change how you use your time throughout the workday.

In this episode, I will be sharing with you strategies on how to manage your transitions in the classroom so you can accomplish what you have planned with your students and have those awesome STEM lessons. 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

Three strategies to help you manage your transitions in the classroom:

  • #1-Time management and boundaries as a teacher
  • #2-Setting up systems and routines
  • #3-Find ways to build student independence and responsibility

Resources Mentioned:

Design Your Digital Classroom Summit: Google Style

STEM & Makerspace Labels | 180+ Labels

Episode Transcript: 

00:00

Let’s face it, being a STEM  teacher is so much fun, but you may have realized that compared to the general education classroom, time goes by even faster. Your transitions in between classes might only be a few minutes long or nonexistent. While you can’t change the time that you are given, you can change how you use your time throughout the workday effectively.


00:26

 In this episode, I will be sharing with you strategies to help you manage your transitions throughout the day so you can accomplish what you have planned with students and have those awesome fantastic STEM lessons. 


00:48

Both behavior management and overall classroom management go hand in hand before even getting into the meat of your STEM lessons. Back in episode eight, we talked about behavior management in the classroom. If you haven’t checked out episode 8, make sure to go back and watch or listen. 


01:29

Being a former classroom teacher myself, I was so surprised by how fast the time went in my classroom. I went from teaching third grade all day with all the subjects to being a K through Five STEM teacher teaching six classes a day, with only a few minutes in between each class to transition from one to the next. Everything flew by so fast, and I had no idea what had happened. 


01:59

Along the way, I have learned some tips and tricks and altered what I used in the general education classroom to make it work for the STEM space. Now, I am able to accomplish what I have planned for the most part in my K through Five STEM classroom. 


02:15

Here are three major tips that have helped me. I know that you’re going to benefit from these tips, have an awesome year, and make what works best for you. 


02:25

The first tip for setting up effective transitions in the classroom begins with you as the teacher, and that is setting up your own time management and boundaries. I am a recovering yes person. I used to say yes to everything. I’m not saying that I am mean, but I have learned that saying no for myself is absolutely okay. So what do I mean by that? Well, first of all, I use my plan time to actually plan. I love chatting with people, don’t get me wrong, I love my friends. I love getting to see everybody come through my room. 


03:04

Now, my planning time is so sacred to me. I use that time to research lessons that are coming up for the next unit, going through materials that I might need for a lesson, testing out robots, researching things, or planning my after school clubs. I’m really using that time to focus. 


03:24

With that, I am really lucky what time my planning time is in the day. Mine is first thing before I see any students. So I actually get to school really early before my contract time. That’s just me. I’m not saying to do this. But I get to school really early. So the building is nice and quiet, and then it flows right into my planned time so I can get a big chunk of my work done. For me, at the end of the day, I am really brain dead. So at the end of the school day, I’m not as effective with my time. I will save things that I know I don’t need a lot of brainpower for. Those first couple of hours of my day before I even teach kids, I get that stuff done so when it is the end of the day and the end of my contract hours, I can leave and feel successful for how I used my time.


04:12

When it comes to lesson planning, I really try to leverage digital tools in my classroom. No, the kids are not on technology all day, but I really try to think about how can I use technology to make my lesson planning and materials even easier. One tool that I love to use in my classroom is Seesaw. I use Seesaw K through Five to help students share what they’re doing by taking videos, pictures, recording their voice and drawing what they are working on. This is also another great platform because I can share digital engineering design notebooks with them for each of the challenges and we will go through and work on those throughout the week. 


04:54

Another alternative, or one I might use sometimes as well, is Google Classroom which has a lot of similarities as Seesaw, but I feel like Seesaw in the STEM space can do a lot more since it has picture and video capabilities within the same platform. Another platform I also love to use when it comes to research is epic books. This is also a another free for teachers tool. I love using this because I can create collections with my students, share it with them digitally, and use it for each grade level. If you are going to use epic books with your students, create one class account and name all of the students in the epic books class with a number. So then you only have one class code to worry about. A lot of the classroom teachers have started using epic books as well, which is amazing. I don’t use their class code. I just have students use my class code. It’s a good skill for them to learn how to toggle between two different classes anyway. So that’s my little hack if you want to try to use epic books in your classroom. 


06:02

Another boundary that I like to set in my classroom that has really helped with the transitions throughout the day is that the end of each class, I actually close my door. This is also partially a safety thing as well. I might need to go to the restroom in those couple minutes of time in between classes, so closing my door just ensures that I don’t have students running into my room when I’m not there. There are lots of different materials that they can get into.  That way, if a class comes early, I still have that time to set up any last minute materials, change out what is on my screen and be ready to go as well. Sometimes you might also be speaking with another student for behavior, so just having your door closed can be really helpful. 


06:48

In episode one, we talked about things that you should work on when you’re a STEM teacher. One of the main things we talked about was systems and routines. One of those routines is where do you want students to line up at the end of class. Now based on the layout of my building, what works with my classroom is I have kind of like a dead hallway right outside my door. I used to have students line up in my classroom against the shelves near the classroom door. However, this became a problem because when students needed to put their supplies and work away, the students who were all cleaned up were in the way so it just created a lot of chaos in traffic. 


07:25

Instead, I have students line up right outside my door in this dead hallway. There aren’t any other classrooms right there, but they line up in this hallway, and they are ready to go for their teacher. They can be ready for the hallway, especially when I have an overlap of class, then the class who I just finished with is in the hallway and the new class can come right in. So this has really helped with the transitions, especially when teachers are early or late picking up the kids are in the hallway and they’re ready to go. Really think about these time management hacks and different types of boundaries that you can set for yourself so that when you don’t have students, you can really be productive in those pockets of time and not have to stress throughout the day because the bulk of your work is done. You have all these little tips and tricks to help you be productive. 


08:48

The second biggest thing to help you with the transitions in your classroom are your systems and routines. You are going to hear me talk about systems and routines all of the time because these are the backbone of my productivity in and outside of the classroom. I wouldn’t say I’m the most clean person and if you know me, you know me. I am fairly organized when it comes to physical products and also digital things. This helps me do all the things as much as possible. The same is true in your classroom. 


10:09

In episode five, we talked about Makerspace organization. So even the way that you set up materials that are presented in your classroom can help prevent you from scrambling for projects. Once I have my Makerspace set up, I don’t really touch it ever again. The only thing I have to do with my Makerspace is restock supplies when I receive them. So it is set up for the whole year. I can even pull out drawers for specific projects with specific things that kids might need. But this has really helped with those transition times where I’m not scrambling in my cabinets looking for specific things. I have everything out ready to go labeled with pictures and words. So being prepared even before the unit even happens, like a Makerspace, is extremely helpful along those same lines when you’re thinking about planning your lessons. Yes, a Makerspace has a lot of materials, but think about your lessons going forward. How can you use the least amount of materials as possible? It eases up on your cleanup time with students and the amount of time you need to explain things for kids. Kids can be productive when they have to be creative with constraints, which is a really great challenge for them to learn. 


11:26

I like to give kids this example: when I bought my townhome years ago, I didn’t have unlimited money or unlimited supplies to make it beautiful. I had to be creative with what I got. So that’s a great lesson to teach kids. And again, it will really help with transition time. 


11:47

Also with those transitions, think about those routines in your classroom that will stay the same all year long. I have a lot of different units that I like to teach kids, which is the whole point of STEM: to expose them to lots of different areas of what STEM can be in their world. However, those routines that stay the same are how the kids enter my classroom and sit on the floor, how they go sit at their seats, how they gather supplies, and where supplies go at the end of class, and, of course, lining up. I keep these things the same throughout the year so we can be productive. The kids know what to expect in a general sense, and the only thing that is new that they have to worry about is the awesome lesson that they’re going to attack. 


12:33

Finally, to help with the transitions in your classroom is how you can have students be responsible and independent within that time with you. You don’t necessarily have to do classroom jobs. I know a lot of STEM teachers try implementing this in their room, which I think is amazing. For me that hasn’t been super successful. I might have kids help me with specific projects for the time being, but as a whole, I really want students to be responsible within our space and create opportunities for them to be independent and have ownership over their work. So here are some ways that I like to do that. 


13:08

One big thing is to really keep my goals for my lesson at one or two things I want students to attain. It can get overwhelming in STEM very quickly and you will want to throw a lot at the kids. When you’re throwing a lot at them, it’s hard for them to manage what they really need to focus on. So when I have students at the beginning of class, we have our short mini lesson. I will show them the one or two things I really want them to focus on, review really quickly what we did the day before, if it’s applicable, and then I’ll go into our lesson and ask any questions. So keep that mini lesson really short. 


13:47

We can have future episodes about how I like to structure my STEM lesson and how I teach that. But for now, when you’re thinking about how you are focusing your kids, and those transitions, have one to two goals in mind for that lesson. Also, for that student independence and responsibility, you want to have specific rules for specific materials. We’ve talked about this in past episodes as well. Again, a lot of these relate to each other. But if you have those specific things you want students to do when they’re using materials like robots, for example, this is going to help students know how to use that tool successfully, and how to use it the right way so that other students in the future can use it and things aren’t getting broken. 


14:32

Also think about things that students might be able to bring from the outside into your classroom to help with those transitions and the independence. My classroom, before it got remodeled, used to be a computer lab and there were a lot of desktop computers lining the classroom. Now I’ve told you before I was so lucky that when I got this job being a K through five STEM teacher, I was gifted a brand new classroom and a brand new job at the same time. I didn’t have any computers left in my room once it was converted to a classroom. A way that I’ve been able to problem solve this, and it’s actually worked really well with that independence, is students in second through fifth grade actually bring their devices from their classroom when they have STEM. We might use them, we might not, but it’s really great to have kids bring those in, because they are used to logging into them. They know where their usernames and passwords are in their classroom. It subconsciously helps students connect that this same device that is used in STEM is the same one used in their classroom. These skills can actually transfer back and forth. STEM isn’t really an isolated subject. It might feel that way, since they are going to a different location to learn the skills. This has just been a great little hack as well. 


15:47

Another thing that I like to do with the younger kids, and also the older ones, too, depending on what the project is, is I have a cart of iPads that I can use. You can use Kindles for the same thing. But I have a cart of iPads that I like to use when using Seesaw and specific apps that are related to maybe LEGO education or different coding apps or even robots. This has made logging in a lot easier when I use the iPads for Seesaw. With seesaw, you could use a QR code to quickly log in. This has also helped with that independence. If you can, try to use some tools that classroom teachers might be using because students might be familiar with those things back in their regular classroom. They can apply the skills in a new way. 


16:34

When I send my engineering design notebooks for the older kids, I like to share them in the form of Google slides through Seesaw. That way, students are still practicing their Google skills, but they’re using it within the STEM space and they might actually learn something new that they can use back in their regular classroom. So really trying to make those connections within their other learning opportunities in your classroom can be so beneficial and really help with that transition time. This way you’re not always reteaching something new. 


17:04

These transitions in your classroom are definitely going to take time as you figure out your students and how you like the flow of your classroom. These three major tips definitely are going to help set you up for success. If you are diligent with them, and really making them work for you, you are going to have even more time than you can ever imagine. 


17:27

So as a recap, here are those three big things that we talked about to help you with those classroom transitions: First, is time management and boundaries as a teacher. Next, is setting up those systems and routines. And third, find ways to build student independence and responsibility. Thank you so much again for listening to this episode. I can’t wait to chat with you soon.

 

how-to-manage-transitions-in-the-classroom

how-to-manage-transitions-in-the-classroom

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!

teacher-behavior-management-strategies

STEM Teacher Behavior Management Strategies [ep.8 ]

STEM Teacher Behavior Management Strategies [ep. 8]

teacher-behavior-management-strategies

Check out the full episode on STEM Teacher Behavior Management Strategies:  

Watch the video version of the episode here on YouTube:

 

Episode Summary

As STEM teachers, we teach multiple classes daily, meaning we see, on average, 100 plus kids. In addition to incorporating STEM activities daily, we must also have behavior management strategies.

What are some of the best behavior management strategies for a STEM teacher?

In today’s episode, I’ll be sharing my top three STEM teacher behavior management strategies.

Whether you are a STEM teacher, classroom teacher, or library specialist, this episode will provide you with three behavior management strategies to implement with your students.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • My top three STEM behavior management strategies
      • Build relationships with the kids, their parents, and their teachers
      • Establish the class rules and goals
      • Create rules for specific materials
  • Examples of how I implement these strategies in my classroom

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

00:00

In my first year teaching STEM, I was the most nervous about behavior management. As a former classroom teacher of about 25 kids, I was now going to be teaching six different classes a day, which averaged to about 150 kids. That was a huge change. However, through my years in elementary STEM, I have found what works best with behavior management. Yes, you are a specialist teacher, but this is still extremely important, especially when you see that many kids in one day. In today’s episode, I will share my top STEM teacher behavior management strategies. 


01:10

Before stepping into the STEM space, I was a classroom teacher for six years. Behavior management was a huge asset of mine and something really important to me. I knew that if I had a strong climate and culture in my classroom, including a strong system, routines, and behavior management strategies, the kids and I could do anything all year long. It came down to setting up those structures at the beginning of the year and being consistent throughout. 


01:41

That is the same for your role as a STEM teacher. However, just because you are in this special space doesn’t mean you can put behavior management aside. In fact, if you are coming from the classroom, you know how important this is. You don’t want to be sitting in your classroom as a teacher and get a phone call from specials that someone in your class isn’t doing what they’re supposed to do. 


02:05

As a specialist teacher, you shouldn’t be doing that. Instead, you should be communicating with the classroom teachers. It’s your role to have control of the classroom while still creating a meaningful and engaging experience for your students. Here are my three top tips for getting started in your classroom. You will find what works best with your management style and the kids you teach. If you are consistent and have these routines, you will have a more successful time with all of the future lessons you teach. 

 

02:41

First, you need to build those relationships with the kids. It doesn’t matter where you teach; relationships are the biggest thing that you need to focus on. This is reiterated in the book, The Innovators Mindset by George C.  This is an excellent book. I highly recommend you read it or listen to the audio version like I did. In the book, he emphasizes building those relationships. I completely agree. That’s probably the main reason why you got into teaching anyway. When it comes down to it, build those relationships with the kids. Now it is a bit different since you’re not a homeroom teacher per se. There are a lot of creative ways that you can do this. Now, it is pretty cool when you are a specialist teacher, and you see the kids yearly because you see growth in the kids. You have that special bond that a classroom teacher might not have unless they live with their kids. So the first thing is to engage with the kids. When you have those other outside duties, whether it’s door duty, bus duty, or crosswalk, engage with those kids and get to know them. You probably will see the same kids at the same time of the day. So really build those relationships outside of your STEM space. That is a great way to interact with many kids at once. 


04:04

Another big thing when you’re ready to work up to that is after school clubs. I’ve always been obsessed with school clubs also as a classroom teacher. This was another great way to build relationships with kids and work on passions that they enjoy and passions I like. So we had a common interest. Having after school clubs is an awesome way to engage with kids, try new things and do things that are engaging but not always academic. Now we will be talking about after school clubs and future episodes, but just keep in mind that after school clubs are a great way to engage with kids. 


04:42

Another fun way that I like to build relationships with my students in my classroom is the STEM style. In Episode Four, STEM survival camp, I mentioned STEM style. It is a quick thing I do when kids have a shirt representing science, technology, engineering, or Math. I’ll take a quick picture and put it on my digital picture frame. It feeds through all the pictures that I have ever taken. It’s fun when kids see their past selves from a few years ago or their friends in another class. Then, they must guess how their shirt connects with science, technology, engineering, and math. It’s so cute because when the kids have STEM, they also start wearing the shirts. I have some of these shirts too. It’s a great talking point and gets them to think about STEM differently. 


05:31

Reaching out to parents can look a lot different in the specials role, but it still is important that my teammates and I, the other specialists and teachers, reach out to parents. We have a collaborative team newsletter. We do a simple set of Google Slides and share the link in our school newsletter and on a different platform.  Each slide is a different month of the year. We explain what we did throughout the month and have our contact information. This is a great way for us to work together as a team and be reflective on our work. Also, parents will know we do some things in STEM that are fun, but we have challenging and exciting things that we’re working on. 


06:16

Another way that I like to communicate with parents and also the students in my class is Seesaw. I could do a whole episode about Seesaw. I am literally obsessed. If you haven’t checked it out, go check out Seesaw connect 2022, where I talk about STEM survival camp and the engineering design process completely free. You can also watch it whenever you want in my monthly membership. I love using Seesaw because students can take pictures, and videos, record audio of their work, and comment on one another’s work. Of course, I can comment, but parents connected to their child’s account can also see these amazing things happening in our classroom and communicate. I’ve had a lot of parents chat with me on there and write comments about how excited their kid was to talk about their work. Seeing a picture of it, they understand what their kid is trying to explain. 


07:09

As I said, STEM has some cool materials. Sometimes it’s hard for kids to explain what they did in STEM. Having those visuals is awesome. I do use Seesaw K through five. It is free for teachers, and your school could buy Seesaw for schools. I highly recommend this tool because it is so interactive. You can accomplish a lot within this platform, and that two-way communication allows you to build those relationships. 


08:18

As you continue to build those relationships, you want to have a standard set of class rules for your STEM space. This is something that you’re going to want to keep the same for K through Five and keep them very simple. In episode seven, I shared with you some back to school STEM activities, and one of those is having a game review puzzle where kids are putting the pieces together of your classroom rules. So make sure to check out that episode if you haven’t listened. Have those main classroom rules that all the kids are used to when they come into your space and keep them simple. I have my main four rules that students in the class have to follow as a whole class. 


09:40

At my school, we do something called Tiger paws, where classes can earn a paw for great behavior from teachers, including specialist teachers. I have my four main rules as things that, as a whole class, they do have to accomplish to earn their tiger paws. You can check all of these out in the show notes for this episode, but the four main things that I ensure the class has accomplished are: Did we finish today’s work? Did we work together and try our best? Did we stay on task? Were we very respectful of everyone’s work? We go over these at the end of each day, and if it’s a yes, for all of those, they get their class Tiger paw. If it’s a no, we will discuss why. 


10:23

The kids will explain, or I will explain why it’s a no and what we can do better next time. I remind them that tomorrow is a new day. You can keep track of these tiger paws or class incentives if you want to. Maybe they can earn a certain amount to do a class party. I’ve considered this idea, but I honestly don’t have enough time with the limited time I have with kids. If this is interesting to you, then definitely try it. I know other teachers have done this, and it’s been successful in their rooms. 


10:51

When you teach all the kids in the whole school, you will have to modify some things for specific classes. As a former classroom teacher, you know that some classes vibe together, and some don’t. So you might need to have specific rules for specific classes. You might even need to adjust things that go along with the classroom and your management style. Some teachers are strict and don’t allow collaboration in their classroom, and some are open-ended. Adjust to what the kids might be used to and communicate with those classroom teachers. If you can chat with them quickly before or at the end of class, you can see if there are any specific needs that you need to focus on for the day and academic goals that you can help support. 


11:44

Some classes might even have a class incentive they’re trying to work on. When I was a classroom teacher, I sent my kids a grading sheet, so however they did in specials, the specials teacher could write that down on our sheets. If they got an excellent, we got a class marble. This is where they could write down students who did an excellent job and students who needed additional support. If the classroom teachers don’t have this, you could start this in your classroom to help bridge the communication gap. Also, if things aren’t working, ask that classroom teacher what you can do to help support the class. They might have a certain call to action that you can use with the kids.  


12:27

Finally, for your last behavior management tip, you want to have specific rules for specific materials. You have the class rules we discussed, which don’t change. These rules are the same no matter what you teach, but then you have specific materials you will use throughout the year. This is what you want to change up. This can also mean specific areas in your classroom, what grade levels can use them, and specific materials and which grade levels can use them. 


12:57

One example of different rules for materials in my classroom is the tables and chairs that students can sit at and how they know where they’re going to be sitting. When all classes enter my room, they come to that shared meeting area we talked about in episode one after that little mini lesson. So if I want them sitting at the tables, I have different rules for my K-One and my second through fifth-grade students. For K-One, I have six different colored cubes that match the colors I have on my six different tables. There are about the same amount of cubes of each color. So there are four yellows, orange, green, and so on. 


13:37

When I’m ready for the kids to go to their tables, I’ll randomly (randomly to them. In my head, I know exactly who I’m giving the cubes to), provide them with a cube, and they have to find the matching color on their table. Now, if you’re wondering how I put the colors on the table, it isn’t anything fancy. It is a page protector with a sheet of construction paper on the inside. On the flip side of that paper, I have about four sticky notes with numbers written on them mixed up. Now the numbers are one through 27. I think I had one through 32 last year. A third-grade class had 32 kids in each class, but I have one through 32 written on sticky notes, one number per sticky note. Those are mixed up on the tables within that page protector. 


14:25

For my second through fifth-grade students, when I’m ready for them to go to their tables, they find their classroom number and sit at that spot. Then I can move kids based on who needs to be moved or whatever assistance they might need. This has worked well in my classroom. There’s less fighting, and they know where to sit. Of course, they might work on the floor or do other things for different projects, but sometimes I might need them at a specific spot for a specific reason. 


14:50

I also have specific rules for specific materials in my classroom. For example, when we’re using robots, we will go over the rules and procedures for how to use them. We review a certain type of robot and how to handle it properly. We have those classroom rules we want to review when using those specific materials. So when I’m using Dash, we will go over how to hold Dash the robot, turn it on, connect to the app, and work within our roles. All of those things are super important when we’re working with specific materials. For my hot glue guns, I will only use hot glue guns with second through fifth grade, depending on how they’re doing with projects. Again, we will review those specific rules when using that tool in our classroom. 


15:33

So as a recap, here are the three major points when building your behavior management strategies in your STEM space. Again, this is so important, and you want to take the time to get this set up properly in your classroom so you can do awesome projects all year. First, of course, is to build those relationships. Next is to set up those class rules and goals. Third is to have rules for specific materials. You can check out the links to show notes, the transcript for this video, and the video version of this podcast. You can find that using this link: Naomi meredith.com/episode8. Thank you so much for joining me today, and I can’t wait to talk to you in the next episode.

teacher-behavior-management-strategies

teacher-behavior-management-strategies

teacher-behavior-management-strategies

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!

back-to-school-stem-challenges

5 Back to School STEM Challenges to Try [ep. 7]

5 Back to School STEM Challenges to Try [ep.7]

back-to-school-stem-challenges

Check out the full episode on 5 Back to School STEM Challenges to Try:  

 

Watch the video version of the episode here on YouTube:

Episode Summary

No matter how long you have been teaching, preparing for back to school is a lot of work. From setting up your classroom and figuring out systems and routines to attending back to school meetings and lesson planning for the first few weeks, it can feel overwhelming even for the seasoned teacher. 

With so much on your plate, what types of activities should you plan that will be meaningful to your students?

In today’s episode, I will share five STEM activities you can use in your K through Five STEM classrooms. These activities are great back to school STEM challenges. Many of these activities I will be sharing with you have an element of collaboration to help build classroom community, which is important in any classroom setting.

Whether you are a STEM teacher or a classroom teacher, this episode will provide you with a variety of activities to implement in your classroom!

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 5 back to school STEM challenges
    • Classroom Rules Puzzle
    • All About Me Brick Build
    • STEM & Stories: Rosie Revere, Engineer
    • STEM & Stories: There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Books
    • Apps About Me
  • How to implement the 5 STEM challenges
  • Materials needed for each STEM challenge

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: 

00:00

Back to School is a special time for both kids and teachers. But no matter how long you have been teaching, it’s still a lot of work: from classroom setup to figuring out your systems and routines and all of the back to school meetings. In addition, you must figure out lesson planning specifically for those first few weeks somewhere in the mix and still make it meaningful. With that in mind, in today’s episode, I will share five STEM activities you can use in your K through Five STEM classrooms. 


01:02

With any Back to School activity, you want to ensure that it has a low entry point where students can be successful no matter how they participate. These activities are still academic, but the goal is to help students warm up to the space, you, and their classmates. In turn, many of these activities I will be sharing with you have an element of collaboration to help build classroom community, which is important in any classroom setting. Now, let’s jump into those five STEM activities to try. 


01:33

This first one is great, especially if you teach all the kids in the school as I do. This activity is a way to make introducing the rules in your classroom more hands-on and engaging. So instead of you just standing up there and presenting the classroom rules, this will be a fun one for your kids. 


01:56

So first, quickly introduce what your classroom rules are. You’re not going to explain all of them in detail. Just read through the rules and show them to your students. When sharing your classroom rules, a great tip is to have pictures and words. Again, just like when you label all of your Makerspace supplies that we talked about in past episodes, you want to have your classroom rules labeled with words and pictures. 


02:19

Once you have this present, either up on your projector TV or printed out, you will have smaller sets of the same rules printed out and cut into puzzle pieces. I made about seven different sets of the same rules. I found a puzzle template online where I layered my rules on top. This was done on the computer. Then I cut out those puzzle pieces beforehand. I printed the seven sets out in different colors, so each table group had a different color. 


02:53

This makes this challenging because all of the rules are cut up and mixed up. The goal is that when students work in teams, either teams they choose themselves or ones that you pick, they will have to put the rules back together. Now, try not to make too many rules. But if you have quite a few rules, maybe about six, cut out about four. That also adds another challenge because if you don’t tell them which rules are cut up in their little bags, that will make it even harder. 


03:25

This is a great way for kids to keep focusing on what the classroom rules are. I keep the full images up so they can refer to the image as they are putting together their puzzle. They’re always talking about those rules together. So if the rule is tools or materials, not toys, they keep saying that repeatedly. So there is that repetition of my classroom rules. Also, they’re learning from the other kids in their groups, discussing it, and figuring out a system that works best for them. 


03:51

I make sure to have a little prize at the end. Something simple like a pencil, a STEM sticker, or something not that cool, but they think it’s pretty cool.  After that, whether all the groups have finished or a few have finished depending on how it’s going in the class, I will review the classroom rules. Then we’ll jump into our lesson for the day. This doesn’t take the whole class time, but this is a great icebreaker. The kids are talking and collaborating, learning your classroom rules, and figuring you out as you go. 


04:24

Now you can do the first activity and then do this second activity within the same day. All you need are just a basic bucket of mixed LEGO bricks and the all about me LEGO build. This is a fun one. It’s a cool way to get a get to know you to be hands-on, and all students can participate. For this activity, think of questions you can ask kids that are pretty general, and all kids can participate. Some examples of questions are: Do you have a pet too? Did you read a book this summer? I recommend staying away from questions such as, where did you go this summer?


04:59

Questions like that might be a little hard for kids if they can’t afford to go on trips. So think of things that most kids might be able to do. Did you play in the water? Did you watch a movie? It could be a movie at home or in the theater. Think of questions that most kids can participate in. So think about those main questions and for each question, add in how many LEGO bricks and what color they need to collect. 


04:59

So, for example, if the question is, do you have any pets, grab three LEGO bricks. Make sure to pause as kids are digging in the buckets. I would spread them out around the room. While they’re digging in the buckets and finding green LEGO pieces, you could talk about different shades of green.  This one’s great, too, because as they search, you can talk to them about their pet or the answer to the question you asked. Kids who might not be able to say yes to that question if it’s not true about them can build with the pieces they have on hand. So having a great variety of questions will allow everyone to grab some LEGO pieces and participate. 


06:21

This third activity goes along with one of our favorite questionnaires Rosie Revere Engineer. Now, as a STEM teacher, you probably have a big love for these sweet little characters. You have Rosie Revere Engineer, Ada Twist Scientist, who now has her show on Netflix, which I highly recommend. It’s so much fun. Iggy Peck architect and there are some other friends that are in the collection. 


06:36

So after you read this story with your class, you can have a class discussion about things that fly. Rosie Revere is trying to build a flying machine for her great Aunt Rose. She keeps trying and failing. Finally, she figures out an invention. So, as a class, you can talk about different things that fly in the sky after reading the story. It could be animals, machines, or made up things. Talk about those things that fly, and then students can plan and brainstorm their type of flying machine. It could be real or imaginary. 


06:36

From there, you can provide them with different Makerspace materials. It could be limited supplies that they could build with, such as popsicle sticks, tape, small cups, or whatever you have on hand. They can use cardboard or LEGO bricks. If you don’t have many Makerspace materials, you could use those non-consumable items, and students can build their flying machines. 


06:36

If you want to get even more creative, you could print a little picture of Rosie and her Great Aunt Rose to add to their creation. You can think of ways that students can modify and make their designs even better. This activity can be stretched out for many days. You could have each part of the engineering design process while you read the story and research those flying things. Or, if you want to make it quick, you can skip to that building part. 


06:36

Depending on how long you have had your students and their age, this can be a great activity to jump right into and tie in that STEM and stories connection. Another fun STEM and stories activity you can do with your kids goes along with the book. There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Books. You could do this for any version of the book, but the one about the books is a good back to school one. 


06:36

So after reading this story with your class, you can have images of all the things she swallows. It is crazy, and some younger classes might even start laughing and think it’s weird. I did have a Kindergarten class say that this is a weird book.  You can do a lot of different things. 


06:36

The students can build the different things that the old lady ate, make an old lady’s mouth, and feed her everything she ate in order of the story. They can get creative with how they build those items using whatever types of materials you want them to use. You can even print out those pictures. You can add robots during your first month with kids if you’re brave enough. I’m not brave enough, but maybe you are! 


06:36

You can have those pictures, and kids can code to the different images of the things she ate in the story’s order or in whatever order they choose. They can also build the items using pixel blocks. I like to use Bloxels. Now, Bloxels are a little bit expensive. There is a separate subscription that you can purchase where kids can create their video games using the box. I love the blocks because they come on a big grid with tiny cubes. The kids can build pixel art with it. So you can have the images up, and students can build the different things in the story. This could be an opportunity for the kids to have station rotations your first couple weeks with you. So this is a cool and engaging way to take the story further and add many hands-on elements. 


06:36

This last STEM back to school activity for you to try is a digital option that I recommend for second grade and up. It is called apps about me. You can create a slide deck for students that have different phone outlines. On each outline, there’s a different app, a fake app. We’re not coding on this one, but a fake app that students can create and get to know more about each other. Again, this can be something you can do in one day or have a different slide each day. You could print this out if you don’t want to go digital. The reason why I would keep it digital is so that you’re not printing a million things. Depending on the platform you’re sharing it with, whether it’s seesaw, Google classrooms, or Schoology, you’re allowing students to practice logging into the platform that you will be using in class, navigating that platform, and using the tools within it. Once they log in, it’s pretty self-explanatory what they need to work on. 


12:28

It’s not a super high overarching hard task. It’s fun because they get to share about themselves differently. Once they’re logged in, include a slide where they have the front pages and pictures that go along with their favorite things like favorite animals and color. There can be another slide showing the map app, and they must create a map of their favorite space school, restaurant, or bedroom. You can think of five different things that relate to real life apps. It’s a way for students to share about themselves. 


13:01

Now you can have them share creatively, whether it is in seesaw and creating a voice-over about it, or they can work in small groups and share their favorite slide. You can work on this fun activity all week or as a fast finisher. If you’re doing a separate project like I do STEM survival camp, which I discuss in episode four, I assign this apps about me activity, so if they finish the part for the day, they have something else to work on. Again, I’ve had the kids for a few years, so they’re used to what platforms I use already and are a little more independent. This is a fun digital option that you can have kids design digitally. 


13:42

As a recap, here are the five back to school STEM activities we discussed in today’s episode. First is the classroom rules puzzles. Second, the all about me brick build. Third, the STEM and stories activity with Rosie Revere Engineer. Fourth, the STEM and stories activity with There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Books. Fifth, the digital apps about me activity. I have all of these linked in my show notes for today, Naomi meredith.com/episode7, where you can see pictures of these activities in action and grab all the links to save time with your back to school planning. Thank you so much again for joining me on today’s episode, and I will chat with you soon.

back-to-school-stem-challenges

back-to-school-stem-challenges

back-to-school-stem-challenges

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

STEM Favorites that You’ll Enjoy: 

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!