STENTech Co. Navigator Feature: Lisa Yaker

STEMTech Co. Navigators are teacher representatives for Naomi Meredith’s brand. These educators are here to help other teachers all over the world navigate STEM & Technology in their K-5 classrooms. They have the opportunity to implement and use STEM and technology lessons sent monthly, created by Naomi Meredith.

To learn more about this program and to apply, click here.

In this post, we will learn more about fellow Navigator, Lisa Yaker, a STEAM & Technology coach at an International school in Panama.

How many years have you been teaching?

I have been teaching K-5 as Media Specialist for 7 years… this is my first year as STEAM coach and also first year adding PK.

State/City/Country You’re Currently Teaching In

Panama

What are your top 5 favorite STEM and/or Tech tools? 

1. Cardboard

2. Paper

3. Tape

4. Laffy Taffy

How did you become interested in STEM & Technology in relation to teaching? 

As the librarian, I really wanted to add technology and digital citizenship training to my classes. 

My students always wanted to use the computers in the lab, but I realized they didn't even have a basic technology vocabulary. So I knew I needed to start adding this immediately to the curriculum. 

Soon, I began teaching digital citizenship, parts of a computer, typing skills, etc… Luckily this was just in time when the pandemic hit and they all needed that computer knowledge ASAP! 

STEM was something the school wanted to add and asked me if I would teach it. Honestly, I was apprehensive at first. I have an art background and I am not that good at science. But I have honestly fallen in love with STEAM and just want to keep learning new things to share with my students.

 

What do you love most about integrating/teaching STEM & Technology? What are some positive changes you have seen in your students and/or school? 

I love teaching them how to problem solve, how to think critically. 

Like when these types of conversations happen, “Oh, you don't have any beads? Ok, so what can you use instead?… OMG YES Penne Pasta has a whole in it! That works perfectly”. 

The other amazing change I've seen is in my LP students (students on a learning plan). 

Students on learning plans typically have some form of learning difficulty or behavior that makes school more difficult for them. STEAM allows them to express themselves, discover new strengths and succeed.

Unlike math, where there is a specific right and wrong answer, STEAM does not have right and wrong answers. Just a rubric to assess if they accomplished the objective or not. It isn't about how pretty or perfect it is.

 

What is a project or lesson that you’ve seen be very successful in your classroom that you think other teachers might be interested in? 

OMG Ice Cream in a Bag was hands-down the most fun and amazing project we have done. 

I had parents and siblings all joining the class to dance around the room with our “ice baby” (that's what we called our bag of ice wrapped up in a towel). A student said it looked like a baby and “ice baby” stuck! 

Then, we all ate yummy fresh made ice cream sundaes together! We learned about matter (turning liquids into frozen) and how salt makes ice even colder. 

Making Oobleck was a very close 2nd place. Kids LOVED it and I promised to do a huge one in a baby pool when we get back to school in person.

Where can teachers find you to connect with you?

Instagram: @storytime_steam

Other blog posts you might enjoy:

• Meet the STEMTech Co. Navigators
• STEMTech Co. Navigators Ambassador Program
• How to Make Worksheets on Google Slides by Naomi Meredith 
• Best Robots for Kids for STEM & Technology Lessons by Naomi Meredith

Have questions about this program? Feel free to direct message me on Instagram, @naomimeredith_ or send me an email at contactnaomimeredith@gmail.com and I would love to chat with you!

 

STEMTech Co. Navigator Feature: Darryl Hawkins

STEMTech Co. Navigators are teacher representatives for Naomi Meredith’s brand. These educators are here to help other teachers all over the world navigate STEM & Technology in their K-5 classrooms. They have the opportunity to implement and use STEM and technology lessons sent monthly, created by Naomi Meredith.

To learn more about this program and to apply, click here.

In this post, we will learn more about fellow Navigator, Darryl Hawkins, school library media specialist for PreK-5th grade.

 

This post contains affiliate links. When you purchase through the link, no extra cost to you, but I receive a kickback from purchases. 

How many years have you been teaching?

I have been working in the education field for almost 6 years. I teach primarily students at the elementary level Pre-K through 5th grade as a school library media specialist.

State/City/Country You're Currently Teaching In

Georgia

What are your top 5 favorite STEM & or Tech tools?

My top five STEM and Tech tools work best for me as the instructor and creating engagement with my students.

1. As a librarian, my go-to resource would have to be STEM-related FICTION books. Books that are entertaining, but also promote critical thinking skills and the engineering process are always the best.

2. Pear Deck has been a game-changer for me. I like to use the Pear Deck Add-On in Google Slides to create student participation in a lesson. Works well with hybrid teaching.

3. I recently received a HUE Document Camera from a donor choose grant I work. It is great for displaying the stem challenge to students. It is also really compact and does not take up a lot of space like a traditional document camera.

4. A fellow librarian introduced me to Digital Choice Boards. They are a great tool for recapping the STEM terms and lessons you have taught for the month.

5. Sphero is one of the resources that were great before the pandemic. The robot promotes collaboration and problem-solving skills with different obstacles for the students. I always like to incorporate them into my December lessons.

How did you become interested in STEM & Technology in relation to teaching?

I have always had an interest in STEM because I am obsessed with technology, but I truly took a liking to it when I was trying to create engaging lessons for my students in the media center.

As a media specialist, we do not have set curriculum, but that can be advantage for many. It allows us to incorporate topics that students do not get exposure to beyond their core class curriculum.

My first STEM lesson started with celebrating Hour of Code in December. From there, I started mapping out a theme for the year geared toward literacy, but enhancing it with a STEM twist to promote engagement, and keep my students excited about the media center.

What do you love most about integrating/teaching STEM & Technology? What are some positive changes you have seen in your students and/or school?

The best part about integrating STEM and Technology into classroom instruction is the number of connections students make to real life situations.

For example, I most recently taught a lesson about light. Students started to make connections about how light is energy, and it can be used for many different purposes. STEM lessons help students to apply curriculum knowledge to practical things in their everyday life.

Another example, was a read aloud I presented to my 2nd graders. The book was called Violet the Pilot by Steve Breen. The main character in the story creates all these flying contraptions from materials in her fathers junkyard where he works.

This story led us to having a discussion about what is a junkyard, and how you can create something new from used materials. I was surprised that many students were not aware of what a scrap yard was. It made me want to have a virtual field trip with them about recycling.

What is a project or lesson that you've seen be very successful in your classroom that you think other teachers might be interested in?

I think STEM works well when you are trying to create a lesson that is none holiday related.

When you are on a specials rotations with your students, chances are homeroom teachers will do some type of holiday read aloud or activity with their students before you see them. Therefore, you have to be create and intentional.

I like to take a STEM lesson and make it my holiday theme activity for students. In one lesson, my primary students listened to Creepy Carrots by Aaron Reynolds.

After listening and discussing what Jasper's problem was in the story, the students had to create a catapult to launch the carrots or candy corn back into the fence. They enjoyed the design component of the lesson. It worked well for both my remote learners and face-to-face students.

Where can teachers follow your teaching journey?

Instagram: @jedi_hawkins

Twitter: @MrHawkins19

 

 

Interested in becoming a STEMTech Co. Navigator? Click here for more information about the program and how to get started.

Other blog posts you might enjoy:

• Meet the STEMTech Co. Navigators
• STEMTech Co. Navigators Ambassador Program
• List of Books about Creativity for Kids by Naomi Meredith
• STEM Activity for Elementary Students | Engineer Inspiration by Naomi Meredith 
• How to Teach Online for Home Learning by Naomi Meredith 

Have questions about this program? Feel free to direct message me on Instagram, @naomimeredith_ or send me an email at contactnaomimeredith@gmail.com and I would love to chat with you!