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What Do STEM Teachers Do During Parent Teacher Conferences? [ep.178]

What Do STEM Teachers Do During Parent Teacher Conferences? [ep.178]

Check out the full episode about questions about what STEM teachers do during parent teacher conferences: 

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.Have a STEM question? Leave a voice message for the podcast!

Watch the video episode here!

 

Episode Summary

During Parent Teacher Conference season, what is the typical expectation for STEM teachers? While this can vary from school to school, overall there is a common consensus amongst STEM Teachers of what they do during this time. How do I know this? Well, I went ahead and asked YOU and sharing your responses in this episode.

 

Episode Transcript: 

What are the expectations for a STEM specialist in an elementary space when it comes to parent-teacher conferences? I was recently talking with one of you over on Instagram at Naomi Meredith underscore and the topic of parent-teacher conferences came up and we were chatting back and forth and it gave me the idea to record an episode about this. But not only that, I actually asked you in various places what you actually do during parent-teacher conferences. So there's no video for this one because I'm going to do a lot of reading.

You guys showed up and shared exactly what you do and this I think is very insightful because you might be in this situation where you might be the only one who teaches STEM in your building and maybe you have a team of other teachers who are kind of similar like PE, art, and music, but really you're probably only the STEM teacher in your space. So I appreciate these comments so much and I know you are going to as well. Really quick before I read those, I will share what my role was when I was teaching STEM and what it was like for parent-teacher conferences.

For our parent-teacher conferences, they actually were four nights. We went Monday through Thursday in a row and there were two late nights where we went until seven o'clock and then two shorter nights where we went till five o'clock. Doesn't seem that much shorter.

But what we did as a special team is we counted out all the hours and we divided out the hours evenly and we took turns covering the main office. So our office ladies actually were not expected to stay for parent-teacher conferences, but we were as specialists. So we took turns being in the front office and our job was to make sure that parents signed in.

We let them in through the front doors and we directed them to classroom. Another thing that we did is we actually had to go on the intercom every 15 or 20 minutes, whatever the conferences were. We had to go over the intercom and say, this is the end of like your 7-15 conference.

Thank you so much parents for being here. Please finish up and we can move on to the next appointment slot. Our school, we made sure everybody signed up at conferences.

They had the same timeframes and this was really helpful for teachers because you know, you might have some more chatty parents or ones who want to take over the next time. So we would go ahead and do that. That's what we did.

And then it would come in waves for sure when the parents would come in. So what I would do in between little slow moments is actually set up all of my emails for the rest of the year for the teachers. So when it was their rotation, when to bring their computers.

And then I also set up all of my emails for my afterschool clubs. So I always did a reminder email the day before. So that's one thing.

It's kind of mindless-ish, but something that I would work on or another thing I would work on is like cutting out stuff. But couldn't get a whole lot done. And then of course, talking to parents too, if I had their students, which it was usually pretty positive.

Here and there, I would go in and support classroom teachers with specific students where they needed some more support and other eyes of what was happening in the classroom. So if that was the case, me and my team, we would figure out, hey, could you come cover for this little bit? I need to go into this classroom. So I wasn't in the front office the whole time, neither were my teammates, but that was just a responsibility that we had.

All right, so let's get into what you all shared. I'm going to share first names, but they're also in no particular order. So I think this you will find very helpful.

Brandon says, we can have conferences with families. It's our choice. We usually just mostly greet parents as they come in, direct traffic, etc.

Be a welcoming voice and talk to the parents as they wait for grade level conferences to begin. Shannon says, usually we're answering questions and guiding parents to rooms. I also like to put information for parents on the bulletin boards outside my hall and highlight student work.

Oh, I love that. If you have the room, that's a great idea. Sometimes I'm brought in to reinforce another teacher's observations about behavior or understanding of content knowledge.

Patty says she's mostly support. I sit in on a conference that might be challenging for the homeroom teacher to support concerns and help with upset parents. I field questions on a drop-in basis and anything that might be requested.

So, so far with these teachers, and I'm sure these other teachers as well that I'm going to read to this too, most of these teachers, and I think you can relate, were in the classroom before. So having that other support of another teacher in the building is really, really insightful. It really helps get that well-rounded view of a student.

Sharon says, we haven't had formal parent-teacher conferences yet at the time of her submitting this comment, but I have called some parents to introduce myself and let them know my role. I do like to tell the parents positive stories about their children. I think that's excellent at any time of year, especially if you don't, you don't want the first phone call to be, hey, something bad happened.

I'm the STEM teacher. This is what STEM is. So that's a really great idea to keep the communication all year long.

Cindy says, I'm in my space working on new learning for me, but families can stop by whenever they want. I have the room set up like it is when students are here and kids can show their families what we do. It's been very helpful in getting donations and support for the program.

I have K through 5, about 750 students. I feel your girl is a great idea. And I would do the same thing the times I wasn't in the front office.

So super helpful. Nick says, very similar to what Cindy said, we were just available if parents wanted to come talk, but usually didn't see many parents, which that can happen too. I think one year I set some stuff up for kids to do if they came down, so I can meet some parents.

Dana says that they support parents needing to locate teachers, which definitely can be a thing. It can be really confusing in any elementary school I have found. And she also helps run food to teachers and manages the front door.

Kelsey says for parent teacher conferences, my specials team is expected to have a table set up by the book fair on our library during our late night. Then parents can stop by and say hi if they want, which I think that's a great idea. I've seen quite a few schools and some of the schools I've been at have done this, not every year, but they do the book fair the same week as parent teacher conferences.

So that's a great tip too, to get those donations for your school and knowing that families might be staying later anyway, that's a great location to be at. One of my friends, Becca, she has to actually help inside the book fair. So that is quite an adventure.

I've done that also before and it's really fun. Of course I would find it fun, but I think it's really fun bringing up the books and showing kids what there is available. Kelly says that she gives directions and chats with anyone who comes by the lab.

It's usually one to two families out of 400, which yeah, that can be really common. Kristen says, I thought this was really cool. I have never heard of this and I should have followed up with her if this actually helps seeing more parents, but she said our students get a passport booklet to get a sticker from each special that they visit and then she's also supporting teachers and being available for the parents and students.

So I'm curious, I should ask her if that does help seeing more because they want to get that sticker. That's really, really cool. Then Sarah says she supports the teachers if needed, but otherwise the help out pass out books and information to families.

So overall, very different than a classroom teacher for sure, but as you can tell with all of these responses that everybody is helping at the school in some way and still being supportive of that community and being visible during that time. If your school is a little bit confused, what should you even do? I think these are really great suggestions and overall very similar to what the expectations are for a STEM specialist or just even special teachers in general. I hope you found this episode helpful.

I'm trying out lots of different styles, especially ways to get your voice. So it's like we're traveling to each other's classroom. So if you loved this episode, let me know.

Feel free to send me an email or you can send me a DM on Instagram at Naomi Meredith underscore. Thank you so much and I will see you in the next episode. Thank you so much for listening to today's episode of the elementary STEM coach podcast.

I would love to connect with you over on Instagram at Naomi Meredith underscore, or send me an email to elementary STEM coach podcast at gmail.com. Also make sure to check out my website, Naomi Meredith.com to see all the show notes from today's episode and shop my K-5 STEM resources. Any questions you have, needs for resources or ideas for episodes, get in touch. I'll talk to you soon.

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

Check out this playlist on Spotify I put together with all the episodes related to Back to School:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

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

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

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

10 STEM Door Decoration Ideas for Your Classroom

10 STEM Door Decoration Ideas for Your Classroom

Easy STEM door decoration ideas that you can easily print, cut and hang, and even use again year after year! What's even better is they come in full color or black and white versions to meet your printing needs.

Sure, you can be creative and think fo some fun ideas on your own, but to have STEM door decorations that are already created AND thought out for you, this is a no-brainer.

You can grab the entire bundle of these door decorations here in my TpT Shop-Naomi Meredith. 

#1 STEM Door Decoration- Inventions that Light Up Our World

Inspire students with different inventions that glow and light up like light bulbs, fireworks and candles. This board says “Inventions that Light Up Our World” then have cute lightbulbs that each have an invention with a picture and label.

Grab this door decoration here 

#2 STEM Door Decoration- Perfect STEM Pairs 

There are some STEM inventions that are better together. Things like paper and scissors, monitors & keyboards and robot & batteries. This cute, heart themed board is perfect for Valentine's Day season and says “Perfect STEM Pairs”. Surround the words are connected hearts with the STEM inventions to match.

Grab this door decoration here

#3 STEM Door Decoration-STEM Lucky Charms

There are those items when working with STEM Projects that when you have access to them, you feel extra lucky. Can anyone say “Unlimited tape please!?”. This board says “STEM Lucky Charms” with those need-to-have STEM items surrounding on shamrocks with words like hot glue, cardboard, and batteries. This board is great for March with its vibrant rainbow and pot of gold that can be added to the corner.

Grab this door decoration here

#4 STEM Door Decoration-Inventions Our Earth Loves

Not all inventions are Earth-friendly. However, some make a major and positive impact. Celebrate Earth Month with this door that says “Inventions our Earth Loves”. Surround the words with hearts with innovative inventions that are making a positive impact to Earth's resources like Wind Turbines, solar power, and maglev trains. The Earth on this board is absolutely adorable with its little smile!

Grab this door decoration here

#5 STEM Door Decoration-STEM is out of this world!

This space-themed door is perfect for any time of year. Complete with an easy to assemble rocket and the words “STEM is out of this world”, this door is a lot of fun! To complete the design are stars highlighting skills STEM provides like creating, exploring, inventing and discovering.

Grab this door decoration here 

#6 STEM Door Decoration-Core STEM Structures

What are some simple, yet effective building techniques that engineers use to ensure things hold up the way they should? On this board displaying “Core STEM Structures” are some of those need-to-know designs. Items such as screws, arches, and levers are added to the apple and apple core designs that decorate this door.

Grab this door decoration here. 

#7 STEM Door Decoration-The Magic Potions of STEM

Sure, there are fun things you can build with STEM, but what are those “Magic Potions of STEM” as this door describes? What really improves STEM projects is creativity. grit, hard-work and innovation, which are some of the words listed on the bottle designs on this door. This board works well for Halloween season, but many teachers like to hang this board up for other times of year too!

Grab this door decoration here

#8 STEM Door Decoration-STEM is unbeLEAFable

As the leaves change outside, so can your STEM door decoration with this design. With the words “STEM is unbeLEAFable” there are different types of projects listed on leafs. Things like robotics, experiments, and coding are listed on the colorful leaves for this door.

Grab this door decoration here 

#9 STEM Door Decoration-Let it Code, Let it Code, Let it Code

The weather outside is frightful, but your door decoration can be do delightful. Build a snowman not out of snow and hang it next to “Let it Code, Let it Code, Let it Code”. Then, surround the scene with snowflakes that have different coding vocabulary listed like debugging, binary code and algorithm.

Get this door decoration here

#10 STEM Door Decoration-Cooking up Sweet STEM Creations

Building a gingerbread house can be messy, but not with this door decoration design. Hang up the words “Cooking Up Sweet STEM Creations” with a cute gingerbread house and gingerbread people. Listed on the gingerbread characters are the fun topics you can learn about in STEM like Makersapce, 3D Printing and Digital Design.

Grab this door decoration here 

 

Which designs would you hang up in your classroom? You can grab the entire bundle of print and cut STEM door decorations HERE.

 

STEM Door Decorations Listed in this Post

#1- Inventions that Light Up Our World

#2-Perfect STEM Pairs

#3-STEM Lucky Charms

#4-Inventions Our Earth Loves

#5-STEM is out of this world!

#6-Core STEM Structures

#7-The Magic Potions of STEM

#8-STEM is unbeLEAFable

#9-Let it Code, Let it Code, Let it Code

#10-Cooking up Sweet STEM Creations

 

Other Posts You Might Enjoy:

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About the author, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

3 STEM Teacher Systems You Need to Start Now [Back to School Series] [ep.174]

3 STEM Teacher Systems You Need to Start Now [Back to School Series] [ep.174]

Check out the full episode about STEM teacher systems:

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Watch the video episode here!

Episode Summary

How can you actually get it all done and keep track of everything as a STEM teacher? I'm sharing my tried-and-true systems and hacks to help you stay on top of your busy schedule as a STEM teacher. Balancing the demands of teaching, meetings, and other responsibilities can be overwhelming, but with the right strategies, you can maximize your productivity and keep track of everything that needs to be done.

From managing emails and using Google Calendar to setting timers for yourself and your students, these simple yet effective techniques have helped me stay organized both in the classroom and in my small business. I hope you find these tips helpful and encourage you to try them out in your own routine!

Key Takeaways:

  • Email Management:
    • Install the email app on your phone but set notifications for specific times of the day.
    • Organize emails into folders for easy reference and keep your inbox clutter-free.
  • Google Calendar:
    • Input all your class schedules, school events, and personal tasks in your Google Calendar.
    • Utilize reoccurring tasks for routine activities and sync your calendar with your devices for seamless reminders.
  • Task Tracking:
    • Use a simple notebook for daily task lists, highlighting completed tasks to visually track progress.
    • Re-write unfinished tasks each day to stay on top of your to-do list.
  • Timer Hacks:
    • Set timers on your watch for student activities and personal breaks to keep your day running smoothly.
    • Use classroomscreen.com for visual timers during class activities.
  • Staying Productive:
    • Create systems that work for you, like organizing emails, using digital calendars, and setting timers, to reduce mental load and increase efficiency.

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: 

Welcome to the Elementary STEM Coach Podcast. I'm your host, Naomi Meredith, a former classroom teacher turned K-5 STEM teacher and coach. With over a decade of experience teaching and a master's degree in STEM leadership, I'm here to coach you throughout the year to help you gain back more time to create innovative experiences for your students.

You're teaching hundreds of kids a day. You have before school duties, after school clubs, lesson meetings, staff meetings, all the things that comes with being a teacher in general, and it is still busy being a STEM teacher. How can you keep track of it all and maximize your work time and also all of those little tasks throughout each and every day? I'm going to be sharing with you my systems and hacks that I use religiously as a teacher and also as a small business owner.

They might seem very simple, but they work very, very well, and it has helped me stay productive and keep track of all the many things that are going on each day. I hope you are liking this short episode format. They're really fun for me to record a little bit hard because I just want to talk and talk and talk, but I hope that you are getting a lot out of it.

So let me know, write a review or send me a message on Instagram. I would love to hear how you're liking this new format. The first thing that really helps me stay on top of things is the way that I manage my emails.

And this might sound counterintuitive what I'm going to explain. But hear me out. This is what I do.

I actually do have the email apps on my phone. As a classroom teacher, I actually did not because I felt like you got a lot more parent emails in that way. But when I became a STEM teacher, I actually got the app on my phone.

And what the first thing that I did was I switched my email notifications to only turn on at a certain time of the day during the week, and then turn off. So I believe I had my email turn on from six to 4pm. I still got emails outside of those times, but I wasn't notified.

And I really want to go in and check unless there's something really, really, really important I need to keep track of. Otherwise, I wouldn't get those notifications. This is also really helpful too.

Because if you're on vacation, you can just delete that email app, but then you can have to resign in and do all the things I would just go in put myself like turn off notifications completely during those longer breaks and easy as that. Like I said, you can check when you need to. I also will check my emails all day and respond all day.

And I know most people are totally against that they need to be in the moment and everything. I am a busy person on the go, I will respond to you as soon as I can. And I will move that message that goes along with my second tip into a folder.

I hardly delete messages in my email, if there's spam, sure. But I have folders for everything, everything. When I was teaching every single grade level had their own folder, every single project, every type of event, or there's a district folder, there was a school folder, I have folders for everything.

Because then everything was sorted and organized, my inbox usually has about 10 to 15 emails in there. Because those are things that I am working on projects. And then when I'm finished, I will move it into the folder.

So I know everyone has different systems, maybe they never delete anything or never move any emails. For me, that's visually crazy. And so I answer emails all throughout the day.

During that work time, I answer on my phone, if it's a longer email, I will sit down and respond. But this works very, very well, because I hardly ever, as a teacher sit down and just answer emails all day. That is not what I would do, I would answer them on the go, and then move on to the next thing.

And when I get to school, I had more time for lesson planning, which is what you really want to be doing. Next is how I use my Google Calendar. This is also something I am very obsessed about.

And it actually makes sense. Because as a kid, I was obsessed about getting a new planner every school year. And I love a good planner, I'm more into notebooks for writing checklists down for tasks.

This is another side tip, I actually use a blank notebook. For my daily tasks, I write down everything that's in my head, I need to get done. And then if I finish them, I will highlight them.

So I know what it is. But visually, I know it's finished, but I can see what I finished. And then each day, I will rewrite the tasks I didn't get done and write down any fresh ones.

So that way, I don't have a million sticky notes going on. But that's just like a little hack. I don't use a paper planner anymore, I am obsessed about my Google Calendar.

What I will do is I will sit down and type in every single schedule that I have with my students. So what is my daily schedule, my Wednesdays were always different than Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, the times would change because we had an early release day. So I would sit down, it's easier on your computer.

If you do this, by the way, I would sit down, I would put in all the times for all of my grade levels. And then you can even put in ending dates, you can delete certain dates so that you actually don't have anything going on. Again, during a break, it looks like a break, I would put in all of my schedules.

And then I also would put in the school calendar. So days off all of that, those all went in my Google Calendar, and I made sure to put it in my school account. So anything that was school related went into my school Google Calendar.

Now this goes along with the emails thing, if there was ever an event or something happening at school or a field trip, there was a time change, a class is gone, I immediately go into my Google Calendar, make the change to that date. Because even with reoccurring dates in Google Calendar, you can actually change specific things and it will ask you do you want to change all of them, or just one of them, I would go in and change it and then put that email where it needs to go. So you're like double dipping our school actually used Outlook, which I'm not a personal fan.

I know you can connect your calendars and stuff that way. But I prefer Google Calendar because I would have my school Google Calendar. And then I have my personal Google Calendar and then also my business Google Calendar.

But on your phone, that's really cool is you can actually see all of your calendars at once and go from there. So I still do the same thing and put every single thing in my Google Calendar. And that is how I keep track of everything.

Something new that I'm really obsessed with are new to me is the tasks. So I'm really bad at doing laundry. This is like something about me I'm really, really, really bad at, I don't do it, don't put it away, I don't stay on top of it.

But something with me with laundry is I can handle one load a day. And so with those things that you should be washing every so often, like the towels I wash every week, I couldn't remember when I did the towels. So I actually put in reoccurring tasks in my Google Calendar.

So they don't take over as events, they can happen anytime. If you schedule an event on that day, they don't override each other. But I actually put in reoccurring tasks in my Google Calendar.

So I know on this day, I do towels, and I can check it off. And then the task will repeat every week. So if you have that going on in your STEM classroom, there's things that you have a hard time remembering, but you know, you need to do it, the tasks are really helpful, because it's just a visual checklist.

And you can see it all in there in your calendar, especially if there's a deadline for something, and it will keep popping up, it'll move each day, if you don't go in and check it off, it will move on to your next day, like pay credit cards need to do that. So those are really, really helpful. But again, I'm very, very obsessed about my Google Calendar.

And I even figured out how to link all my Google calendars, you link it to your phone. So I have an iPhone, and it talks to my watch. So all of my events for the day pop up on my watch.

This is the same with my school schedule with kids. So then I knew exactly when things were happening. I didn't have to go to my computer, it was all right there for me.

It's either my phone is on my watch. And I it was just one less thing I had to worry about because I set that system up in place. And finally, the last system and hack that I like to use to help with my productivity as a STEM teacher is using timers.

I use timers with students and I use them for myself as a human as a teacher. As you can tell, I can forget things and there's a lot going on. And especially reading the clock and being in the moment and managing the projects and who's in the bathroom and this fight and then who's cutting somebody's hair with the scissors.

The last thing I am worrying about is checking the time on the clock. I've always want to watch teaching. But I just have a hard time just I'm just really in the moment.

That's really what it is. And so what I will do is as students, I send them off to work. So I have my mini lesson, all that I'm not worried about the time.

Because I always can get it done really, really quick. Unless there is a stern talking to my mini lessons are short, five to eight minutes, eight minutes of them teaching them a new tech tool. But when I send the kids off to work, I immediately again, I go to my watch, but I immediately my watch set a timer for when I want them to clean up.

So I, depending on the class, it's five to 10 minutes, some need 10, some need five, some need three, some are really quick. But I will set a timer for myself. So then my watch will buzz when I want them to clean up.

Depending on the class, I will actually put up a timer for the students. The timer for the students on the screen might not match what is on my watch. It might be the same, it might be different.

If it's station rotations, it wouldn't be the same because they're at their station shorter. Or sometimes I will like put a timer, you have two more minutes left. Again, it really depends on the class.

But I have the master timer on my watch. And then the one on the screen for the students is whatever I need them to be timed for what I want them to do. Are you going to do this job for five minutes, after the timer goes off, you're going to switch.

So see what I mean how their timer wouldn't match mine. That's what I mean by that. My favorite timer to use that doesn't have scary sounds is classroom screen.com. This is not sponsored, I am obsessed.

It has a little clock and timer widget you can put up. You can also put images and embed Google Slides and stuff everywhere. So you can literally have a million things on your screen.

That is for that lesson. So that is how I like to hack timers. I use timers.

This is so crazy. I depending on the class, I only had five minutes or 10 minutes in between classes. And I need to go to the bathroom or I needed to go get some water or whatever and make some copies.

My passing time would start I would set a timer on my watch. I knew I had that much time before my next class would start. I actually kept my door closed in between classes for safety issues.

But also a class couldn't just appear in my room five minutes early, I'm busy, I have things to do that was a boundary I would set, which I do have an episode about setting boundaries, which boundaries are very, very important as a teacher. But I would set timers like that I set timers for myself like this all the time. Sounds like an advertisement for Apple Watch.

It's not you can set a timer lots of different ways. But this is going to help you again, it's those little things you don't have to think about anymore, but help you stay productive. So funny enough, these are all different hacks that I like to use using technology.

And I'm wondering if any of you use those same types of things. Let me know, send me a DM, I hope that this was helpful for you. And if you haven't already, before you move on to your day, make sure to go and review this podcast, write something that you're loving about it.

We are getting up to 180 episodes. And I know I don't have 180 reviews. So I would love to see what you think of the podcast.

If you've been a longtime listener, first time writer, let me know. And thank you so much. I hope you're having a wonderful back to school and I will see you in the next episode.

Thank you so much for listening to today's episode of the elementary STEM coach podcast. I would love to connect with you over on Instagram at Naomi Meredith underscore, or send me an email to elementary STEM coach podcast at gmail.com. Also, make sure to check out my website Naomi Meredith calm to see all the show notes from today's episode and shop my K through five STEM resources. Any questions you have needs for resources or ideas for episodes, get in touch.

I'll talk to you soon.

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

Check out this playlist on Spotify I put together with all the episodes related to Back to school! 

 

 

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

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

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

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

How to Get Materials for Your STEM Classroom [Back to School Series] [ep.172]

How to Get Materials for Your STEM Classroom [Back to School Series] [ep.172]

Check out the full episode about how to get materials for your STEM classroom:

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Episode Summary

In this episode, I’m sharing some of my favorite tips and strategies for gathering materials for your STEM classroom, no matter what kind of budget you’re working with. Whether you're starting the school year or need to replenish your supplies midway through, I’ve got you covered. From self-donations and tapping into your school community, to grant writing and borrowing materials, I’ll walk you through how to keep your STEM space stocked and ready for all your innovative projects.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Self-Donations:
  • Teacher & School Donations:
  • Parent Community Contributions:
  • Grant Writing
  • Borrowing Materials
  • Taking Inventory

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: 

Welcome to the Elementary STEM Coach Podcast. I'm your host, Naomi Meredith, a former classroom teacher turned K-5 STEM teacher and coach. With over a decade of experience teaching and a master's degree in STEM leadership, I'm here to coach you throughout the year to help you gain back more time to create innovative experiences for your students.

How do you get materials for your STEM classroom? Some of you have nice hefty budgets and you are fully stocked in your classroom and you can buy pretty much whatever you want. But most of you do not and you need some creative ways to gather materials for your STEM space. Whether it is for back to school or even midway through the year, what can you do about it? I'm going to be sharing with you some tips that I have done for my STEM space and continue to do for the ways that I teach in STEM.

So let's jump in. First are donations and there are a few ways that you can do this. First, you can actually donate yourself.

Yep, that's right. You can actually donate to your own STEM classroom and I am thinking about those recyclable materials. You will be so surprised about how many recyclables that you collect in your own home by yourself and you can bring them to school.

I am so much in the habit of collecting recyclable materials such as the thin cardboard, cardboard tubes, plastic bottle caps, and I have little places I store them in my home office and when I need them, I take them out as I go. But I am so used to collecting the cardboard especially that when my teacher and honey and I were traveling this summer and I was making a charcuterie board, there was a lot of thin cardboard with the things that we were eating and I was debating whether or not I should take that cardboard home. I was already flattening it and ready to cut it up.

So that is a really great space to start. Like I said, you're going to collect way more than you think. If you wanted to, you can have a few of your next-door neighbors collect for you and that so-and-so garbage will start adding up.

Speaking of this, the other way you can collect donations is asking the teachers in your building. I put a box in our teacher's lounge and wrote a handwritten note. Hey, any of your cardboard that you have from your lunch, put it in this box.

And the cardboard was overflowing. And when you teach a lot of kids, you need a lot of cardboard. So that was an easy way to gather cardboard that was already in my school.

For other types of materials, and this was really helpful when you really need those hands-on manipulatives, is ask those classroom teachers if they are getting rid of anything. A lot of times, curriculums will change over. There are different manipulatives that are provided.

They might not want the old ones anymore. And so ask those classroom teachers, are there any Unifix cubes they don't need anymore? Pattern blocks? Those types of things. You'll be surprised what will come into your classroom.

And along those same lines with donations, you can definitely ask your parent community, whether it is paid for items like batteries or different types of supplies, glue sticks. You can even ask for recycled materials as well. Have a couple of donation boxes where it's easy for families to drop off, and you are good to go.

You can even think about how you can break this down for specific projects, or if you ask certain grade levels at different times. I have an editable letter that you can send out to families. It has some cute little materials on the side, some cute little pictures.

So you can edit that, send that out. I will link it in the show notes. Next is thinking about writing grants.

Maybe as a classroom teacher, you wrote some grants. Maybe you haven't, and you're kind of a little bit overwhelmed about grant writing. I'm not going to get too far into it, but grants are really helpful for those bigger purchases and thinking about things that could be used for multiple grade levels and for multiple projects.

So you want to get really creative on what you are going to write a grant for. I have a handful of episodes that is all about STEM grant writing, so definitely recommend checking those out. Specifically, refer to episode 76, where I talk with Jennifer Mahan, who did a ton of grant writing for her classroom, and she shares all of her successes.

After that, in episode 77, I speak to none other than DonorsChoose, and they talk all about grant writing and how beneficial that is. I have written a few DonorsChoose grants and got those funded, so it definitely is a great resource. And also check out episode 127, where a teacher that I worked with in my group coaching, and this is also something I can do in my one-to-one strategy sessions, she wrote a successful $1,000 grant for her school, for her STEM space, and it got funded when we worked together.

So grant writing is definitely a must, and you actually have a leg up because it is for STEM, and a lot of grants want to help out in the STEM space, so that is worth your investment of time. And finally, consider borrowing materials. You don't actually have to own everything that is being used in your classroom.

Are there materials at local libraries that you can check out and use in your classroom? Likewise, are there things in your district that you can check out and borrow? My district did that. Actually, my local library does that with materials that we can actually check out things as teachers, and also my school district had a lending program where we could actually use items and borrow them from the district, namely 3D printers, robotics, so I didn't have to own them, and you're not usually teaching the same thing all year anyway, so that was actually really, really helpful. Also, do you have a partner school? Can you guys swap materials for specific lessons? I would swap different robots with my STEM teacher friends, and that was really helpful.

Again, we don't have to own the items, and we trusted each other enough where things wouldn't get broken in a horrible way. We knew things to get taken care of. Maybe if you are allowed to, can you combine funds? Maybe you have a little bit of money, they have a little bit of money, not enough to buy what you want, but if you combine, could you combine money and actually buy something? Maybe you could check out your district policy, and also maybe a local company would be willing to lend something for you to borrow as well.

Maybe they have a 3D printer or something that you can use, like maybe one of those interactive tables, those sand tables that show topography. You never know. You're gonna have to get a little bit creative, but don't feel like you have to own every single item in your classroom.

It is nice, but if you only need it for a short amount of time anyway, why purchase it? Can you borrow it from another location? If you're wondering what in the world should I buy? How do I even know where to begin? What kind of donations to look for? I actually took inventory of my K-5 STEM classroom at the end of the year, one year, and put together a whole inventory spreadsheet. If you make a copy of it, it is a live link, so you don't get all of the real-time updates. I will periodically go in and change and update things in there, but it's completely free.

There are different categories of things to think about to add to your space. Also think about the lessons that you have as well. I actually go more into how to plan and prep for what you need to buy.

In my STEM Teacher 101 course, there is a lesson all about that. There is a method to the madness. It's not like, I just want you to buy this.

I just need to buy this. I actually have a whole method of how I go through purchasing every year. Again, all the things that I am mentioning will be linked in the show notes.

Before we go, I wanted to read a quick note from one of you who messaged me on Instagram. I love these notes so, so much. This teacher said, your podcast is my summer binge.

Starting my new job as a K-5 STEAM teacher after 10 years in general education. Your tips and tricks are so practical and give me realistic takeaways that I know I'll use in my classroom. Thanks for your hard work.

Thank you so much for the kind words. I love getting all of these messages. If you haven't already, when this episode's over in a few seconds, go ahead and leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

That would mean the world to me. All those sweet messages that you send, I absolutely love. I write back to you.

Put them on the podcast so people know, hey, this is a show that I should listen to too. I would appreciate it so much. Thanks again for being here.

Happy back to school and I will see you in the next episode. Thank you so much for listening to today's episode of the elementary STEM coach podcast. I would love to connect with you over on Instagram at Naomi Meredith underscore, or send me an email to elementary STEM coach podcast at gmail.com. Also make sure to check out my website, Naomi Meredith.com to see all the show notes from today's episode and shop my K-5 STEM resources.

Any questions you have, needs for resources or ideas for episodes, get in touch. I'll talk to you soon.

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

Check out this playlist on Spotify I put together with all the episodes related to Back to school! 

 

 

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

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

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

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

3 Top Tips for Your STEM Classroom Layout [Back to School Series] [ep.171]

3 Top Tips for Your STEM Classroom Layout [Back to School Series] [ep.171]

Check out the full episode about STEM Classroom Layout:

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

 

Watch the video version of the episode here:

Episode Summary

In this episode, I share my top three essentials for setting up a successful K-5 STEM classroom. Drawing from my extensive experience in various STEM spaces, I discuss the importance of having a group meeting place, planning storage for student projects, and labeling materials for easy accessibility and independence. I provide practical advice and personal hacks to create an organized and effective learning environment.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • The importance of a group meeting place to minimize distractions and streamline transitions.
  • Planning ahead for project storage to keep materials organized and accessible.
  • Labeling Maker space materials with words and pictures at kid-accessible heights to promote independence and easy cleanup.

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: 

Welcome to the Elementary STEM Coach Podcast. I'm your host, Naomi Meredith, a former classroom teacher turned K-5 STEM teacher and coach. With over a decade of experience teaching and a master's degree in STEM leadership, I'm here to coach you throughout the year to help you gain back more time to create innovative experiences for your students.

Let's talk about STEM classroom setup. What are some top essentials that you should think about when you're setting up your STEM space or you're reconfiguring something that may not have worked last year? I have been in a lot of different STEM classrooms, whether it was my friend's classrooms in the district or the schools that I have taught in for my local STEM programs, or even the school that I was doing some planning with a teacher, and I'm going to be long-term STEM sub planning for her this fall. There are a lot of different setups out there, but there are some top things that I have seen that actually set up these spaces for success, and I'm going to talk about those three top common things that I have seen.

The first major thing for you to think about is to have a group meeting place. This is different from where the kids are going to be doing their work. Now, maybe I'm a little bit old school on this, but whenever I have kids enter my space, whether it is my after-school programs or it is a full-on class, I like to have the kids in one location.

There are a couple reasons for this. The biggest one is to help prevent distractions. There's often things that I have set up that we're going to be using for the project, and if the kids are sitting at the tables and there's materials out, naturally they're going to want to play with them and touch them.

And this is even true when I teach STEM at our rollerskating rink for field trips. It's very, very sweet. The program sets up all my materials, but they get into them.

So if you can have a group meeting place where all the kids are in one spot, you do your quick little mini lesson, and then you send them off on their way. I've seen the opposite where there's classrooms that don't have this group meeting space. The kids come into the room, they are sitting at their tables, and they're all chaotic, and they're getting started.

I'm like, wait, what is going on? I'm confused. It's just a lot of chaos, and it doesn't really lend well to a good transition. So knowing that expectation, no matter what you're going to be working on, no matter what grade level you're in, you are going to sit in this spot, most likely facing the screen or projector that you have, and we're going to set up those expectations and we will go on our way.

So that means to say you can't stop the class for other teaching aspects, but this is just really, really helpful, again, for those transitions and setting the stage for your classroom. Along with that, this is something that I didn't think of right off the bat because it looks very, very empty, but think about where you would like students to store their projects throughout the year. You may or may not use these open spaces, but if you can plan ahead and make room for it, if possible, I know this can be really tricky, then this will help you know where you should set out other materials, and those other materials you might need to put away in a safe spot, and then, again, you have those open spaces for kids to put their projects.

If you plan for it ahead of time, like I said, it's going to make it a lot easier, and it also looks a little weird because you might have empty shelves in your classroom when you want to fill them up with all the cool things. There are a lot of different things that I have tried, but what I really like to do when it comes to access materials, like when kids are in the middle of building projects, and you can hear more about how I do maker space specifically in episodes five and six, but I like those big fabric cubes from IKEA, the really big ones, not the small ones, the big ones, and when we're in the middle of a project, I use grocery bags. Kids will put their paper plan inside, and any materials that they shop for inside the bag, they tie them up, I show them how to do a loose tie on the bag, we put them in the bucket, and it's labeled with their teacher's name.

If there's things that they're specifically building they don't want crumpled up in the bag, that will be placed on the shelf next to that bucket, but it really helps getting out those materials in between classes. It does help with the storage because random materials aren't floating around on the shelves, but that also helps with the space as well, so those are some things to really consider. And finally, when you're setting up your space, I actually like to keep my maker space open all year long and have it all set up and organized, is having those maker space materials labeled with words and pictures and also at kid accessible height.

The whole goal when you're doing a maker space is to have kids be independent and gather supplies for their projects as you want them to. Again, listen to episodes five and six, but having them at kid height and labeled with pictures and words really helps with that independence where they know what is in the bucket, they can see it, they can gather those materials, and it also makes cleanup a lot easier because they know where things go. I actually created some editable labels that are for your maker space where they have words and pictures and easy to read kid font.

There are different color options, and my little trick too is I actually don't laminate these. I found these little business card pockets that are sticky on one side, and if you actually just print put the little label in the pocket, the pocket always stays on your bucket, but then you can change out the labels as much as you want and you don't have to do any laminating. I actually have a laminator, I just don't like to laminate unless I really, really have to.

So that is a really good hack. I'm really excited because the teacher I'm going to be subbing for, she has a really great maker space. She has it set up really nice, but I really want to upgrade her labels and so I asked her if I could do that, and she said yes.

So more to come this fall, you'll get to see that transformation. Those three things I hope you've thought about in your STEM space. They are really essential.

They seem very simple, but things that make a big impact in your space, make sure you have those three things. For more of a setup checklist for your STEM space, my STEM teacher 101 course, I have a whole lesson all about your classroom setup and things to think about. Maybe you did those as a classroom teacher and you're transferring them into your STEM space, but I also have a checklist that will walk you through those things and other ideas to think about when you're setting up your STEM space.

And there's also a whole lesson about systems and routines that will lend itself to your classroom setup. You can grab the entire course at namimerdith.com slash STEMteacher101, or you can just go through individual lessons of the course that are in my TPT shop. If you just head on over there, you will see all the lessons segmented so you can zone in on what you're looking for.

And before you go, I just wanted to read a quick note from one of you. I get the sweetest messages in my DMs and my emails and I actually save them. And when I'm a little bit like, what am I doing with all this? I like to read them.

So this is from one of you and you messaged me and you said, Hey, I just had to let you know that you are amazing. I wish you were my STEM teacher. That is so nice.

I just completed your K through two planning workshop and bought your K through two year long bundle. And now I want the three through five too. I'm so impressed with all your products and your plethora of great information, ideas, and enthusiasm.

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and passion for STEM. Thank you so much for that message. Lots of things.

I do have on demand workshops that you can jump in on. And then also those bundles of my K through five STEM year long plan. They're broken up in grade levels and also in segments.

So thank you so much for your kind message. Like I said, I have a whole folder on my phone and I keep these. So I do read them and I appreciate you all so much.

Thank you so much again, and I will see you all next week. Thank you so much for listening to today's episode of the elementary STEM coach podcast. I would love to connect with you over on Instagram at Naomi Meredith underscore or send me an email to elementary STEM coach podcast at gmail.com. Also make sure to check out my website, Naomi Meredith.com to see all the show notes from today's episode and shop my K through five STEM resources.

Any questions you have needs for resources or ideas for episodes, get in touch. I'll talk to you soon.

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

Check out this playlist on Spotify I put together with all the episodes related to Back to school! 

 

Take a tour of my K-5 STEM Classroom

 

Grab the Makerspace labels you see in the photo here that come in a variety of color schemes. 

 

 

Instead of laminating each label, use these pouches that are sticky on the back. It makes changing out labels so much faster!

 

 

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

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

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

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

6 STEM Classroom Bulletin Board Ideas [Back to School Series] [ep.170]

6 STEM Classroom Bulletin Board Ideas  [Back to School Series] [ep.170]

stem-classroom-bulletin-board-ideas

Check out the full episode about STEM Classroom Bulletin Board Ideas:

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Watch the video version of the episode here: 

Episode Summary

It’s officially time for back to school, which means you’re most likely preparing to start decorating your classroom. With so many ideas available for decorating your classroom, what should you set up? What are some creative ways you can set up your bulletin boards? In today’s episode, I’m sharing six STEM classroom bulletin board ideas that you can implement for the new school year.

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

You're ready to decorate your STEM classroom, but what should you set up? And in terms of bulletin boards, what are some creative things that you can hang up in your classroom, and also kind of some things that you can keep up all year? Maybe you didn't think about that when it comes to your bulletin board situation. I'm going to be sharing with you six bulletin board ideas that you can hang up in your classroom. There is a creative twist to these, so I'm so excited for you to hear these.

Welcome to the Elementary STEM Coach Podcast, a show that will help you with lesson ideas, systems, and actionable tips to apply to your classroom. I am your host, Naomi Meredith, a former classroom teacher turned current STEM teacher and coach. With over a decade of experience teaching and a master's degree in STEM leadership, I am here to coach you throughout the year to help you gain back more time to create innovative experiences for your students.

Grab your earbuds and let's get started. Welcome to back to school season. You may or may not want to hear those words right now.

I totally understand however you were feeling. I actually posted an Instagram reel the other day, and it said you and your teacher, Bestie, are hanging out by the pool. One of you is obsessing about setting up your classroom.

The other one of you is waiting to hear when you guys are going to go get your next iced coffee. I've definitely been both teachers depending on the year, especially when I used to have started new positions in a school or a grade level. I've always been the one to obsess about my classroom and go in and get organized and figure all that out.

But then as I've been comfortable in that position and know what to expect overall, I'm the second where when is my next iced coffee. I don't know if you know this about me, but I love iced coffee and I especially love oat milk lavender iced lattes. That is my go-to, but it has to be from a local coffee shop that makes their own syrup.

So fun fact about me. So what are some bulletin board ideas that you can have for your classroom? So before I jump in really quick, something that I really want to try to do and I love to chat is keeping these episodes this school year a lot shorter. A couple of the podcasts that I listen to that actually aren't teacher related are doing this and I absolutely love it.

And I feel like I get enough information and I'm good to go for the rest of the day and I will binge some of them. So I'm going to try to keep these 10 minutes or less or around then. So I know you are busy and you want to get on your way.

So if you're like, I want more, I have almost 200 episodes and there are many that are longer than 10 minutes. So we're going to try this out and see how it goes. But of course I never run out of ideas.

My husband's like, how, what are you going to even talk about on your podcast when you almost have 200 episodes? I'm like, there's so many things. There's a lot, a lot of things to talk about. So you like to talk, then that's where we're at.

Okay. So six different bulletin board ideas in my STEM teacher one-on-one course that, um, you can jump on it into the whole course, or you can just jump in on specific modules that I am slowly releasing on teachers by teachers. But these are some of the things in terms of decoration and bulletin boards that I recommend.

So I actually have printed off the checklist, um, that goes along with this. So definitely helpful for your classroom setup. If you see me looking down, I am looking at the checklist if you're watching the video version.

So the first one, when it comes to bulletin board setup is having your classroom rules and expectations. This is something you need for any classroom, but it doesn't have to be ugly. And so think about how do you want to teach this to students, but also how are you going to display it in your space? And this is something you want to keep up year round and also something that is easy to see all the time and can be something you can refer to.

I recommend having maybe three to seven classroom rules. Five is pretty good. Three to five is actually pretty good for a STEM space.

And so definitely figure out where to put that. Next is having growth mindset sayings. And I'm sure this is something you have thought about, whether you're a classroom teacher or going into STEM or you've been teaching STEM for a while.

How can students use growth mindset and what are some things that you are going to be constantly remind them? Not have a good growth mindset. What are some of those things? We make mistakes to help us grow. Something that I like to say is practice makes better.

Perfect doesn't exist. And I don't say that to them. So practice makes better.

I had my growth mindset sayings on, like you could still see them, like kids could read it still. They would all the time. But I have them as light bulbs and they would be on the top of one of my walls.

So they decorated my classroom, but they were also things I referred to constantly and kept up all five years that I was in the STEM space. Next is, it sounds very simple, but it actually, like hear me out on this one, is I had giant letters up on my whiteboard. So one of my walls was an entire whiteboard.

And in the top right corner, I had a block letters that I printed and cut out with my bulletin board letters. And it said STEM. And underneath each letter, I had a little circle poster that would represent what does each letter mean.

So there's some images. What is science? Images for what is technology? What do the letters actually mean? That was a huge thing too. So kids actually knew, oh, STEM isn't just a buzzword.

It's not a STEM on a plant. It actually means something. And this is something I referred to constantly, constantly with kids.

And you're not teaching in isolation. And I did mention this a lot in my STEM in action series that was just before this one. But I would explain to kids, hey, this is what science means.

Here's how we're using science. When I had new students or my younger students who had never had me before, I would refer to this constantly. So this is, again, something I would hang up.

Bulletin boards don't also, or just decorations in general, don't have to be ginormous. It doesn't have to be a board. So you probably are noticing, oh, it doesn't have to be a board.

It can just, how are you using your space? It can be decoration, but how are you referring to it? So having those STEM definition posters, what does STEM mean? Very, very helpful. Next, this is a fun one, but again, a teaching tool is having a STEM and technology alphabet. And I just recently updated my STEM and technology alphabet.

I'm so excited about this because there are three different color schemes that you can print out and have it match your classroom. And there's also black and white versions so you can print on whatever color paper you want. And having a STEM alphabet, again, is a great resource.

And I also have had a teacher who messaged me and she said, I actually have your alphabet. And when I use your lessons, because I have vocabulary in all my STEM lessons that are content specific, she would print out the vocabulary that went with that lesson in a smaller version and hung it up with the STEM alphabet. So it was more like a vocabulary wall that connected to the STEM concept.

So I thought that was a fantastic idea. I also have a whole alphabet set up in my home office right now. So I love the update.

It's just more visually appealing, needed a little bit of a refresh. So that is, again, something that you can hang up in your space. The fifth decoration that you can have in your classroom, again, this is something I hung up all year.

I hung it right outside of my classroom where students were coming in. And side note, classroom teachers loved this, is having a STEM affirmation station. And so what you do is you grab a cheap mirror.

I found mine at Walmart. It was $7 at the time. Hung it up with Gorilla Glue tape.

And then there's different affirmations that go along with STEM, like, I am a mathematician. I am an inventor. I am a creator.

And you can hang that up all along the mirror. And teachers, when they're picking up their kids, they love to check your hair. So that is a fun one.

And again, right outside my classroom, if you are allowed, that was a really great addition to my STEM space for all the kids. And the final one that actually is a bulletin board is I actually didn't have official bulletin boards. But there was a space right outside my door that I created a bulletin board with some paper, had a border, had a cute little garland on it.

And I would change it out with seasonal bulletin board kits. So I made a different theme for every month that went along with STEM. And then I printed, cut out, laminated.

And I could hang those up every year. Or if there's a student teacher nearby or a parent volunteer, I would just hand them the bag with the theme. And they could hang that up.

And it was all finished up. So all STEM related, but a fun little theme. Because you guys know I love a good theme.

After these ideas, what are you hoping to try in your classroom? You can go ahead and make all the things, not stopping you. But if you want to save some time and get into more lesson planning, every single thing that I mentioned, including this checklist for setting up your classroom, you can find in the show notes for this episode, or they're also in my TPT shop, Teachers Pay Teacher Shop, Naomi Meredith. And you can just print, go laminate, and you are all done in a day.

Thank you so much. And I will see you in the next episode. Thank you so much for listening to today's episode of the Elementary STEM Coach Podcast.

I would love to connect with you over on Instagram at Naomi Meredith underscore, or send me an email to elementary STEM Coach Podcast at gmail.com. Also, make sure to check out my website, Naomi Meredith.com to see all the show notes from today's episode and shop my K through five STEM resources. Any questions you have needs for resources or ideas for episodes, get in touch. I'll talk to you soon.

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Check out this playlist on Spotify I put together with all the episodes related to Back to school! 

 

STEM Classroom Bulletin Board Ideas #1: STEM Alphabet

Get this alphabet and 3 different color schemes for your classroom here. 

 

STEM Classroom Bulletin Board Ideas #2: Growth Mindset Sayings

Get these growth mindset lightbulbs for your classroom here

 

STEM Classroom Bulletin Board Ideas #3: Classroom Rules for STEM & Technology Classrooms

Get these rules for your classroom here. 

STEM Classroom Bulletin Board Ideas #4: STEM Definition Posters

Get these STEAM posters for your classroom here

STEM Classroom Bulletin Board Ideas #5: STEM Affirmation Station

Get this affirmation set up for your classroom here.

STEM Classroom Bulletin Board Ideas #6: Seasonal STEM Bulletin Boards

Click here to view the whole collection of print-and-cut STEM bulletin boards fro your classroom here. 

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

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

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

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

engineering design process projects

Should I Start the Year with an Engineering Design Process Project? [ep.114]

Should I Start the Year with an Engineering Design Process Project? [ep.114]

engineering design process projects

Check out the full episode on Should I Start the Year with an Engineering Design Process Project?:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Episode Summary

One question I often receive is whether or not you should start the school year with an engineering design process project. Maybe you have this question, and you’re wondering when is the right time to introduce the engineering design process to your students. Today I’m shedding light on three misconceptions about when is the right time to introduce engineering design process projects and giving some tips for the best way to introduce this standard to your students.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 3 misconceptions about when is the best time to introduce engineering design process projects
  • Why these misconceptions are false
  • Tips and strategies for effectively introducing this standard to your students

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


Should you start off your school year teaching the engineering design process, or should you not? What if students have never heard of it before? How much pre-teaching of the engineering design process needs to be done? And don't they need to know more about the classroom and all of the routines before they start off a project like this? In my K-5 STEM yearlong plan bundle of lessons, I plan all of my big projects for kindergarten through fifth grade using the engineering design process, which, fun fact, is an actual Next Generation Science Standard in elementary. You can check out all of those lessons at naomimeredith.com/tptk5stem. I get this question a lot about the engineering design process. Should I start off the year with it, or should I not? So let's debunk these misconceptions together all about using the engineering design process.


Listener Question [00:01:38]:


I wanted to ask you, I love your idea about doing the STEM Survival Camp. That sounds so fun. Such a great theme to get everybody engaged at the beginning of the year. I have had one class with my little ones. I see them well with all of them K through six. I see them one day a week for 30 minutes. And I'd love to hop into the STEM Survival Camp, but my hesitation is we don't really have our procedures down pat. I don't really have maker space figured out. We haven't gone over anything with the engineering design process. Do you think I should wait and kind of get those things a little bit more settled with maybe some one-day challenges, or do you think I don't necessarily have to have gone through the engineering design process for the kids to be successful? I just want them to love STEM and start strong with it being such a positive environment for them. So if you'll let me know your thoughts, that would be awesome. Thank you so much. Bye.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:17]:


Thank you so much, Amberly, for your question. I love hearing whose voices are out there listening to the podcast because, funny enough, it's me just talking to a camera in my home office all alone, and my little dog Frederick gets to hear everything I say.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:15]:


If you want to leave a voice message like this one, you can do this at any time, easily on your phone. Just go to Naomimeredith.com slash voice. Also, Amberly talked about a unit called STEM Survival Camp which is my absolute favorite to start off the year. And if you want to hear all about it. This is a unit that I do from kindergarten through fifth grade, and a lot of it involves the outdoors. So you can check out an episode I recorded back in episode four, and I talk all about this really fun unit to do with your students for this episode. I'm talking about if you can start off the year with the engineering design process. So if you are choosing to do the unit STEM Survival camp or you're thinking about another one, this question can still apply.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:08]:


I have to tell you a little secret. Before I started teaching K through Five STEM, I was a classroom teacher for six years. I actually had never heard of the engineering design process before. Now, if I had an interview, let's say I had an interview now to be a STEM teacher, I would definitely mention that. But that's not something that I mentioned in my interview at all. And thank goodness, because I had no idea what it was. So I did some research. I kept hearing about it from other STEM teachers, and like, what is this? So I did some research and I figured out what it was.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:42]:


And as a quick synopsis, the engineering design process is the real process that engineers use to problem solve and think through real problems and creative solutions. There's more to it. There are some stages within that. So you have asked the question, so what question are you solving? You are imagining different solutions through research and other ideas out there. Then you plan through your design. You start creating, making modifications, experimenting, and improving, of course, that word iterates so you're iterating and trying things all over again. And then you share your design. It is not a linear process.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:24]:


So it's not like step by step by step, oh, we did it. We're never going back through the steps. You might not even get through the whole engineering design process when you do a project because there are things that are going to pop up and not work. And that's okay. But in a nutshell, that's what the engineering design process is. If you want to hear more in detail about this process and some examples of how I use this in my K through Five STEM space, I did a whole series about the engineering design process starting in episode 15 and goes all the way to episode 22. You can scroll back and listen to those episodes. Or if you just want everything laid out for you for free, this podcast is free.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:09]:


But this is also free. I have categorized all of my podcast episodes into like, topics. So, for example, if you want to learn more about the engineering design process, there is a free playlist that has all of those episodes organized for you. And you just click on the link. It will add it to your phone just like a regular podcast. And then any episode that I add in there that is related to that topic will pop up. So there's a handful of topics, same exact podcast as this one, but it's all organized for you, so you can grab that at naomimeredith.com/podcastplaylist. Also, every link I'm going to talk about will be in the show notes for today, so you don't need to go and write those down.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:52]:


I have it all organized for you. All right, so let's break down this question. Should I start off the year with a project using the engineering design process? So I broke this up into three misconceptions that go along with this and how I think through this question. Misconception number one, the kids have never heard about the engineering design process, so I can't use it yet. Well, just like I had never heard of it, the kids might not have either. And good thing that we are in school. And I would tell this to my students, good thing that I am a teacher because that is good job security, because I get to teach you and most things that when you come into this room, you probably won't know. And I would tell this also to my students.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:43]:


Spoiler alert, I don't know most things that I'm teaching you. Before I teach them, I have to go and research them myself. So that's okay. That's the cool part about STEM. And really any learning and teaching is most things should actually probably be new. So that is okay. What I really like about the engineering design process is it can be used over and over and over again with different types of projects and you can really zone in on different parts of the engineering design process. And also, depending on your time, how long you have with students, how long you have with projects, you can speed parts up, you can take parts out.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:29]:


And like I said, you might not get through every single step. And that is okay. A lot of times at the beginning of the year, I might even zone more in on planning based on what I remember seeing kids doing the year before. Or maybe I want to zone in more on imagining. So whether or not the kids have heard of it, you're going to have your own spin of teaching it anyway. The projects might be different. I might teach things way differently than another STEM teacher. But the process is pretty familiar, so it's okay if they have never heard of it yet.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:02]:


You're going to be embedding it throughout the year. So this really isn't a one and done. We're going to use the engineering design process one time. We're never going to use it again. Honestly, if you plan out all your lessons like this, like I did in all of my lessons 4K through five, you can grab every lesson that I taught my students in a whole bundle that is constantly being updated. So you can grab that naomimeredith.com/tptk5stem. Every single project. Not STEM stations, that's a whole other thing.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:35]:


But when it comes to the projects, every project used the engineering design process. And we were doing different things throughout the year. Whether it was STEM survival camp where we are using elements from the outdoors and maker space to build and solve a problem, or even if it went to video and audio production or 3d printing or robotics. We use this process over and over and over again in K through five. They actually did not get tired of it, which we're going to talk about that in a bit, but that way it's used in so many different contexts that it's okay if they don't get it right the first time. I would mess it up half the time anyway. It's all right. They don't get it right the first time because you're going to do it again all year long, in my opinion.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:23]:


I'm not really a fan of doing filler projects. I have it in quotation marks where you're kind of fake doing the engineering design process. Like, all right, guys, this is the imagine stage. This is the things we do and imagine and we're going to do blah, blah, blah. I really like it where it's embedded because again, if you're teaching this throughout the year, you don't need to do a filler project and be so explicit on, this is the step and this is what we do in this step. I don't really care if the students memorize it or not. They're going to be familiar with the process anyway, so why not jump into a project and it will start becoming familiar the more you use it? Misconception number two, whether or not you should be using the engineering design process right away is that mine maker space isn't fully set up yet. Well, guess what? Mine wasn't either.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:16]:


And half the time my labels weren't even on the correct things or I needed to add five more labels to my buckets and I never did it, so it's okay. And also, my work week back, I never got to plan for STEM. I actually had to do all of the school wide technology. I never planned anything the first week back to school, so my makerspace wasn't set up either. So the cool thing, especially if you are using STEM Survival Camp or you are doing some sort of maker space project, I actually don't recommend having a free for all when it comes to all of the supplies anyway. I pull out select items I want students to choose from, and they have to be creative with those constraints. It doesn't mean that all of their work is going to look the same. They look completely different to build and solve the problem.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:09]:


But it's not as overwhelming either for me as a teacher, I don't have to be concerned that every single thing is set up, just some necessary items that I will use for the project and also for students. That's overwhelming too, being jumping into all of the supplies. So that's different than jumping into the engineering design process. I'm talking more about jumping into all of the supplies. I do have a method to my madness when it comes to maker space. So if you head on back to just listen to these in order. So after this episode, go to listen to episode four, STEM Survival Camp. Then keep going to episode five where I talk about setting up your maker space, and then keep on going to episode six where I talk about the management piece.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:55]:


So there's definitely a method to the madness. But it's okay if your maker space isn't all the way set up. Just have some necessary supplies ready to go, especially your scissors and tape, and you should be okay. So less pressure on you. You can start filling in your maker space as you go. And misconception number three if you should get started with the engineering design process at the beginning of the year, is that I really want my students to love STEM, but I'm worried about the structure. I am a huge proponent of systems, routines, and structure in any sort of classroom, and that is a big lesson that I learned my first two years of teaching. And that is a skill that I have carried on throughout all of my years of teaching and has helped me be successful in any classroom setting, whether it was a classroom teacher or teaching 35 4th graders all by myself for 45 minutes.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:57]:


So it definitely is really important to have that structure. Now, the engineering design process isn't a behavior routine, but it is a structure for your projects. I was actually talking to a teacher the other day over on my Instagram in my direct messages at Naomimeredith_. You can find me over there. But we were talking, and it was actually about how she was heading up her classroom. But I was telling her that elementary STEM, it can get overwhelming and overstimulating very quickly for the teacher and the students. So having structures in place actually doesn't make it boring for the kids. It makes it feel safe, especially when you are doing creative projects.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:45]:


I've talked about this a few times on here, but when you're doing creative projects, it can actually be really scary for a lot of kids. You're so lucky bringing these opportunities for your students. And it's also very vulnerable when you want to do a creative project. And so if you have some structure in place I'm not saying do step by step by step. Your project all has to look like this, and it all has to do this. No, having a process to go through, not an end result. Their end result can be whatever if it's solving the problem, but having a process actually helps with that creativity. I was actually rereading one of the books in my membership, the STEM teacher bookshelf.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:32]:


And the book for August was lifelong kindergarten. And inside of there, it actually talks a lot about this, how having a full blank canvas is very overwhelming for students. So when you're applying this to the engineering design process, it's really narrowing down that big open ended question or big open ended project, and it makes it more attainable. So think of that when you're thinking about your projects that it's okay to start off with it. It's going to make it seem less overwhelming. You're breaking up the project. It's not this huge thing that you don't know how to get to it. It's little steps along the way.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:12]:


And like I said, kids are going to get more and more used to it. Actually, my students didn't like it a little bit at first, and it might also be because I didn't really know what I was doing anyway. But they're like, Why do we have the research? Why do we have to learn about this? But over time, they stopped complaining about it because they knew that what they were looking for was going to help them with their projects anyway. So in a STEM setting, especially if you're not a homeroom classroom teacher, it is going to take more time to build up those sySTEMs and routines than it would with a classroom teacher. They have them every single day all year. But as a STEM teacher, you don't. So it is going to take some time to build up with it. So the more you do it, the better you're going to get at teaching it and the better the students are going to get when implementing the engineering design process in their projects.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:03]:


As a recap in this episode, here are the three misconceptions that we broke down when it comes to implementing the engineering design process at the beginning of the school year or whenever you're getting started with this. Misconception number one is your kids have never heard of the engineering design process, so you can't use it yet. Misconception number two was my supplies and maker space aren't fully set up, so I can't really do the engineering design process yet. And misconception number three was, I want my kids to love STEM, but I'm worried about the structure. Just like with anything, it is all trial and error, and you are going to find your rhythm and your flow. So I say jump in on it. If it fails, it's fine. You get to do it again.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:52]:


A lot of the things that I've done have not worked, and there's a lot of lessons that were horrible that I don't really share with you because also, I kind of forget what they were, and they were so bad, I wouldn't want you to teach them. So it's okay. Keep going. You got this. And try it out. The engineering design process is great. I love planning with it. You can check that out in my K through Five STEM year-long bundle, where that's already done for you.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:19]:


But I appreciate hearing from you all and wish you the best for back to School, and I will see you in the next episode.

engineering design process projects

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

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

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

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

stem classroom back to school prep

3 STEM Classroom Back to School Prep Ideas [ep.110]

3 STEM Classroom Back to School Prep Ideas [ep.110]

stem classroom back to school prep

Check out the full episode on 3 STEM Classroom Back to School Prep Ideas:  

 

 

Episode Summary

Episode Summary

Back to school time has officially arrived, which means you’re in full on prep mode. There are certain things you can do to prep for the new school year that will help set the tone for the school year. In today’s episode, I am sharing three STEM classroom back to school prep ideas. I'll be sharing personal experiences from my own K-5 STEM classroom, discussing everything from setting up a functional classroom environment to organizing maker space supplies.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 3 STEM classroom back to school prep ideas
  • Tips and strategies for implementing these STEM classroom back to school prep ideas
  • My experience with implementing these three STEM classroom back to school prep ideas

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


It's back to school season, and it's time to set up your classroom. Maybe this is your most favorite part of the school year or your least favorite part. It was one of my favorite parts, but I'm gonna be giving you some ideas of what you can do when you are setting up your STEM classroom. When I first got my elementary STEM teaching position, I was a bit unsure about how I should set up my classroom. I really wanted to make sure that my room was functional and efficient from my littlest learners in kindergarten all the way up to 5th grade. It's a little bit harder than you think, but not impossible. Spoiler alert. Less, here's more. So let's jump into the main things that you can do for your STEM classroom back to school prep.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:23]:


I am all about having a functional space that is clean and accessible to all my students. When I had my K through Five STEM classroom, I only had a couple of teacher areas. There was my desk that I moved to this back awkward corner that I wouldn't put kids in. It was just a weird little corner. but perfect for my teacher's desk, which was a k, a table. And then I had underneath my TV, my screen where I would project things for students, there was a shelf underneath blocking all the cords, and that's where I put my teacher's computer so it was out of the way, and I could project what I wanted. But other than that, the rest of the classroom was available and accessible to all the students who came into my classroom throughout the day. If you wanna take a peek at what my K through 5 STEM classroom look like, this is a very requested thing from all of you, and I finally did it. I did take a video of my classroom and put it together into a video so you can see the layout of what I taught in all day in my fishbowl. I'm saying fishable because one of the walls was completely glass, and everybody could see what I was doing all day, which is totally fine. and a couple of little things for you to be aware of. I did take this video when everything was cleaned up, so there are not any projects going on. So, realistically, how it'd be at back to school or the end of the year when everything is cleaned up and organized? It did not look like this every single day. There are some main things that were pretty much the same, but everything is all clean, so you can get a feel of what the classroom was when it was set up. 


Also, I got very, very lucky when I got this elementary STEM position. During the summer, when I was getting hired, I actually got a newly remodeled classroom. So when I say I got a brand new classroom with limited and 0 curriculum, it was actually brand new, which was awesome and a little overwhelming, too, because I had to fill it up with all the things. So it is very fancy, schmancy. So I know that's not the case for everybody. However, I think this video will be helpful for you to get a feel for what a layout could look like and kind of where to put things and go from there. The 1st STEM classroom back to school prep idea is organizing your makerspace, and you can still do this if you don't have any makerspace supplies. When I am talking about makerspace, it's all of those recycled materials, and a lot of it actually can be reused, but lets get you all organized so you know the space that you are working with so that you're not overflowing with materials. You actually don't need as much as you think you do. In fact, I go into great detail about setting up your makerspace. 


Back in episode 5 is all about your organization and really some major tips and tricks I'll be sharing some of those here, but if you really wanna get into it, go and check out episode 5. And then the next one after that episode, I go on to explain how to manage the makerspace. So the purpose of today's episode is to discuss what you can do to set up your classroom. makerspace is one of those things. But again, those 2 episodes are really good to listen to after this one to really think through the organization and all the systems and processes that come along with it. But let's set you up for success. So looking at your classroom and the space that you have, the furniture that you have going on or hoping to get, you really want to have labels on those things. And this can be a little bit annoying and making all those labels or whatever and, like, sure, I'll get a label maker. Sure. You can do that. Get a label maker. I recommend having a label maker for some things, but not in the case of makerspace supplies. Think about all of your learners, not just kindergarten. There is so much value in taking that extra little step of having labels on your drawers that have pictures and words to what is in those buckets. It also helps me as a teacher too because sometimes I'll move drawers around because they are interchangeable where I had some of my things stored. And so I'm like, oh, okay. That's where things go. Or there are teachers helping in my classroom helping support students they also understood where the materials went. So, yes, it is a bit time consuming to make all those labels with the pictures and the words, but this will help with that environmental literacy where students are able to access that information, no matter what their abilities are. 


And it looks really nice as well. Let's be real. It does look good, but really it's to help out the students. Along with that, make sure that your things when students are in a makerspace project, they are all accessible at kid height. When I was jumping into makerspace projects, or there were some makerspace materials that I needed, I didn't have to go climbing in my shelves to pull everything down for the kids because most of the things were actually out in drawers for the majority of the school year. So what I could do is if we were shopping for supplies, they were able to open the drawers on their own. Or if I needed a specific material, I just pulled out the drawer that had those things for kids. And in the long run, setting this up now during back to school, maybe you're listening to this at the end of the school year, you can do this now at the end of the school year too, but getting this all organized, have it at kid height will save you so much time in the long run when it becomes to lesson prep. When it came to makerspace lessons, I hardly prepped anything. I was refilling things while the kids were working if I had refill options, but again, this is a definite life changer. if you do happen to have extra supplies, maybe you got an abundance of donations or collected things over the summer, create a nice place where you can keep most of those things in the same area. So if you do need to refill, you're not, again, tearing out your cabinets trying to find it. I had a shelf in one of my cabinets that were closed at a couple of cabinets, but I had a shelf where I kept those extra makerspace supplies. 


So if I happen to have something, I could refill it. It wasn't very often, but I knew it was in the same spot. Also, depending on your space, if there are certain materials that you know you're going to use again and again and they require specific safety rules, you can consider hanging up those posters in that area as well. So students are exposed to it, and then they know where to reference it when they're ready to go. things like a cardboard saw, maybe a hot glue gun. I have somebody who I've talked to on social media who actually has my hot glue gun posters, and they put them in cute picture frames from Dollar Tree, which I thought was a really nice touch, a really cheap touch, but a nice touch to make a poster look a little more welcoming and fit the space very well. Along with your makerspace, you do wanna make sure you save room for student projects. And I know that this can be a very hard thing, especially if you're teaching all the kids in the school, But keep that in mind as you are setting things up in your classroom, you'll notice in the video that I have some empty shelves because that is where students would put their projects throughout the week. Also, you're gonna wanna figure out a system for your general supplies. These are things that are used over and over again, maybe not just in makerspace, but all the time. Things like your pencils, markers, crans, glue sticks, scissors. I have done quite a bit of things with this. and what worked well in my classroom was keeping the crayons separated from everything else, and I had little buckets that were placed on the tables that students could come and grab. And then I also kept scissors and glue sticks in their own separate container. 


I used to have things combined and in these pencil boxes where each kid could get a pencil box, but then things got mixed stuff. The tops were breaking off. Kids weren't putting them away. It was way more work for me. They wouldn't stack them correctly. And then also I realized having scissors and glue sticks always available is a disaster for hair cutting. So don't do that. for markers, I actually kept them out all the time. They aren't used very often. I hardly restocked markers, but I got those drawers that you can put the paper in. You know what I'm saying? I'll go get 1. If you're watching the video, I just went and got the drawers. So it's the drawers that you put, like, Printer paper in. There are 3 drawers typically. They're plastic made by sterile light very often, but if you get I'm showing it in my video, But if you get these drawers, I sorted all my markers by color, and then it was super easy for kids to find the color of marker that they needed. and then clean up was extremely simple because they would sort the markers, and they actually liked that organization. Had a lot of kids Tell me they liked my marker drawer. So a fun little tip for you. After you have your maker's space under control, let's get to those building supplies. Oftentimes these are things that can be reused over and over and over again. If you can write a grant or maybe have a little bit of funds, I totally recommend buying the same size buckets that are about those shoe box sizes for everything. And even if some of your materials are in multiple buckets, That is okay. For 1, it looks really nice on your shelves and everything stores nice and neat. So it's all organized and ready to go. I also started labeling these buckets again with pictures and words when I could, and then you can put movies around as needed. So you'll see in the video I have them in certain ways on the shelves. I would move these around based on the unit that I was teaching. 


So, again, they would stack nicely, but I could pull them out for station rotations very easily if there were things that were missing on the floor. I could pick them up and put them inside really fast. One little tip about that, this is part of your supplies. invest or just find something at your house, a small bucket that is your lost and found bucket. So I put mine by the tissues because kids, I don't know why I put it by the tissues, but I have a small bucket. And if kids find random things on the floor, which they will, they're gonna come bring them to you, and then I would say, okay. Go put it in the bucket, or I would take it and go put it in the bucket. And then, at random times throughout the day, I would go through the bucket and put all of the supplies away. So having all of those random materials in those clear buckets that you know you're gonna use over and over again is extremely helpful. Sometimes I will actually keep the original boxes for certain supplies if they're really awkward in size, like my dash robots, Those little boxes they come in are a great size, but more often than not, I will take everything out, recycle those boxes, and then put them in the same size so everything stacks nicely and they are easy to find. Along with those fancy materials like robots, I don't leave all of those things out all the time. For 1, I don't need my robots to be charging for months, months, months, If I know I'm gonna be using them in October, I don't need them out. that way, they're also safe, and very curious hands aren't playing with them all the time, but it's very nice for me every unit, I would set things up and get them ready to go. So if it's robotics, I would put the last units' things away, and it helped me keep things nice and clean throughout the year, so the end of the year was really, really easy to clean up. 


Then I would set up my robots for the month or so that I needed them. So consider that too because if you're having so many students come into your space, if you can keep things put away, I think it's definitely okay because it's not as stimulating, especially for students who obviously need that less of that stimulation, STEM has a lot going on already. And so if you can keep some of those distractions away, well, you'll get to them at some point, but you don't need to have them out all the time. Trust me. And finally, my personal favorite part is adding in that little bit of decoration. It's okay to have that little flair when you are decorating your space, but I will say less is more. and even investing in a little bit of paint, and you can add the color to the walls. I had one wall that was blue. That was perfect for blue screen. I had another wall that was green that was the wrong shade of green for green screen, but it looked cool. It had too much yellow in it, and so, the coloring was definitely off. but even having a pop of color can actually help with the decoration because I didn't need to hang up very much. When it came to things for actual units, that certain grade levels needed. I had one place on my wall where I would hang up those things like what is the challenge we're working on, special directions that work for specific grade levels, I would have one spot on the wall where that would change out all time and students knew that was going to change and, understand what they are learning. Then I went and have another spot when it came to content specific incur charts or posters related to the learning. More often than not, I actually would use a lot of digital posters when needed and pull those up for students based on the grade level that they're at. So I had two places where those things would change. 


Now when it comes to your actual setup or your classroom of things that you wanna have all year, again, less is more. One thing that I had when students came into the classroom is there was a STEM affirmation station. So I purchased one of those floor length mirrors pretty cheap at Walmart. It was $7. Purchased one of those hanging up on the wall, and there were different affirmations around there of different things that they could believe in their selves. Like, I am a scientist. I am a mathematician. All of these little resources, too, I'm mentioning. They will be linked in the show notes you don't have to go and create them. Save yourself some time. I got them all done for you. So that was something really fun. They would come in, and then while they were leaving, they would look at your themselves. I would check my hair in between classes. So with the teachers, when they're picking them up, so invest in a STEM affirmation station, It's always a good time for everybody. Along with that, something that I would keep up near my door, and then it also switched to the hallway just based on how I was feeling, but having a monthly bulletin board where you could switch that out easily, you can print cut, and hang, based on the different seasons of the year or what is going on in STEM is just a great way to keep engagement and spark that conversation. If you could hang up something like that where students line up, again, it gives them something to look at that has a learning experience, and it could possibly tie in with what you are learning as well. So once I printed all those out, I printed. I laminated. I cut them out, and had them in ziplock bags. So then, each month, I could easily switch those out. Took me 5 minutes. Switch those out. You can have a parent volunteer do that for you. and just a nice flair to think of STEM in a different way. 


Again, I have all these made for you, so don't even worry about it. Another great thing that I referred to throughout the years is having growth mindset sayings, and there were different things that we would focus on in our or things that I would say over and over again as it related to our Sam lessons and really to life. So having that available, again, All of these things that you have would be accessible to all grade levels, things that would connect throughout the years, and then you could, keep referring to them and the kids knew where to refer to them as well. Another cool addition is having a STEM and technology alphabet so how they can think about STEM in the real world, and if you wanted to even adding in key vocabulary that you're learning throughout the year. I started adding in the vocabulary. It got to be too much as contents change quite often. So just leaving up the vocabulary was a great place to start. and really helped along with different ways when we were spelling in our plans or doing some research that could help us with what we were working on. And also adding in a little bit of flair is totally okay. I mean, it's your classroom. Come on. You're there all day. so having things like, I would find things all over the place, Michaels, Amazon Hobby, or whatever. I have a, oh, man. I have a hard time saying no to these things, but, I'm holding up a sign that I loved. It says be the maker, and that was just a cute little wooden sign that I had. So even adding those little pops in there, conversation starters, one time when I was in Chicago with my teacher, honey, We were walking in this random place. They had little shops, and I paused. I'm like, oh my gosh. I know what that is. It was the patent for the Lego brick. And so when you look at a patent, they have to make sure they describe every part of the invention to make sure that people don't copy it. So super cool is on a board, and it was burned into the wood, and it was all about Lego bricks. 


So I ended up buying it, and I put it over by my 3D printers. I know they're not 3 d printed, but it was a cool place to put it. but it brought a lot of conversation. Like, kids would sit down there and talk about it. I used it a lot when we were talking about our plans and why we wanna have a detailed plan. and really think through our design. So it was just a cool piece that, yes, it was decorative, but it also brought good conversation. I also had these posters. It said boys can and girls can. And I found this Addie Farmer's market, actually, and it was really, showing and breaking down those gender stereotypes and how girls can really do those things that are traditionally that are made for boys. Like, we think a boy's doing and vice versa with the girls, and the kids loved this one. And that one definitely had a lot of, inspiration and great conversations. And I always started off. What surprises you about this? so just things like that where, yes, you're decorating your space, but how can they have a dual purpose? can there be a learning experience from that? So, very intentional about the things that I would hang up on my walls and keep all the time. Sometimes I'd hang things up for a little bit and then take them down. Like, I had a solar system. I kept up for a bit for a space unit. And, again, good conversation. And I took it down for a bit just just to change it up and keep it fresh. As a rate cap, here are those 3 STEM classroom back to school prep ideas that you can get started for the school year. First is setting up your maker's space and how you want that organized. Next is those building materials. And again, getting organized and having things in places that make sense and are usable. And finally having some decoration that is very purposeful and can relate to many lessons and grade levels. I hope the best for you when it comes to back to school season This is a very fun time when you are anticipating the students that are going to be coming into your classroom seeing ones that you might already know and it is such a very, very unique time that we as teachers get to enjoy. To help you with all of this back to school prep, All of those resources that I talked to you will be linked in the show notes where you can grab all of those things individually I also have them bundled together. There's a whole big STEM posters bundle that has all these back to school things and even more I didn't even share that can help you with your STEM space along with other content specific posters that can help you in your lessons as well. Thank you again so much for being here, and I will see you in the next episode.

stem classroom back to school prep

 

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More About your host, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

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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. 

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back to school stem activities

3 Back to School STEM Activities You Need [ep. 109]

3 Back to School STEM Activities You Need [ep.109]

back to school stem activities

Check out the full episode on 3 Back to School STEM Activities You Need:  

 

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Episode Summary

With back to school right around the corner, many of you are planning, prepping, and gearing up for the new school year. In today’s episode, I am sharing three back to school STEM activities that are great for helping your students get to know one another and set the foundation for many of the lessons you will implement throughout the school year.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Ideas for back to school STEM activities
  • The benefits of implementing these back to school STEM activities
  • How to effectively implement these activities in your STEM classroom

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


With so many options out there, which back to school STEM activities should you be doing with your students? There are those typical one-day challenges like building the tallest tower or flying the fastest paper airplane, which are all awesome. Keep doing those activities. But in this episode, I'm gonna be sharing with you a different take on back to school activities that you can do in your STEM space. So let's jump in on those creative ideas.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:04]:


Before we get started on this episode, I wanted to read another awesome review that was left by one of you over on Apple Podcasts. and this is from the vendor librarian. If you're new to STEM or just need some great ideas to keep your lessons fresh, Naomi can help. I am a school library media specialist and was asked to start incorporating STEM into my curriculum about 2 years ago. I have not had a lot of formal training and was basically piecing it together. I was excited to find Naomi's podcast earlier this year and really enjoy listening to ideas on how to teach and structure STEM in the classroom. Thank you so much for this review I think I've mentioned this before, but one of my top love languages is words of affirmation, and this definitely fills up my bucket. But not only that, writing a review like this, so if you guys wouldn't mind pausing the podcast, go and write a 5-star review over an Apple podcast. This helps other teachers like you who are in the STEM space are getting into this in their classrooms and help them know that this is the podcast that they're looking for.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:16]:


I've said it many times on here before, and even some of my podcast episodes are based on this, but I love a good theme. And my friends can definitely attest to that there are many times. We have done themes for things, and that even goes back into the classroom, and I think back to school is its own theme. I know right now, during this back to school time, you have all the prep, all the meetings, getting your classroom set up, which we're actually gonna talk about in the next episode things to do to prep. But when you are ready for that lesson planning, and you don't wanna feel overwhelmed, what are some things that you can do that are stand based that will actually work? So these 3 big main ideas that I'm gonna be sharing with you were favorites of my students and the most successful. So let's dive into these 3 back to school STEM activities that you can do with your students. First are those get to know you activities. And if you are a STEM specialist and, of course, as a classroom teacher, you know how important this is.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:23]:


But even as a STEM specialist, this is something that you can do in your room. Now there are a couple of benefits to this, actually. Think about your students who are coming into your space during this back to school time. They're working on community building and getting to know each other in their own classroom. So the same is true in your space. And maybe you've been doing this for a few years now, and you already know all the kids, but they might not know each other in that class setting. Here and there, you might have a class set loops, whatever. But for the most part, they mostly don't know each other when it comes to being in the same class together.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:05]:


So doing these get to knowing activities in a STEM way is a cool way for them to learn about each other and even themselves and for you that you might not have known before. So how can you do this? How can you do some get to know activities in your STEM space? Well, you can make the experience, of course, hands-on. A very big top favorite, and I know another STEM teacher that I talked to this summer, this was also a favorite of her students. It was an all about me Lego Brick Build. So I have different questions that I display on the screen, and buckets of mixed Lego bricks around the room, or you can give kids their own little buckets if you're worried about the sharing piece, But, anyway, they have mixed buckets of LEGO bricks available to them, and each of the questions will ask them something, and if it's true about them, they grab that many bricks or that color of bricks. So something like grab 5 orange Lego pieces if you saw a movie this summer. Now the way that I wrote these questions was to help them not be exclusive.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:14]:


A movie you watched this summer is more inclusive. Maybe you went to the theaters. Maybe you watched a movie at home. Maybe you watched a movie at Grandma's house. Maybe you watched it on your iPad. So that can have a lot of different interpretations and help kids get involved. And while they're digging for their legos, they are talking to the kids at their table, and then this frees me up as well.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:34]:


I'm talking to the kids. So if you're worried about kids wanting to talk in your classroom, this is a good way to get kids to talk. And there are also some math extensions too if you wanna get to the rows and columns of the LEGO bricks, add that little bit of math piece in there. So I've created those different slides where it’s easy literally, like, no prep and so much fun. And then, of course, once they have all the LEGO bricks, they get to build with them. Another thing that you can do with the same LEGO bricks. You could do this on the same day, is have different items that represent the school, and students can build those things like a back to school engineer inspiration. So, again, you can display those images up on the screen or even send it to students digitally, and then they can build how they think those items should look with the LEGO bricks or whatever building materials you have on hand. Now maybe you'll want to take your back to school STEM activities in a digital way, which I am all for.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:36]:


I love a mixture of paper, but also a mixture of digital. This works really well if you have devices available in your classroom or even if your students are one to 1 and they are carrying devices into your room, this is a good way to sneak in those little tips when it comes to logging into technology because I know that that can be a whole struggle in itself. and any extra work with that in the STEM space, you're definitely helping out the classroom teachers as well. So you can assign a digital activity that will help you get to know your students in a STEM way. The first way is going through, and you could do a different letter a day. This actually would work really well, a different letter a day. But go through what STEM means, and you have a different slide, one for each letter, And you, as the teacher, this is what I did. But I had my slide completed, and I had it up on the screen when students came in.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:32]:


and it just had a picture of me, like, just sitting there on the screen with the different things that I liked about that letter and STEM. So, for example, science. I had up on the screen the slide for science, and there was a big picture of me. Now it was funny the kids were like, who's that lady at all? That's me, guys. So that was a good introduction. And then this was for the letter s in STEM for science. And we talked about the things in science that I really, really like and what science means. And so I had things up there like, oh my gosh.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:07]:


I love sea lions. They are my favorite there, like, what slippery puppies. Raise your hand if you also like sea lions. I'm like, awesome. Good job. I also like the solar system. It intrigues me. I probably would never want to go into space, but I love learning about it.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:25]:


Hands up, thumbs up if you agree with me. So things like that were they got to know me. That was the introduction, and then they got to complete their slide as well. And it also embedded those skills like logging in, getting to the assignment, and also inserting an image in the text box, which are really good skills to have because they can carry into different platforms. Likewise, another one that I did with older students is we did an apps about me activity. This could be printed too, but adding in those digital components is really, really fun, and the students really love this and learn new things from each other. So with this one, there is no coding involved, but you send the kids a template that has different apps I'm putting in quotations. but different apps that they are going to create, and they are all about them.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:15]:


So one of the apps, one of the slides that they are designing, is the food ordering app. And if they could have their perfect menu and where things are delivered from or they are served, what would that app have, so learning their favorite foods. So those types of things are really great. I actually mix these in throughout the week, so day 1 is where I'll really focus on a get to know me activity. And then I might cycle this through even the 2nd month I see them. I've talked on here that I had kids 5 days in a row, so I had the same 5 kids all Monday through Friday, but I would mix those in throughout the week. So if it was a fast finisher, if they are finished with that part, they could go and work on this project throughout the week. So it's good to have that on hand.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:02]:


And then kids are even working on it in their classrooms, which is awesome. They are super excited about this activity. Another back to school STEM activity that you can use in your classroom is outdoor learning. More likely than not, you are going back to school. and the weather's still hot and nice. And kids have been used to playing outside. So why not take that to your advantage? I've talked about this before here on the podcast, specifically back in episode 4, but that is STEM survival camp. One of my favorite units that I have ever taught, and I also love sharing with teachers.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:42]:


this was kind of a happy accident. Go back and listen to that episode. You can hear how I actually started STEM survival camp, and I actually didn't start my year off with this. I used to do digital citizenship, which we'll talk about super important, but this was an awesome, awesome way to start off the year. So if you have ever heard of STEM survival camp, all of these challenges involve things where students are collecting items from outdoors. So you are providing a few of the makers' space materials, but the majority of the things they are finding outside. And if you even want to, depending on where you live, you could have students build outside. So that's a really great bonus as well to be out in the fresh air because most of us in the STEM space are in classrooms without windows.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:30]:


So the different challenges k through 5 are different things that if they were left alone out in the wilderness, what are those types of things that they would need to know how to do to survive the elements? So we start off with kindergarten across the river challenge. 1st grade, design a fishing pole, 2nd grade, protect the food challenge. 3rd grade design a game from the land because if you're out long, your phone's probably gonna die eventually, and you need to stay entertained. 4th grade's a little bit different. They actually learn a life skill, and they are designing a hiking backpack. So I actually teach them how to sew hand stitching. And then 5th grade is the build a shelter challenge, where they design a shelter to withstand the elevates.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:14]:


So lots of different fun things going on, so every grade has a different challenge. And, again, some of the materials are from outside. Some are the things that I provide them. which is a great way to embed how to use materials in the maker space. It is not a free for all for this challenge. In fact, It is never usually a free for all entirely. But with this one, I have very specific materials that they have the option of using in addition to the things that they buy on that side. And this helps them learn the management of those things, like managing the tape allotment that you have, how to cut tape, and how to measure the string that you need for your design.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:55]:


So those types of things are really helpful with minimal tools so that they're still being creative, but creativity with constraints. Another great thing too is that this naturally promotes collaboration and creativity in a hands-on way. So I'm not telling them, alright. Be creative. Good luck. Here's how you should design it. We're looking at examples from the real world, showing examples that past students have done, and having them work together to complete this challenge. Likewise, if you are hoping to teach the engineering design process as the process that you're using in your classroom when it comes to project learning, then this, again, is another way to go through those steps where I'm not saying, alright.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:38]:


Ask is a step of the engineering design process. Imagine is the next one. It's all embedded in there. So I'm all about embedding things and having them come to life instead of having things in isolation. And this whole unit is definitely a way to do that. And bonus, if you're already setting up your classroom anyway, I actually would set up my whole classroom as a camping theme. So again, go back to episode 4. I tell you all about it there.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:07]:


And the last back to school STEM activity theme that you can try in your classroom is all about digital citizenship. This involves quite a few things, and you don't need to do this all at once. It's overwhelming for you as a teacher, but it's also overwhelming for the kids. They're tired at the end of the day. There's a lot of new information coming at them. So put it in bits by bit by bit that will make sense for them So, in the long run, they can be successful. Back in episode 10, I talk about the top technology skills that your students need to know, and these are perfect for what you can do throughout the week or the first couple of months of school when they are handling technology appropriately. So it's just those basic things like how to manage your headphones, things like that, where are they stored in the classroom? Are you having students bring those in from their homeroom classroom? How is that working in your class? I actually have little mini lessons tied to these and little technology badges that they can earn physically or digitally.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:14]:


So that will be linked in the show notes for you. So you can actually see And even some of them, I have, like, the videos of me teaching them, like cleaning devices, things like that where your students can hear or you as a teacher can hear the language and then present that to your students in your own way. Also, don't forget your classroom rules I think have fun is kind of a weird rule. I don't think it should be a rule to have fun. It might not be fun all the time. You might be frustrated. That's not fun. but think about your classroom rules.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:45]:


And a few of them actually might involve technologies. So I have some kid-friendly posters that I use with my students, k through 5, again, linked in the show notes for you. Maybe your school or district is thinking about having a device contract for using devices or borrowing them. You might need to talk through those types of things. Is that part of your role, or do you need to reiterate that in your space? I have an editable one that you can grab that has a great starting point, and also some posters that go along with that, so some reminders. when they are using technology, what are those things that they need to do? And, finally, what do you need to do as a teacher? Now this isn't really you teach, but I just wanted to put this in there. Think about your own digital citizenship. And maybe you are in charge of the schoolwide technology.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:36]:


I was also that I talked about that in the last episode. A big part of my role is that I was the technology person, and so think about those things that teachers need to know so that they can be successful. And I highly, highly recommend doing this. I know it takes a little bit of work upfront. But if you can find videos or you can record videos of you answering commonly asked questions, then this is gonna save you time in the long run because you have that on that checklist. And then if teachers are asking you throughout the year, especially if it's things that are related to two things that they're working on with students, then you can send them that video link again or say, oh, it's over here on this checklist. Here's the link to the checklist. So then that's ready to go.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:20]:


So I'm just putting that in there. That's a side note. But keep that in mind because this is something I would resend to people all the time because I already answered it. So there's that resource for you. I am like Google, apparently. So here's the here's that link that'll help you out. So back to the kids, you have those basic technology skills that you were constantly teaching and re-teaching, and this goes the whole year. This isn't going to go away.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:46]:


But keep that in mind. That's something that you were doing starting out with back to school. but then you also want to get into those digital citizenship lessons. How are they interacting with the online space? Again, that is something that is not going away. That is something that kids need to learn how to be successful, and they might not be learning this at home. So think about those very specific digital citizenship lessons. I do have an episode all about digital citizenship that can help you out with this. When you're thinking about my year and how the order of things that I taught, I started off the year with STEM survival camp.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:22]:


So having that collaboration and working on the engineering design process, all that fun, then the 2nd month was specifically about digital citizenship. I actually used to teach digital citizenship as a unit first because some survival camp didn't exist yet, but then I actually switched it to month 2, and it worked so much better because the kids are settled into the school year. The teachers are ready to use more technology, and they were ready for these types of lessons. So there are some great resources out there, but I'm thinking about adding a STEM twist. How can you make these lessons interactive and hands-on? So I created different things that go along with private and personal information. How can we be kind online? What does it mean to have safe websites that we can explore? So those types of things that a hands-on way is really beneficial to really make it stick in their brain. Hopefully, the classroom teachers are talking about this too. Maybe you are a classroom teacher, and you're like, oh, and you talk about that.


Naomi Meredith [00:19:24]:


But, hopefully, this is just another way how can you reiterate this very, very important information. If you are wondering exactly how I lay out my year, the order of things, and what graded levels get what, you can download my year-long plan for absolutely free, and you can grab that at naomimeredith.com/yeardlongplan. And this, again, will be linked in the show notes. As a recap, here are those 3 back to school STEM activities that you can use in your classroom. First are some get to know you activities and have your STEM twist. Next is outdoor learning Take those kids outside. It's probably still nice out. And finally, different ways to teach digital citizenship.


Naomi Meredith [00:20:11]:


All of these lessons that I have talked about are linked in the show notes for you, and you can grab those individually if there's a specific one that you really, really loved. or I've also bundled them up nicely so you can have a whole collection of things, especially if you teach a lot of kids, you need a lot of stuff. If you wanna hear about more back to school STEM activities, you can actually go to episode 7, where I talk about more things that you can use in your STEM space. Thank you again so much for being here, and I'll see you in the next episode.

back to school stem activities

 

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

3 Things You Can Do Now to Prep for Back to School STEM [ep.90]

3 Things You Can Do Now to Prep for Back to School STEM [ep.90]

back to school stem

Check out the full episode on 3 Things You Can Do Now to Prep for Back to School STEM:  

 

 

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Episode Summary

With summer break around the corner, for many of you, back to school may be the furthest thing from your mind. Before you go into summer break mode, I want to challenge you to think about back to school. In today’s episode, I am sharing three things you can do now to help you prep for back to school STEM.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 3 ways you can prep for back to school STEM now
  • Tips for successfully implementing these strategies
  • An overview of how I have used these strategies to prepare for back to school STEM

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith  00:00

Summer break is around the corner, and I bet the last thing you want to do is think about back to school. Before you pack up and head out for a couple of months, there are a couple of things that you can do now that will help you be prepared for the dreaded or exciting back to school. Something that I like to tell myself is I like to thank past Naomi, so when I do things that sets myself up for future Naomi, I always thank my past self, and I know it's a silly thing to do, but it's just kind of fun, because you're like, “Oh, thanks, Past Naomi for doing this.” So you want to be in that situation as well, doing things now at the end of the school year that can prep you for back to school. So here are three things that you can do now in your STEM space, so you can thank your past self later. 


Naomi Meredith  01:25

If you are listening to this episode live, there are a few days left to join into my STEM into summer group coaching program. During our 16 weeks together, starting in June 2023, you will take an audit of your lesson plans and all of the materials that you have in your space, get feedback, and that will set us up for our time together to prep you for your whole STEM year long plan. And the lessons that will be unique to your space, have audio access to me and also weekly calls with the other members in the group so that you don't have to feel alone like you're on an island. And you can feel successful going into the STEM school year. You can get a special 25% off discount for being a podcast listener. When you go to check out make sure to use this code STEMSUMMERPOD. I would love to be your STEM coach in your back pocket and help you this summer. So make sure you jump in on that before the doors close. And you can access that at Naomimeredith.com/stemintosummer. 


Naomi Meredith  02:34

It is a little bit weird thinking about back to school when it is end of school, and you're barely keeping your head afloat not to mention all of the crazy things that are happening outside of the school year. I totally get it, listen to me recording this podcast now. I'm actually pretty calm when it comes to the school stuff. But all of the things outside of school, my wedding coming up, I don't know why we picked June eighth as our wedding date now that it's almost here. But here we are. But thinking about back to school, it's not so bad. And these are some things that are actually really easy to implement, that actually take up a lot of time when it comes to back to school with all the meetings and all the things and all the planning. So if you do these things now, going into the school year, or even if you are going to do some things over the summer, it isn't going to be that bad. So trust me on this one. 


Naomi Meredith  03:27

The first thing that you can do now to prep for your STEM back to school is have a supply refresh the last month of school. I actually like to do a whole Makerspace unit to actually help clean out all of my Makerspace supplies. So I like to do my STEM-musement Park lessons, which you can find in my TPT shop. Those are slowly being added and updated. But a really, really fun unit for end of school year or even back to school year. But it is a great time to do those Makerspace lessons where kids are actually using the supplies in your classroom. Of course not unlimited, but you're using those things. So then you can actually restock with maybe things that you have on hand. You maybe can ask for donations if classroom teachers or even parents are doing a spring cleaning, but then you can get everything organized and restocked for your back to school. Also thinking about spring cleaning, a lot of classroom teachers might be getting rid of supplies that can be of great help to you. Maybe there is a new science curriculum that is going to be added in the upcoming school year and those older supplies that still work just fine are no longer needed. So this is a great time to do some hallway shopping to see if there's anything that can be added to your space for free. In turn, you might need to go through your items as well. Are there things that you haven't used in a while or come to find out it's actually meant for older students or maybe even way younger students? Can you get rid of those things, either donating or even just throwing away. Also, are there things that are broken? Are there things that are under warranty, or you need to contact the company to get a placement? I know it's a little bit annoying to do this at the end of the year. But trust me, when it comes to back to school, you're not going to want to be doing this, especially when it comes to the items you need to contact the companies for. The end of the school year is really great because for them, they're not as busy right now. And so you probably can get the replacement a lot quicker that way. I've done this where there are some microphones in teachers classrooms, there were a few that weren't working. I did this at the end of the year, and I actually had them send the replacement to my house, which was no big deal for them, they did not mind. And then when it was back to school time, I could take them into school. So just a little tip for you there. Also, you could collect unwanted supplies. Sometimes there are those donations of supplies by parents, or even when the classroom teachers have all the students supplies, they have the community supplies, and they sometimes don't always give that back to the students. So this is a great way if there's teachers who are trying to get rid of those things like extra crayons, glue sticks, colored pencils, there's a cool time for you to restock your items as Well. Then you can even re label some things, I have some great editable labels for your Makerspace for your entire space, that have pictures and words that you can give a refresh. And then maybe if you even have empty drawers, you know what you're going to put in there. So this is a great time to reorganize, I always always do this at the end of the school year. And I always feel so good coming back to back to school. And this is one less thing that I have to worry about when it comes to your supply inventory. Also think about making a list of the things that you might want to purchase or knowing you have a budget coming up or there's going to be grant opportunities, you can start making lists of that. In the STEM into summer group coaching program, I actually have a whole template for you to use, that will make inventory your supplies a whole lot easier. So you could see what you have what you might want to purchase. And then also this will help you set you up for success when it comes to your lesson planning and the types of lessons that you might want to do in the future. 


Naomi Meredith  07:14

The second thing that you can do at the end of the school year to help set you up for success for back to school is to reflect on your lessons, maybe you are going to be a STEM teacher and you already have some ideas brewing, write those down, try to get those organized by grade level. Maybe you've already taught STEM for a while reflect on the lessons, what has worked Well. What do you need to get rid of? What do you need to modify? Could you add this for a higher grade or a lower grade? Really reflect on those lessons. What standards are you using? How long did it take to do a lesson? So really going through this process while it's fresh in your mind, when you actually are diving into this lesson planning whether it is over the summer, or just certain points throughout the school year, you're not trying to wrack your memory like oh, what did I do? How did this lesson go? Do it now while it's fresh. And again, I have a template for you that will make this easier with drop down menus, having this in a digital space for you, where you can sort it out by grade level have those content themes have those standards all in one place. So then when you are modifying your year long plan, you have everything ready to go. And you can get that in my STEM into summer group coaching program. 


Naomi Meredith  08:32

And finally, something to do at the end of the year to help you for back to school year and really beyond is build your STEM community. Right in this moment. What kind of STEM community do you have? Is your community a one way street? Are you just accessing all of these free resources out there, but you're not really having that chance where you can actually interact with people and know their names and really build that connection. So here are some suggestions that I have for you to really start building your sound community, you could do one of these things, or really, you could do all of them. A good way to get started is to see if there are other teachers in your district who have a similar position to you. This will help you feel less alone as an island and especially if they're in your district. You can talk about district wide initiatives and that can be really helpful, especially if there are things that are being pushed out to all of the STEM teachers, you guys can have that camaraderie so maybe me over the summer, have some adult drinks have some coffee. That way you guys can get to know each other and then hit the ground running when it comes into the school year. Likewise, see if there are any conferences that you can attend. I love conferences so much. In fact, I am part of a board for a local conference here in Colorado InnEdCO which I have a whole episode about it. You don't have to live in Colorado to attend, but I talk all about that in that past episode. I love this conference so much, and how valued that I feel as an educator, that I'm getting married and then going to the conference and then going on my honeymoon. That's how much I love it and just love innovative education, I can't get away with that, even with my wedding coming up. So think about if there's any in person conferences that you can attend, because really talking with teachers, and being surrounded by people who speak I have an air quotations, your own language is really, really powerful. Also, if you want some digital ways to interact, which is super powerful as well find me on Instagram  @NaomiMeredith_. I am there to chat and help be your cheerleader along the way, and help you find the resources that you need to be successful. Likewise, we have our growing community of the STEM teacher bookshelf membership, where we have some awesome books that we will be reading this summer, that will give you more some ideas to help you with your planning. We have coming up in June and vent to learn. And all of these books, by the way, have a guide that I have put together. So I read all of the books, I make a guide to help you capture your thinking. So we have An Event to Learn in June. And then we have a Makerspaces in Schools for July. And then there's some other cool ones coming up. And you also get all of the past reading guides as well. So you have all of that questions weekly where you guys can chat and connect with each other. And then we also have a monthly live call where we can communicate. And then if you are looking for something deeper, where you really want that feedback, you really want to talk with me one on one and also other teachers who are ready to dive in and take their lesson planning to the next level. There are a few spots open in the seventh to summer group coaching program, where guests we have the STEM teacher bookshelf, where we're talking about the books and related themes. But this is where we actually can get hands on into your lesson planning where you don't feel alone and really create the thing of your dreams and build a program that will be stable, and have the systems and routines that you are looking for. 


Naomi Meredith  12:11

As a recap, here are the three things that you can do now at the end of the school year to prep yourself for the back to school when it comes to STEM. First, we talked about having a whole supply refresh. Next is reflecting on your lessons. And third is building up your STEM community. I hope that you had an awesome school year or whatever you ended up teaching and that you were hopefully giving time to yourself this summer to relax. But if you feel like you need to do school stuff, too. That's okay. Do what's best for you spend some time outside, go on a walk, do all the fun things. And I'm excited to support you throughout the summer. We will still have episodes this summer, maybe even a little longer because I know you'll have time. But there's some fun things planned for you this summer. And I can't wait to support you in all of the various ways. Thank you so much again for listening to this podcast can't believe we are already in the nine days for the episodes, which is super amazing. And I can't wait for the next 90 episodes whatever they may be.

back to school 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!