Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:

Are you in the season where you are trying to update your STEM schedule and work it out with all the other specials teachers? Or maybe, on the flip side, your school or district is thinking about having a STEM program and wondering how we could space out the kids. In this episode, we are gonna be talking about different types of class schedule examples for elementary STEM to help you brainstorm and give ideas of what would work best for your school. When I was looking through my episodes and when you guys reached out to me, I really appreciated it when you asked if there was a podcast episode about this. And here and there, in my episodes, I have talked about my schedule in STEM, but I was looking through everything, and I didn't have one specific episode that talked about the different kinds of schedules I have had, and then also what your guys' schedules were. So, I really appreciate those of you who responded back to me on Instagram. Thank you so much for sharing your schedules.

Naomi Meredith [00:01:42]:

There are so many different ones that I've never even heard of, and I will be sharing those today. For this episode, there isn't any video, and I plan that purposely because I'm gonna be sharing a lot from my notes. When I record with video, I look at my notes, but then I look at the cameras at the same time. I stop, look, blah blah blah. And for this one, since I'm talking about a lot of time frames and sharing your responses, there is no video for this one. And it's such a shame because I'm all dressed up, and actually, my makeup looks really good. But before we dive into that really quick, I wanted to share with you that I will be presenting at Wonder Workshop's spring international STEAM summit for 2024. It's absolutely free.

Naomi Meredith [00:02:30]:

And if you're listening to this after the fact, that's totally okay. They usually have the replay somewhere. So make sure to check out their website or check out their Instagram at wonderworkshop, and you can see more about it and how you can register, and that is in the 1st full week of May. So super fun. Just in time for teacher appreciation, I will be presenting about Wonder Workshop Theme Station. So, that was really fun to plan and really incorporate all the different things that you can do with their tools, with the robot, that is my fave, and other things as well. Likewise, it's all about the presentations this month. Been working a lot on those and doing a lot of recording.

Naomi Meredith [00:03:15]:

But inside my STEM Career Quest club, an exclusive club for my ultimate questies, we have our 1st on demand virtual field trip coming up. So, I will be coming at you with an engaging presentation that is for your students, and this is something that they don't just sit and get. I will actually be asking them questions. There are interactive documents or worksheets. I hate saying worksheets because it's actually activities that go along with the presentation where I made 3 different levels for each activity. So while they're interacting with me, even though it is on demand, they will be doing a lot, and you actually will be pausing to complete the things, and we go over the answers and explore. So this month the on demand presentation is all about bugs, and I have some special never before seen clips with the bug chicks. When I recorded with them, we actually explored some bugs together with their microscope.

Naomi Meredith [00:04:15]:

So when you're in the club, you always have access to that. It's so perfect for the end of the year. I know a lot of you talk about life cycles and outdoor exploration at this time of year in the spring, so this is a great addition. If you need sub plans, it's me teaching your students. So this has been really fun to put together because I do this for you, but then for that other podcast and all that content, it's me teaching kids, which I also absolutely love. So those will both be linked in the show notes and excited to see you in both of those places. Alright. So, what can those different schedules look like? And when you are in the elementary space, what does it actually look like in terms of time frames? As I said, I know this can vary from school to school, but in my 5 years of teaching k through 5 STEM, I had different schedules.

Naomi Meredith [00:05:14]:

And I'm also gonna share with you what my schedule was like for specials when I actually was a classroom teacher. Alright. So, my 1st year teaching k through 5 STEM was very interesting. For the 1st semester, I only taught 4 days a week, and I actually didn't work Mondays. And it all worked out. I'm telling you, the schedule is so interesting. I only worked 4 days a week, and students had STEM on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. I had the same 6 classes, k through 5 in a row.

Naomi Meredith [00:05:56]:

So Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, I saw the same exact kids. And we, at the time at my school, had a class called assets, which was all about character development and being kind and making good, social emotional decisions for yourself and for others. So those same kids that I had Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, they had assets Monday and Tuesday. So I told you I had Mondays off. I didn't have those kids on Tuesdays, and that was set up for me to co-teach with the teachers in my building to implement STEM and technology. So, we'll go back to the co-teaching model. So we'll get back to that. So Tuesdays was that open time.

Naomi Meredith [00:06:41]:

For their specials time, if the kids were in assets and stem, that was the same week. And then the other 3 grade levels, so we had 4 of each class. So 4 3rd grades, 4 4th grades, all of that. The other kids would have art for the week, PE for the week, music for the week. So I know it's super lucky that I saw the same kids in a row, but it was kind of hard that 1st year seeing them only 3 days a week because I was just getting started and figuring everything out. I did see the classes, 1st grade through 5th grade, for 45 minutes. So they would be 45 minutes. I would get about 5 minutes in between each class to transition, and I would do 3 classes in the morning, would have lunch, and then have 3 in the afternoon.

Naomi Meredith [00:07:36]:

For kindergarten at the time that year, so this is in 2018, kindergarten was only 20 minutes because they were half day. So, from what I remember, I actually had 4 in the morning, now that I'm saying this out loud. 4 in the morning, 4 in the afternoon, because we had the morning kindergarten come and then the afternoon kindergarten come. So 20 minutes was really, really fast. It was really good for kindergarten to have 20 minutes for that beginning of the year. That actually was enough time. But after winter break, it was way too fast. We couldn't get anything done.

Naomi Meredith [00:08:20]:

It was such a waste of time for everybody. So I thought it would be cool if we never did this. Eventually, our school went to full-time kindergarten, so my schedule changed, and I'll talk about that too. But I thought it'd be cool if it were still 45 minutes for kindergarten, and they would switch specials at that halfway point. So maybe they came to STEM for 20 minutes, and then they went to art for 20 minutes. So they could break up that stamina just for the 1st semester. And I have heard of schools and friends who taught who used to do this just to get the kids used to what specials is, because, you know, with kindergarten, they're like, where's my teacher? Who are you? Why are we here? I'm tired. So that was very interesting.

Naomi Meredith [00:09:02]:

So 45 minutes overall is a great amount of time. It does move quickly. If this is your 1st year or 2 teaching STEM, it moves by really fast, but it still works out. Then I had so that had that 3 days a week schedule. So Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, I had those same kids. On Tuesdays, I would co-teach. Then, in the 2nd semester, things changed, and on Mondays, I actually taught GT Science. So for some reason, we had a lot of kids identified with gifted and talented in science.

Naomi Meredith [00:09:37]:

So I did a lot of project based learning with a group of 3rd graders, 4th graders, and 5th graders on Mondays, and that was about 45 minutes to an hour on Mondays. And then the other times, I would use to do some technology troubleshooting because I was the technology person. Or I would flip flop some of that with my Tuesdays where I would meet with, classroom teachers to do some co planning or maybe I would pop in their room that day. So my set times on Mondays, when it lined up with their science times in class, were with those 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders separately. And then it was more flexible during the Monday Tuesday what worked best on meeting with the classroom teachers and what they needed. After COVID, things changed in our budgets, and that asset class, didn't exist anymore, but we still needed the kids to be in specials for a full week. So my last 2 years teaching STEM is when I went to 5 days a week, and that is when we had full day kindergarten, and everybody was 45 minutes. So that is when I had, everybody for 45 minutes.

Naomi Meredith [00:10:49]:

It started at I had my planned time first thing, so I didn't talk about that. That was for the whole 5 years. Plan time was always first thing in the morning, and so we had 45 minutes for plan time every morning for my 5 years. That was so amazing. I loved it in the mornings. 45 minutes, and then 5th grade started right at 8:45, had them for 45 minutes. There was a 5 minute transition, then I had 4th grade. I had a 10 minute transition by this point.

Naomi Meredith [00:11:17]:

Then I had 3rd grade for 45 minutes. Then I had my lunchtime, which I feel so bad for saying this, but I had a 45 minute lunch. So it just worked out. We had a 45 minute lunch, and I did not have to do any duties. I did not have to watch kids during this time. It was my lunchtime. So I had lunch, and then right at 12, so it was 11:15 to 12, was our lunch, specials teachers. Then 1st grade came in for 45 minutes, had a 10 minute break.

Naomi Meredith [00:11:50]:

Our transition is not really a break. Let's go to the bathroom. 10 minutes, and then kindergarten came in for 45 minutes, and then I ended the day well, 10 minute transition, ended the day with 2nd grade. Then that freed up some time. If we had after school duties, we could get to those on time, set up for after school clubs since me and my teammates all had after school clubs. So that was my schedule for the last 2 years. Back to that year or 2, it was a couple years. It was 3 years.

Naomi Meredith [00:12:20]:

Let's be honest. It was 3 years. COVID was a weird year. My schedule is different. But the years that I had the kids 3 days a week, there was a year where I was getting paid through a grant on Mondays. I didn't end up having GT Science for my last 2 years. I in the 3 days a week. On Mondays, I had 8 classes a day.

Naomi Meredith [00:12:43]:

I do not recommend having 8 classes a day. That was horrible. It was 35 minutes with 2 minute transitions between classes and a 30 minute lunch. It was so stressful. I was so sweaty. It was so, so fast. Teachers liked that bonus extra plan time, so that left I was teaching 8 classes a day on Mondays, co teaching on Tuesdays, and then that Wednesday through Friday schedule teaching STEM as a specials. It was insane, and I had talked to my principal, like, this is not good.

Naomi Meredith [00:13:18]:

I don't recommend it. If that's where your principal's thinking of doing, oh, you can do it. Just 35 minutes. You get nothing done. It's horrible. The behavior, it's just you have no patience after 8 classes. There's no way. And it would be 2 grade levels.

Naomi Meredith [00:13:31]:

So my worst days were when I had kindergarten, all 4 in a row, back to back to back, and then 5th grade, back to back to back. No. That's not true. It was 1st grade. You guys know how I feel about 1st graders and 5th graders. They're, like, the same. And I talked to my principal. I'm like, I can't I cannot do 8 classes a day.

Naomi Meredith [00:13:52]:

So we ended up splitting it where I had 4 on Mondays, 4 on Tuesdays, and then I would fill in the time with co teaching and technology troubleshooting. So very, very interesting, all the different schedules. I did mention co teaching, and so this was a model that I was doing. I built it in my schedule, talked to classroom teachers whether I was planning with them or I was teaching with them, all those things. I do have an episode with my friend, Becca McMillan, and she talks about her co teaching experience. And I do have an episode coming out this summer. I'm going to do a whole series of where STEM is in all sorts of places. And I'm gonna record one episode dedicated to co teaching.

Naomi Meredith [00:14:35]:

So I did map out my episodes. I do have that coming up this summer. When I was a classroom teacher, different school, STEM was actually not in the rotation ever. The kids never regularly went to STEM. STEM was actually a 100% co teaching, And we didn't have as many things. STEM was kind of new then, so we did do some coding and robotics. We did a lot more technology integration, but when this is when I was a classroom teacher when I taught 3rd grade, we would meet with our STEM technology teacher every trimester. We would sit down with her for a half day planning as a grade level, plan a unit thoughtfully, came up with the lessons, what are the students gonna be doing, and then we figure out the time she would be coming in and teaching that with our students.

Naomi Meredith [00:15:22]:

So that was really effective when it came to the planning side, where that was actually really respected and how that was set up. So that was really cool too. She would be in our room for about an hour, and it was whenever that worked best. So maybe we moved reading that day or, whatever was coming up. So that was a really cool model also. Alright. To your guys' schedules, this is what you guys told me, and so many different schedules. So thank you again so much for sharing.

Naomi Meredith [00:15:53]:

I think this is really helpful for people to hear. I'm gonna post these on the show notes. So for every episode, there are show notes. They go linked to my website. So I took screenshots, and so I will post those on the show notes so you can see what people say. So in no particular order, leapy 829 told me that her stem schedule is a 6 day cycle. Each day, it's a different grade. Then it's 40 minute periods, either 5 or 6 classes.

Naomi Meredith [00:16:29]:

So it sounds like on Mondays, it's all Tuesday. On Tuesday, it's all 3rd grade. On Wednesday, it's all 4th grade. That's what that sounds like to me for 40 minutes. So that's interesting. It would change things up for your planning. At missus_selee says, every class, once, every 2 weeks. And she has 1st through 5th grade for an hour and then little, so that could be kindergarten and or pre k, for a half an hour.

Naomi Meredith [00:16:59]:

So half an hour can be good. So every class once every 2 weeks. So, they have stem twice a month. At jackeline510 says, one thing I love about my schedule is I see the same grade all day, and she sent me a picture. I was able to take a screenshot. So while I'm looking at this, it looks like her plan time actually changes based on the day, which is so interesting because mine, I could count on. And it looks like her lunchtime changes every day too. So her prep, different every single day.

Naomi Meredith [00:17:41]:

It looks like she has a 40 minute prep consistently. And so if she is teaching kindergarten, she has kindergarten all day. And she also has open lab time. So I'm wondering if teachers get to check out their lab, which is pretty cool. And then it looks like she gets kids for 40 minutes. So it looks like she sees the whole school in 1 week, and then it starts all over again. So that would be a lot to keep track of. She has everything color coded, so I will post that picture.

Naomi Meredith [00:18:13]:

Atcaitlin_flynn19 says that her classes are 45 minutes. She sees k through 5 every 6 days in a rotation, and then she has middle school classes every day. So it sounds like from what I'm getting, having the having the same 5 classes in a row is very, very rare. I was talking to Sarah for a bit at miss geeky teacher and I heard I message a lot about other things too. So hope I get to meet you in person, Sarah. Whenever you listen to this, tell me in the DMs when you heard it. But she sent me a picture too. She sent me an image that, I will also post in the show notes.

Naomi Meredith [00:18:54]:

She has also same kinda thing, a 6 day rotation. So k through 5, so one every day, it's a different group. 50 minutes per class, so that's a cool at least you get that much time, and she only sees them once every 6 school days. Okay. So her is hers is very color coordinated for the schedule. And, you you know, when you look at other people's schedules, you're like, wait. What is the coding? So they have a a, b, c, d, e, and f group. And it looks like she sees one of each grade.

Naomi Meredith [00:19:30]:

So she'll see a different 1st grade class on Monday, a different one on Tuesday, different one on Wednesday. Same thing. So if, like, you're in the c group, she'll see all the c groups on Monday, and then she'll see all the c groups on Tuesday. Pretty sure I'm reading that correctly. So she'll always teach k through 5 what it looks like, but it's a different group every day. So I know there are a ton of other schedules out there. My personal preference is if you can see them multiple days in a row that you can do those longer projects. But if you can't either, that really can adjust your teaching where you have quick one day lessons.

Naomi Meredith [00:20:12]:

Maybe there is a related theme for the month, but maybe the project doesn't carry on. So I hope this really helps you when you are thinking about the schedule and how that can align with everything and what can work best for your school. Maybe it is a mixture of co teaching and they have specials. I do notice, like, with these trends, 40 to 50 minutes seems to be the best time frame. 30 minutes, like I said, can be good for the littles, 30 to 35 minutes. But I would not recommend for the older kids because, really, it's not enough time for the transitions, for the teachers on both sides, the classroom teacher who's giving them to you and for you. Likewise, if you are needing support with anything else, I do have all the episodes organized for free into playlist. So if there is a specific topic you really want to hear more about, maybe it's just robotics and coding, maybe you just wanna hear about systems and routines, I regularly go through and update and sort those, so it's pretty cool where you get that link, and then it pops up into your podcast player and sorts all of them, based on those categories, which is pretty cool.

Naomi Meredith [00:21:26]:

So same exact podcast, same thing for free, just sorted into categories, and would love to help with your prep. It also goes with a spreadsheet where you can keep track of the hours. If you need to turn in any hours for professional development, I've done that for you. And you can grab that all at Naomi meredith.com/podcastplaylist. Thank you so much again. I hope this helps with your planning. Thank you to those who reached out with this question. Now I have an episode for you, and thank you to the teachers who gave me their schedules.

Naomi Meredith [00:21:59]:

I appreciate seeing all that insight. Thank you so much, and I'll see you in the next episode.