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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!

makerspace ideas for elementary

Makespace Ideas for Elementary [STEM Project & Behavior Management Series] [ep.150]

Makerspace Ideas for Elementary [STEM Project & Behavior Management Series] [ep.150]

makerspace ideas for elementary

Check out the full episode on Makerspace Ideas for Elementary:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Episode Summary

Have you been wanting to implement a Makerspace in your classroom but aren’t sure where to begin? From figuring out what types of systems to set up to creating routines and behavior management, it can be a lot trying to figure out how to get started. In today’s episode, I’m breaking down Makerspace ideas for elementary classrooms, including setting up systems and routines, behavior management, and lesson ideas.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Systems for setting up your Makerspace
  • Behavior management for a Makerspace
  • Makerspace lesson ideas for elementary

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:

You are excited about getting started with your Makerspace projects, but how do you really begin? What types of systems, routines, behavior management, and meaningful lessons should you try? We are going to answer all of those questions about Makerspace in today's episode. The first time I did a Makerspace lesson in my K-5 STEM classroom, I was so excited. I had all of the supplies set up. Everything was labeled with pictures and words.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:09]:

All of the markers and crayons were sorted by color. I felt extremely prepared and so excited about what we were going to work on together. With my schedule, I had 5th grade first in the day, which was great. Okay. Cool. I have the oldest kids, so I can always test those things out. And if it messes up, then the older kids can just go along with it with me. We did our projects, and at the end of the 45 minutes, I was out of supplies.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:42]:

It was an absolute free-for-all. My behavior management was fine, but when it came to the actual supplies, I didn't think through that step. I thought that in a Makerspace, kids could do whatever they wanted. They get as much supplies as they want. They can make these ginormous projects, and it would be fine. Well, I didn't even know where to put their projects. There was nowhere to put them. I was looking at what they were creating.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:09]:

They were never going to be done. It was way too open-ended. And so I really had to modify things for the rest of the week because, like I said, I was pretty much out of everything, especially tape. And so, through my really bad experience, I have figured it out and how it went for the next few years in my STEM classroom and also transitioning into the STEM programs that I teach out in my community. Even though you are having kids be creative, you still have to have rules in place, and it is not limiting their creativity whatsoever. In fact, when things are really open-ended, that can be really overwhelming for kids and adults. You know how it feels when you walk into a craft store and see all of the supplies everywhere, and you are getting 5,000,000,000 ideas on types of projects that you should start? It kinda feels like that. If you give free rein to all of your Makerspace supplies, your kids might be getting too many ideas and might not even finish the project you want them to do.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:27]:

So it's okay to narrow it down, and I'm gonna share with you those tips and tricks in your Makerspace that are really going to streamline things and help you be successful. The 3 big things that we are going to be talking about in today's episode and also in this little mini-series I have planned for you are the systems to do with these types of projects. So today, we're talking about Makerspace, but there are other things we're going to be talking about, so systems. Then we're gonna be talking about behavior management, and this is also going to help with that motivation piece as well. And then, at the end, I'm gonna give you some lesson plan ideas. When it comes to the systems in your Makerspace, I have a whole method to the madness now. If you scroll back to episodes 5 and 6 of this podcast, I talk about exactly how I set up my Makerspace and the whole system that I use in terms of managing. I'm gonna mention that here, but I highly encourage you to go back and check those episodes.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:34]:

I also have a free podcast playlist where all of my episodes that relate to Makerspace are chunked together, so you don't have to pick and choose. I know 56 are right next to each other, but that will be linked in the show notes. The whole podcast playlist, you can get that for free. And all of the other playlists where I have categorized all the episodes in my podcast where you can focus on specific topics. When it comes to the specific materials that you are setting up, I actually kept my Makerspace supplies set up year-round. And this was really helpful because if there were times I needed specific materials for certain projects, maybe they were Makerspace, maybe they weren't. I knew where they were at all times. Now I was really lucky the furniture in my room had wheels. I can move them around if needed.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:29]:

I typically didn't, but I kept all of my supplies out. Everything was labeled with pictures and words to help not only students who were pre-readers but all students. It's really awesome having everything labeled with pictures and words because you can find exactly where everything goes, and it helps the students be really independent. I already created these labels for you, and there's an editable slide you can create your own that matches. So, again, that will also be linked in the show notes. All these resources that I'm talking about will be linked for you to make it nice and easy. I also kept my staple supplies that are in high demand and are needed for all grade levels, my scissors, my crayons, my markers, and even a spot for pencils, all in one location in the classroom. Those were there all of the time, and students knew that they could grab those as needed.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:29]:

All of my markers were color-coded in the paper drawers. If you know what I'm talking about, they're the 3 stacked drawers you pull out. I organized them by color because it looked really nice. It was easier to clean up, and we didn't use markers all the time. I had the same markers for 5 years, and they were ready to go for another 5. Markers weren't used very often in my classroom. With crayons, I tried a lot of different things. I tried individual supply boxes.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:04]:

I tried those supply caddies where you can have crayons and all sorts of things in one. I tried big buckets. So what I found that worked best was that I had small metal buckets that were for crayons. They had the little handle. Those are in Dollar Tree spots all the time. You might even get some for gifts. I know I get those for little gifts all the time. People give those to me with cool things in them.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:31]:

But I use those for crayons, and they were the perfect size because the crayons could stand up nicely, the kids could grab and go, put them at their table, and so it made the sharing a lot easier, and they looked really cute, too. Scissors and glue sticks were in their own bigger plastic buckets, just some plastic buckets that I had when I first started teaching, actually, and then I kept pencils in separate buckets as well. Now you might be thinking, why did you keep this all separate? Okay. So, I did put them all together before. I had the crayons, the pencils, the scissors. They kept getting mixed up. And when I used them with the younger kids, they were so excited that they had scissors and glue sticks all to themselves. And it became a distraction tool, and it really wasn't organized.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:17]:

Kids were throwing trash in there. And so if I catch everything separated for certain projects, especially for the younger students again, if they only needed crayons, I could pull out just the crayons. If we only needed scissors, I could pick out just the scissors. It made cleanup a lot easier when everything was separated. So, think about those staple items that were really helpful, and students actually told me how they liked how organized it was. I asked them, and they said they really liked it. The kids would tell me all the time how organized I was, and that's saying a lot in a STEM classroom where things are happening in projects all the time. Yes, we have projects everywhere, but I'm a very organized person. I'm not very clean, I'm very organized.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:10]:

There is a difference. If you have your Makerspace set up all year, it doesn't mean you are doing Makerspace projects all year. However, I do recommend keeping stock of items year-round. Maybe you ask certain grade levels to help you collect items for a project that is coming up with their grade. You could send out an email to just that grade level. If you need more pipe cleaners, that grade level may help you with pipe cleaners. If you need more thin cardboard, I always use thin cardboard. I didn't use big boxes of cardboard.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:46]:

I'm gonna tell you why in a little bit. But if you need thin cardboard, the teachers' lounge is a treasure trove of thin cardboard. I put in a donation box in the teacher's lounge. I wrote a note: Hey, if you have any thin cardboard from your meals, put them in this box, and it will be full by the end of the week. And so if I were good on the cardboard, I would take the box away. If I was running low, I put the box back, and it was a really great way to collect cardboard that was going to get thrown away anyway. So you have an idea of how to organize your Makerspace. What about the behavior management? Do you feel like your kids are getting a little too wild because they are creating? It might get loud.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:31]:

In all of these lessons, the kids are gonna get loud. I can't tell you that they're not gonna be loud because they are. That's how it goes. I got so used to it. It is what it is. But being loud is different than not doing what you're supposed to do. So make sure there you understand the difference between that and what's happening in your class. When it comes to behavior management, it is about the way your lesson is formatted and the systems and routines of that structure.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:04]:

When students come in for my lessons, and this is true for all of my lessons, and even when I teach after-school clubs, I do not let kids get the supplies right away. That is not happening. I am going to help them with that transition time and teach them mini-lessons that are involved with the engineering design process. Keep it really short, have that background knowledge, tell them anything they need to know about supplies, and most of the time, it is work time. Also, make sure you are leaving time at the end to clean up. A Makerspace project might take longer to clean up than a robotics lesson. Keep that in mind. I would give kids about 10 minutes.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:44]:

I would try 10 minutes to start. And depending That is the overall structure of the lesson, but let's break it down throughout the days. At the beginning of your Makerspace lesson, you probably want kids to imagine different ideas and planning. If your kids are having a hard time planning and coming up with ideas, especially if you have a newer program, you might need to give them more examples. Those examples can be things like things in real life, examples of pictures of things students have built in the past. You might even have to build a few examples to get the ground running. For Makerspace projects, I don't typically teach students you have to do the it this way step by step. Now for an after school program, that might be the case.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:44]:

But in the classroom setting, I do have a challenge I want them to solve, but I'm not gonna show you step by step on how to do it. I might show them step by step in a mini-lesson on how to do a certain strategy. For example, with one of my stem lessons, STEM race cars and STEM amusement park, there is a part in that project where students have to add a wheel and axle on their car and allow it to move. This is pretty tricky, and I would always get a ton of questions on this strategy. So, one of the days during the mini lesson, I just showed the kids how to do that. It didn't mean I was showing them how to build their car. I was just showing them that piece of their car that everybody was going to need, and then the rest was up to them. So those kinds of strategies, just like if you're teaching math, like, we're learning lots of strategies, I would teach them those kinds of things as they would come up.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:40]:

It depends on the lesson, and that was really helpful. When grouping students, this is up to you if you want students to choose their groups or if you assign them for them. I did both. It actually depends on the class. Some groups do a great job choosing their partners, and some don't. If you have classes that get out of control really quick, you might need to keep them in groups of 2. This is really rare. Some might need to be in just in groups of 1.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:11]:

I only had to do that a couple of times, but it happens. And it is really sad, but at the same time, your job is also as the teacher to keep kids safe and help them be successful. And if that's where they're at, that's where they're at. I wanna do more than 4 kids. 3 is my favorite because I feel like everybody can get involved, but no more than 4. It just gets too crazy, and at that point, you should just have, partnerships in anyway. What's also going to help them in that building process is really giving students that time to plan. This is gonna help them in that creation.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:46]:

They may or may not build everything exactly how they drew the picture, but this is going to help them get the ideas out of their brain and have a starting point. And if you do add in Makerspace money, which, again, go back to episodes 5 and 6, I explained that whole process. But if you use that system, that's also going to help students critically think more about what supplies they are using and why they are using them. The more you give specific tasks in these creative projects, kids are gonna stay on task a lot better. If there is a problem they are trying to solve, that's going to help a lot better. So if you are doing roller coasters and you want to time how fast the marble goes through the track and keep track of the time, they're gonna be a lot more motivated to do that project instead of just build a roller coaster, have a good time. If you have those specific challenges they are trying to solve, that's gonna help so much with behavior management, and that is going back to engagement. Are they being engaged in the project? Are they do they have a purpose? And so these things really blend together.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:58]:

You might need to rethink the lessons you're teaching. That sometimes can be a problem when it comes to the behavior management. For some specific supplies, I also have rules set in place. A big one is with tape. And if you follow me on Instagram at Naomi Meredith, underscore, I talk about tape a lot because I think it's actually really funny, and it is a weird thing that STEM teachers have in common. I'm very specific with tape. Tape is not a free-for-all. You get one foot of tape.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:31]:

I wrap it on a popsicle stick. I've also seen people put it on a ruler, and that is all the tape you get. And I do have part of the budget you could buy unlimited tape, but it's, like, more than half of their budget. Most kids don't actually buy that one. And so I'm very specific about the amount of tape. I am not very strict on glue sticks. They're pretty cheap. I am actually trying to get more into glue sponges, and I've always seen it.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:59]:

I've never tried it, but I am actually going to test out glue sponges with some Makerspace clubs that I'm gonna be running in my community. And if you haven't heard of glue sponges, I did ask my husband if he knew, but he teaches high school Spanish. He's like, what are you talking about? So I don't know. I just wanted to see if all teachers knew. But a glue sponge is you just have, like, a sandwich ziplock container, and you put a sponge in there, and you pour liquid glue on top. And when kids are wanting to glue pieces of paper and smaller things, you dab your paper on the sponge, and it gets it all sticky on the back, and then you paste it where you want it. This is an older technique. I've never done it, but I really wanna try it because the one thing that really bothers me about glue sticks is the kids won't put the caps on.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:48]:

And so I'm gonna try it. I'm gonna let you know. Follow me on Instagram. I'll let you know what I think about them in a STEM space, but, I actually don't have any limit on glue. I just didn't that wasn't a battle I wanted to fight. With hot glue guns, depended on the year if I wanted to use hot glue guns. I like to use the lower temperature hot glue guns. One thing with that, sometimes they do get clogged over time, and it could be because you might have the wrong glue sticks.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:19]:

Some of the hot glue gun sticks are made for lower temperature. And so if you have a station for hot glue guns, I would use them 2nd through 5th grade. Make sure that the station is at waist height and they're not on the ground because that can be a little bit of an issue. So I do have specific procedures in place for hot glue guns. I have some posters in my TBT shop you can grab. I think it's Kelly Hogan. She actually has those in her classroom. She put them in frames, which I thought was such a cute idea to hang up posters.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:51]:

So, that is something I might do at a Makerspace, but, again, it depends on my budget, if I have enough money for the hot glue gun sticks, and, honestly, if I want to manage it or not, and it depends on the class. Usually, it's just tape. If I'm feeling nice, we'll do hot glue guns, but it's not very often that we did. When it comes to the projects, I make sure that their projects are smaller, that they can fit in a grocery bag or a gallon size ziplock bag. A few exceptions to some projects like roller coasters, those are gonna be a little bit bigger. But I do make sure their projects are smaller because they're gonna finish them a lot quicker. When you have limited time, you want the projects to be a little bit smaller, that's definitely going to help. And then with that cleanup time, I have seen teachers have specific jobs where you need to do certain things.


Naomi Meredith [00:19:43]:

I don't do that. Again, I didn't like managing all of that, so I would say, okay. Here's all the things you need to do to get cleaned up. When you're cleaned up, you're sitting at your clean table. When everybody was sitting down, I would walk around just to make sure everything's good to go before they could line up. So it kinda maybe looked a little bit chaotic, but everybody is putting things away. Sometimes I would bribe them where whichever table's clean up first, I'll give you a prize, or you get some sort of incentive. So that can really help too just to make sure everybody's doing what they're supposed to do.


Naomi Meredith [00:20:16]:

With those projects, I would have them store them in those grocery bags or Ziploc bags, and I had those big fabric tubs and just binder clips their teacher's name on it, and they would put all of their plans and their projects in that bucket. Then, I had a shelf in my classroom if anything needed to stand up. Those could be sitting on the shelf. At the very, very, very end of the unit, you can have students take a picture or take a video of their work. I loved using Seesaw for this purpose. So everybody gets to take it home, And then maybe one student can bring the project home, and if nobody wanted to bring the project home, I would actually have them destruct the project where any pieces that can be reused would actually go back in the Makerspace and have a new life. If you're wondering about what kinds of lessons you should be teaching, then I have some ideas for you, and they are all standards aligned and things that my students have absolutely loved. I'm just gonna give you a snapshot of all of these, and most of them have a podcast episode where I go more into depth about every single lesson I teach for all the grades.


Naomi Meredith [00:21:22]:

So make sure to check that out, and, again, I have that playlist for you where those lessons are in there as well. One of the most fan favorites from my students and also a lot of you out there have actually written to me and say that yours you and your students really loved it is STEM survival camp. And so all of the challenges utilize things in nature and a little bit of Makerspace supplies to help solve different situations as if they were surviving in the wilderness and what inventions they could create to help solve their problems. So this one is super fun. This one's really great for the beginning of the school year and also the end of the school year or any summer camps that you have coming up. I'm actually gonna be teaching some summer camps coming up here in my community, and STEM survival camp is one of the units that I'm actually gonna be teaching. And so that one is a really fun one. If you listen to episode 4, I tell you all about it.


Naomi Meredith [00:22:21]:

Another hidden treasure, which this one is really fun too, and I feel like it's a little bit more unknown of my lessons. But once you do them, you're gonna be obsessed. And this one is Earth's engineers. So students are taking on different roles, different types of engineers, and different building challenges to help take care of the earth or understand earth's processes. One of the most popular ones is the Rube Goldberg ecosystems where they have to show the chain reaction in that ecosystem. And that one was really, really fun, and it was cool that kids got to learn what a Rube Goldberg machine was. If you wanna hear more about that lesson, go check out episode 135. Another unit that was so funny, I actually stood this at the end of a school year and tested it out the last month of school, and most teachers wouldn't do that, but I was crazy enough and I wanted to try it.


Naomi Meredith [00:23:16]:

And this is another theme called STEMMusement Park, and each grade level has a different challenge and a different part of the amusement park, and they are learning about different forces and motion that go along with their science standards. Now you could actually combine all their projects and have a science night, and they're showcasing all of their lessons. We didn't do that. I thought that would be really cool, but they are all different park designers and have to design that certain section. So that one's a really fun one. And if you don't have a lot of time for these types of challenges, but you still want to implement Makerspace, I do have some one day challenges that work really well. If you have one day with the kids, you need something a little bit more guided and you wanna make those connections, or maybe you're doing STEM after school clubs, these are actually the units that I'm gonna be teaching coming up. And I have more add some changes.


Naomi Meredith [00:24:23]:

And, there are some things I know I want to put in these lessons, but these have all the one day challenges. I have all the supplies listed out and a little bit more guided, but still really fun. As a recap, we talked about those things to help you in your maker space where you can get all the things up and running. We talked about what to do for your systems, ways to handle behavior management, and a snapshot of different lessons that you can teach. As a reminder, I have free podcast playlist where my whole entire podcast is organized into categories. So if you wanna learn specifically about Makerspace and these lessons that I talked about, there is a whole playlist where everything is sorted for you. And it's super cool because once you get the link, then it actually works just like a podcast. So it will pop into your podcast player.


Naomi Meredith [00:25:18]:

And anytime I update that playlist and, sort more episodes, it will pop up at automatically for you. So they're not secret episodes. It's everything in my show, but, again, it's organized into categories, and I even created a spreadsheet where I put all of the timestamps of all the episodes. So if you need to keep track of professional development hours, all of this can count. And so I track that all for you, so you're welcome to make a copy and figure out the time you need. Thank you for being here and hanging out with me, and I'm so excited for this series where we're gonna talk about those systems, behavior, and lesson ideas for different topics in STEM. So make sure you join me in the next episode, where we're going to be talking about 3D printing.

makerspace ideas for elementary

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

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!

earth science curriculum project

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

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

earth science curriculum project

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

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Episode Summary

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

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

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

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:01:04]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:01:45]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:02:29]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:03:45]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:04:31]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:05:33]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:06:37]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:07:24]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:08:14]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:09:06]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:10:44]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:11:43]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:12:36]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:13:05]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:14:05]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:15:26]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:16:08]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:17:23]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:18:35]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:19:47]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:20:42]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:21:34]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:22:27]:


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

earth science curriculum project

 

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!

force and motion projects

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

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

force and motion projects

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

 

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Episode Summary

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

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

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

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:00:53]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:01:37]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:03:06]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:04:49]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:05:31]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:06:07]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:07:41]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:09:05]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:10:49]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:12:06]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:13:37]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:15:30]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:16:59]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:18:28]:


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


Naomi Meredith [00:19:21]:


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

force and motion projects

 

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More About your host, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

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

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

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types of STEM after-school clubs

8 Types of STEM After-School Clubs [ep.116]

8 Types of STEM After-School Clubs [ep.116]

types of STEM after-school clubs

Check out the full episode on 8 Types of STEM After-School Clubs:  

 

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Playlist of each type of club in their own bite-sized segment: 

Episode Summary

You’ve made the exciting decision to host a STEM after-school club, but now you may be wondering what types of STEM after-school clubs you can host. That’s what I’m discussing today. With over a decade of teaching experience, I have gained much experience in hosting engaging and interactive after-school clubs that students love. In today’s episode, I’m sharing 8 types of STEM after-school clubs you can host, and I’m sharing some strategies to support you with starting your own.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 8 types of STEM after-school clubs
  • An overview of each type of after-school club
  • Tips and strategies for starting each type of club

Resources Mentioned:

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

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


So you're ready to start hosting a STEM after-school club. What types of STEM after-school clubs can you be hosting? Based on my experience of being a teacher for 11 years and 5 of those being a K-5 STEM teacher, I have a whole list of STEM after-school clubs that you can try, and these are all clubs that I hosted in my classroom that my students absolutely loved and provided a variety of experiences. So let's dive into these fun club ideas. 


Naomi Meredith [00:01:30]:


Pretty soon, I will be hosting a live workshop to take you behind the scenes on how I set up my favorite club of all my school-wide news. Not only will I be showing you exactly how the news ran day today, but all of the prework that I did at the beginning to get it all organized to get kids signed up. All of that behind the scenes work to what we actually did every week to set up the news where we didn't have to go live every day and depend on that. There is a whole method to the madness Everything is all streamlined, and I kept track of it all. So I could show you exactly what I did. I don't want you to miss out on this super fun opportunity. So make sure you join the wait list because you'll be the first to know when it's live And for people on the wait list, you always get a bonus. So make sure you join at Naomimeredith.com/newswaitlist. It's also linked in the show notes, so you can check it out there. In the last episode, I talked about the three reasons why you should host a STEM after-school club.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:20]:


If you haven't gone back and listened to it, no worries. Keep listening to this episode. And then when you're done, Go check out that one because they all go together, and it will all make sense. I love after-school clubs so much they're a lot of fun to plan, and also it's an awesome opportunity for students. My first year teaching K through 5 STEM. I went a little bit crazy, and I hosted 4 days of clubs. The only day that didn't have clubs were Wednesdays. But those clubs were all different because I wanted to have a whole variety of experiences for my students and have them interact with STEM in a lot of different ways.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:06]:


Also, in my district, all of the clubs were actually free. So We're a really nice opportunity for them to join. When I did do creative clubs, sometimes I charged a small fee of $3 just to pay for extra materials. And that was plenty when I had about 20 to 30 kids. That could buy me enough supplies for what I needed for the projects I was thinking about. Also, for 2 of my other clubs, I designed shirts, which I'll talk about when I get to these clubs later in this episode, And that was optional. Students didn't have to buy a shirt, but this was a good way to promote the club, which again will make sense in a second. When I hosted clubs, the clubs typically ran for 4 to 6 sessions in a row. So if their club were on a Tuesday, it would run for the next 4 to 6 Tuesdays.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:03]:


The other specials, teachers in art, PE, and music, we went through and tried to really plan these sessions together so that it all made sense when it came to when a new club would start, when it would end, and all of those different sessions. There were a few clubs that I hosted that did last the entire year, but then they had their own schedule. So it goes into all of that management and all of that pre-work when it comes to setting up a club. which I will talk about in the workshop. And if anything, if you're not even going to do school-wide news, joining the workshops is helpful because the way that I set up that club is exactly how I set up all of my other ones. So you'll get the templates in that workshop anyway, so join it for the 1st hour and then leave for the next. I don't know. But they're all of that work, and all of that management helped it run smoothly for the rest of the year I had all the kids set up and organized, so I didn't have to worry about it again.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:05]:


Another fun thing that I ended up doing once I had my school I knew running is me and the other special teachers started to make commercials promoting our clubs when it came to the time to sign up. They were anything fancy. A lot of times, my commercials had my dog Frederick in them, which all of the students in the school knew who Frederick was because he was in my commercials a lot, and he was also on the news with me when I had to record something last minute at my house, but it was so fun because we had made commercials about our clubs, and then our clubs were always full because they knew about them because they would go home and tell their parents about it. So it was a really fun way how we promoted these opportunities for kids. So kids always signed up. We also tried with our clubs when it came to signing up, where we would mix up the grade levels. So sometimes I would have a 4th and 5th-grade club running, and then the PE teacher might have a second and third-grade club. So kids could have a lot of different experiences.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:10]:


Sometimes we had clubs with kindergarten and 1st grade. I did that my 1st year, and the kids are really, really, really hired at the end of the day. So that's definitely up to you if you host clubs for kindergarten and first. I don't recommend it. I love the little one so much. They are my favorites, but they're also really tired at the end of the day, and it's just a lot. So that's my 2¢ on that. My clubs ran for about an hour after school.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:40]:


I was still done at the end of the day by 4 p.m., got to go home, and there were about 20 to 30 kids in each club. Almost all of them I ran by myself. Here and there, I had some clubs I had some help with, which also depended on the club that I was running, but most of them, I was running by myself, and it worked out just fine. So let's get into those eight STEM after-school clubs, the different kinds you can run, and I'm gonna be sharing with you just a little synopsis of what I did in each one. For some of them, I do have lesson plans created. Some of them I don't. Some were just like on the fly, or sometimes it was a curriculum that was already created.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:22]:


which is going to make sense as you're listening to this. So if I do have materials currently at the time of this recording, I will share them with you here. And, again, when it comes to the whole setting up a club, the whole process is exactly what I did for my school-wide news. So join in on that waitlist, Naomimeredith.com/newswaitlist, because then you can see, like, how to even set up a club to begin with. With the clubs I'm going to mention, you really don't have to do them in any certain order. I don't really have them in a certain order anyway. They're just When I thought of them, I wrote them down. So here they all are, the 8 different types of STEM after-school clubs that you can try.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:05]:


The first one that you can try is computer coding or anything related to computer creation. This will take literally no prep from you, which is awesome when it comes to hosting an after-school club. The program that I really like to use for this club setting when it comes to computer programming on the computer is Google CS First or Google Computer Science First. It is a free program, and at the time when I did it, they actually sent stickers that went along with the challenges. It changes all the time. They're always updating it and making it better, so I'm not quite sure if that is still a thing with this program. But what I really liked about it is that there are different themes of coding. So there's a whole theme that you are deciding to create your challenge around.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:58]:


So there's fashion and design, there's storytelling, but you're solving this problem through coding, which is pretty awesome because real world problems are using coding as one of the ways to solve them. So it was pretty cool. The curriculum's all laid out there. they have a lesson that the students watch. They have videos. and then they apply what they learn using scratch. So they have both at the same time, and they are building upon that challenge to really solve it. It's super cool.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:33]:


I highly recommend it. It's a great way you could do this club a couple of times a year and just choose a different seam. I had everybody work on the same theme. So when I presented the club, it was computer coding, fashion, and design. So they knew what we were getting into, which was pretty fun. On this side note, this isn't exactly computer coding. Now I know there are elements to coding with this, but you could do things like a Minecraft club. You could use Minecraft for education, as an option if you don't want to do that as a regular classroom lesson, or also you could do a 3D printing club.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:13]:


This is a great time to try out 3D printing because the biggest management is you managing the prince as a teacher. So if you do this as a club, You only have a handful of students. You're learning the platform. So try it as a club this year. And then the following year, you could do it with everybody. So a great way, pretty low preps since you're using student devices. You don't really have a whole lot of other materials to worry about. but computer coding on the computer is a great option.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:43]:


The 2nd type of STEM club to try is using LEGO bricks. Whether you have LEGO education kits or LEGO just mixed LEGO Bricks, This is a great club as well. Again, minimal prep. I did 2 versions of this club. I did LEGO 1.0 and LEGO 2.0. In LEGO 1.0, we just had quick one-day building challenges A lot of them I just made up, like building the tallest tower, and then we measured them with yardsticks. It was pretty fun. The kids liked it.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:20]:


It wasn't so fun when the towers fell over, and they had to clean it up, but it was things like that that they would build in one day. We would learn about it. We would watch some videos about it. They would try the challenge, and then they'd clean up and go home. Super low maintenance. When it came to LEGO 2.0, They didn't have to come to 1.0 to start. It's just a fun name I came up with. In LEGO 2.0, we use LEGO Bricks and other materials to merge them together and do stop motion animation.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:49]:


This is actually when I tested out stop motion animation. I had never done it before in a class. So I tried it in my after-school club. I loved it. I love teaching it. There are a lot of units I actually like to teach. I feel like in every unit I teach, I love that one, which is pretty true. but it was really fun teaching stop motion animation came up with a whole unit, and actually, with that unit used it for a summer camp class that I taught all about stop motion.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:19]:


So that was a lot of fun. That lesson, I do have the whole thing that you could use for an after-school club. So you can check that out in my stop motion bundle, which I'll link in the show notes. If you were looking more up for a LEGO challenge. I recommend looking into the junior 1st LEGO League. I might have mixed up the words of that. I always mess that up. but that is a competition based LEGO challenge.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:46]:


It can be a bit pricey. the prices change quite often. I did it for 1 year because our district decided to fund that, and then we did our own challenge within our district. But essentially, you have LEGO education kits. They do tell you which one you'll use. And then you have a challenge, and then the students build and solve a challenge, and there's lessons that go along with it. So it is pretty self-guided. Again, it is a bit pricey.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:12]:


So look into it first. but if you want more of a competition or something more guided, that's a good thing to look into. The 3rd type of STEM club that you can host is a school-wide news club. Again, this is one of the most favorite clubs I have ever, ever, ever hosted. It was like having my own class again. which is why I think I liked it because I had the same group of kids. I thought of the idea one day when I was walking my dog, Frederick, and it popped into my head, and I figured out how I was going to do this. My biggest challenge was that I didn't want to be going live every day because, for me, that was my planning time, and I needed my plan time to plan.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:56]:


And then here in Colorado, you get snow days, we get a delayed start, and I didn't want the news to be dependent on weather and kids getting there. So I figured out a whole system of how to have the news pre-recorded. So my students would only come on Mondays, and then it would be the way we scheduled it out. Everything was ready to go for the next week or so. In the 1st year, I only had a courting team of kids. I had 40 kids, so I split them into 2 groups, and we alternated weeks, and it grew so much in popularity. The kids up absolutely loved it. I had little kids begging me to be on the news.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:37]:


The following year, it doubled. I had 80 kids sign up. So I had about 60 kids on my recording team and 20 on my editing. No. That's not true. I had 50 in my recording and then 30 in my editing. So we would record on Mondays. I had 3 groups of 20, and then we edited on Tuesdays.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:01]:


I had 3 groups of 20. And then, the way I scheduled it out, they all had the same amount of time to be in the club. So it was a whole lot of fun. We had a logo. We had a brand. We had a whole brand about it. It was a huge privilege to be on it. kind of in a lot of ways, like student leadership, but in a different form.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:22]:


the kids were literally obsessed. So was I. I did have teachers help me with this one and help guide the news, but it was a whole lot of fun and very informative. We actually informed the school about what was happening. It wasn't just random. Oh, what's the sports for today? Like, we actually kept up with what was happening in the school. What were the current events of elementary school life? So I'm gonna share it with you.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:47]:


That's a whole snapshot of what we did, but I'll share with you how I set this up. So join that waitlist at Naomi Meredith.com/newswaitlist. The 4th type of STEM Club that you can host is creating things with your hands. I did this in a few different ways. One of them is that I hosted a Makerspace club, and this is where I tested out a lot of my seven stories lessons that you can get in my shop, which I'll link to the ultimate bundle in the show notes. This was so much fun, where we would read or listen to a short story and then complete a related STEM challenge. I did charge about $3 for this club so that I could cover the cost of materials that I didn't have on hand, and that was plenty. Most of it was recycled materials anyway.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:37]:


This was a great club because, again, I tried out lessons and things that I liked and didn't like. It also let me see as a teacher how I wanted my classroom maker space to be set up because I have it had it set up all the time. It wasn't something that I would bring out when I wanted. It was always set up. So having a club setting helped me see, okay, how is the flow of materials? Are there places where kids get stuck? where should the scissors go? Where should the markers go? What is a what makes sense in this situation? So that actually helped me find the flow of my maker's face. If you wanna hear more about Makerspace, I highly recommend going back to listening to episodes 5 and 6, and I break down that whole thing And then all the things that I use to set it up, I have a bundle of that as well. So everything I just said will be linked in the show notes. Another creating club that I started but actually didn't get to finish.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:35]:


So I was really, really sad about this. I started a digital branding basics club. In this club, the whole purpose was for students to create a fictional brand where they would be providing a good or a service, and they would develop the whole brand around it. So we were going to create a basic website to talk about brand colors when it comes to the psychology of that and why certain colors are used for certain things. Design a logo that they create digitally and also get it cut on our school cricket machines. And with the logo, we're also gonna put it either on a shirt or on a hat, which I, again, was so sad. I didn't get to do this club because the COVID shutdown happened.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:19]:


So we had 1 week of this club, and then it never happened again. And then, I went in a different direction with my club, so I didn't have the chance to fit that one in. So creating clubs, definitely recommend it could be a little more prep work, but kids love it. The 5th STEM club to try is an experiments club. This is a great way to do those experiments that you haven't done in a while that take a little bit of prep, like slime and ooblec. Only do ooblec if you don't have carpet on your floor. Definitely don't do that. And, also, just those things that are, engaging that they might miss out on the regular class.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:58]:


They may or may not be doing those things. So hands on experiments are a great club. With that, I also hosted an after-school club, which, honestly this one I didn't really like very much, but we did it. I tried it. Didn't do it again. but hosted, where we were setting up a school weather balloon that we were going to send up into near space, and the students were picking the things that we would have as the experiments that we would send up with the weather balloon, and they also set up the frame with help with some people from our district. And then, I had to go and set up a school-wide assembly event where the whole school went to watch this balloon getting set up, and the kids who were in the club got to help with that process. I didn't like this one as much because it was very teacher driven.


Naomi Meredith [00:19:46]:


And I and, like, teacher driven in a sense where I was doing a lot of the learning and the trainings, and also I did have to drive and get the balloon. So I had to drive for 2 hours and then go find it in the middle of a field and drive back Also, this was very weird. It's weird how a couple of clubs got affected by this, but the day the balloon got launched was the last day the kids had school for the spring because of the COVID shutdown. So it was weird. I thought it was cool, a cool experience, but also a lot of work for the teacher. So keep that in mind. Another club, number 6, that you could try is having a technology support club. This one is a lot of fun because you can train the kids on certain technology skills that are needed in the school that are constantly being asked of you, and they're your eye support team.


Naomi Meredith [00:20:40]:


So I would tell kids that I am the manager and you are my employees, and I'm gonna train you on the ways of the different things that are needed in the school. the 1st year I did it every other week. And then, in the following years, I just did once a month. That was plenty. But if I needed help with certain things or teachers were asking me questions because I was the technology person. I would send out my eye support team, and they would be there to help. I did also have a logo and shirts for this 1, and they would wear them proudly, and they were definitely a lifesaver. Another fun thing that I had these kids do in the club is that they made videos for our school-wide news, and they would make videos of certain processes of how to use technology like plugging them in, hanging up headphones, logging into Seesaw, and they also made cleaning videos that we would send out every so often on the news.


Naomi Meredith [00:21:29]:


And likewise, during testing season, there were certain technology things that 3rd through 5th-grade teachers had to do. So those kids helped me make videos as well that we could play on the news. Two more clubs are coming at you. I told you it had lots of ideas. The 7th club that you can try is robotics. There are a lot of different curriculums out there, so this is actually a great time to use the curriculums that come with your robots. My favorite is the Dash robot by Wonder Workshop, and they do a whole robotics league competition that comes out in the fall. So I recommend trying that.


Naomi Meredith [00:22:05]:


Also, the Vex robots are really great. There is a competition element. So if you could get other schools in your area to do it, it's a lot of fun. I haven't hosted Vex as a club, but I have judged it, and it is super, super cool. So If you have the money in the space for it, again, that one can be a bit pricey, but that one is a lot of fun and a good challenge. And the last type of club, that isn't really a club, but you can create take home STEM kits. This developed when we actually couldn't do after-school clubs, and I can do a whole episode about this one, but I created Take Home's STEM kits that were for purchase. And in the kit, there were 4 different STEM activities that had the instructions, a video, all the supplies, All of the related science, people in STEM, and explorations, all included in this box, and a new kit came out every month for 6 months.


Naomi Meredith [00:23:02]:


So it was a lot of fun to put these together. A great way for kids to be involved with STEM at home. I did make commercials to promote these to get kids to buy them. I didn't really make any profit off of it at my school. It was really just to fund the materials, any extra money I just put back into the program to buy more masking tape, which is something I always seem to run out of, but I do have a couple of commercials I made. I will post those in the show notes They're pretty funny. One of them has my dog Frederick who is the star of the video. So check them out.


Naomi Meredith [00:23:33]:


They're silly. They're cheesy, but they were a hit. As a recap, here are the 8 different STEM after-school clubs that you can do in your classroom. 1st, computer coding, 2nd, LEGO, 3rd, school-wide news, 4th, creating clubs, 5th, experiment clubs, 6 technology support, 7th, robotics, and 8th, which is a club, not really a club, take home STEM kits. In the next episode, I'm going more go into more depth about the benefits of having a school-wide news crew. which you definitely don't wanna miss out on. It definitely changed our school-wide culture for the better. So that is an episode I'm really excited to record.


Naomi Meredith [00:24:19]:


And while you're at it, make sure to check out the show notes. There are a lot of fun goodies in there, including the link to sign up for the wait list for my live workshop training, and you can find that at Naomimeredith.com/newswaitlist.

types of STEM after-school clubs

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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 Lesson Plan Auditing

The Power of STEM Lesson Plan Auditing [ep. 106]

The Power of STEM Lesson Plan Auditing [ep.106]

STEM Lesson Plan Auditing

Check out the full episode on The Power of STEM Lesson Plan Auditing:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Episode Summary

If you want to create lessons that are meaningful, engaging, and aligned with the standards, then STEM lesson plan auditing needs to be part of your classroom strategy. In today’s episode, I break down the importance of STEM lesson plan auditing and give some tips and strategies for conducting your own lesson plan audit.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • How to set up your STEM lesson plan audit
  • Tips for conducting your STEM lesson plan audit
  • How to review your STEM lesson plan audit

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


One of the most time consuming tasks as an elementary STEM teacher is planning lessons. While planning lessons is one of my most favorite things to do as a teacher, it does require a lot of work, especially if you are teaching multiple grade levels. How do you keep track of it all, not to mention make sure that you are adding in the necessary content for the year along with grade-level standards? If you've taught STEM for even just a year, it's important to take a step back before you just dive into your lesson plans and see what you have taught so far. How I like to do this is by conducting an overall lesson audit. And what do I mean by the words lesson audit? In this episode, I'll be sharing with you how important a STEM lesson audit is and what this means for you and your future planning. If you are listening to this episode as it is coming out, I am so happy to be back. So I've had a bunch of episodes still come out in the month of June. Shout out to my podcast manager, Andrea. She kept the podcast running like she always does, but she's amazing. And we made sure that two episodes a week were still coming out for you while I was getting married and then going on my very long honeymoon. So I apologize if I'm a little bit rusty in this episode, but I'm just so happy to be back. It was the most memorable month of my entire life. And now here we are back in action when it comes to all of the STEM content and all of the goodies and things that I have planned for you and help support you in your STEM space. In fact, while I was on my honeymoon now, I didn't do a whole lot of work, but here and there, I would check-in. I got this really sweet message from one of you out there, and I wanted you to take a listen. 


Kelly [00:02:36]:


Hi, Naomi Meredith. I just wanted to say that your podcast is absolutely awesome. Thank you so much for making it so many awesome resources for students. So excited to just keep listening and implementing some of your ideas into my second-grade science classroom. Thank you so much, Kelly Babb from Murphysboro, Tennessee.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:55]:


Thank you so much, Kelly, for your kind message. It absolutely made my day. If you want to leave a message like she did, or even if you have a question for me, you can do that. It's absolutely free. Super easy to do off of your phone. If you go to Naomimeredith.com/voice, you can leave a voice message just like that one. 


Before you jump into your researching and brainstorming and STEM lesson planning, it's always great to take a step back and reflect on how the year went. And oftentimes, because we are so busy with our hands in so many baskets and planning the lessons, going to the meetings and running the after-school clubs, and cleaning out our rooms for summer, we don't necessarily take the time to actually do this and think about our overall year and how everything went. And if we don't take a step back and actually do this, we might even find ourselves in a space just like before, where you are rushing from lesson to lesson. You don't know if things are working, but you just made sure you had a lesson go out there. But it might be a little bit random. And then it's this vicious cycle, and you just never feel like you can catch up. So taking the time now when lessons are fresh in your mind, doing a STEM lesson audit can be extremely valuable. Also, when it comes to this, this is really going to make sure that the lessons that you have taught are actually meaningful. STEM class should be really fun. Okay, don't get me wrong, I absolutely love it. It is an absolute blast. However, it still needs to be meaningful. You can still have these really fun lessons for your students that are also high level and even work on collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, and also are tied to standards. It does take a bit of pre-planning on your part, but let's take that time now to do that lesson audit to really think through those lessons. 


So when you are planning, you are keeping all of these important factors in mind. I sometimes get messages from you over on Instagram at Naomi Meredith underscore if you're not already following me over there, but I get a lot of messages over there. And many of you have admin who aren't super supportive of what is going on in the STEM space. Trust me, I absolutely get it episode to come in the future. I've had non-supportive admin before when it comes to STEM, but there are a few factors that can come into this, and there are some things you cannot control, but some things you can control. And more often than not, it's the curriculum that we're teaching because we are walking into these spaces that have limited supplies and zero curriculum. So instead of just going for that wow factor like, oh yeah, let's play with robots today. Oh, let's play with Lego bricks today. There are some ways to use these awesome tools but still be meaningful with them. And I talk about this all the time, and again, I know it's a lot of work. I've done it. I totally get it. But my goal here, especially with this podcast, is to help you be successful and prepare you with these tools and tips, and resources so that you do have high-level lessons and you do have an amazing space that your admin is extremely proud of and wants to tell everybody about it. I know that you love what you do. Almost every STEM teacher I talk to absolutely loves the position that they are in. But let's be real. 


Think about your lessons. Are your lessons just fun and fluffy but really don't have anything to back them up? Or are your lessons still fun but have really highly engaging learning experiences that are cross-curricular and standards-based? So this lesson audit that I'm going to walk you through in this episode is really going to give you that deep thinking and reflection so that if there are adjustments, you need to be made, which is okay because that's part of teaching. You don't get it right the first time. I never did. So this is all part of the teaching and learning process and just how you can prepare going forward with your lesson planning. To do this audit, first, you need to set it up so you can do this. I would prefer digital. That way, you can link things. Sure, go ahead, do this on paper. But I would just say do it digitally. And then you have unlimited room. But anyway, create a table or a spreadsheet. And on that spreadsheet, you're first going to have major categories when it comes to STEM themes. So those things that I am thinking about are Makerspace, digital citizenship, 3D printing, coding, robotics, those major themes when it comes to STEM, those big major things that you are going to teach your students, you're going to have those big categories and have different sections. You could create a different spreadsheet for each of these, or you could just have them all on one page. Then you're going to have different columns for things that you are going to analyze for every single lesson that you taught your students and for every single grade. So like I said, you probably want to do this digitally because there are a lot of things you're going to analyze to make sure that you are teaching these high-level lessons. So what are those things that you need to look for for each of these lessons? Here are some indicators that you want to add to your columns. The type of lesson that you're teaching, is it a multi-day lesson? A one-day lesson? A STEM station. What kind is it? Are you seeing patterns? Are you doing the same type of lesson teaching? How long is it taking you to teach that lesson? If you are doing a project, what kind of structure if you are using when it comes to your lessons, are you doing too many structures? Are you using the engineering design process? Are you only using it one time in the year, and then you're frustrated that kids don't know it? Keep track of these things. Also, look at your lessons from year to year to year. Is there a progression of learning, or are your lessons really random? Are they not building off the year after next? They don't have to. But when it comes to having the same kids year after year, is there a way that you can have your lessons build off of each other? Yes or no? Also, keep track of the standards that you taught. This might be a little bit annoying and frustrating. Maybe if you're not planning with standards, you can also hear little Frederick in the back squeaking his ball. So I apologize for that. But this is very important. Even though most of you don't have STEM standards currently, your lessons need to be rooted in something. It's not just some fluffy random lesson. I'm going to say that probably a lot, but keep track of all of these things. So for every lesson, as I said, that you teach all of your students and all of the grades, you're going to go through all of these indicators and just keep track of the things that you have done or maybe you haven't done them yet. 


Again, this is more of an audit, not so much a plan. So if you have some holes and gaps, that's absolutely okay. Leave them blank. You don't have to fill them in quite yet. That's when you're done with this audit, you'll actually get into that lesson planning. Once you're going through and conducting that audit, this will really help you organize your whole entire year. So you have that spreadsheet set up. You've gone through every single lesson that you've taught kids. Then comes the part where you're actually reviewing the audit. So you have filled in this information. What are you going to do with it now? So here are some important things that you should definitely think about. Which STEM topics are you really strong at? Are you really strong at doing those maker space projects? Is that something that you are doing in your classroom all the time? Are there other areas that you would like to try or that you haven't even touched in your classroom? Maybe you've been a bit wary about 3D printing, but you do have a 3D printer. Or maybe you don't have a 3D printer, and you still can do 3D printing. Side note, I do have a whole playlist about 3D printing. So I have actually categorized all of my lessons based on the topics that I've talked about here on this podcast. So if you go to Naomimeredith.com/podcastplaylist, you can see all of those categorized playlists, and there's one all about 3D printing. 


So with this audit, think about those big major themes. Are there things that you are really heavy in, and are there areas that you are a little bit less than or you haven't even taught yet? Also, compare grade levels when it comes to this. All grade levels can do all of these topics. It's just going to look differently for their age. So are you doing some things more than others? So there are a lot of different questions when it comes to even just those major themes in STEM. Also, look at what types of lessons you are teaching. Are you doing all whole group the entire year? It's easy to start off with a whole group, and I actually recommend that as you get to know your students. But there are a lot of different structures that you can use in your classroom if you prepare students to get to these structures and you keep practicing them, they are extremely successful, just like STEM stations. That was something I was scared to do, but it was absolutely magical in my primary classes. So look at the types of lessons you are teaching that also go into whether you are teaching a lot of one-day lessons or multi-day lessons. Sure, maybe you'll see the school for an entire week, and you don't want to manage multi-day lessons. But at the same time, you are planning week to week to week because you have to have a brand new lesson every single week. So think about that. You can mix it up, have a variety of multi-day lessons and also one-day lessons. There is value in both, but this will actually help you look at, oh, that's why I'm feeling rushed. I have to plan a brand new lesson every week. Fun fact you don't it's okay to repeat things with kids and help them feel confident in their skills. They're probably not doing what they're doing in your class at home, and it's okay to do it again. So don't feel like it has to be a brand new surprise every time it is okay. Think about a classroom teacher. Most of us here were classroom teachers before we set up those systems and routines with kids. And they might do a lot of things over and over and over again every single day of the school year. So same with you in a STEM classroom. It's okay to repeat things a major thing too. When looking at your audit, are you teaching standards? Are you only planning with some standards? Are you only planning with your science NGSS standards? Have you even touched the math standards or the ELA, or even the ISTI standards for students? Yes, there are many standards to look at but become familiar with them, and then it will be automatic. This is really important to add in your audit whether or not your admin looks at your lesson plans. It's good to keep track of those standards that you're teaching, especially when you have all of these grade levels. You want to make sure that you hit most of those things in your classroom, and you're like, oh wait, we've already done a big unit about this, then let's do something else. So here and there, I get an idea. I'm like, oh, I've already taught a lesson like that. I can save this for code teaching or vice versa. 


And also, I mentioned this before. When you're looking at your audit, do you have a progression of learning with your lessons? This is a little tricky in filling out the puzzle pieces. Where do you want your students to be in kindergarten and then all the way up to fifth grade? Or do some of you even have up to 8th grade? How do you want them to progress through their skills over the years? And this might change a little bit too. When we talked to Jennifer Mayhan in her episode, when she was talking about grant writing, we had a lot of similarities where we saw in our programs the first couple of years, the students were all around the same level when it came to their skills. But over time, we needed to progress their learning and really build off year after year so that students were building up their skills, and as they were learning, they were getting better, which is great. That's a good thing. That's really good. So think about your lessons. Are you always doing the same thing, k through two? Or can you start adding in that progression of learning as students become comfortable with their skills and diving in and learning more as a recap? Here is how you can have your powerful STEM lesson audit to help prepare you for your next set of lessons. First, set up your audit. So do that digitally and create a spreadsheet with those different categories and columns. Next. Well, actually do the audit. This might take some time to search through, and this will help you get organized too when you do start implementing your year Alum plan. 


And finally, it can be a little bit scary, but review your audit. You do want to go through and draw some conclusions because this is really going to help you be more cohesive with the lessons that you're teaching your students and, again, make you feel like you're not rushing with all of your things but you're being prepared for the entire year. Now, this spreadsheet is actually a template I have already created. This was one of those things that was floating in my mind for such a long time, and then I had to draw it down. I have all these notebooks I carry with me, but I had to actually draw them and then create them. And this is actually part of the beginning of the STEM into summer group coaching program. So this is actually what my students are doing in this program where they did a whole year-long plan lesson audit, and I gave them feedback and along with that a supply inventory. So this was super cool for me because I got to see behind the scenes in these teachers' classrooms. I got to see exactly how their years have gone so far, the materials that they have on hand to give me that background of, oh, okay, here's how your program is and what you're doing with all these grade levels so that I have been able to prepare lessons that we're going through each week to then build up their year-long plan. So this is, again, a really great way to put together where your program is at and how to build for the future. 


So this template is all in my STEM into Summer group coaching program. You can actually still jump in. It's not too late. So, again, if you're listening to this in real-time, it is July 2023. You can still jump in. It'll be at a discounted price. So check that out at Naomi. Meredith.com STEM into summer. And I mentioned this here before, I'm really excited about this, but the elementary STEM coach is coaching. So I have group coaching, and a lot of you have reached out that you have been interested in working with me one on one. So maybe a group setting isn't your thing, but you want to spend some time with me. And so now that I'm all married up, back from my honeymoon, I have spots available as well when it comes to working with you one on one. So there are different levels of time that we can work with. So it'll be for the short term overall, but there are different amounts of time that we can work together. So whether it is this lesson audit, if that's something you want to work on, we can work on that together, give you the spreadsheet for that, or if it's even something else that you would like to learn and explore, maybe you want to create a whole robotics unit with me, then that is something we can also work on. So whatever your needs are, I'm the coach. I'm your guide to help you along the way. But if you are interested in that, you can go to Naomi Meredith.com Coaching. Again, thank you so much for having me back here on the podcast. And I am so excited to help support you with this other layer that is here in this whole elementary STEM coach world and online space, and so thrilled to have this opportunity to work with you, live and be with you every step of the way. So thank you so much again for being here, and I will chat with you soon.

STEM Lesson Plan Auditing

 

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!

build a city STEM project

Build a City STEM Project to Try [ep.63]

Build a City STEM Project to Try [ep.63]

build a city STEM project

Check out the full episode on Build a City STEM Project to Try:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Episode Summary

How can you have students plan and build a community based on Earth's features in an area? In today’s episode, I share an in-depth overview of the build a city STEM project. In this lesson, I tie in the concept of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data. It also incorporates the Engineering Design Process. This is such a fun, Makerspace lesson that my students loved, and I know that yours will too. 

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • An overview of the build a city STEM project 
  • An in-depth look at how the lesson went throughout the week when I taught it
  • How you can implement this lesson in your classroom
  • Where you can find the resources for this lesson

Resources Mentioned:

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

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith  00:00

How can you have students plan and build a community based on Earth's features in an area? Civil engineers and a lot of other STEM careers use GIS or Geographic Information Systems data to help them create a community that will work in the space that they are given. I'll be sharing an in depth overview of the STEM lesson that I tie in using these concepts that you definitely don't want to miss out on. Students will go through the Engineering Design Process and learn more about what GIS is, then they'll be given different data of a fictional location that shows them the landscape of an area. From there, they will create the map of this data, they will build the physical features, and then they will plan a community based on these features, but also think about the way that their community works as a whole. Of course, they will make modifications to their design when things don't work. This is such a fun, Makerspace lesson that my students loved, and I know that yours will too. 


Naomi Meredith  01:39

It's always fun for me to record episodes when I get to talk about the lessons that I've implemented with my students. And I'm always taking pictures and writing notes when I am teaching these lessons with my students. And so when I'm preparing episodes like this, I love to go back and reflect on that experience. A lot of fun things pop up for me that I can't wait to share with you. So for this episode, I'm going to give you an overview of just the nuts and bolts of this lesson and who I taught it to, a snapshot of how the lesson went throughout the week. I will also share some fun stories throughout, how you can get started with this lesson in your classroom, and where you can get all of those resources. Also, thanks to you for filling out the podcast survey a little bit ago. A lot of you really wanted to hear about lesson plans and how I taught them with specific grades. So even if you aren't teaching that specific grade that I taught this lesson in, don't stop the podcast. You can definitely get ideas on how this can best work in your classroom. So don't write me off. It's fun to hear about other grade levels, especially when you teach all of the grade levels. Even if you don't need something for that grade level, it's just good to hear a lot of different ideas. So think of this, like being in a workshop with me, but I'm in your earbuds this time. 


Naomi Meredith  03:03

For this build a city STEM project, I taught this with fourth grade. And of course, you could flex this to third grade, fifth grade, and beyond. There were a lot of different standards that I integrated in this lesson. Of course, the NGSS Next Generation Science Standards that talks about the Engineering Design Process, those were super apparent in this lesson. When it came to a specific grade level standard for fourth grade, there is an NGSS standard that talks about analyzing and interpreting data from maps to describe patterns of Earth features. When it comes to specific math standards that were integrated in this lesson, the mathematical practice was all about attending to precision. And as I am explaining this lesson, you're gonna understand why students had to be really precise, when they are setting up the format of where their study was going to be built. There are also various math skills that are integrated throughout. I know some of you might think that I don't integrate math in my lessons, but they definitely are there. Like I've mentioned in past episodes, I do like to use science as my base. But then all of the standards really are integrated in there. So I'm not handing out worksheets of this math standard and all that math is really embedded in all of these lessons. And sometimes the students don't even know that at the time, which is okay. They're using their math skills. It's almost like when you are feeding kids vegetables that they don't like and you're sneaking them in like making zucchini bread and they really like it. What I have done in the past with my Teacher Honey who doesn't like carrots. And so I bought mashed carrots, and thought he would be tricked and thought they were sweet potatoes but he wasn't but anyway, there is math in this lesson. And so students are attending to a position with that mathematical practice. They're also working on their math facts when purchasing supplies and yes, fourth graders still need this skill when using basic math skills. When we were purchasing supplies, which we'll talk about in a little bit, this was super important for the kids and they needed that extra practice. Also, students will be graphing using data that is provided for them, and also creating the landscapes. They will have to use their measurement skills, and they are building the landscapes based on the measurement skills that are provided in the data as well. I didn't do this step with my fourth graders just with the time I had. But for an extension, a great way is students can build a scaled model based on certain measurements that you give them, or they can make up the measurements. So there's a lot of opportunities for math in this lesson that are definitely embedded all throughout the week. When it comes to English language arts standards, the students will be accessing a lot of nonfiction texts, when it comes to videos, articles, websites, all those nonfiction text features reading a map. And so those are definitely in that lesson and where they can gather information. And of course, don't forget those speaking and listening skills. Oftentimes we think about there aren't specific STEM standards as of this, as of now with this recording, totally true. But those speaking and listening standards are apparent in STEM. And so there's a ton of collaboration and talking about their work in this lesson. Also, when it comes to the ISTE standards for students, students are being a knowledge constructor, and all of those various things that fall under that. So definitely check out the ISTE standards for students, if you're not familiar with them. Again, another great way to integrate STEM and just planning and how you might want to assess your students. If that is an option or something you need to think about. I did teach this lesson five days in a row. But I know we all have different schedules. So modify what works best for you, take out the pieces that you need or don't need. But I'm giving you an overview of how this went in my classroom. 


Naomi Meredith  07:06

To start off this project, students were asked the question that they were going to be answering throughout the week, how can you plan and develop a community based on Earth's features in an area. So not only are students going to be planning and designing a community, they really have to be mindful of the features in the area, and where they can and can't build things. We talked about how if there's a muddy area in a landscape, it doesn't really make sense for a house to be built there. There might be some issues with where the water is filtering, maybe it gets flash floods all the time, that might not be the best place for a house to be built. And there'll be some issues. Likewise, if there is a river or a lake, typically houses aren't built on there, maybe you have a houseboat. But having students really be mindful of the landscape when they're making their decisions, and planning their community it was super good for them to think about. From there, we did some imagining. And students learned more about GIS, geographical information systems, and how they're used in various jobs. We looked at different videos, different websites and examples of how GIS is used. Sometimes it's even there to help communities with water. So real life examples of how this is used in our world, and even day to day as well, when we're using maps in our real lives. From there, we also talked about different people who have jobs that will use data and work together to build and create a community, you have the architects who are really thinking about the design and the structure of the buildings. But then you have the civil engineers as well. And then all of the city planners and just how all those people can work together. There are some great videos out there on YouTube that even talk about this collaboration. And they even talk about words of how the engine, they don't say Engineering Design Process, but they actually talk about how they collaborate and work together. They plan and have to revise their plan. They build their plan, and then they make changes along the way. They have to make decisions. So all those things that you're doing in your class and how they are actually used in the real world. So students were really mesmerized by this. And it really brought up some great conversations with the students of how some of their parents or people in their family or people they've seen in movies have these types of roles and then they are asking them questions throughout the week when they were designing their projects. 


Naomi Meredith  09:36

If you're a teacher who needs more of an extension or you are teaching GT or homeschool, or even a classroom teacher, you can definitely do this lesson. You can have students dive in deeper when it comes to the features that are in a city. Google Earth is a great resource for this and you can even create a scavenger hunt where students are finding different locations in the world and then they can notice the different features that a place might have, such as the human features, the cultural features, the physical features. And this can also tell a lot about a place and how people live, and why a city might be designed the way that it is. So that again, another great extension, another way to integrate a technology tool in your classroom, using those mapping skills, even pulling in a little bit of that social studies, and really helping them be thoughtful when they get to the planning of their city. Of course, there is more than enough information to dive in that background knowledge. And of course, all that knowledge really helps with the building. So take it or leave it, do what would work best with your students. I didn't have time for the Google Earth. But if I were a classroom teacher, or any of those other roles that I mentioned, that's something I definitely would integrate. Now, this project I did a little bit differently than some of my other Makerspace projects. Before students actually drew the plan of their city, they actually had to use the fictional GIS data that I gave them, and really figure out what their landscape was actually going to look like. I didn't want them to create a city on something, they don't know what the city is actually going to look like, what are all the land features, so that was important for them to do. Students got a grid, kind of like a bingo board in a way where one side had numbers and the other one has letters. Then they were given their fictional data, which I shared with them through Seesaw because then they could keep track digitally just by highlighting the data that they colored. And they work together as a partner to color in on their grid, the different landscapes. So let's say these are the areas that are grassy, here is where a river runs through the city color it blue, here's an area that's muddy color at brown, here's a sandy area color that yellow. So this took about a whole class time for students to collaborate and work together to create what their landscape looks like. Now, don't worry, you might be saying, Oh, well, everybody's looks the same. Yes, their map does look the same. I do know this. But once they get into the planning completely different, they needed to have some sort of base to build up off of, then when it came to the physical features of the place, I created clay, some homemade playdough at home that they would actually build on top of this grid, I just put the grids inside of sheet protectors or sometimes large ziploc bags so that the paper didn't get soggy. And then their data actually told them in these areas that you felt, you need to build up the land to a certain height. So having rulers on hand was helpful, because then they had to actually measure how high certain places on the landscape was. Now side tip with the clay eyes somehow super messed up when I made the recipe. And I brought all of this and I found out all these different sensory needs I wasn't quite aware of, because I definitely messed up on this playdough this clay that I made and it was extremely, extremely sticky. Kids were screaming, it was all over my floor, it was all over the computers, the trash can and maybe my hair, it was a disaster. So double check your recipe, maybe even buy some Crayola modeling clay, that would be really awesome. If you bought that because it doesn't dry out. It's super inexpensive. And then at the end of the project, you can actually have kids give you back all of the modeling clay, so that might be working out a bit better from there. 


Naomi Meredith  13:37

When students understood what their landscape looked like, then I actually had them plan out their city and oh my goodness, kids love this step. It's very interesting with this project to get different kids like different parts of this project. And even more interesting because I've known these kids for a long time. There were kids who were like, they go through the motions, they do the projects, like cool, whatever they get into it or not. But those certain hard kids, I don't know what it is about this project. They were super invested in it and they were all in. So that's why I'm telling you having all these different types of experience in your classroom is so important because you never know what students are going to like and not like, but you need to mix it up. Because you can grab those kids at whatever lesson you don't know when it's going to hit them and just bring up this light bulb. So that was super fun to watch in the students. So when it came to this planning, they got super into the planning. Some kids even didn't get to finish their building part because they love the planning piece, almost like creating a blueprint of their city, which is totally fine. That's where they're at in the process. So I'm glad that they were excited about it. With their plan, they had certain parameters that they needed to add to their city so I did want to have them specific things and things that most communities have some of those things, were having roads, a neighborhood, a way to cross the river. It could be however they want. It's across the river. So I got some creative designs there. And yes, I did make the kids have a school, we weren't doing online learning in this place in this fictional place. So there was some sort of school, a lot of kids also added targets, which was super funny as well. And I'll even share some of the things that they added. After students created the plan for their city, then they were ready to build, they did not get unlimited supplies. So I did have my Makerspace menu and money out for them. And they had a budget of $25, where they would purchase the supplies for their city. If you want to hear more about exactly how I use Makerspace money and a menu in my classroom. Go back and listen to episode six, I explain the whole reason behind this, and how this actually helps with the materials and management in your classroom. When you are doing and Makerspace projects like this one. Along the way I shared with students a checklist of ways to modify and improve their design, and waves have, they can actually make it a lot better. This was also a great time, you can also have students think about the scale of the things that are in their city. Again, if you want to go even more specific about the measurements and drawing and creating things to scale, you definitely can do that. So just being really thoughtful about the designs and how everything works together as a community is super important when you're a city planner, and using the landscape to design what you have in front of you. Students were so proud of their creations and they loved collaborating on this. In a lot of ways it was like having a hands on real life SimCity game. I don't know if any of you ever played the Sims, I did play the human version where they had the houses, you build the houses, then you have the people inside. I also would play SimCity and RollerCoaster Tycoon and Sue Tonkin. So I've always had kind of that STEM background, even though I never knew I'd be a STEM teacher. But they loved this hands on thing they got super into it. There are some super cute things that I'm definitely going to link the pictures in the show notes because you definitely have to see what they did. One girl created a restaurant and it looked like a giant fry box with the fries sticking out of it. So a super cute design, and very creative. I love that. That's very good marketing, if that was a business, you have the fries. 


Naomi Meredith  17:36

Also, another student 3D printed something at home and added that to their design and wanted it to be a wind turbine to collect renewable energy of the wind. So that was super cool that they had a moving piece in their design and that it actually spun around. I did take a video of that in action because they were just so cute. There's also in the fictional data a muddy area of the town, one group decided to make this a dirt bike area where people could go and pay and ride their dirt bikes. Another group decided this would be fun to have a pig farm, and all the pigs will be rolling in the mud. So how cute is that. So again, all of their cities had the same landscapes, but their designs were 100% different. And they were so invested in their designs, they were so proud of themselves. When it came to the share piece, I highly recommended for them to take a video of their work, especially since they were working in groups, not everybody could take the project home. And so taking a video was a great way for them to share their work with their families. And you know, there's families who just feel like, hey, we don't need to keep this project. So a video is a really great way again, of course, I use Seesaw. But you could use another platform, like Flipgrid or something like that. With recording a video, they can take their work by taking a video. For students who finish earlier, if you wanted to extend this project even further, they could take a video of their work and then create a little commercial of why you might want to live in this city, and what are the features of this place and try to convince others of why you should live there. So as you're listening, and even while I'm explaining this to you, if I was a classroom teacher, I can see all of these cross curricular connections. And you could do this whole thing for a while. You can have them in reading research about GIS and how that's used in real life and new things that they learned and things that they're wondering and things they want to explore more and social studies. You could have them explore Google Earth, and all of the physical features that have a place in the land and math and you could just combine Math and Science where they're creating scale models of their buildings and then implementing that into their design. In writing. They could write a persuasive essay of the commercial of why you should enter this land. So see how it all came. connect together. When I was a classroom teacher, I was all about projects like this that could connect with everything and actually make your planning so much easier. So, so much fun. There's so many extensions that you can do. So I hope, I hope that you enjoyed hearing more of a deeper dive of a lesson that I taught my fourth graders when it came to planning a city. And of course, I put this all together for you. So go ahead, implement it yourself, I would also love to help you out with the planning. So linked in the show notes is the individual lesson that you can grab for your classroom that has all the research done for you all the vocabulary, all the data, even student examples to get inspiration going with your students, they're definitely going to be creative, they won't meet need a whole lot because this one is a lot of fun. Or you can also see in my free K-5 lesson plan how this connects together with my whole K through five engineering units. So this was one of the many lessons in this case, or five, where students took on the role of being engineers and a lot of different ways. Of course, there are lots of different bundles to with this. So you can buy this individually. There's a grade level unit, you can even look at the whole K through five bundle. Or even if you only teach upper elementary, there's an option for three through five. So lots of different ways where you can integrate this into your classroom and bring that creativity where students are awesome city planners, civil engineers, even that element of being an architect and having that creativity with their building design, but it really opens up the world of just another way how STEM is used in their real lives.

build a city STEM project

build a city STEM project

build a city STEM project

build a city STEM project

build a city STEM project

 

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More About your host, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

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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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5 STEM Activities for February [ep.55]

5 STEM Activities for February [ep.55]

stem-activities-for-february

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Episode Summary

February is one of my favorite months, and that is because my birthday happens to be on Valentine’s Day! I’m sure you know by now that I love a good theme. In today’s episode, I share five February STEM activities you can use in your classroom.

These are lessons that I have done with my students over the years, and they have absolutely loved them, so I know that your students will too. All of these STEM activities for February that I share can be done as one-day challenges, or you can spread them out over time. I have also done some of these activities when I was a classroom teacher, so you can implement them whether you’re a STEM teacher or a classroom teacher.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 5 STEM activities for February
  • An overview of the 5 STEM activities
  • Tips for how to implement these 5 STEM activities

Resources Mentioned:

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

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith  00:00

February is selfishly one of my favorite months, and it's because my birthday happens to be on Valentine's Day. You know by now that I love a good theme, so in this episode, I will be sharing with you five February STEM activities that you can use in your classroom. These are lessons that I have done with my students over the years, and they have absolutely loved them, I know that your students will too. 


Naomi Meredith  00:59

A couple of announcements for you before we jump into this fun episode: the doors are open to my live two-hour virtual STEM workshop that is going to help support you with K through two planning since we know that planning for the little ones can be pretty tricky. In this two-hour workshop, you will be planning a full unit for one of your grade levels that are in K through two. I will be showing you the exact system and templates that I use for my younger students. Now if you can't make it live, that is absolutely okay because this will all be recorded for you. So if you are listening to this later and the live has passed, it will still be available. So you can go through this workshop on your own time. So of course, you'll have that unit plan finished, but you will also create a base and a system that's going to help you with future lesson planning. You're going to have so much fun planning for the younger students that you're actually probably going to start loving it as well and have all the ideas for a future lesson. So I hope you can join on in. All the info will be linked in the show notes. You can check out when that will be hosted, whether you join us live or you want to watch the recording. Also, coming up in the future, another way that you'll be able to connect with me and other STEM teachers all over the world is I will be starting a virtual monthly book club. I know that reading can be a bit hard as a teacher in general, but this will help you find books that you might not have thought about before in the STEM education space. As I said, this is a great way to connect with other STEM teachers. Even if you don't read the book, you know, that's like a whole thing about book clubs, right? So there's a waitlist started up for that. So don't miss out, I would love to have you join in when that is live. So that will be also linked in the show notes. So jump in on these two opportunities! I have so many things coming up for 2023 to help support you and the elementary STEM space. Thank you so much again for being here, and I can't wait to connect with you further. 


Naomi Meredith  03:06

All of these STEM activities for February that I'm going to be sharing with you can be done as one-day challenges or spread out over time. You know your schedule better than I do. I have done both of those methods for the lessons that I will be sharing with you. So definitely modify what will work best for you and the grade levels that you teach. I also did some of these when I was a classroom teacher. So if you are a classroom teacher that's listening, definitely try these out as well. Again, everything will be linked in the show notes so you can recreate it if you want or if you don't feel like recreating, I have it all laid out for you for every single one of these. They will be in my TPT shop and again linked in the show notes. So let's jump in on these fun February STEM activities. 


Naomi Meredith  03:56

This first one is Groundhog Day shadows. This is one that you'd probably do at the beginning of the month since that's when Groundhog Day is and this is really great to help students understand the science behind the light and shadows and also a little bit of history about Groundhog Day. I always show them the video of what Groundhog Day is, and if it has actually happened, they always have a replay of the groundhog if he has seen his shadow or not. In my opinion. Groundhogs are a little bit gross looking, their teeth are disgusting to me. So when I do this challenge, the groundhog picture I use is way cuter than a real groundhog. I do not like rodents. I'm pretty sure they're a rodent, or they're pretty close to one, and they gross me out. Anyway, for this challenge, you need a picture of a groundhog, a paper cup for each student, flashlights to share, and tape or glue. Students will color and cut out their groundhog. They can add it to the cup in whatever way works best for them. Sometimes I will even show students how to make an L brace using cardboard. If you don't know how to do that it's a great cardboard building technique. I have a video that you can use with your students, and there's no sound on purpose. What I like to do is play the video on a loop on YouTube, and then students can watch it whenever they need to on my screen. So there's actually a hack that I use all the time when I am teaching building techniques. So I'll link that for you so you can check that out and use it as you need it. Students will build their groundhog that is on the cup and then around the classroom, they will create the shadow for the groundhog and figure out what they need to do to make the shadow bigger and smaller. If it's nice enough outside, you could take the cups outside with the groundhog and use the light outside. I live in Colorado, so it's usually not very nice in February. So that's why I have to use flashlights. So again, a great one-day challenge that you can do with your students to teach them about light, shadows, and Groundhog Day. 


Naomi Meredith  06:08

The next STEM activity for February is candy heart baskets. The ultimate goal for this challenge is for students to build a basket and see how many candy hearts can fit in their basket without falling out, which can be another part of the challenge. They have to carry it across the room, which will really test the durability of their basket. You can grab those simple candy hearts, and you can find them anywhere. I am more partial to the Sweet tart candy hearts which taste like sweet tarts. I don't really like the chalky ones. Of course, check on allergies and all that if you teach all the students in the school, and most of you who listen to this do. You might even want to find little heart erasers or something similar online, they're about the same size, and then you can reuse them over and over again. So if you don't want to deal with food, I totally get it. I typically don't deal with food, either. Well, in this position, as a classroom teacher, I was more likely to use food because I knew all their allergies and all of that. So up to you on that little part. Students can build their baskets out of reusable items in the classroom or consumable items. From there, if you want to really dig into the math piece, students can create different types of graphs. So a line plot to graph the class results of how many candy hearts were in each basket. They can create a bar graph to represent how many of each color heart were in their basket and even create a Pictochart. So those definitely go along with, I know off the top of my head, third-grade math standards, and then you can even dive into those graphing questions: how many more and how many less, so really get that M in STEM. So if you are a classroom teacher, you could make this last all day. In reading, you can read about the history behind how candy is made. In science, you could build this candy heart basket, and then in math, you could do all the graphing, so this is really integrated content and can last you a whole day if you're thinking about it. So this is a fun challenge to do in your classroom. 


Naomi Meredith  08:19

The next February's STEM activity is a STEM and stories challenge. You can read the story Beekle and connect it to magnets. There is a long title for this story, I'm pretty sure it's the Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend by Dan Santat, which I might have butchered the title. I love his books. By the way, when I look back at what I have created and done, it seems like I really enjoy his stories, which I obviously do. In this story, there is an imaginary friend Beekle, and he's having a hard time finding his human and connecting to someone who is just his person. While on the other side, there's a human who's having a hard time finding their imaginary friend. Eventually, they connect and just are absolutely obsessed with each other. Thinking about the science connection with this, you can have students explore things that are magnetic and not magnetic. From there, they can create their imaginary friend or unimaginary friend, how the book goes, so their imaginary friend and a human and how they can connect perfectly together. This might take a little bit longer than you think depending on the materials that you use. I used magnets and paper clips and other small things that can be attached. Then they created their little characters out of either construction paper or felt. So there's a lot of art in this challenge, and it is definitely a STEAM project. But again, this can be a great one or two-day challenge that you do in your classroom. Then students could even have their own imaginary friends or unimaginary friends connect with other ones. But you can definitely take this further, and there can be a lot of creativity and smiles with this activity. 


Naomi Meredith  10:06

The next February STEM activity is having a themed engineer inspiration board. I love having these on hand for throughout the year. What you can do is find different images that relate to the month, or with Valentine's Day, or other holidays in February. You can have students recreate those images using any materials that you have on hand. So again, you can use reusable or consumable items. If you want to take this a step further, they can quickly plan their design and build, and then they can share. Seesaw and Flipgrid are great options for this share. So especially if you are using things that are reusable, they can take it home by taking a picture. That's what I like to say in my classroom. This is also a great STEM station for the younger students. So if you're joining in on the workshop, Naomimeredith.com/primaryworkshop, then this could be an option that you can use when you are planning one of your STEM stations for your younger students. So very easy to prep, very easy to implement, and you don't need a whole lot. There's a lot of engagement that students can have in this activity. 


Naomi Meredith  11:16

The final STEM activity for February that you can try in your classroom is a Valentine's box STEM challenge. This is something that I did when I taught third grade, and the kids loved it. Maybe this is something that you might even collaborate with the classroom teachers. So if you do Valentine's parties or friendship parties in your school, maybe they make their Valentine's box in your classroom, that might be a pretty cool connection. You can do this, and a lot of different ways you can have your students vote on a class theme. So maybe everybody's box has to go along with the theme of space. So that will help a lot with creativity with constraints. Also, thinking about constraints, have some success criteria for the box. Does the box have something that opens and closes? Is there something that is shiny? Is there a place to put in the cards and a different place to take the cards out without breaking the box? So all of those different things might come to mind with your box. Also, put a limit on the size. When we did this, we made sure that the box will fit on top of their desk and that other students could easily put in Valentine's cards. If you're a STEM teacher and doing this challenge, I would recommend even having the boxes be a lot smaller. So can the box fit in a grocery bag? Because we know based on past episodes that I've done, Makerspace episodes five and six, if the projects are really big, it's going to take a longer time. So a shoe box size is actually a great size when it comes to Valentine's boxes.  So think about if you can do this challenge with your classroom. As I said, it'd be really cool to do this collaborating with classroom teachers, even if you did this with one group of older grades like fifth and sixth grade. That'd be pretty cool as well. So keep it in mind, have a fun way that you can have a STEM Valentine's Box Challenge. 


Naomi Meredith  13:18

As a recap, here are the five February STEM activities that you can do in your classroom. First is Groundhog Day shadows. Next is candy heart baskets. Third, themed engineer inspiration boards for February. Fourth, and I know I said this out of order, the STEM and stories with Beekle and connecting those two magnets. And fifth, the Valentine's Day box STEM challenge. Hopefully, this gave you some good ideas of what you can do in your classroom when it comes to February STEM challenges. Definitely take off with it and run with it. Or if you don't feel like making anything, as I said, I've made all of this for you. It's linked in the show notes and also in my TPT shop. So that will definitely save you some time. Take it from me. I love themes, and I love planning this way for fun. It's like it's a creative outlet for me, so you can definitely check that out. Also, while you're there in the show notes, make sure you sign up for the K through two virtual STEM planning workshop and join the waitlist for the STEM teacher book club that will be coming up in a little bit. Thank you so much again for listening, and I will chat with you soon.

stem-activities-for-february

 

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 earbuds!

how to teach a STEM lesson

How to Teach a STEM Lesson [ep.35]

How to Teach a STEM Lesson [ep.35]

how to teach a STEM lesson

Check out the full episode on How to Teach a STEM LEsson:  

 

 

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 on YouTube here:

Episode Summary

Struggling to find a structure and a flow when teaching your STEM lessons?

In today's episode, I'll be sharing with you how to teach all of my K through five STEM lessons.

This method has allowed me to get through the content. Students are able to have enough work time, and it even saves a little room for cleanup at the end.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • How to teach a STEM lesson using the workshop model
  • What the workshop model is
  • Each stage of the workshop model

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith  00:00

Struggling to find a structure and a flow when teaching your STEM lessons? In today's episode, I'll be sharing with you the exact format that I use to teach all of my K through five STEM lessons. 


Naomi Meredith  00:11

This method has been a game changer for me during the past five years as a STEM teacher, and it has allowed me to get through the content. Students are able to have enough work time, and it even saves a little room for cleanup at the end. Let's jump right in. 


Naomi Meredith  00:59

I originally taught in the classroom for six years before I landed my role in K through five STEM. I was in a brand new district with a brand new remodeled classroom, limited tools and zero curriculum. It was super overwhelming at first. But I knew that my time spent as a classroom teacher for six years before this role was definitely an asset. I even talked about this in episode 11 of the podcast, why classroom teachers make great STEM teachers. So go back and take a listen if this is a role that you have tumbled into, and you just don't know where to begin. Overall, this is why I created this podcast. This is something that I wish I had, so I am giving back to you. We know that time goes by super fast as a teacher, especially as a specialist teacher. I'm going to be sharing with you the exact model that I use to teach all of my lessons in my classroom. This is a structure that I didn't invent. You might be a little bit surprised by what I'm going to be sharing with you, and I'm ready to spill all the secrets. Do you want to hear what the model I use is? It's the workshop model, not new, but I use this structure in my K through five STEM space for all of my lessons. I'm going to break down for you exactly how I use the workshop model. 


Naomi Meredith  02:22

In my classroom, I use the workshop model when integrating the Engineering Design Process with my projects and with STEM stations. I know that you can too. It will definitely give you the structure that you are looking for, and you don't have to change it up every day. If you keep it the same every single day, students will know what to expect when they come into your classroom, and it will ease the stress of your teaching. It will definitely help you with time management with all of the things going on. Real quick, here's an overview of the workshop model. If you haven't used this method of teaching, think of the workshop model as a circle of a pie chart. So literally, your time is in a circle, you are going to break it up into a few different sections. I have my classes for 45 minutes, K through five. So depending on the time that you have with kids, you will adjust accordingly. I'm also not including the transition time that I have in between classes because that is separate from this workshop model. So keep that in mind as well. Within the workshop model, you have it broken up into three parts, but not three equal parts. You have a medium slice, a big slice of the pie, which is most of it and a tiny slice at the end. First, our medium slice is the mini lesson. For me my mini lessons are between five to eight minutes. After that you have the practice time. This is when students are collaborating, they're working independently, or maybe they're in station rotations. For me, my practice time is between 25 to 35 minutes. Finally, the tiniest slice of the pie that is between two to five minutes is your share, reflect and clean up. I structure all of my classes this way, and it just brings a ton of consistency. 


Naomi Meredith  04:12

But let's really talk about what each of those timeframes look like, depending on the lesson that I'm teaching. Throughout the year, my second grade students come into my classroom often with their classroom computers. I don't have a classroom set of computers in my room. So I have set this up from day one, that for 90% of the lessons that I'm going to teach students will carry their classroom computer with them to my classroom, we may or may not use it, but it's just great that they have it. I also like to connect the lessons to what they're doing within their class, even just by the simple fact of logging into their student computer. This gives them that extra practice. Yes, it might take longer sometimes, especially with the younger students, but I just want to set up the expectation that we will sometimes use tech now as a tool, not as a toy to help us with the lessons that we're teaching. When students come in with their computer, their role is computer on the table, sit on the floor. When they sit on the floor, they are in my group meeting area and they're ready to go for the lesson. If they don't have their computer or if they're younger students, they're only one step direction is sit on the floor. One hundred percent of the time, I've talked about this in past episodes, I don't have students sitting at the tables when I teach. My room is ginormous, and I don't talk very loud. I know the kids aren't listening to me when they are spread out along the room. Yes, K through five, my big kids do this as well. I don't feel bad because in PE and music, they don't have chairs either. They have to sit on the floor. So don't feel bad at all. They are okay. They're sitting on the floor in front of our group meeting area. That's where I have my TV and all the materials ready to go to teach the lesson. 


Naomi Meredith  05:55

Another great way to maximize your time is on the screen, have a warm up question related to the project that you're going to be working on. Or even have the slides that you will be teaching from ready to go have student examples, something related to the lesson that will pique their interest and get their mindset ready to go. I am very big on using every moment wisely. So even just the act of having something on the screen for students to look at and talk about with the people next to them is extremely valuable when I am teaching with the Engineering Design Process. All of my Engineering Design Process notebooks are digital. I actually don't create separate slides to teach from. I teach from the student slides that I assigned to them. I will typically assign them in Seesaw, sometimes in Google Classroom, but I will be physically logged in as a teacher opening up the slides within that class I am teaching from so they can see me interact with the slides just as if they were as well. It's great to connect the two together and the kids know they have access to everything that I am showing them. So nothing I am showing them is a surprise. If you are curious to hear more about the Engineering Design Process. I talked about this and a lot of my episodes, but more specifically in Episodes 15 and 17 through 21. So go back and take a listen. I break down each stage of the Engineering Design Process and how you can use this within your space. 


Naomi Meredith  07:28

When I am teaching the mini lesson, it is very short. It is a mini lesson and I am able to include everything I need to within the short amount of time. If you forget anything, you can pause the class during their practice and work time and remind them of the next steps. There is nothing wrong with that. The goal of this is when students are sitting down ready to learn, they are getting the bulk of the information from you. You are the teacher, you can keep teaching throughout the class time. When I'm teaching with the Engineering Design Process, the mini lesson is when I am introducing each step very specifically. Day one is when I would do the ask, imagine, and have students to start planning their designs. Day two is when students will be finishing up their designs and begin to create what they are hoping to design. Day three and four is all about more creation, experimenting, and improving. I might even introduce a modification checklist so the can see how to make their design better. All of my mini lessons are going to be really focused in on each of these stages. The final day is more experimenting, improving, and how students are going to share their work. 


Naomi Meredith  08:41

When I was a classroom teacher, I always taught with a workshop model anyway, and I am always teaching the next step. Some kids might not be ready for my lesson, but they know where they're going. They can look back in their digital Engineering Design Process notebook from the week and see what they missed and what they need to keep working on to get to where I am teaching for the day. Again, I'm always teaching the next step and I tell my students that it's okay if they're not there yet. I'm teaching them where they are headed so they can be successful and know what to work on. This is also a time where I will build a background and the science behind what we are doing. This can be day one, but I will also do this during the week as well because students can always modify and change their design. So there's nothing wrong with doing background information a little bit each day. This might be a related video that I found, a website, or an article. Again, these are all linked in their Engineering Design Process notebooks. I often have to show the class the videos at the same time because they are linked to YouTube and my district blocks YouTube. So that's the only way that we can watch them. The kids know that they even want to watch it at home. They have access to these links as well for more specific lessons during this mini lesson. 


Naomi Meredith  09:53

If I'm doing a Makerspace project, this is where I would talk about the Makerspace menu and money system. If I am doing a technology project, this is also when I would talk about very specific things on how to get connected to the technology. For example, if I am teaching robotics with a Sphero, or a Dash robot, this is where I will physically show them how to connect to that robot. I also have visual directions that I will post after my mini lesson. I will refer to them when I am teaching. So I will model how to get to that specific technology. But then that digital anchor chart will also be posted with visuals to remind students how to do the steps that I just talked about. I highly recommend making these anchor charts digital and not cluttering your walls with all of them. Unless you're using the same tool K through five, I don't have a whole lot of wall space. I'm very specific about the things that I hang up. I want everything to be purposeful in my classroom for all classes. That's why I will make a lot of these anchor charts digital, of course, they're linked to my TPT shop. But that way, I can pull up what I need. It's very specific for that class, and I don't have to print a million things. I don't have the time for that either.


Naomi Meredith  11:07

If I'm doing a station rotation, the mini lesson is also the time where I will build the background knowledge and have a related video about the topic. I will also show students how to complete each of the stations. I will do the same process for both days of stations. I do for station rotations, when I do stations with my younger students, I will have a station for each letter of STEM. They will complete two stations a day. Same process. I don't assume that they remember how to do the stations. Some will and some won't. Some kids are absent, some kids were new for the day. So I always will review those expectations for my classes who have a hard time with behavior. I will also, during this mini lesson, go over the specific ways of how they can earn their class incentive and refer to each of those expectations as well. This mini lesson is when I am the star of the show. Going over those very specific things I need them to do during their work time. I am not up there for very long. So I really have to get the most bang for my buck during this time. Because the majority of class time they are going to be working on their projects, whatever it is that we are doing for the week. I do realize that it can be tricky when you are using technology as one of your main sources of tools. Then you want to show them how to use the technology. Then you want to show them how it's going to connect to everything. When this happens, this is usually for me when we are doing a coding platform and Engineering Design Process notebook. 


Naomi Meredith  14:14

If that is digital or even logging into 3D printing, I will break up the mini lesson and the practice time that's student work time. Often I will get their excitement, build a little bit of background, then I will show students how to connect to the tool or how to log in how to get that all set up. So I tell them we're getting our materials ready first, and then I'm going to show you how to use that. I will show them those steps have the visual directions backup for them. They will go get their materials ready, leave them ready to go and then come back to the floor for students who need a lot more support. There's only one of you and a lot of them. I will show them all the steps and let's say it's a Engineering Design Process notebook I want them to get to, I will have the visual steps on one side and then the page I want them in their engineering notebook ready to go. I will tell them when everybody at your table has their screen matching mine, you will come to the floor, nothing in your hands. So that means that all the kids have to help each other at their table. They can't do it for them, they have to be the YouTube tutorial and show them how to do it by pointing. Then when everybody is ready to go, then they can come to the floor. This has really helped where students are being more independent and helpful when it comes to technology, and not always relying on me for every single troubleshooting issue. This also frees me up for the students who really are having problems that none of the kids can solve. I'm not running around fixing everything. There are usually at least a couple of kids at each table who can be successful and who are happy to help. 


Naomi Meredith  15:47

From there, I will finish off the mini lesson where the kids are on the floor, the materials are ready to go. I'll show them how to use it, how it relates to the lesson. Then we will move on to that practice time because everything is set up and ready to go. So this is a great way to break it up where the kids aren't sitting for 20 minutes. You're kind of merging that mini lesson and that work time together. Now we are officially moving on to that practice time when it comes to the workshop model. And of course, I have all the helpful tools posted up on my screen ready for kids to access. My favorite that I have mentioned before is classroomscreen.com, where you can upload images. There's timer widgets, there's a text box where you can type things, you can have everything displayed all nicely in one place. You don't have to minimize your tabs and make them fit perfectly. Everything is all there for you and I highly recommend checking that out if you haven't used classroomscreen.com already. I will almost always have a timer up on my screen during the student work time. So students are aware of how much time they have to work in my class. During station rotations, I actually don't only because I do stations with Kindergarten and first grade. I kind of have to gauge what is going on in the classroom. I will typically set a timer on my watch, and I will use that as a guide noticing if groups are a little bit squirrely. Or if they need a little bit more time, they sometimes will ask me how much time they have left, I will always tell them. 


Naomi Meredith  17:21

But this actually worked well for station rotations just based on the class and their experience with station rotations and how they're feeling that day with the materials at hand. When students are working, they usually want to work with others when it's on station rotations. I allow them to work in groups of one, two or three. Our projects are usually really small. I'm really big about having small projects because they're easier to store. I tell them if you want to be a group of four, just do two and two, that way, you have more of a chance to work on everything. This has worked really well. I used to do bigger groups in the past, but I realized not all kids had a chance to participate, there wasn't enough for them to do. So keeping groups smaller really helps with the collaboration they had can have a voice during their work time and feel like that they are involved in the project. During this time, I will be roaming the room assisting as needed. I'm really big about ask three before me, especially when it comes to troubleshooting or what questions they have. Again, I am the guide on the side, I am not the star of the show during this work time. I am during the mini lesson, trust me, you should see me in action. But during this work time, it's all about them getting all the work done that they have at hand. 


Naomi Meredith  18:36

Finally, the last part of the workshop model that is the smallest and that is the share, reflect and I added in that clean up. For me this is about two to five minutes, it is quick, and I am able to get my classes to clean up very fast here and there. I will have a class who are very, very slow cleaning up, they might need more time. I keep that in mind and balance it all out. But for the most part, most classes can clean up in about five minutes. When it comes to station rotations, they will clean up before they rotate. So again, I'll have that mini lesson we have the video building background, I show them how to do the stations, they will work in their stations, then they will clean up and stand at their clean station. They're not allowed to go anywhere. They don't know where they're going. They have to be cleaned up before they're able to rotate. After all the stations are cleaned up, I will have them stand there I will go to that station, I will stay in there with them and show them how to point to their next station. When everybody's pointing to their next station, they will walk to the next one and work on what they have at hand. 


Naomi Meredith  19:39

Again, when the time is up, they will clean up they'll stand up their clean station and then they'll come and join me on the floor and we will learn and then we will reflect on the learning for the day. For an Engineering Design Process project we will clean up and then they will either sit at their tables or they'll all join me on the floor depending on where we're at with that cleanup. I like to use the same reflection questions that are in their  Engineering Design Process notebooks at the very end, what went well? What was the challenge for them? If they were to do this project again, what would they work on? I might even ask them what went well, what would you recommend? So for kids who are going to be on that next stage tomorrow, what advice would they give them. So questions like this are really helpful to talk about as a class, and to really close up everything that happened for the day, you can also make a digital check in a lot like what Jill mentioned in her guest interview and a past episode, but you could do a digital check in as to where they're at in the Engineering Design Process, or how they are feeling and that part of the process. You could create this in a Google slide or a Google jam board, and there is a little circle that has the kids classroom number, and they can move that little circle as to where they are feeling. A lot of different ways to reflect, you don't have to go overboard with this. But it's good to have some sort of closure, where it's not just clean up, run out the door. When we're all done for the day, I will let the class know if they earn their classic incentive, and then they will go line up in my green hallway so they are ready to go for the teacher. Again, I don't have them lineup in my classroom because if the teacher is late or if another class is early, then they are all in the hallway, and they're ready for that teacher. Then I can clean up any last things prepare any last materials before my next class comes for the day. 


Naomi Meredith  21:22

As a recap, here is how to teach a STEM lesson when using the workshop model. First, we talked about what the workshop model is, then you move on to the mini lesson to start it all off. The bulk of your work time is that practice time, then you piece it all together with the share, reflect and clean up time by creating a predictable structure for all of your lessons K through five, not only will this be helpful for you as a teacher, it'll create that consistency for the students. So when they step into your space, they will always know what is going on with the actual content, but the structure is always going to be the same. This is going to help with your classroom management, behavior management, and even help you get through all of the content, no matter how much time you have with kids, and how often that you see them.

how to teach a STEM lesson

how to teach a STEM lesson

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!

first year teaching STEM

My First Year Teaching STEM: What Surprised Me the Most [ep. 30]

My First Year Teaching STEM: What Surprised Me the Most [ep. 30]

first year teaching STEM

Check out the full episode on My First Year Teaching STEM: What Surprised Me the Most:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Episode Summary

While there are a lot of similarities between the general education classroom and the STEM classroom, there are a handful of things that surprised me during my first year teaching STEM. 

Whether you are currently a STEM teacher and this is your first year, or maybe you've been doing it for a while, or you're a classroom teacher who's trying to implement STEM, or maybe you're even a classroom teacher who is thinking about stepping into a STEM role, you will relate to many of the topics discussed in today’s episode. 

In this episode, I’m keeping it real and showing you the behind-the-scenes and the not so pretty behind-the-scenes of my first year of teaching STEM.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn four things that surprised me the most my first year of teaching STEM:

  • Sense of time and how it’s structured is different compared to teaching general education
  • Teaching STEM helps you grow your teaching abilities
  • You are an island, and it can be lonely
  • STEM is impactful but still very new, meaning there are limited resources and supports

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith  00:00

I originally didn't go to college to become a STEM teacher. In fact, my major is in elementary education. Through my six years of teaching in the classroom, my experiences and passions led me to my K through five STEM teaching and coaching position. I eventually did go back and get my Master's in STEM Leadership and a STEM certificate while always continuing to refine my practice and learn more about this field. While there are a lot of similarities between the general education classroom and the STEM classroom, there are a handful of things that surprised me during my first year teaching STEM, which I will be sharing in today's episode. 


Naomi Meredith  00:40

Whether you are currently a STEM teacher and this is your first year, or maybe you've been doing it for a while, or you're a classroom teacher who's trying to implement STEM, or maybe you're even a classroom teacher who is thinking about stepping into a STEM role, I think you're gonna find a lot of things in this episode that will be relatable to you. I am definitely keeping it real and showing you the behind-the-scenes, not so pretty behind-the-scenes of my first year of teaching STEM. Also, in the end, you'll be hearing from other teachers who listen to this podcast, and they will be sharing how this show has been helpful to them. Make sure to listen all the way to the end for this special bonus. 


Naomi Meredith  01:53

What I realized right away during my first year teaching STEM is a sense of time is different. We always talk about as teachers how we never have enough time to do anything. Well, the same is true as a STEM teacher, just the way that time is structured, it's completely different. I remember my first few weeks and how fast the time went. I didn't get any lessons done. Let's be real, I had a hard time getting things done with my classes. What was really tricky is I only had kids three days out of the week, and it was the same kids three days in a row. But time went by so fast. The luxury of being a classroom teacher is you do have the same kids all day. The downfall is you do have the same kids all day. But you do have the same kids all day as a classroom teacher, and if you don't finish something in the morning, you can revisit it in the afternoon. As a STEM teacher, you typically don't have that luxury. You only have that short amount of time with them. Sometimes kids will even forget that even to this day. I still have kids who are confused about why we are cleaning up, and I can't let them build all day. I let them know, “I have three more classes who are coming to me, you have to put it away. I am so sorry. I'm so glad you're having a good time, but we have to clean up.” 


Naomi Meredith  03:15

Time goes by so fast in a different way. Even that time in between classes, you sometimes get a moment to catch your breath, but not all the time, and you have to gear yourself up for the next lesson. I'm always so sweaty at the end of the day. I used to wear super cute outfits and fancier shoes when I was a classroom teacher. Not to say I look terrible every day, but I pull out a lot more teacher tees and skirts and comfortable pants these days because I am up and down on the floor with K through five years running around all over the place. I even tell people teaching STEM is a lot like hosting a birthday party six times. You have to have the same amount of energy for all six classes and make the experience special and meaningful for every single one. So I am like the cool aunt who hosts special birthday parties all day, every day. 


Naomi Meredith  04:11

Something else when it comes to time, I was always stressed out about materials and making sure that everything was prepped and ready to go for every single class. I still get that sometimes when I am implementing brand new lessons or brand new tools that I have never tried before. I have really tried to develop systems and routines, which you hear about in all my other episodes, on how I can get kids to be independent when it comes to gathering their supplies while also being collaborative. I have moved things around in my room constantly to make sure they are at kid height, kid accessible, and that they can do the bulk of gathering materials, being successful during work time, and also putting them away independently. This has given me a little bit more breathing room in between classes. I definitely didn't have this figured out during my first year teaching STEM. So if you're feeling it, that's okay, you will get there. This is just part of the whole process of building your systems and routines. 


Naomi Meredith  05:12

Another big thing that I learned during my first year teaching STEM is that it helps you grow your teaching abilities. If you can teach K through five all day and have differentiated lessons for all of them while teaching, think about it, every single kid in the school, I really feel like you can teach anything. It's funny because when I first got into teaching, when I was deciding on my major, I was really in between elementary education and also early childhood. Well, you know, I went the Early Childhood route, but I really love the littles. I really see their creativity and all of their amazing ideas each and every day. Now, when I was a classroom teacher, I only taught second and third grade. When I got my third-grade role, I actually didn't apply for that job. I really wanted the Kindergarten job. Funny enough, when I walked into the interview room, I actually knew one of the girls in my interview completely by accident. That's actually not why I got the interview. I knew her, and she was on that third-grade team. So when it came down to it, she really wanted to work with me. I thought, “Okay, why not, I will take a risk. I need to change.” I ended up loving third grade and taught it for four years. 


Naomi Meredith  06:29

However, I still do love the littles. I also really appreciate the older students as well, and how deep we can go in the concepts. I really do love the variety of having all the grade levels and seeing that progression of learning, especially year after year. This has been really eye-opening. It really has been testing my differentiation skills when it comes to particular grades, but also being able to meet the needs of all of my students literally on the fly. Sometimes I will think of ideas right then and there, and it ends up working. Sometimes it doesn't. But being able to teach all the grades really tests and grows you as a teacher. If you are in a rut and you're thinking about getting into STEM, it is really hard at first. But also, it's really exciting because it is so different throughout the day when you have all of those different kids. The cool thing, too, that you don't always get as a classroom teacher is you do get the same kids every single year. Unless you are looping with your students, which I know some teachers do or some schools are really big on that, as a specials teacher, you do get the same kids year after year. I am in year five of knowing my fifth graders, so I have known them since first grade. They forget they have known me that long. I've basically been their only STEM teacher, so it's really cool to see all of the amazing things we have done together and how much deeper we can get into the projects. 


Naomi Meredith  07:54

I really do know those students, even though it is 45 minutes for five days in a row once a month. But really, knowing them over five years, it's pretty cool to see all the amazing things that they do and know their passions and different things that they want to try. Also, when it comes to testing your teaching abilities, not only do you have to differentiate for their students' needs, but also adjust to different teaching styles. Now you're not always teaching with the classroom teachers unless that is the role that you have, which I have had that role before. Also, you may be pushing into the classrooms and helping teachers implement STEM and technology and innovative in meaningful ways. But when you have all the kids come into your classroom, you can definitely see the different styles of teaching that the kids are used to with their homeroom teacher. 


Naomi Meredith  08:46

Some are more laid back about things. Some have more strict behavior management. Some are all about collaboration and creativity. Some where kids have to be silent and listen to the teacher all day. It's very interesting to see how kids will respond to your style, which I am all about being the guide on the side, not the sage on the stage, which the kids think I'm a little bit funny, not too funny. They're a little more impressed that I have a YouTube channel if anything else, but I'm really all about giving them the information right away and letting them run with it and attack the problems. Not all teachers have the same style as me. I thrive in this controlled chaos. So it really does, again, test your teaching abilities, being able to adjust to different classes and what they're used to with their homeroom or general education classroom teacher. 


Naomi Meredith  09:38

Another big thing when stepping into the first year of STEM is that you really are an island. Now, this can definitely be based on the school. I do have a team of specials teachers who are very sweet. They teach PE, art, and music. We do eat together, and we're able to talk about kids, but we're not really planning together all the time. There are moments when the art teacher and I might collaborate on some special projects. But it's way different than being a classroom teacher, where you have a team and you can even divvy up the work where you can talk about the curriculum. You can talk about the units, or you might even be able to switch kids based on differentiation. As a STEM teacher, you really are an island. Now, this really helps you be a self-starter and problem solver when it comes to building your curriculum, which can be super overwhelming. 


Naomi Meredith  10:32

I stepped into a classroom that was brand new and remodeled and had zero curriculum. There were some tools in there, but nothing else. So I loved this challenge because I love writing lessons and trying new ideas, which you can see in my whole year-long plan at naomimeredith.com/yearlongplan, and even get every single lesson that I teach to my students all packaged up together. So you don't have to do all that planning. But it was super overwhelming because I didn't know the kids. I didn't know what tools I was supposed to be using. So you really want to find your community, whether it's other STEM teachers in the community or even neighboring districts, you can join online groups, find me on Instagram at NaomiMeredith_, or even if you find friends who are online, you can join Facebook groups. I have one as well, the Elementary STEM Coach Facebook group, which will be linked in the show notes. But finding our people can really help you collaborate and not feel so alone because it can get kind of lonely. Even though you see hundreds of kids a day, you really are by yourself, and you're not always sure if your ideas are really good or not. So being able to talk to other adults can be really impactful. I learned that pretty quickly and reached out and have my STEM teacher besties, which of course, we heard from one and our first guest interview Jen Sevy, and I'm gonna have some of my other STEM teacher friends on future podcast episodes because it's so important to find your people, especially in the education space. 


Naomi Meredith  12:07

The fourth big thing that I learned during my first year teaching STEM is that STEM is super impactful, but it is still very new in the elementary STEM space. There are various perceptions as to what STEM should look like in the elementary space and even in your own building. I realized this very quickly. First of all, the kids were excited to come to my class., but it was rebranded, as you would say. It also depends on if you've had a STEM teacher or a similar role before. Kids will bring in their biases as well. For my older students, in my first year, not all of them actually really liked to build and be creative. They were so used to past teachers in this role telling them exactly what to do, and it had to look the same. There was not much creativity within that. Then they did coding all the time. So they had a different experience when it came to STEM. It really took a long time to help build their trust and to create an environment where they wanted to create and try something new while also having a growth mindset. I had a lot more buy-in with my little kids because they didn't really have much experience with that past teacher. So it will take time to build up those things with your kids. 


Naomi Meredith  13:28

If you're not finding success that first year or if things are failing more often than succeeding, keep going. You are not a failure. It does take time, you're building a program. It's like as a classroom teacher, you build the thing the whole year, you were building that community for 180 plus days. As a STEM teacher or specials teacher, if you have a unique role, your time is a lot shorter, and it can take years to get to this high-level place that you have in your mind, and you know the kids can do. Keep trying, keep building that community keeps instilling a growth mindset, it is worth it, I promise you. There are also some biases from the teachers in my building as well. Before my classroom was remodeled, it was actually a legit computer lab. A lot of teachers kept calling my class computers tech, which I am not the computer lab teacher or the tech teacher. The kids kept calling me the tech teacher. I'm like, “Okay, so we really are learning what STEM means.” 


Naomi Meredith  14:34

One fun way that I did this is I created something called STEM style. So again, building my brand as the STEM teacher in my building. We really talked about what STEM is and like, okay, well, this is STEM. I am not your tech teacher. I'm not your computer lab teacher, but you do have a STEM teacher. Tech is one of those things in STEM. But here's what the other letters mean. Here's how we're going to be doing them in this lesson. I always try to point out those things even to this day, in my fifth year teaching STEM. I tell them, “Oh, there's a lot of m in STEM. Today, we're doing a lot of math when it comes to our Maker money. So I will point out those things, and then they're like, “Oh, okay!” Sometimes they get a little frustrated with the math, but that's part of STEM.  I did something called STEM style. So we always talked about what STEM means. If kids wore shirts that represented STEM, science, technology, engineering, or math, I would take a picture, and it would go on my digital picture frame. I have all the pictures from the past five years of being in this role. There are hundreds and hundreds of pictures, and kids think if they stand there, they might see themselves. If they do, they're super lucky, and they should go to Vegas. I know they're not old enough, but that could be a lucky charm. But they get so excited. 


Naomi Meredith  15:46

It's really helped them build their vocabulary of how there are so many different avenues when it comes to STEM. Then now they're finally calling my class STEM, and I'm not the computer teacher or the tech teacher. I'm legit, the STEM teacher. Also, when it comes to the admin, there might be a lot of support when it comes to STEM, or there might not be. It could be that there's a lot of support, and they have no idea what you're talking about. So when you're thinking about your evaluations, or who your admin are, and the different people you're dealing with higher up really showing, explaining the reason why you are doing things. That is why planning with standards and using the Engineering Design Process is important because you're really building the backbone of what your lessons mean and the why behind that. When you're thinking about that differentiation and creating your year-long plan while there is a progression of learning, admins understand that they might not understand what coding is, or robotics, but they understand those things. So if you are being more thoughtful in your lessons, you're gonna have more buy-in for your program. You can really explain the why behind you're doing things. Of course, that is just a snapshot. 


Naomi Meredith  16:58

There is a lot of work to be had in the elementary STEM space, and that is a big reason why I created this podcast because, as of right now, there's not a whole lot out there. We need more voices to help make a positive difference in this STEM space. Sometimes for me, it can be a little bit awkward just talking into a microphone, and I don't always know who is listening and how this podcast is even helping. So I put out a call to action for this special 30th episode, where you could leave me a message on how the elementary STEM coach podcast has been impactful to you. You all stepped it up with your messages. They really put a big smile on my face. It continued to instill the drive in me to make a big impact in STEM education when it comes to Elementary in a positive way. So I want you to take a listen and hear all of these awesome words that you all had to say.


17:59

I love how Naomi gives such actionable tips. She doesn't just give you the theory and the why. But she gives you something that you can take back into your classroom and really make it your own, which is so helpful. The elementary STEM coach podcast has been a phenomenal resource for me. This is my first year teaching STEM. And it has been my go to and listening and learning the ins and outs of STEM. I get super excited when I see that a new episode comes out. And I can't wait to hear more.


18:40

Your Blog revives me Just when I think I don't have any more ideas. What can I do? You send me a an idea. And I get revived I think the wheels start spinning and I think I can do this like it had. So it's a jolt of creativity when I don't feel I have any. Thanks so much for sharing.


19:03

Hi Naomi. My name is Amber Fraser and I'm a first year STEM educator at Maplewood Elementary School. I teach Kindergarten through sixth grade and I can honestly say that you have given this first year teacher all of the tools that I need to be able to change the lives of my students every day. I can confidently say that work does not feel like work because of people like you and the resources that you've given us. And the confidence that you instill in each of us with the things that you share. You have changed my life and the lives of all of my students. Thank you so Naomi for all the to do.


19:36

Hi Meredith. My name is peg Volek and I teach in paracasei, Pennsylvania. This is my 31st year of teaching. And after 27 years in the classroom, I took on a role of a STEM and gifted support teacher. Your podcast has helped me with management. Because even though I've taught for so long, managing kids once a week, is a little bit different. It's a whole different world. Thank you so much for keeping it real, giving me good ideas and how to look ahead how to look at the whole scope and sequence that has been really helpful. If you can have any tips on how to make 45 minutes last forever, that'd be great. Because I feel like they forget everything from week to week. The least that's how it seems. I love listening to your podcast because your troubles are the same as mine, and it makes me feel like it's okay. It is the ways that the STEM world works. Thank you so much for your podcast. Look forward to the next episode. Thanks.


20:38

Hi, Naomi. My name is Katie. And I just wanted to say thank you for sharing this podcast with all of us, I transition from being a classroom teacher. Over the last Gosh, I've been a teacher for 12 years, and I've taught in a lot of different fifth and sixth grade classrooms, from teaching math, to social studies to English all over, you know, running the gamut. But I made a big jump this year to become a STEAM specialist in a three to five elementary school and I wasn't sure how it would feel about everything if I could handle it all. And I have loved it. And I have loved turning to your podcast, to feel less alone and to get advice on where to move forward. Thank you so much.


21:22

Hi, my name is Donna and I love the STEM coach Podcast. I'm new to STEM this year because I have a stim club for the first time. Some of my favorite things about the podcast are the one day challenges, some tips for management, like the tape around the popsicle sticks. That's my favorite, and all the great ideas for planning and lessons. Thanks for all the great ideas keep them coming. 


Speaker 8  21:46

Hi, I am a 15 year experience high school science teacher who now moved into a new role this school year at a K to eight, school. And my position is to help integrate STEAM into the fabric of our school. Your podcast has been so helpful for me in getting real tangible ideas of things to do as students as K to five is definitely not my area of expertise. And I really appreciated the concrete examples that you give and the resources that you share. It has probably saved me countless hours. Thank you.


22:31

I enjoy the STEM podcast, because it helps me find lessons specific to elementary STEM, which is really hard to find. It gives me lesson plans and different ideas on how to teach STEM.


22:49

Hi Naomi. This is Megan from West Virginia. This is my second year teaching STEAM. I travel between the three elementary schools in the county that I serve. And I listen to your podcasts on the way to give me ideas and be able to keep my mind on new STEAM ideas while I travel between the schools. Thanks so much for all your ideas. You were one of the first people I found when I started this new job after changing over from being a second-grade teacher for multiple years.


Naomi Meredith  23:19

Thank you to all of you who took a moment to record these again. They mean the world to me, you can actually leave me a voice message anytime. Whether it's a question you have that you want me to answer on the show, something you're wondering, or if you want to say thank you, feel free to record me a message. It's super easy to do, you can just go to this link, Naomi meredith.com/voice. And it's also always linked in the show notes. Thank you so much and can't believe we made it to Episode 30. What an exciting celebration! I will talk to you soon.

first year teaching STEM

 

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More About your host, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

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

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

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