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Lessons for Starting A STEAM Program with K-4 STEAM Teachers from Ladue School District [ep. 217]

Lessons for Starting A STEAM Program with K-4 STEAM Teachers from Ladue School District [ep. 217]

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Episode Summary

In this episode, I’m joined by four elementary STEAM teachers who worked together to build a brand-new K–4 STEAM program across their district: Kristina Lodes, Jenny Bradley, Miranda Berry, and Mary Linneman. 

We’re chatting about what that process actually looked like—from defining their roles and creating a curriculum to working with a budget, using materials they already had, and figuring out how to fit robotics, coding, engineering, makerspace, 3D printing, and more into a meaningful learning experience for students.

You’ll also hear about some of the biggest successes they’ve had along the way, including STEM Survival Camp, 3D printing, digital portfolios, and their district-wide STEAM Fest and Recycled Runway. Most importantly, they share how collaboration, having a strong starting point, and being willing to adapt lessons for their own students helped make an overwhelming process feel much more manageable.

Whether you’re brand new to teaching STEM or STEAM, helping build a program from scratch, or looking for ways to strengthen the program you already have, this conversation is packed with real-life ideas and encouragement you can use in your own STEM classroom.

Resources Mentioned:

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Meet Kristina Lodes

Kristina Lodes is an experienced Missouri educator with 22 years dedicated to driving innovation and student success in the classroom. She spent 16 years as a 3rd, 4th, and 5th-grade classroom teacher in the Francis Howell School District, serving 9 of those years as an Instructional Technology Lead. She later joined the Ladue School District as a Technology Specialist and Digital Learning Coach, supporting educators and students with meaningful tech integration.

Kristina holds a Master’s Degree in Elementary Education alongside a STEM Certificate. Now in her second year as a STEAM Specialist in Ladue, she teaches K–4 STEAM, empowering young learners through hands-on inquiry, creative design, and problem-solving.

Connect with Kristina on Instagram: @Spoedesteam

 

Meet Jenny Bradley 

Jenny is an experienced educator with over 15 years in education. She is currently in her second year as an elementary STEAM teacher. Her background includes a decade of foundational experience as a 4th-grade teacher and 3 years as a digital learning coach, supported by a Master’s degree in Educational Technology. Throughout her coaching and teaching roles, Jenny has dedicated herself to supporting teachers and students in using technology in meaningful ways to enhance instruction and boost engagement, while actively guiding students and staff on their digital citizenship journey to use technology safely, ethically, and responsibly.

She is passionate about providing hands-on opportunities for students to build, create, and innovate. Her goal is to foster a nonjudgmental learning atmosphere where students can safely experience failure, build perseverance, problem-solve through challenges, and fearlessly try new things.

Connect with Jenny on Instagram: @reed_steam_lab

 

Meet Miranda Berry 

Miranda Berry is a passionate and energetic educator with 11 years of experience, now serving as a STEAM Specialist in the Ladue School District. She spent 8 years as a Kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd-grade classroom teacher in Ladue before transitioning into her current role. Miranda holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education, along with a Master’s Degree in Elementary Education with an emphasis in Reading. Now in her second year leading a dynamic STEAM program, she thrives on sparking student curiosity, pushing creative boundaries, and guiding young learners down exciting new paths to discover just how capable they really are! When she’s not in the classroom, you can find her enjoying time with her dog and cat, Sadie and Blu, traveling with her husband, Dallas, or on the field coaching high school girls’ lacrosse!

Connect with Miranda on Instagram: @ob_steamlab

 

Meet Mary Linneman

Mary Linneman is a passionate Missouri educator with over a decade of dedication to fostering curiosity and academic growth in the classroom. She spent the first 9 years of her career as a 3rd-grade teacher at Conway Elementary in the Ladue School District, cultivating a vibrant, engaging learning environment for her students.

Mary holds a Master’s Degree in Curriculum and Instruction for Elementary Education. Building on her extensive classroom experience, she helped pioneer Ladue’s new STEAM program, working collaboratively to design and launch the district’s K–4 STEAM curriculum from the ground up. Now in her second year as Conway Elementary’s STEAM teacher, Mary is dedicated to inspiring young minds through creative problem-solving, hands-on exploration, and innovative design.

Connect with Mary on Instagram: @conwaysteamlab

 

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.

 

All right, so thank you everyone for being here today. This is a really, really special episode and when I’m creating lessons, I always know that the lessons work for my students with trial and error. They’ve been taught a lot of times and I post it in my shop.

 

I post about it on social media, but I don’t always hear how it’s going with your own students. And I know you guys are using them to say, thank you, whatever, but I don’t always hear all the details. And so this episode is really special because especially if you’re watching the video version, there’s a lot of us here on this interview.

 

So I’m going to have everybody introduce themselves and we’ll get into about STEM lessons and how things that I’ve created are being used in other classrooms. So I’ll call on each of you and you guys can introduce yourselves really quick. All right, how about Jenny? You want to go first? Hi, my name is Jenny Bradley.

 

This is my 15th year in education, second year as an elementary STEAM teacher. Prior to teaching STEAM, I taught fourth grade for 10 years. And then I was a digital learning coach for three years, supporting staff and students in integrating and using technology and meaningful ways in their classroom to enhance instruction, increase engagement for students.

 

And now I’m in the STEAM position, which was really exciting. Awesome. Thank you.

 

Mary, do you want to go? Sure. Yes. I’m Mary Linneman and I teach STEAM at Conway Elementary in Ladue School District, which is in Missouri.

 

We’re all in the same district. And this is, yeah, also my second year teaching STEAM. The program started last year.

 

And then prior to that, I was teaching third grade at the same school for nine years. So it’s been a great transition. Awesome.

 

Miranda? Yeah, I’m Miranda Berry. And as I mentioned, I’m also a STEAM specialist here at O’Bottom Elementary in Ladue. And I have been in education for 11 years.

 

The last two years, counting this year, was in STEAM. And I really have that primary focus. So I’ve taught kindergarten, I’ve taught first grade, and I’ve taught second grade.

 

And so really that primary focus. And then, yeah, we have just been having so much fun with the STEAM program. But yeah, it’s a little bit about me.

 

All right, Christina? Hi, I’m Christina Lotus. This is my 22nd year in education. I started in Francis Howell at Central Elementary and was a classroom teacher for 16 years, teaching third, fourth, and fifth grade.

 

Then I came over to Ladue and was in kind of a coaching role, digital learning coach, for about four years. And then this is my second year teaching STEAM at Spady Elementary. I love.

 

So if any of you listening, you’re like, oh my gosh, I’m just getting into STEAM or STEM. Everyone has a background in education and teaching. So that plays a really big role in what you’re doing.

 

And these ladies know each other. So they’re not just random teachers that just popped in on this interview. They all know each other.

 

And Jenny reached out about what, we’ll get into it as well. But so what, like, how do you guys know each other? So does someone want to explain that? Sure. Yeah.

 

So we’re all in the same district. So our district has four elementary schools, and they are all K-4. And so we’re all just at the elementary schools.

 

And the STEAM program was started in our district last year. So I mean, before we had the STEAM class, teachers were just encouraged to do it in their classrooms, to integrate it into their lessons. And that was challenging, of course, for all of the things that are already on classroom teachers plates.

 

And so then we started the STEAM program, and we all got hired at our respective buildings. And then we just started working really closely together. And some of us worked closely together before this.

 

I know Jenny and Christina had a similar role before the STEAM position, if you guys wanted to mention that. Yeah. So Christina and I were digital learning coaches here in Lidu School District prior to teaching STEAM.

 

So we collaborated and worked closely together often. For some of those years, Christina was between two buildings. I was between the other two buildings.

 

But we would still plan and work together and talk about different strategies for supporting our staffs, for supporting our students. We also planned STEAM days across all four of our elementary buildings. So planning different makerspace and robotics challenges for our students to participate in, and a really fun, just full day of STEAM.

 

Awesome. This is like not the main focus of this podcast, but having people to collaborate, especially since most STEM or STEAM teachers are the only ones in their buildings, finding people to collaborate is such a blessing if you’re in the same district, because those district initiatives you can chat about together. But there are people who are teaching these programs might be in a smaller school.

 

So even reaching across districts can be really helpful. But having a team can really make it a lot easier, especially if you’re so used to being a classroom teacher back in the day, you have a team, you’re used to that collaboration, it can really definitely make a difference. But that’s a side note, because we’re going to actually get into building up your STEM program, which the collaboration is a part of that.

 

And thinking about this, since it is a newer thing in your district, which I’m so excited, that’s actually great to hear that your district is excited about STEM and STEAM and sees the value in it, because I hear the opposite, but a lot of programs get cut. So it’s great that this is getting started. But thinking of that, what struggles were you finding when building up your STEAM program in your district? Because it was so new, you have all these different backgrounds, but knowing you’re in this role, what were those struggles you’re finding when building them up? Christina? Yeah, when we reflect back, they can kind of fit into like three categories.

 

So we’ll kind of go through those. Role definition was one, content creation, and then budget. I’ll kind of hit on those three.

 

So as Jenny kind of expanded on, we had come from like a digital learning coach position. We also had instructional coaches. And as we evolved as a district, and kind of were going a different direction and wanted to have a STEAM specialist that were more, we focused more on like our time with students, you know, so support directly with students.

 

So we were transitioning from more of a position that supported teachers to more interaction with students. So we wanted to have a smooth transition with that. So we kind of like listed out all the things that we did and thought about what made the most sense to keep as a STEAM specialist role.

 

And so we decided to focus on like our student broadcasts and supporting teachers with technology integration. And then of course our STEAM lessons with our specials rotation. Then we kind of looked at all of the other things that were on there and collaborated with our district administration, our admin assistants, and our content leads, and kind of redistributed everything so that every area was still supported.

 

And once we got to that point, that was awesome. And then we’re like, okay, let’s focus on our content. What are we going to teach with STEAM? And wow, that really became overwhelming very fast.

 

We started kind of looking over all these programs that were developed, but none of them really matched our vision. And a lot of them had a high price tag. So to kind of like commit to a program that was ready to go with all that money, we were looking for something that had a good mix of like robotics, makerspace challenges, student creativity, just open-ended projects, some coding, some 3D printing.

 

We kind of wanted all of that. We also wanted to tie in some science concepts, but we didn’t want that to be the base of our foundation. We wanted to support what teachers were already doing, not replacing it and give students a chance to dive deeper into some of these areas.

 

So not to jump too far ahead, Naomi, but your resource pack was kind of like, yes, this is what we’re looking for. So that was when we found that, that took a huge weight off and we knew we could use, we have used a lot of your lessons as like, you know, not just a starting point, but we’ve adapted several of those and it just really took the pressure off. So then, you know, we have the budget.

 

We were also navigating first starting out. We didn’t really know where the money would be coming from or how much we would have. So we kind of took a conservative approach.

 

We were very lucky to have a lot of resources already that we wanted to utilize so that we didn’t have to buy all new. And a lot of your lessons kind of tied into a lot stuff we already had to. So looking back, you know, we had those huge hurdles, but we’re kind of at a place now where we’re continuing to develop.

 

We think we’re creating something that’s sustainable and just really excited about what we have. Yeah. I’d like to make sure that’s so exciting.

 

I, because what you’re saying, like, well, it’s overwhelming. There’s all this stuff we have to teach. Like it’s not just building, it’s robotics, it’s coding, it’s 3D printing.

 

It’s all of this stuff that you have to fit in. And you also don’t see the same kids every single day. So how can you have that high level learning and everything that you touched upon, but still make it meaningful? And that was exactly my thoughts when I had my space because I had a brand new classroom and zero curriculum.

 

So I had a background in as a classroom teacher, and I know exactly where you’re coming from. You’re like, I didn’t have a budget to buy curriculums. They’re like, here you go.

 

Good luck. I’m like, well, don’t tempt me with a good time. I will figure it out.

 

So that’s really great that, and I’m so glad that my lessons could help you. And we’ll get more into that, like help you find what you were needing based on the materials that you already have and then grow from there. And maybe, I don’t know if you guys have seen this too, based on having your kids for a couple of years now, adapting those lessons based on their skillset also comes into play.

 

Like, oh, the first year we really had to work on some basics. Next year, highlight those basics. But now we can get deeper into those projects and see that progression of learning, which is definitely what I was envisioning when I’m creating things.

 

Like, okay, this is where they’re starting, but here’s how it will grow throughout the years and they can practice those skills. So that’s so exciting to hear. I was like, oh my gosh, you guys.

 

So you mentioned it a little bit, Christina, but Jenny, how did you find my resources and decide that it would be a great fit for you and what you were looking for? Christina mentioned it a little bit, but I think there’s more onto that side. Yeah. So like Christina said, we were pretty overwhelmed.

 

We found out that our district was developing the STEAM program. I think it was maybe end of March. It was sometime in spring.

 

And so this would have been like two springs ago. And we were like, okay, we have to come up with an entire scope and sequence and curriculum, kindergarten through fourth grade by the time we start next school year. And so, again, we’re very fortunate to work in a district that provides us with a lot of resources, a lot of support.

 

So they gave us full days of curriculum writing and planning at the end of that school year and a few days over the summer to meet just the four of us so we could really dig in and develop our curriculum. So in the midst of feeling overwhelmed that spring, I was like, there has to be some resources out there. We’re not the first ones to create a STEAM program at the elementary level.

 

So I started doing a little bit of research online and I have listened to some educational podcasts before and that were really helpful, especially going into a digital learning coach position. And I found your podcast and I was like, oh, this sounds great. I started scrolling through the names of your episodes.

 

And I think it was the first episode was like, I’m a new STEAM teacher. Oh my gosh, it’s speaking to me. So I started listening to it and I was like, okay, this is already helping me to take a deep breath, calm down a little bit.

 

We can do this. And I shared it with our team and I was like, okay, you guys got to listen to Naomi’s podcast. I think it’ll really help give us a starting point and just to help us feel less overwhelmed.

 

Even getting into like your classroom management episodes, your makerspace episodes of how to utilize tools from your podcast. After listening to a few episodes, I continued researching and looking through some of your resources on Teachers Pay Teachers. And like Christina said, a lot of your material already aligned so well with the resources that we have in our district.

 

I think it was your year at a glance or your scope and sequence that I found. And I was looking through it month by month for each grade level. And I was like, okay, you mentioned Sphero Bolts, you mentioned Lego Robotics, you mentioned all these resources that we have access to.

 

And I was like, I think this can really help give us a good starting place without feeling so overwhelmed. One other thing that we were kind of getting stuck on was at this point in the planning, do we need to make sure that we’re aligning with our NGSS science standards or certain math standards, things like that. And I saw that you already had a lot of that connected on your year at a glance.

 

So we’re so appreciative of your resources for really helping to take some of that pressure off and giving us a starting point for developing this program in our district. I’m so glad. You’re welcome.

 

Yeah. And it’s hard too, because every district has different things they’re looking for, the time you have with kids. And yes, you mentioned the standards.

 

It actually kind of helps keep your program good. You’re like, hey, I actually teach standards, you guys. It’s not just a free for all in here.

 

But yeah, when I’ve created everything, it’s so hard creating it, but at the same time, I know other people are feeling the same way as me. I knew that from the beginning. I knew that, but I don’t want to just keep this to myself.

 

If this is going to help somebody else and their students, because it is a lot and it’s overwhelming, but it’s also really fun. If I can help someone else, I’m going to do the work regardless. I had to, you guys do too.

 

But no, that’s exactly why sharing all this, I’m here, I’m with you, I get it, I’m doing it, I understand. And it’s so exciting that it did take that pressure off and you can connect the things that you guys have a vision for, but also have a good starting point to keep moving forward for sure. Also, side note, Jenny, I love seeing my engineering design process poster in the background.

 

That’s so exciting, seeing that hang up like, oh, I know that poster. I know it. So along with that, Miranda, could you tell us some of the successes of your program? And I’m sure you guys chatted about this before, you might see similar things.

 

And what do you love most about it? So tell us all. Yeah, so I mean, we could probably do one episode just on like the successes truly of like, what has come from this last year, because we’ve had so many wins over the last year when this program started. And just like, as they’ve said, just developing it, we felt like we caught like momentum and like we were feeling good about it.

 

And so some of the units specifically that you created that really stuck out to us and that we enjoyed, and the kids really enjoyed and just really took off was the STEM survival camp, which was elite, you know, like the kids loved it, especially the timing of it, like the fall season right about now, and kids are camping, we have, I feel like a lot of kids that enjoy outdoors and enjoy the camp. And so that was a hit. We also love the 3D printing unit, which I’m speaking for myself, I have zero clue how to 3D print.

 

I think I can speak for a lot of us. And so that was amazing. And I like you said, you’re going through it together, like as newbies.

 

And so and a lot of kids were as well. And then your digital citizenship unit, which we take pride in here at Ladue. We want kids to, you know, be safe digital citizens when they’re online and using technology.

 

And then your Maker Month and our systems unit. And so with that STEAM survival, I still have, I brought them, I brought them down, some projects that kids kept. Oh my gosh, look at that little, it’s a, for those of you listening, it’s a shelter.

 

Oh wait, no, that’s Protect the Food. Protect the Food challenge. Yes.

 

And so the kids that maybe didn’t want to take it home, or I was like, please let me keep some to showcase like all the amazing work. But yeah, so that was really good. And I, like I said, I feel like it really tied into a lot of students’ interest in the camping background.

 

And even just like with the Protect the Food and Cross the Bridge and then the Game from the Land. I mean, we could have probably spent a month or two on Game from the Land, girls. I think we talk about it all the time.

 

Like we plan so far in advance for the kids, just because we want them to go deep with it and not just surface level with a lot of those things. So they loved it. And they were just incredibly proud with things that they created.

 

And then your 3D printing series was a lifesaver because I had no idea. I feel like it was very new in our world. And thankfully a lot of kids were starting to dabble in it too.

 

So they actually taught us, which is amazing. And they know a lot of things that maybe we didn’t. And so it was just so fun.

 

And by the end of the unit, we also explored Tinkercad and that is the app that we use to design and like have, especially the older grades, second, third and fourth, they really got to just explore. And we kind of just said, have fun and figure things out. And so they got to design some things and then they eventually printed those things.

 

And then kindergarten and first, we learned about that Tinkercad process. We actually dabbled in Keynote because I feel like they’re very similar in a sense of creating and just more age appropriate for that piece. And then they also got to take home a key chain that was 3D printed and design.

 

And so they loved it. I mean, they just the idea of something being 3D printed and they get to keep it and it is their own. So that was really cool.

 

Gosh, I could go on, but there’s Seesaw. Oh my gosh, Seesaw. So we still use Seesaw to this day.

 

We just really appreciate the connections in every single lesson and every single unit, every grade had a Seesaw connection where they could use it to reflect or use it to upload their work or whatever, maybe or collaborate with other classmates. I think it was also cool for us as teachers to just go through the journals and see what they were creating if we weren’t able to see them that day. Because we have used Seesaw in our district before during COVID.

 

So there’s some strong feelings there about Seesaw, but we’re really hoping that with us using it with all K through 4 students that teachers will receive the value again. And there’s so many amazing updates since COVID and the dashboard is so easy to access. And so we’re really excited to continue to explore that and just have a way for kids to have a digital portfolio online, kind of like a cloud, iCloud based system where they can always keep their things and parents essentially will be able to see those things across their tenure at Ulbonnum.

 

And then I feel like our main finale, so one of our big successes here at WODU was last spring and really it started like last fall, ladies, I believe. Our Director of Technology, Dr. Patricia Brown, had this vision and she’s very much woven in with the STEAM world as well, like with us. She loves technology, loves integration, loves integrating it.

 

She was a Technology Director here, or Technology Coordinator at Ulbonnum. So I kind of worked alongside of her years and years ago, but she wanted to put on this STEAM Fest night. And so we started collaborating very early on.

 

She gathered a lot of students and staff members that really also saw the value in this work. And so we created a STEAM Fest night. It was back in April.

 

And so some of the things that happened was it was just for one night, which I feel like, again, it could be across a week in reality, just because of how much content was in there. But we had it for one evening and our entire community, WODU community, and really outside of WODU, it wasn’t really like if you didn’t go to WODU, you couldn’t go. Like everyone was invited to come, friends, family.

 

If you’re at your friend’s house that night, you could come with them. And so it was jam-packed with just STEAM. I mean, it just like oozed STEAM everywhere you went.

 

And so we had different zones, and there were six zones. And some of those zones entailed AI and digital intelligence, the maker zone, which me and Christina led, that was really fun, like the building and designing. We had the computational thinking zone, which is more like logic and game power, the exploration zone, scientific discovery, creative arts zone, and then a future pathway zone.

 

And what was still very unique is that we also had outside vendors that correlated to this field or any of those fields that could come in and just share the knowledge and share their career fields of like, this is possible. This is what you are very interested in. Like, this is what it can look like in the real world.

 

And so it was a huge hit. And I feel like the timing wasn’t just a coincidence. I feel like this was like a buildup of we want to create this program.

 

And then we have done it for the past year. And then almost like an exclamation mark with STEAM Fest. And it was our first year doing it.

 

And it was just so fun. And yeah, it was a huge hit. And we still talk about it to this day.

 

And we are currently in the planning for STEAM Fest 2 in April of this spring. And so we’re very excited to continue that work and just spread the wealth of all things STEAM. And so those are some successes.

 

I feel like we could talk about it way more. But those are just some of the fun like successes and wins of this year. Like we had way more wins than we had, you know, necessarily failures.

 

But even in those failures, there come wins. And so yeah, it’s been it’s been fun. A lot of wins.

 

Yeah, you guys are done a lot in two years. Sorry to interrupt, but I feel like Christina and Miranda have to share their STEAM Fashion Runway show that appeared at STEAM Fest. Because yeah, this was Christina’s baby.

 

This was her idea. Yeah. I’ve always loved the idea of just making things with recycled materials.

 

And like even as kids, my sister and I were bored one day. And we’re like, let’s make some outfits out of, you know, this cardboard and stuff. And we did a whole little fashion show thing.

 

And then we brought it to our cousins. We had a yearly tradition where we met at a cabin. And my aunt was always like, no screens, no TVs.

 

So at least one of the days we’d have this. We called it a trash fashion show at the time. But I rebranded it to the Recycled Runway to bring to Ladue.

 

And so we had any students, some students could sign up ahead of time saying that they’d make their outfits at home. We had a stage set up. We had music.

 

We announced them. They got to strut across the stage wearing their creation. We also had a room, a makerspace area at STEAM Fest where students could come in and make their outfits there on the fly.

 

And they got to be a part of the show too. Of course, every year one of something you come away with ideas of how you want to do it differently the next year. So we’re looking forward to bringing it back.

 

And that was so fun to see that come big picture there. So you are going to do the runway again? Yeah. Okay, good.

 

Recycled Runway. I mean, we were on a high, literally. And there was just so many kids that, like Christina mentioned, they could come and do it there.

 

Or they could plan a month or so in advance. And there were so many kids that developed and created their costume there. And we thought, oh my gosh, is it going to be enough time? Plenty of time.

 

And so it was just, yeah, it was a hit. Thanks to Christina’s wonderful idea. They’re going to start making their costumes now.

 

You guys are planning the event. They’re at home making their costumes. So you’re going to have like over the years, like all these, like you’ll see the progression of the costume that they’ll look forward to.

 

That’s so cute. I’m going to come. It’s in on April at the STEAM Showcase.

 

It’s amazing. And it sounds like your guys’ district, like because they are starting this program, it just sounds like they’re very supportive. And I can feel your energy off of the screen.

 

And you all are excited about it. Also, you wanting to do this podcast is like a big deal. It’s scary to do a podcast.

 

I don’t know. Maybe I’m not. I’m not too scary.

 

But I just love how your guys’ leadership, and that can be a huge impact in what you’re doing, is they know, okay, we’re starting from scratch. And we trust you as teachers to make those decisions and build this program. And you guys are working together.

 

You’re trusting each other. And the kids can feel it too. And it just, it’s a really cool trickle effect.

 

And I can just tell that you guys are like in a dream environment. And you are all in different schools. But you’re really trying to have like these really meaningful experiences for kids and using your skills in meaningful ways.

 

And in turn, these amazing outcomes. And kids are excited about what you’re doing. Like kids love STEM anyway.

 

But it’s scary for them too to be in a creative space and trying those hard things they’ve never tried before. For sure, they haven’t done STEM Survival Camp because I made that up. So like all these different experiences, and you’re providing these spaces that they’re excited about it.

 

And they want to try new things. And they can’t wait for the next year. So I really like, it’s so awesome to hear that.

 

And like having that STEAM showcase is such a great way to celebrate all the work that you guys are doing. Because I mean, you’re doing it for the kids. We know we’re as teachers, we’re doing it for the kids, but also a space that they can celebrate the creativity and the hard work and they can look forward to it.

 

So I love that’s like a tradition, becoming a tradition in your district. To finish this off, Mary, if there are teachers on the fence about investing in my resources, what would you say to them? Well, it’s clearly worked out so well for us. I mean, like I think Christina and Jenny said at the beginning, when we were in those beginning stages of creating our own curriculum, it was so overwhelming, so stressful.

 

I’m just like, where do we start? You know, we had different outlines that we were kind of drafting and we didn’t know which one would be best if one was better than the other. And we were looking at all these options online. And so finding your bundle on Teachers Pay Teachers, and then when we got that, we just felt like it was a huge weight off our shoulders.

 

I mean, it was just, we were ready to just dive into it. There was, it’s like just hundreds of things in there that we could look through and kind of pick out. And I mean, the lessons that you create, they are just like ready to go.

 

You can pretty much teach them how it is if you have the materials. But we spent a lot of time kind of adapting them, making them our own, kind of creating our own slides and our own seesaws to go with them, just like using what you had started. And so we, yeah, we’ve gotten into a really great groove with planning those.

 

And we just liked how there was choices for the different grade levels for every unit. I think it was the, yeah, the digital STEM planner that you created that was, that kind of had, every month had a different theme, and then each theme had lessons for each grade. And so we just kind of looked through to think, you know, which one will be best for year one last year.

 

And now, now that we’re in year two, we’re kind of picking different ones to cycle in there. So it’s, you know, different things that they’re getting. And the kids just love it.

 

I mean, they just eat it up. Like every day, they’re so excited to see what we’re doing. You know, they get, they get most excited about the flashy things like the robotics and they, they always come into STEAM class.

 

You know, I always have kids that come in, are we doing robotics today or 3D printing? It’s like, no, we’re going to do something. And then they just get so excited about whatever it is that we’re doing. And so, yeah, I just think that we have the best job.

 

lessons-for-starting-a-steam-program

 

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a K-5 STEM educator and business owner in Colorado supporting elementary teachers world-wide navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there. She has over a decade of experience teaching, 5 years teaching elementary STEM, along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM Certificate.

She offers a variety of resources 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!

investigator STEM teacher

First Year STEM Teacher-The Investigator STEM Teacher [STEM Teacher Pathway Series] [ep.123]

First Year STEM Teacher-The Investigator STEM Teacher [STEM Teacher Pathway Series] [ep.123]

investigator STEM teacher

Check out the full episode on First Year STEM STEM Teacher [STEM Teacher Pathway Series]:  

 

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Episode Summary

During my career as a STEM teacher, I went through different stages of what I call the STEM teacher pathway. The first stage of this pathway is the Investigator STEM teacher. In today’s episode, I’m discussing the first stage of the STEM teacher pathway and sharing my experience with navigating this stage. I also share insight into what I wish I knew during this stage and give tips and strategies to help you successfully navigate the Investigator STEM teacher stage. 

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • What is an investigator STEM teacher
  • What it was like for me in the investigator stage
  • Resources I wish I had during my first year as a STEM teacher

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:

Throughout my career as an elementary STEM teacher, there were different stages that I went through as a STEM teacher. I’d like to call this the STEM teacher pathway. With this journey in STEM, each stage had its own successes and challenges. Today, I am sharing the first of the 3 stages in the STEM teacher pathway, the investigator, and how my experiences were really shown within this stage of elementary STEM and how my experiences can definitely help you in your STEM journey. Before I was a K-5 STEM teacher, I was a classroom teacher, and I was extremely excited about my role.

Naomi Meredith [00:01:19]:

Now, not to say that it didn’t come with any challenges, and some not so pretty things as well. If you’ve been teaching some for some time now, or you are just getting started, or maybe you’ve been in it for a couple of years. I have put together for all of you a very special pop-up private podcast. You can’t find it in your regular podcasting app, but I do have a special link for you in the show notes or you can go to naomimeredith.com/STEMpathwaypod. In this 3 part mini-series that you can binge as soon as you get the link, I take you through my not so straight pathway in STEM teaching. And what I would actually do differently today if I were to do it all over again. Of course, it wasn’t all a miserable failure. But there are definitely some things that I wish I had the opportunity to do or even thought of and I thought that I might as well share that with you in this special pop-up podcast.

Naomi Meredith [00:02:27]:

Now, with this podcast, it is for a limited time only. So make sure to jump in on that. Again, grab the link in the show notes and join me in that very special journey that I put together for you for free. From talking with all of you inside of my programs, whether it is my STEM teacher bookshelf membership, my group coaching program, my workshops, or even my STEM teacher 101 course, and sometimes even in my emails, and when you guys send me audio messages, and really also my experience in STEM is that there are a lot of different stages within this STEM teacher journey. Now, a lot of us have actually been in the classroom before getting into this role. Sometimes, it was voluntary getting into K-5 STEM. Like me, it was a choice, but some of us are kind of pushed into it because we might be showing some skills that can really benefit this STEM space.

Naomi Meredith [00:03:28]:

However you fell into this role, there are some markers when it comes to the stages of your STEM teacher pathway, and I’m going to be talking about that 1st stage today, the investigator. As the investigator, you have taught in STEM for no years at all, so maybe you dabbled in it within classroom teaching, but it is your first year in STEM, and you are definitely trying to figure things out. More likely than not, you actually were a classroom teacher before. You have some sort of teaching experience, and you are walking into this space with limited supplies, and, more often than not, 0 curriculum. You might have some formal training when it comes to elementary STEM, but you also are grabbing resources wherever you can. Maybe just like this podcast. You happened upon it when you googled elementary STEM podcast, and you saw me pop up in my pink jacket. So you are looking for resources to keep you afloat with not only creating this curriculum, but also building up the systems and routines in your classroom and getting to know all of your students.

Naomi Meredith [00:04:42]:

Oh my gosh. That’s a lot of names to remember. Right? You are looking at all of these different resources to not only help you professionally but also find the things that will work best when it comes to the types of lessons that can be used in your classroom. And you’re really figuring out what elementary STEM means and how to have experiences that are well rounded and different types of things that students can connect with. Here’s what it was like for me as the investigator. I had taught in the classroom for 6 years. I taught 2nd grade in a Title 1 school for 2 years, actually, the school that I student taught at. So, technically, I was in that building for 3 years. Then I moved and got a 3rd grade teaching role, and I taught in that role for 4 years.

Naomi Meredith [00:05:31]:

And within that role in the 3rd great is where I definitely fell in love with technology, innovation, and hands-on learning. I was taking every free and paid training that I could to definitely develop my skills and try these things with my students. A big turning point for me was actually when I went to the ISTE conference, I-S-T-E conference, which side note, is going to be in Denver, Colorado, in the summer of 2024. That’s where I’m from. And so if you sign up, you definitely have to find me. Maybe as I get closer, I’ll set a meetup where we can all meet up. That would be super fun. I will be there. I already have it on my calendar.

Naomi Meredith [00:06:12]:

But, anyway, that conference, it was in Denver, actually, years ago when I taught 3rd grade, and it definitely lit me up. And I knew that this was a pathway in elementary education that I knew I had to get into when it came to innovation and STEM. That word was kind of being used, not really. I remember clearly I was doing reading testing with my 3rd-grade students, and I was in between grading those assessments. And I was looking for other positions to help me grow as an educator and impact more students. And the position popped up for this K-5 STEM teaching position in a neighboring district, and I thought, okay. I might as well apply. You can listen to the full version of my interview and how that went all the way in episode 1.

Naomi Meredith [00:07:03]:

I’m very honest about how that went, but spoiler alert: I did get the job, which is awesome. And when I walked into my space, it literally was a brand new classroom. It was all remodeled I didn’t even have the glass walls. I taught in a fishbowl. One of my walls was all glass, but they didn’t have the glass wall installed yet. So it was literally this fiberboard that actually drew some innovation quotes, and I was looking at the pictures the other day. I’ll have to pop those into the video version of this podcast, but my room wasn’t even completely finished. And it was like, okay.

Naomi Meredith [00:07:41]:

Good luck with your position. My year is as an investigator. It’s this 1st year as an investigator had a very interesting schedule. It was super crazy. So this just kind of made my first year really, really crazy. It was super fun, but I’m telling you, it was nuts. On Mondays, I taught GTS science to students who are identified in science, I was helping them with project-based learning and meeting their science goals. Tuesdays I got to know the classroom teachers a bit better, and I got to co-teach in their classrooms to help them implement innovation and STEM within their regular content.

Naomi Meredith [00:08:21]:

And then, from Wednesdays through Fridays, I taught STEM as a specials K -5. So 6 classes a day, the same three classes in a row for 45 minutes each. Later on, in the years, I think it was my 3rd year, it was when I started teaching STEM 5 days in a row. But definitely, my role was very crazy, and I also was the technology person. So, managing school-wide technology that I may or may not know about and how to figure that all out along with after-school clubs, leading an innovation and tech committee for my staff, and also hosting trainings for your staff before and after school. So, needless to say, just even hearing about my schedule, it was a lot. Super high energy, which you probably can tell from this podcast.

Naomi Meredith [00:09:09]:

That’s just how I am. I do need a little bit of coffee to get me going, but I’m a very high-energy person. And so it was just a lot. It was just a lot going on in a lot of different projects. Now, when it comes to the actual STEM classroom, I was really, really figuring out behavior management and systems and routine. And with every classroom setting, it doesn’t matter what you teach. I am huge on behavior management. And how to have a really safe space for students but also we can be successful together.

Naomi Meredith [00:09:43]:

I’ve talked about this before, even in my podcast where I about why your 5th graders aren’t motivated in STEM, and I will link that in the show notes. But it’s really scary for kids to be creative, and that’s something that I actually was realizing pretty quickly this 1st year as an investigator that, oh, kids are excited to do projects, but they’re also very wary if they haven’t had time to really experience these things yet, they might not wanna do it. So not only was I trying to figure out the curriculum in my schedule, but also how do I manage a classroom, and it does change for different grade levels? I had taught most of them in some capacity before, but it does change the way that you deliver content. What do my students either know What are they learning in their classrooms? What are the standards if I even had to look at them? I will say this 1st year, my lessons were a bit all over the place. I did start off my year with digital citizenship, but that was totally fine. I didn’t really know what else to begin with, so that’s why I started with digital citizenship because that’s something I did when I taught 3rd grade. So, I thought that was a safe space to start with, which is fine. Eventually, the 1st month turned into STEM survival camp, which I highly recommend.

Naomi Meredith [00:11:03]:

I know a lot of you are actually starting to do that in your classroom, so definitely look into those lessons in my TBT shop, but I started off the year with digital citizenship and just understanding what you can know about technology. What do they not know? It was really a big learning curve. With that, I was also trying to figure out where do I like things in my classroom. How do I like to teach in this space? What is the flow of the room? Where should the furniture go? How should I even have crayons? I had crayons. Like, they’re actually very broken. Now broken crayons still color. I know. But I had a big bucket of crayons, and it was a project with 1st grade.

Naomi Meredith [00:11:46]:

I put it in the middle of the table. My tables were fairly big. They were great for K-5, but for a little kid, they couldn’t reach everything. And I just remember the screaming and kids crying because one of the kids wasn’t sharing all of the crayons, and I said okay. We need to share. That’s what we do, blah blah blah. And that student proceeded to put all the crayons in their mouth, chew them up, and spin them back in the bucket, which is awesome. So I learned, okay, a big bucket of crayons, in the middle of the table.

Naomi Meredith [00:12:15]:

Not a good idea. So even little things like that my 1st year, I could not have predicted at all. And it was just definitely a learning curve, and that’s okay. In a lot of ways, I felt like a 1st year teacher, which, thank goodness, there are things I did know about teaching in general, but it was just all of those things coming up yet once. Again, my lesson planning was very random, and I felt like I was just planning day to day and kind of not always thinking about the big picture of things and doing a lot of those quick one day lessons, which, in turn, you actually are planning a lot more. I also remember when I did make her space, I ran out of supplies during the first lesson. I thought Makerspace was a free for all, and students just built whatever they wanted. They make it how giant they want. They use unlimited tape. I was so wrong about that.

Naomi Meredith [00:13:15]:

No. That is not how it goes. So, again, So much fun. The students were learning about the class along with me. We were definitely building the airplane wallet flu. But there’s just a lot of things within this 1st year of STEM that you’re like, wow. What just happened today? So, thinking back to past Naomi and the things that she really needed, that first year teaching STEM, and also thinking about your guys’ experiences when I talk with all of you, all the different ways that we chat, I needed a full thought out K-5 STEM year-long plan of lessons that somebody has already taught with their kids has a lot of different experiences. So I could literally just plop that into my lessons and focus on my systems routines and behavior management.

Naomi Meredith [00:14:07]:

And really, for me, it was learning the whole school. I would love just to have something that was authentic and usable with kids. Not one of those curriculums that are just, you know, those big box ones. There are a few I have in mind, but something that actually works with students. So that’s definitely something that past, ma’am, you wish she had in this investigator role. But a good thing for you that is already created for you. I also wish that I had a podcast that I could listen to. My crime podcast through crime ones weren’t really helping me, when it came to teaching elementary STEM, maybe a little bit of the forensics part, but not really.

Naomi Meredith [00:14:46]:

And so I really wish I had a podcast. So thank you so much for being here and listening along the way. Some of you even said that this podcast is a long time coming, and they’re so glad you’re so glad that I have it. And so, definitely using this podcast as a resource, I do even have all the episodes categorized So if there’s a certain topic that you are looking for, we’ll put that in the show notes, but I do have a podcast playlist for you. So same exact show, just everything is sorted into categories, so you can see the episodes for a specific need. I also just wish that there was a course that could line up how to set up those systems and routines. So yes, having those plug and play lessons, but somebody who could guide me and say, okay, here’s what you should do for setting up your lessons. Here’s what you should do for setting up your classroom.

Naomi Meredith [00:15:38]:

Here are some things to think about. Here are some other ways to grow in your STEM journey. Just a getting started course to have that all ready to go, and it does exist now. It’s some teacher 101. So definitely thinking about where you’re at in your done journey. Or if they’re even if you’ve taught more than a year and you’re like, oh, I need to go back to that systems and routines thing. Then those things are definitely available for you that I have created. And again, those will be linked in the show notes.

Naomi Meredith [00:16:08]:

So, of course, I got through my first year teaching STEM, and I didn’t give up. I would be exhausted every day, but definitely figured out and was ready for my 2nd year in STEM and transitioned into that role in the STEM teacher pathway as the navigator. Which I am going to be talking about that role in the next episode. As a reminder, if you wanna hear more about my journey and the things that I wish I had. There are some other things that past Naomi wish I had and things that I would do differently. I have created a free pop-up podcast for you that is available for a limited time only, and there are 3 many episodes that you can binge within the hour and hear of different things that I wish I had and things that you can definitely consider in your STEM teacher pathway. Thanks so much, and I will see you in the next episode.

investigator STEM teacher

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a K-5 STEM educator and business owner in Colorado supporting elementary teachers world-wide navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there. She has over a decade of experience teaching, 5 years teaching elementary STEM, along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM Certificate.

She offers a variety of resources 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!

1st year STEM teacher

3 Things I Wish I Knew as a 1st Year STEM Teacher [ep.107]

3 Things I Wish I Knew as a 1st Year STEM Teacher [ep.107]

1st year STEM teacher

Check out the full episode on 3 Things I Wish I Knew as a 1st Year STEM Teacher:  

 

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Episode Summary

As I reflect on my STEM teacher role, I can’t help but think about what I wish I knew as a 1st year STEM teacher. I faced so many challenges in my 1st year as a STEM teacher and learned so much along the way. In today’s episode, I’m sharing three things I wish I knew as a 1st year STEM teacher.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 3 things I wish I knew as a 1st year STEM teacher
  • How not knowing these strategies impacted my STEM teacher journey
  • Tips for applying these strategies in your STEM classroom

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:


When I first got started as a K through Five STEM teacher, I was a classroom teacher for six years, and I was excited to start a new adventure in teaching. So I applied to this job, where I ended up interviewing and getting the job. If you want to hear all about it, go back and listen to episode one. I spill all the details on how that interview went, but I ended up getting the job as a K through five STEM teacher and coach, and I was absolutely thrilled. But in turn, this was a brand new to me school, brand new classroom. I didn’t know any of the students or the teachers, and there was limited supplies and zero curriculum, and not to mention I was the only STEM teacher in the building and I had to figure it out all by myself. Now, spoiler alert, I did figure it out. It took some time and a lot of trial and error, but if I were to go back and tell myself past Naomi, past STEM teacher Naomi, at the very beginning of it all, what are some things that I wish I knew at the time? And lucky for you, if you are first getting started in the STEM space or if you are thinking about that back to school mindset and you are wondering what to work on, what are those things that Past Nami wish she knew when she first got started in STEM? Well, in this episode, I am sharing that all with you, and I think that you’re really going to be able to relate to all of these things.


Naomi Meredith [00:01:36]:


Whether this is your first year jumping into STEM or if you’ve been doing it for a while, there are some connections that we are going to make together. Before we jump in real quick. I get emails when I get new podcast reviews, which is super exciting, and I wanted to read this one for you. Now, the podcast reviews are really silly with the usernames. They just make something up.


Naomi Meredith [00:02:30]:


So maybe you made this up or maybe you didn’t. I don’t know how to change it when I write reviews for people, but I love this review so much. So this is from C Waddell 14, and they said the STEM teacher job opportunity was sprung on me out of the blue at the end of the school year. And although I was excited to try something new, I was feeling very lost and overwhelmed. As I had no idea where to begin, I stumbled upon Naomi’s podcast, and I’m so glad I did. She has a great way of connecting with her listeners and making you feel less stressed and more confident. Thank you, Naomi, for creating this podcast and helping guide all of us to the amazing STEM world. Thank you so much for your review and taking the time to do that out of your busy schedule.


Naomi Meredith [00:03:24]:


I appreciate it so much. Not just selfishly hearing nice things about the podcast, because the weird thing about a podcast is, like, we’re not talking together. You know what I’m saying? You’re hearing me, and I’m looking right at my camera when I’m doing this, so I’m pretending it’s you, but I don’t know who it is. So leaving a review really helps not only letting me know what you’re enjoying on the show, but also helping other teachers who are just like you be able to find something that can help them in their STEM journey and make this whole elementary STEM world a little bit smaller. So thank you so much for writing that review. All right, so what are those things that I wish I found out sooner when it came to the elementary STEM space? Now, maybe they will seem obvious to you. They kind of are and kind of aren’t. What’s super interesting about being in the STEM space, especially if you’re a classroom teacher before, there are so many similarities, but there are a lot of differences.


Naomi Meredith [00:04:26]:


And I’ve talked about this before in a past episode. Like, what surprised me the most when I became a STEM teacher, these are the things that I wish I actually knew. So, yes, there were surprising things, but these are the things that I wish I knew. And once I figured them out and created a system and structure for them, then it was literally like magic and changed my life in the STEM world and really outside of teaching in general, let’s be honest. So the first thing I wish I knew my first year teaching STEM is that there are a lot of different structures when it comes to teaching a STEM lesson. Like I said, as a classroom teacher, you use all of these structures, stations, working with students one on one, whole group instructions, splitting the class in different ways. All of those different ways where you structure your class and structure lessons can actually still apply in the STEM setting. What I was starting with a lot more often than not, was whole group lessons, and especially when you don’t know any of the kids.


Naomi Meredith [00:05:31]:


So when you’re teaching over 100 kids a day and you’re doing whole group, that’s actually really hard. And that’s where I started. There’s all these materials and all these things I wanted to try and to get to know the students. So I quickly realized that I can do a station model where it is smaller groups of kids and really setting up those parameters. And that way I could really test out the supplies, get to know their skills, get to know their names, and really help them navigate all of those things while I was navigating it myself. Let’s be real, the things that I did my first year, there are a lot of things I don’t do anymore. But a big thing with that is you don’t have to teach whole group all the time. It is really helpful to teach whole group.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:15]:


It’s obviously the quickest. But again, when you set up those structures and think about STEM stations, especially with the younger kids, I talk all about this in my K through two STEM planning workshops, which you can grab. And everything I’m going to be talking about is in the show notes. All my workshops are at naomimeredith.com/workshop. So upcoming recorded. But STEM stations were a huge game changer for me, especially for the younger students, because whole group doesn’t always work well for 45 minutes when you are under the age of seven. And so that was something that was definitely a game changer for me.


Naomi Meredith [00:06:50]:


And the way that I plan STEM stations, I wish I knew that a lot sooner, where I could be more successful and really my kids could be more successful as well. Another thing too, when it comes to the structure of your lessons, is there’s one day lessons and multi day lessons, and there’s a time and place for both. And I’ve had some really weird schedules over the years. One year I was funded through a grant only on Mondays, and with that I was providing an extra plan time. And so I got students for that one day. It didn’t really line up with their specials rotation, so I really considered as a one day of a week. And I taught eight classes a day in one day. And so that was the case where I really did need a one day lesson that just made more sense, maybe.


Naomi Meredith [00:07:39]:


I just saw a class last week, we just finished their project. Does it make sense starting something new? So a one day lesson really made sense there. But when I saw kids Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, the same six classes in a row, that’s when it really made sense to do multi day lessons. And you can still do multi day lessons if you see everybody in the week and just once a week, maybe your multi day is among the different weeks. That can definitely be a possibility too. So with that one day option, for me, it was once a month. So I saw eight classes a day. It was once a month.


Naomi Meredith [00:08:16]:


So we kind of modified things after they got a little crazy. After eight classes, I don’t even know if I got a lunch. I don’t really remember, but it was crazy. So definitely knowing the difference between one day and multi day lessons can actually help out your planning as well. Another model too, if you have the opportunity, is co teaching and all those structures within co teaching in itself and what other teachers are used to. My good friend Becca, who is on the podcast on episode 40, she actually does co-teaching 100% of the time in her STEM role, which is really interesting and not a wrong way, but just another way that STEM can be taught. And that’s also something that I did in my role as well. I told you my schedule is really weird over the years.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:00]:


But having that co teaching model can be really interesting, and especially when you’re getting into the planning and making sure the content is aligning, teaching those lessons, modifying, coming back and reviewing, that’s a whole different way of planning as well. Also part of that coplanning and co teaching, maybe you’re copanning with those teachers. They’re doing something in your STEM classroom, and then they’re taking that thing from the STEM classroom into another place. Or maybe you’re coplanning and co teaching. They’re creating something in art. This is something I actually recently did. They are creating something in art. They’re bringing it into STEM, and they’re adding on some different components.


Naomi Meredith [00:09:40]:


So if this is something you’re interested in, send me a message if you’re interested more in coplaning and code teaching when it comes to STEM because this is definitely an interesting model and I feel like it can go this way a lot, especially if schools don’t have a lot of STEM. So this is something that I definitely figured out my first year. Another thing that I wish I knew my first year teaching STEM is that high quality lesson planning is an absolute game changer at first. Just like most of us in this STEM space, you get this position and not only are you thinking about the lessons, but how should you set up your classroom? How am I going to learn all these kids names, all these meetings I have to go to? Maybe you’re in charge of technology. You have all of these things going on that a lot of times it’s easy to get into this bad habit where I’m going to tell you why, but easy to get into this bad habit where you are literally planning day to day. And sure, you have lessons go out on the table, but when it comes down to it, you might even be wasting more time than you think. You’re going day to day today, not thinking ahead far enough. And then you might be spending your weekends lesson planning.


Naomi Meredith [00:10:50]:


Maybe you’re coming in and instead of enjoying a nice day out in fun in the sun with your dog, you’re bringing them into your classroom and watching The Bachelor rewinds. Not to say that I did that more than once, but that can just really create the cycle where you’re doing more work on yourself. And that even goes back to the different lesson planning structures. You don’t have to do a brand new lesson every single day. It doesn’t have to be a brand new thing, a brand new experience think about, especially if you were a classroom teacher, you’re not doing something brand new every single day. In fact, you are building up on those sySTEMs and routines the whole entire year. And maybe you’re switching up the content. Your STEM space can be the same way.


Naomi Meredith [00:11:37]:


And if you are a classroom teacher implementing STEM, maybe you have STEM Fridays. You can have that same structure and you’re switching out the content or you’re reemphasizing something you’ve already done. So it doesn’t have to be brand new every day. So after that first year, I really took the time. I sat down one summer and literally mapped out the whole entire year. I took a look at the standards also the lessons that I taught. I was planning with standards, but not as thoughtfully as I thought I was. And really looking through, okay, what is the time I have with kids? What are the things I can realistically do within that time? Maybe it took a couple of months to get through a project because at the time I was only seeing them three days out of the week, sometimes two, with things popping up.


Naomi Meredith [00:12:27]:


So it might take longer for a project, but we’re really getting to that content. And how can I really go through these standards in meaningful ways and also using the materials in meaningful ways that were low prep and high prep, having a mixture of all of that? And in turn, my year long plan definitely evolved into the lessons that they are today. And they are still evolving with updates and changes and things that are being added to help students be successful. So really thinking through your lessons and having high quality planning and taking a step back, whether it is during the summer or taking a few weeks to really think through the whole year, where you aren’t planning day to day, your plan time is for actually planning. Maybe you have an idea of what the lessons are going to be, but you’re actually planning through those during your plan time, how you should. And so you are getting your weekends back and you are enjoying the things. You are a person and you’re a teacher. You’re not just a teacher.


Naomi Meredith [00:13:25]:


And it’s okay to separate those two things. So that whole year long plane you can definitely grab. But if you need support too, I do have spots available in my one to one coaching that you guys have been asking for for a while. I know that my podcast says the elementary STEM coach. The STEM coach is real. I can be chatting with you and we can actually talk and meet live so that’s available in the show notes or go to Naomimeredith.com coaching and we can start working together to really think about those high quality lessons. And the third thing that I wish I knew my first year teaching STEM is that you actually need to go out and seek professional development opportunities. This is so different than being a classroom teacher, because I remember being a classroom teacher that sometimes there was too much professional development opportunities and too many things that they wanted us to do.


Naomi Meredith [00:14:24]:


And on the flip side, being a STEM teacher, a lot of those classroom things can still apply, but you might not be using the same curriculum as them or the testing methods maybe you are. And it can actually get frustrating pretty quickly because the professional development isn’t always tailored to you and what you need. And depending on your district and the opportunities that they have, they may or may not have anything that you are searching for when it comes to STEM professional development. And so that was a huge thing that I realized where in a way, as a classroom teacher, you’re kind of spoiled it’s like handed to you almost too much, but it’s handed to you. And then, as a STEM teacher, I needed to seek those things out so that I could still be innovative and relevant for my students and giving them the opportunities that they absolutely deserve. Here are some ways that I sought out different professional development that was really helpful for me as a 1st year STEM teacher. And also going through the years, I actually didn’t come into this space with a master’s degree. I just had my general education degree.


Naomi Meredith [00:15:33]:


I actually never knew what to get my Master’s in. So I found one that I really enjoyed, and I eventually got a Master’s in STEM Leadership. And so through that process, definitely learned a lot of things that helped me refine my teaching and improve what I was doing in the classroom. Likewise, if I had products in my classroom that I had inherited or things that I wrote grants for, I didn’t have anybody to teach me. And so what’s really great about a lot of these companies and a specific reason why I picked certain products over others is that these companies had different tools to help me learn the product. So if I didn’t know how to do it, I would go to their website, go through their tutorials, go through their items to really help me get a base understanding of how the product worked. And then while I’m implementing with students, I learned alongside with them. If you go on my Instagram, you see me all the time.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:24]:


I am reading constantly. I was a bookworm as a kid as well. I’ve always read a ton of books. Fun fact about me, I usually have about three books going at once. I’m listening to a nonfiction. I’m reading a nonfiction for the Sum teacher bookshelf membership. And also I’m reading a fiction to keep everything separated. But reading is a really great way to again stay relevant and keep you in that mindset.


Naomi Meredith [00:16:50]:


Even if you’re not implementing every single thing that you read, it’s just so good to fill your brain with those things, align with other people in the world who believe what you do in STEM education. So I just love having that always going. And in the STEM teacher bookshelf membership, we’re always reading a new book a month to help us stay motivated, along with that reading guide to implement some of the things that we learn. Another big thing, too, that I wish I knew sooner as a first year teacher is connecting and finding people over on social media and also podcasts. I don’t know if there was any podcasts at the time. I wish I knew there were. But finding those people again that you connect it with, whether it’s me or other people, just to continue the learning and get a sneak peek of what it’s like in their classrooms. A big reason why I am doing what I am doing for you is quite a few things.


Naomi Meredith [00:17:48]:


Of course, pushing out STEM to more kids all over the world, because that’s a world we’re living in and they’re growing up in, and you are the teachers who are motivating them as well. You are inspiring me. Past naomi is inspiring me. I want to be that person for you that you can connect with and have some guidance in this STEM education world. It is so exciting. There are so many resources out there, but I know there is a need for help with learning and talking to somebody who gets what you get. So I have all these things out there. The podcast is still going, and again, we can definitely connect with my one to one coaching where we can talk about those things that we can relate on.


Naomi Meredith [00:18:32]:


Like, for sure, kids eat masking tape. If you figured out where all that masking tape goes, let me know. It’s not always their projects either. So things like that where we can connect and talk and set goals and really work on the things that you are passionate about in your classroom so that you aren’t feeling alone and that you are feeling inspired for the next step in your journey. What is so interesting about this STEM job is that, yes, it’s teaching, but it is very unique, and you can definitely talk about it with other teachers. And there’s a lot of similarities in teaching that any teacher would get. But there’s something about STEM education that is so unique. And even my now husband, who was my fiance when I interviewed him on the podcast, you can go and listen to that one.


Naomi Meredith [00:19:20]:


It might be episode 94, I’m not 100% sure, but it’ll be linked for you. He’s a high school Spanish teacher, and I was an elementary STEM teacher. They are completely different. Completely different. He didn’t understand hardly anything, what I’m doing. He’s like, good job. That sounds really fun. I don’t know what that means, so there’s just something to be had talking with someone and connecting with someone who gets what you’re doing to help you move along and reach your goals in STEM education.


Naomi Meredith [00:19:53]:


As a recap, here are the three things that I wish I had known when I was a 1st year STEM teacher. First, there are different structures to teach lessons that will definitely make your life easier in the long run. Next, high-quality lesson planning is an absolute game changer. And finally, you still need to seek out those professional development and learning opportunities. Thank you again so much for being here. What are some things that you would add to your list? Are they big or small? Let me know. Send me a DM on Instagram at NaomiMeredith_.


Naomi Meredith [00:20:32]:


I would love to hear what you have to say, and I will see you in the next episode.

1st year STEM teacher

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a K-5 STEM educator and business owner in Colorado supporting elementary teachers world-wide navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there. She has over a decade of experience teaching, 5 years teaching elementary STEM, along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM Certificate.

She offers a variety of resources 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!

STEM coaching session

Behind the Scenes: Inside a STEM Coaching Session- Part 1 [ep.93]

Behind the Scenes: Inside a STEM Coaching Session – Part 1 [ep.93]

STEM coaching session

Check out the full episode on Behind the Scenes: Inside a STEM Coaching Session – Part 1:  

 

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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Listen to the episode here on YouTube:

Episode Summary

You’ve heard me talking about my STEM Into Summer Group Coaching Program and this new way to work with me, but what does that actually mean? What does a STEM coaching session look like with me? In today’s episode, I am taking you behind the scenes so you can see what a 1:1 STEM coaching session looks like with me! In this episode, I am meeting with one of the teachers who joined the STEM Into Summer Group Coaching Program, DeLisa S. Many of you will be able to relate to DeLisa as you hear about her STEM teaching experience and some of the challenges she’s currently facing. Listen in to see how I support DeLisa with developing a plan specific to her STEM needs. 

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • About DeLisa’s STEM teaching experience
  • What’s currently working and not working in DeLisa’s STEM space
  • How I support my clients in the STEM Into Summer Group Coaching Program

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith  00:00

You’ve heard me talk all about STEM coaching and how this is a new way that you can work with me this summer. But what does this even mean? What does it actually sound like having a STEM coaching session with me, Naomi Meredith? Well, I am taking you behind the scenes in a never heard before type of episode where I actually recorded the coaching session with a teacher in the STEM Into Summer Group Coaching Program. As one of the bonuses in this group coaching program, you receive a free one on one 30 minute video coaching call with me, where we get to know one another, your STEM program and the goals that you have for it so we can set you up for success for back to school. In this session, I am talking with DeLisa who teaches a K through five STEM after school program. Like many of you, she was given this amazing position with limited supplies and zero curriculum. DeLisa already has some great lessons in place, but it feels like her lessons are a little bit scattered. Likewise with the structure of her schedule, kids can be in and out and sometimes learn some content, but miss out on others. She wants to develop a program where she has lessons she can adapt for the summer and during the school year, utilize the materials she has on hand and provide experiences for her students that are meaningful even when students leave at different times or when the schedule suddenly changes and definitely the life of a teacher, right? Together, DeLisa and I set up a plan of action of next steps to take now and what to expect during the STEM Into Summer Group Coaching Program. During this session, I’m sure you’re going to find similarities in her program and the struggles that she is facing to what you’re experiencing in your STEM space. If you are interested in joining forces with me and other teachers who are building their STEM programs, there are still a few spots available. You can jump in at Naomimeredith.com/stemintosummer. Likewise, if you are unsure if this program is the right fit for you, let’s talk about it face to face. Schedule a free live call with me at Naomimeredith.com/call. Now let’s jump into this fun coaching session. 


Naomi Meredith  02:27

Well, thanks so much again for meeting with me and I’m so excited to meet you in person. Tell me how to say your name correctly.


DeLisa S.  03:05

It’s DeLisa,


Naomi Meredith  03:07

DeLisa. I love that.


DeLisa S.  03:09

I’d say DeLisa, and my mom’s like DeLeasa? Yes, Mama, you know, I’m used to a Deleasa is fine. Okay, DeLisa.


Naomi Meredith  03:15

Okay. Well, what I have everyone says my name wrong too. So I understand. Well, thanks so much. I was so excited that you signed up. What motivated you to sign up for this group coaching program?


DeLisa S.  03:30

Well, I have been actually in love with STEM, since I guess I was a kid, I’m gonna just, you know, throw that out there. But right now I currently work with K through five at an after school program. So along with that, I was originally working with pre K through a second grade teaching computer coding. And so we were using the robots and not a lot of fun things to go along with their literacy and math and all of that. So it’s just like, I wanted to do more with STEM, and a little bit of building activities. And we’ve done you know, with the coding, but including the arts and other things into it. So I love STEM. I’m just trying to find how to let me know I have great ideas and big thoughts, but I need to crunch it down and put it into a lesson plan and into a format of curriculum that I can follow.


Naomi Meredith  04:25

Mm hmm. That makes sense when I feel like that’s so common to when you have like there’s so many cool ideas out there and so many different cool things to try and then you want to do all of them and then it gets super overwhelming. And then you think okay, what grade levels should I be doing this with? Do I have the supplies? So that’s super, super common.


DeLisa S.  04:50

See in my background if I turn, I have stuff that I’ve purchased trying to do STEM activities like okay, my whole back room is gonna be so filled with educational stuff.


Naomi Meredith  05:04

Outside of mine, look at my floor. Like cleaning it out. I have a lot more stuff under my desk, but you can’t see it.


DeLisa S.  05:13

I’m just sneak over here. So you can kind of see, this is my corner of just collecting of stuff. And it’s like I know that too.


Naomi Meredith  05:22

So tell me more about your program. So you said it’s after school? Like, is it every day? How long? Do you have the kids? Is it something that they paid for? How does that work?


DeLisa S.  05:31

Yes, I’m there Monday through Friday, from three to 630. Okay, but it’s three to 630. And I do K through fifth grade on those each day. So I have with the school year, which is kind of crazy. I actually get them for an hour for each level. So say for instance, yesterday, I had K through first grade. Great. So I’ll get them. I had them yesterday, and today I have third grade. So with my third through fifth grade, which today I have third, tomorrow, I have fourth and fifth. I can do different things with them. But I Kindergarten first is kind of where okay, I don’t want to overwhelm them or no one’s cost, compared to what my third through fifth. So the summer coming along. I’ll have each group for two hours. Okay, so starting on the seventh, I’ll start with third grade, I believe. Now have them for two hours. So then,


Naomi Meredith  06:39

okay, so then it’s like third grade for two hours, fourth grade for two hours. Fifth grade. And then is it still okay, one combined for two hours?


DeLisa S.  06:47

Yes. I have them. Come on. Yeah. Oh, wow. hours during the summer, and then back when school starts back, then we’re back at our 45 minutes. Okay, stuff that’s going on at same time?


Naomi Meredith  07:02

Do you have it all like mapped out of when you see kids like how much time you have per grade level for the summer? And then the year? Do you have like a whole map out plan of that idea?


DeLisa S.  07:15

What happens is I can map it out. But if they have other educational programs coming in, it’ll throw everything off. So same day that I will have, for instance, yesterday, k one, Well, then a 330 to 430. They have Spanish. So that takes away from my actual coding lesson, because we also have to allow them to get the educational lessons in as Well. A homework help and assistance. So down to 30 minutes. So I usually have it all mapped out. But things change. So what that means it can be the same thing for the summer. So mapping out for me saying the summer I can say okay, yeah, I haven’t two hours. I haven’t from one o’clock to four o’clock. But then they may have a Spanish session coming in. everything off.


Naomi Meredith  08:05

Yeah, that makes sense. I guess having it would be helpful if you just a rough plan. And then we could always adjust what you have based on because that will help knowing how much roughly how much time you have. Because then you can always plan out for a little bit more. And then if you just have to repeat it the next week or do something similar or okay, we’re going to do this part of this lesson. And then we’re going to do the next part next week. So then maybe it’s not even new every single time. It’s like extending what they’re working on. Do the kids leave in the middle of that time? Or are they are they like so they go home? Okay, yeah.


DeLisa S.  08:47

And so now say for instance, today, I have third grade. So I’ll come in after their Spanish lesson, which is four o’clock, but then at 415 430 that you’re ready to break for dinner. Okay. Now during dinner time, I’m starting to lose my keys because I’m so I’ll have to start a lesson. And then come back, like I said the following week and try my best to get in as much as I can. And then the following week, try to finish up as much as I can. Yeah. So there because we started doing the Legos, not spike, but the other essential. Oh, yeah. So I have maybe three or four that’s able to build out robots, but then the other half they miss out because they don’t get the bill. So then then three or four get to come in and code the robot, but then my other group is missing out.


Naomi Meredith  09:37

Yeah. Okay. So that yeah, so that’ll definitely be something when we’re thinking about the lessons because I feel like you obviously have the materials and the ideas but thinking about the structure for that and how that’ll work because kids are leaving in and out. You have the different grade levels. So that is nice too though. You have combined grade levels. So that’s really going to help with your planning and Do you plan things thematically? Or do you just feel like you’re just throwing ideas out there? Like maybe third graders doing Legos, fourth graders doing robotics? And then or do you kind of do the same theme? So if you’re doing Legos, everyone’s doing Legos? Or do you structure it,


DeLisa S.  10:16

I do it differently per grade level. So like my fourth or fifth headache, haven’t even started Legos. And so third grade has been my only group that’s done Legos. My second grade group has done Scratch Jr. on the group has done Scratch Jr. I did introduce it to k one, but no slow down with that, because we’re leaving. And so they have the big bots. So they’re doing the robots. Yeah, that was kinda then what the fourth and fifth, we’re doing scratch, okay, I want to at least Oh, if I do this structure, I want to do it as a theme. And then it’d be much easier and to say, okay, I can introduce this. And then if we don’t get to a certain part, then I can continue on like I’ve been trying to do,


Naomi Meredith  11:00

I think it definitely can do that. That’s how I structure my year. So I was I started off like with you, where I was just kind of throwing things out there and just trying it out. Because I mean, I don’t even know sometimes like, Well, I don’t even know what this does. I think that’ll help too, especially when you’re teaching it and let’s say a kid leaves, I don’t know if they can jump in on your other sessions, like, oh, there’s two kids left, they can, okay, so they don’t do that. But that’ll help to with your materials. Because if you’re in the mindset of coding, then that’s going to help you think about the differentiation with all of those levels. And we can even talk more about resources. Like when we’re actually working through the summer, this is really good. I like Starbucks, I have a lot of ideas for you. But we can really think about that thematic planning. So you could have a coding unit, and then you can have a separate robotics unit, and then a LEGO unit. Now, if you don’t have enough supplies, we can mix up who does Legos. Because I know that’s really hard to because getting something for K through five for everybody is expensive. So maybe everybody but third grade is doing coding at that time or something like that. So we can definitely map that out. And then that way, when you’re prepping your materials, you’re like, Okay, we’re doing coding right now. Perfect. You even have a lot of similar anchor charts, a lot of vocabulary. So that’s going to help you and I’m really glad actually your k one is combined that that won’t be too hard.


DeLisa S.  12:33

It’s so much easier.


Naomi Meredith  12:36

I’m sorry, go ahead. Do you do a whole group lessons with k one? Or do you do STEM stations whole group,


DeLisa S.  12:45

Actually, and I loved your workshop on doing the STEM stations because I actually did STEM stations on Friday. Oh, they’re fun Fridays. Usually I try. If I don’t get to do coding on Tuesdays with k one, then I’ll do it on Fridays, where they have fun Friday. And so this past Friday, we did STEM stations where I did the playdough I did a coating. I did a little art station where they could color. And then what else did I add for Legos? We did LEGO challenges. Yeah, they helped me out so much with k one group. And so I definitely would like to incorporate them in where I work with one group, maybe with coding and then next time if I don’t get to them, I can come back and do another group.


Naomi Meredith  13:30

Awesome. I love it. I’m so glad that worked for you. And even at this time a year. I know. I know. They’re crazy. I just did sensations with k one and they’re fine.


DeLisa S.  13:39

Yeah, yeah, it worked out great. I mean, we’re fun Fridays for them. We put on a movie, we had the STEM station. So you’re more in tune with the STEM station than they were with the movie.


Naomi Meredith  13:50

Yeah. Oh, that’s good. Movie.


DeLisa S.  13:53

Yeah, go for it. 


Naomi Meredith  13:54

Yeah, You don’t need the movie, I think it’d be fine. And then that I like what you said to having a station where it could be even you like a station with you. I’m wondering too, I have done this. And we’re just thinking about the structure of how your kids are, and how they rotate in and out throughout the day and your program. I have actually done STEM stations with my older kids before. And it works really Well. We can think about what those are just thinking about what work will work best for you. Your kids are in school all day, and then they’re coming to you and so they have a whole lot of whole group instruction. And it really depends on the teacher from what I’ve seen. It’s actually not as common to do stations with older kids and even I with me, but it can it’s it still can be done. And I feel like just because they’re not finishing things or they might not have enough time or they’re leaving. I actually think stations would work Well for your older students. And that way You’re not planning as much, because you could still do two a day with your older kids, they will be at the station for longer. But then that way you okay? Okay, we have four stations in this unit. Let’s say we’re doing coding. We have four coding stations, you’re gonna do two this week and then two next week, and then you’re not planning week to week anymore. That way, you’re like, oh, my gosh, I have to do another unit again. Because you said you see each grade level once a week. Okay, so that, that’ll help too. Yeah. So if you did STEM stations, just thinking, I wouldn’t suggest it this for like a classroom STEM teacher, but for your program, I think that will help just with the rotation of kids. So then you don’t like if a parent has to talk to you, you’re like, Okay, I have to stop my instruction and go talk to them. And that’s going to free you up to especially, you know, they’re squirrely at the end of the day. So then excited yeah, and they love it. And they love what they’re doing with you. I’m sure they love it. But I think that’ll help with behaviors. Also, because they’re tired. They do want to do your stations, and your activities, but that’s gonna break them up as Well. So it’s just more focused on the activity. And then let’s say, Oh, I didn’t do this station last time, you could just split them into that station. And then maybe even the third and third and fourth week could be pick your favorite. And so maybe for your older I want to do this for the little kids. But I would have for the older kids, okay, so we did stations these past two weeks, maybe this last week, this third and fourth week, you get to pick your favorite. So then you could have, we could create like a choice board, where they pick their top two, and maybe they spend the whole day doing one station, and then the next week doing another station, um, just because they’re older, they’ll be able to handle that. With the little kids. I don’t know, you could do the same stations again, to be honest. So then that would take up a whole month. So if you have, let’s say k one, you do STEM stations, which was really good. How many did you get through with them?


DeLisa S.  17:08

I try to break them up and do a timer. So I allow them to get opportunity to get to touch it. So I put every 10 minutes. Okay. I give them 10 minutes per station, and then they rotate out. Yep. So keep them going. Yeah. So every last one, I’m here because I didn’t have that many kids because of course at the end of the year, they have comments. So every 10 minutes at least allowing their time so no, because now we’re into 730 to 530. We’ll have them all day.


Naomi Meredith  17:39

Okay. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. So I think for Okay, for the school year, it says, since you haven’t a while with them, k one, you could do four, or however many board is six stations. I would maybe do four. But would you add five? I’d be at five. Yeah, five works. So keep the five because probably with your numbers too. And then I that obviously worked with your time so I would keep that and then you could do the same stations the next week. You don’t have to switch it every time. 10 minutes is not very long. And when I’ve doubled stations so sometimes the week I will actually do the same stations again and the kids are loving it they actually are excited to do it again. So don’t feel bad that you repeat things they probably want to go back to it.


DeLisa S.  18:31

They did they actually went I brought it they were they were all excited because they are the class is set up they’re actually already set up in kind of low stations anyway. Yeah. So helped me to be able to build their stations so they could rotate. So now this summer when new things come in, I don’t know how their classrooms gonna look because it’s yeah, I’m trying. But yeah, it they loved it. They love it every time.


Naomi Meredith  18:58

During the summer months, it can sometimes be a challenge thinking of activities to keep your students and your own children engaged in learning activities. Especially on a day when you have an afternoon rain shower, it can feel like your kids are bouncing off the walls. Well, let’s put those walls to good use. Let learning meet play time with the brightest glow in the dark stickers and all the land with glow play. Also, these aren’t your average glow in the dark stickers that you had on your bedroom ceiling as a kid that would fall off and hit your face while you’re sleeping. You know what I’m talking about? I recently received the sea animals that from Globe Life. I’ve mentioned many times here on the podcast that when I traveled with my teacher, honey, we frequent the local zoos and museums. So this sea animals set was a no brainer for me. My favorite were the sea turtles in this set. There was an adult and two babies so cute. If I were using these in the classroom, I would playing out in ocean theme week, where in each of the STEM stations, students could learn more about the topic. These glow plays stickers would be a great STEM station, where students could create a riddle about the traits they see on the animals and have others in the group guess which animal they’re talking about. For example, they could say, I spy a living thing with two flippers and no dorsal fin. The other kids in the group can guess which glow play sticker they’re talking about and say, Blue Whale. This is a great connection to the NGSS first grade life science standards. These glow in the dark stickers can be used anywhere, they glow a 70 times brighter than others on the market you might have used. Another great benefit to these stickers is that they can stick to any surface be peeled off and reapplied without any sticky residue. Your house will thank you and so will the custodians at your school so you’re not ruining any walls. Talk about on limited fun. Adding in the glow play stickers to your classroom materials and make an easy STEM station that would take minimal prep, but encouraged tons of engagement. You can grab this glow play see animals sets and other themes by visiting their website at let’s glow play.com. That’s LEGO. L e t s glow G lo play PLA y.com. Let’s slow play.com. Yeah, and they’re good at it.


DeLisa S.  21:36

Yeah. And I just did the same ones that I did the very first time you watched a workshop the same one.


Naomi Meredith  21:42

Oh, good.


DeLisa S.  21:43

They were excited about it.


Naomi Meredith  21:45

Yeah, I’m so glad I’m so happy to hear.


DeLisa S.  21:51

I’m just like, hey, this is an easy day.


Naomi Meredith  21:55

I know. I know. It feels so easy. But they’re not bored. They’re super engaged.


DeLisa S.  22:00

No, no. And even with those rotating and after once they go all around. Everybody had that one opportunity. They never like what I want to go from this stage. Can I go to this station? Where can I go to that station? And they spend their time wherever they want? Oh, yeah. So yes, it helped me out a whole lot. Yay. I’m


Naomi Meredith  22:17

so glad. Oh my gosh. Yeah, keep doing it. Because the kids are good at stations. And I think they’re kind of fun to plan because they’re not super high intense materials. Especially. Are you setting up so many different things? That way? Yeah. So for Okay, so I’m right, I’m typing notes when I’m talking to you. So thinking about your structure, k one, same five stations for two weeks, this would be like your school year, and then we could change it up for the summer. The summer too. We Okay, I have an idea for your summer. And then for second through fifth, I think you could do four stations. And they do two sets stations a day. And then you would have the same four stations for two weeks. So then you’re not planning week to week, you, they would have to do the other two, so and if they leave, they leave and then you would just maybe the last two weeks of the month, then they could have a choice and pick their like, top two favorite. And you could even have them do like one whole station that whole time. Okay, so then they could so kind of like for your older kids, your first two weeks, you’re exposing them to the materials like hey, this is like good when you have like introductory things like oh, we’re doing these robots. Here are the basics of this robot. Here’s how it works. So the station’s are done. It’s like introduction. And then for the last two weeks, you’re like, Okay, the next two weeks, you’re gonna pick your favorite. And you’re gonna really dive in and have a harder challenge with this. So then they get to spend that time really diving into it, you’re like, Okay, awesome. Now next week, you get to pick your second favorite, and really dive in deeper. And that’s going to help again with your materials so that you don’t have to have something for everybody. So then if it’s not their favorite that first week, they can pick for the next week. And again, that’s going to free you have to because then you’re probably just troubleshooting. But then they have they’re in independent with their longer station. So like yeah, like I said, the older kids do still do fine with stations, but they have more stamina. So you don’t need to switch it up. Like every 10 minutes for the little kids that I think keep doing what you did with the little kids because that’s totally good. You saw how good they were. But the kids like want more time they actually want to try more so. So they could do one station the whole time. And then I guess I mean, that’s okay if they don’t get to everything because not every kid is going to like everything that you do. Like I have kids. Yeah, you know, you’ve seen that.


DeLisa S.  24:54

Yeah, especially with the group


Naomi Meredith  25:00

Have you like, it’s okay. And then summer, you said you had each group for two hours. Um, so we can still do the themes. I think it’d be fun to like for your themes, because you’re just kind of like a camp, right?


DeLisa S.  25:13

Yes, yes. Yeah, we’ll have them I think for nine weeks, eight to nine weeks, I want to say, okay, so yeah, we’ll have all summer long, basically.


Naomi Meredith  25:24

Okay. That’d be cool if we could, and you might even have ideas. Like for having a like fun themes for the summer. Like you could have like a camping theme. And then all I do this, I have a sense survival camp unit that I do K through five. And so each challenge it’s based off of the show alone. Have you seen that show?


DeLisa S.  25:44

I have not. I’m gonna have to check it out.


Naomi Meredith  25:46

It’s for adults don’t show it to the kids. Oh, it’s for adults. I mean, the fifth graders are watching Indonesia at school, but they’re like stranded alone. And then they have to, like survive on the land by themselves. Yeah, so all the challenges are based off of the show, so that you could do something like that, like a camping theme. We could do like a space theme. Um, what else is a good one for summer? Like outside activities? Sign like sun and shade for the little kids face. And that could be of her part of space. But what else?


DeLisa S.  26:21

We did do animals. Yes. Trying to think what else did I I’m trying to remember some of the things that I did do last year for them. We did so camping space outdoors. I even thought about even even though this is even a technology thing. So yeah, owning in their studio.


Naomi Meredith  26:44

Do you guys ever bring in guest speakers? Is that something you can do? Are you allowed to do that?


DeLisa S.  26:49

Yes, yes. I think last week we’re bringing in actual, we have a place called Arkansas Regional Innovation Hub winning activity. So they have a mobile unit Makerspace where they’ll come in and let the kids designed like shirts or watercolor paintings. Not watercolor book chemistry. What else they get to do ceramics, they do different kinds of things that they can take back with them to take home that they can make. So they had like a mobile Makerspace form.


Naomi Meredith  27:20

Oh, that is so cool.


DeLisa S.  27:24

Oh, yes, we have them coming in. And then I wanted to do a Makerspace with them as Well. So I thought about maybe a Makerspace thing.


Naomi Meredith  27:33

Oh, yeah, do it. Yeah, Makerspace thing would be really good. And you could do even for the little kids based off those stories. I’ve done that as a club. So you read the story, and then have a challenge.


DeLisa S.  27:43

Makerspace story have put something like that for their their age group. K through two anyway.


Naomi Meredith  27:50

Yeah. That’d be really fun. Oh, I’m so excited to plan with you. I love planning. It’s so fun.


DeLisa S.  27:59

Still learning it because it’s like just trying to get all of these ideas and just condense it down. It’s


Naomi Meredith  28:05

hard. Yes, I know and don’t and like I said, Don’t feel like you have to do something new every single day with the kids. Okay, I always thought I had to, but honestly, sometimes the kids will get frustrated because they can’t go deeper into topics. And so then then they don’t feel successful because oh, I have to learn something new again, like sometimes they’re okay with having things be very predictable, in a sense, where Oh, I get to try this even more. I never feel bad about that. And actually, their behaviors went down because they’re not frustrated. Oh, I have to learn something new again. Oh, my gosh, oh, now it’s about something else. So even if it’s the same robots all week, but then you change out the content, then they’re feeling successful with the robot, but then you’re changing out the content, so then it’s not as overwhelming for them, because then they can get better at the robot. So it doesn’t have to be a new new brand new thing every day. Like you want to have a little bit of fun. Yeah, maybe it’s not a little bit. It’s a lot of fun. But, um, so don’t feel like yeah, you have to change it up every single time. Because that’s gonna make you feel so stressed out.


DeLisa S.  29:17

That’s where I’m getting because I feel like I have to change it out. Because I don’t want them to get bored. And I’m thinking, Oh, maybe they’re gonna get bored doing this. Now. I kind of was like, Okay, I’m getting overwhelmed with my, you know, trying to bring.


Naomi Meredith  29:29

Yeah, and those systems and routines, once you have a whole structure that will work best for you. That’s also going to help with the behavior. When I have kids come into my room, I like have the same thing that you come sit on the floor. I’m going to teach you for like eight minutes. If that six to eight minutes, then we’re going to have our work time and then we’re going to clean up and then talk about it and then I also go through the Engineering Design Process which I feel like for yours, you can still have elements of that. But also you have you have a little More flexibility because you know, you’re not in the classroom classroom, but you but you are, you have a really important role. So just having that same structure is really going to help you just how to plan your lessons have that familiarity, and then the content will change. And then also, in turn, all your planning is going to be easier, because you’re gonna know what to expect. And every, like, you just kind of have an idea of how things are gonna flow and it won’t feel so random.


DeLisa S.  30:26

Now I do have an opportunity, and I’ll probably sit more likely paying something out and send it to you because I know we are coming close to our time.


Naomi Meredith  30:35

Oh, no worries. No, you’re fine.


DeLisa S.  30:39

I have opportunities where I’m actually traveling further south to do some workshops with another group. So I’ll still be doing the K-2 five group, but I will be spending a whole day with each group.


Naomi Meredith  30:53

Oh, cool.


DeLisa S.  30:55

That I’m kind of stuck on there too. Because not just I have to plan for this. But I’m also having to plan at the end of June to do a whole workshop for each day for each grade level. Ah, helped me out so so much. So, ah,


Naomi Meredith  31:11

Well, this lesson, I think you’ll feel successful because this planning will help you. You can just teach him what you’re planning. Yes, yes. Yeah. So we can definitely work on that. Because, yeah, actually, it’ll all line up. You don’t need to create something, you know, you just you test it with your kids. And then okay, then that’s my workshop. Okay, I tested this. That’s my workshop. So that actually, you’ll have really good evidence of what worked Well. And what didn’t it? Okay, cool. Yeah. So then you don’t have to double Yeah, really try to repurpose this? Yeah. So then that’s gonna save you time, because you’re already planning it anyway. Now you’re just gonna present about it and how it worked out?


DeLisa S.  31:49

I work. Now I have, what do you say? Is your your standard activities? How do you go about if you want it to the sense to see how Well they’re doing? Or if it’s something that okay, I can bring back or something I need to take away or just to see if it’s helping them out in any other areas? Do you do anything like that?


Naomi Meredith  32:09

So I do more informal things. So there’s a couple of things. So first, obviously, my observations, noticing, really, is this over there level, like how our certain kids able to fit? Are they even able to finish the project? That’s a huge thing. Sometimes if they can’t, is it because of the week? Did we have less time? Is it too hard? So maybe they had plenty of time, but they still didn’t finish? So that will help let me know, oh, this was probably too hard to slash I might not have been clear enough in my directions. Also, like if I were to give a grade, I really would think about, like, for that individual? Are they able to really address the standard? So if I’m planning the standards, are you actually understanding what the standard is talking about, from that perspective? But then also thinking about the process? Are you like it? Let’s say they’re doing a stop motion animation? Are you doing a lot of pictures? Are you understanding how to actually use the tool, though, kinda, it is trial and error. And also based on the class, but really, it’s kind of like that process versus the product. I mean, I could use a rubric if I had to, but really more. So that observation, also their behavior, too. If they’re messing around too much, maybe it’s too easy. And if they’re really rushing, maybe the projects too easy. I’ve had that a couple times, not too often, that’s actually not as common as too hard. If it’s too hard, I will either maybe think about is this tool better for a different grade. Or maybe the tool is right, I just didn’t teach it Well enough. Like something you know, like when you are using, especially the technology tools, how many steps it is to actually get into the tool. So sometimes I, I haven’t done a good job, I have to go back and like really pre teach, okay, here’s how you actually connect your robot to this platform. So sometimes it’ll be okay, I’m going to show you how to do that, then go do it. And then come back, I’m going to show you how to use it in your project. So like it for your older kids, or even your younger kids too. You might have to show them Okay, for this station. Here’s how you do this, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, and then get started. So for me, it’s more observational, and based on their experience, too, because if they don’t have a lot of experience, you might have to do a little bit easier to get them familiar and confident. And then okay, now you have experienced now we can get more into this, so that’s okay, too. Gotcha. Yeah. Okay. So hopefully that helps.


DeLisa S.  34:48

It does. It helps me out on a toes stance to see how Well they’re actually catching on to it. So I think observation would definitely because I can observe him and sit there and look at him and kind of tell him or I’ve had some, like set a catch on real quick. Trying to figure okay, what can I do? Yeah,


Naomi Meredith  35:06

yeah. So for those kids, once you to get familiar with the tools, then you can kind of jot some notes down of ways they can improve. So for maybe the project is fine. And there are those kids who rushed through it. But you could even create like a modification checklist that could be there how to make it even better. So it’s not making the project, I guess, harder, it’s like going deeper in it. So let’s say you’re doing a Makerspace project, a Rube Goldberg machine where like it has that chain reaction? Or like, Okay, you did it? Could you add something that swings? That would be hard to actually how, where do you attach it? Where does it swing? Can you add something that rolls and then hit something else? So having multi step things? So really helping push those kids, you could have a modification checklist and just get from you observing? What are things like most kids doing? And even the kids who are improving? Or like, what are the things you are improving? So then again, you don’t have to necessarily change out the project, you’re just giving ways for them to go deeper in that content. Because that’s true. It’s like reading, writing math, for kids who are getting it quickly. Oh, it doesn’t mean you necessarily have to skip grade levels, you just need to go deeper in the content, and think, and even higher levels of learning. So it’s the same thing, the STEM to.


DeLisa S.  36:22

Definitely will try that.


Naomi Meredith  36:25

Yeah, bring all those sticky notes. Yeah, like bring your notebook, I do that I will write down notes all the time, when I’m watching kids, and you’ll get some random inspiration. Or maybe you’re driving your car, like oh, my gosh, I have to do this and then write it down. And done that. You too. And so I think for so we’ll meet, I think it’s I have it scheduled for next week for the kickoff call. So I’ll talk about in our kickoff call, like how we’re going to do like a lesson audit. So just take a look at I have a whole template for you. Looking at the lessons you have so far, or maybe ones you’re hoping to do. And then also have a template that you’ll use to like really map out the materials that you have. So having those you don’t need to have a year long plan yet we’ll get to that. But really thinking about with those templates, and I’ll take a look at them to kind of get an idea of what we’re working with, and what you want to do. So we’ll talk about that in our meeting, I think for before then, if you did have UI, if you did have a rough sketch of how often you see kids, even if it does change, that’s gonna help with knowing, like this doesn’t have to be like your year long plan, but just kind of knowing the timeframe, you see kids that’s going to help knowing how many different units that you’ll have to plan out. So then that will I think really helped bring the overwhelm down, because then you’re like, Okay, these are the timeframes I have to work with. So then we can think about like those bigger themes, like, here’s this chunk of time, here’s this chunk of time, here’s what you can do throughout the year. Even if I mean, that happens to as a classroom teacher, like you have school events, like I have that too, I have my year long plan. But sometimes I have to take out something in that unit, because we have Assembly that day, or that grade levels on a field trip. So that’s pretty normal. But if you are able to map out your kind of rough estimate of when you’re going to see kids and how often for each grade level, that’s going to help. And then once you have that spreadsheet on Google, I think it like this spreadsheet, it’ll like has all these drop down menus that you can plug stuff in, and then all the materials and then we’ll merge that together and then create your start working on that year long plan. And then at the very end of the whole weeks we have then we’ll even talk about like even more about materials and things like you might want to purchase in the future different ways to do that even we can work on some grant writing, too. So yeah. Do you have any other questions for me, I hope this was helpful for you.


DeLisa S.  39:05

Very helpful. I am very excited. I cannot wait. I couldn’t wait yesterday, I was like, fine, it gives me a stamp project. So yes, this is so helpful. And I appreciate it.


Naomi Meredith  39:19

You’re so welcome. I’m so excited to work with you this summer. And like I said, I love love, love lesson planning. And like this is like a big puzzle. So like using your ideas and every like things that you want to work with and what you’re comfortable with and the supplies that you have, I think we’re really going to be able to create something that will be definitely unique for your situation and something that you can keep modifying over the years and when new materials come in and out. Or your kids get better at stuff it’ll be easy to change things out because it’s like something you have that structure but then all the ideas will like fit in they have all the little little places for your stuff.


DeLisa S.  40:00

Yay, I’m so excited. 


Naomi Meredith  40:02

Yay, good. Well, I will actually see you next week. I think I put in your platform, the zoom, link, if not, I’ll put it in there. And then we’ll meet live. And then you’ll have that to work on in June. And then we’ll have live calls every week. And you’ll have audio access to me for the rest of the summer. So if things pop up like you have me in your back pocket,


DeLisa S.  40:27

And I was going to ask if I had to miss a meeting, and I think you just answered it. What do I be able to go back and replay it or? Yeah,


Naomi Meredith  40:35

yeah, yeah, you’ll be able to replay it. And then I’ll also have some of the video replay. And then I also take out the audio and make it like a podcast. I don’t edit it. I just use the audio so that way you can listen on the go as Well. Yeah, so you’ll have the replay options and all that.


DeLisa S.  40:53

Oh, I’m excited. Yeah, me too.


Naomi Meredith  40:56

Well, thank you so much for your time, and I’m excited to be working with you.


DeLisa S.  41:01

I’m glad I decided to work with you as well. 


Naomi Meredith  41:05

Yay! Me too. I will talk to you soon. Thank you. Oh, Well, quick question. Did you get your present in the mail?


DeLisa S.  41:13

I did get it. I have my pen but I forgot my notebook.


Naomi Meredith  41:18

I made myself one too.


DeLisa S.  41:22

I was looking for it and left it on the table. Grab some real quick. Oh, yeah. I have my pen and I appreciate it. My son took my STEM sticker. He’s like, Oh, mom is my sticker now. It’s like, hey, you know what? All right. I let you have it. Go ahead.


Naomi Meredith  41:36

I’ll send you another one.


DeLisa S.  41:39

So yes.


Naomi Meredith  41:41

I’m truly glad you got it. Well, thank you and I’ll talk to you later. I’ll see you next week. Okay, thank you. You’re welcome. Bye. I am so excited to work with DeLisa this summer. She already has a great start for her program and there is so much room for creativity and fun lessons that Deleasa and her students will enjoy. If you’re interested in having a one to one coaching call like this one and support throughout the summer to build up your program. Join us. There are only a few spots left at Naomimeredith.com/stemintosummer.

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More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a K-5 STEM educator and business owner in Colorado supporting elementary teachers world-wide navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there. She has over a decade of experience teaching, 5 years teaching elementary STEM, along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM Certificate.

She offers a variety of resources 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!

STEM lesson planning

Are You Complicating Your STEM Lesson Planning? [ep.89]

Are You Complicating Your STEM Lesson Planning? [ep.89]

STEM lesson planning

Check out the full episode on Are You Complicating Your STEM Lesson Planning?:  

 

 

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Episode Summary

Do you find yourself wanting to implement all of the cool STEM lessons you see on social media or hear about on this podcast? Do you feel the pressure to try to implement lots of new STEM lessons in the hopes you will keep your kids engaged in STEM? In today’s episode, I’m breaking down things you may be doing that are complicating your STEM lesson planning and sharing what to do instead.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 3 things that complicate your STEM lesson planning
  • Why these 3 things complicate your STEM lesson planning
  • 3 ways to simplify your STEM lesson planning to reduce your overwhelm

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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

Are you complicating your STEM lesson planning? Teaching elementary STEM is such a highly creative subject to teach. But it can get overwhelming very quickly. With all of the cool ideas that you’re seeing all over social media, or maybe even things that you are hearing on this podcast, you might be getting a little bit of FOMO or fear of missing out, you want to teach it all. Trust me, I was like this too, especially when you first are getting started teaching STEM, you feel like you have to do all the cool ideas that you see, or your students aren’t going to get a great STEM experience. But guess what this could actually be contributing to your STEM, overwhelm, and making your lesson planning a lot harder than what it should be. So let’s the solution. In this episode, I will be sharing with you the things that are probably contributing to your STEM, overwhelm, and some solutions to combat this.


Naomi Meredith  01:17

If you are listening to this episode live when it comes out, the doors are open only for a little short while to the STEM into summer group coaching program. With me as your coach, you will have 16 weeks with a hands on experience, along with other STEM teachers who are doing what you’re doing. But also create a scaffolded STEM lesson plan that will work best for your space. Be prepared for the whole year, along with lessons that are actually going to work along with templates and lesson plans and resources that will help you along the way. Along with that you will have access to me with video messaging and weekly video calls. So you definitely want to book your spots before they all run out and really be prepared for this upcoming school year. You can jump on in and get started at naomimeredith.com/STEMintosummer. Also for being a podcast listener, you can get an extra 25% off, make sure to use the promo code STEMSUMMERPOD to get your special discount. As soon as you sign up, we will set up your bonus one to one video call with me so we can get to know each other and set you up for success. So join me and other STEM teachers at naomimeredith.com/STEMintosummer. 


Naomi Meredith  02:49

When I jumped into the K through five STEM space from being a classroom teacher for six years, I absolutely fell in love. And I was spending all my weekends doing the lesson planning going into my classroom, staying late at night and getting there early in the morning. And definitely I felt a ton of overwhelm. And the biggest thing with that not to mention teaching 500 plus kids and six classes a day. But it has a lot to do with the lesson planning. What’s very different that I have found from being a classroom teacher to being a STEM teacher is you really don’t have any curriculum to work with like not really even a little bit. A lot of different programs come with things to get you started. But then it’s so hard to make everything fit and everything pieced together and make sure it’s not random. Or maybe you are making things random, but having it all go together cohesively. So you are not rushing around from class to class and not knowing what to teach when you show up or not even feeling prepared. And it can get overwhelming very, very quickly. So let’s take a deep dive into your lesson planning habits in your STEM space. And let’s see if you are doing these things that are probably overcomplicating your STEM lesson planning. It is hard, however, it doesn’t have to be that hard. And let’s see if we can refine those things and make this end of the year and going into the next school year a lot smoother for you. 


Naomi Meredith  04:23

The first thing that is probably complicating your STEM lesson planning is you are doing too many ideas at once. That is actually a good problem to have. But it can make it very complicated. Maybe our lessons look like this. Let’s say you are teaching all about landforms the first day you have kids doing robotics. The next day you are going to have them do a mini Makerspace project. The next two days you have a another Makerspace project. And then the last day is some free choice time Whoa, that was exhausting even explaining that, yes, all those ideas are probably cool, but you actually don’t have to do all of them. Well, these are all awesome STEM lessons to teach, they are really all over the place. Back in the last episode, Episode 88. I talk a lot about this. So make sure to go back and take a listen. But this is really probably contributing to your overwhelm. You are rushing from lesson to lesson a lesson you are making sure, okay, we’re gonna do this this day and do this this day. That’s a lot of planning to keep up with. Likewise, you might not even be realizing this, but your students might also be feeling rushed as Well. So not only as you as a teacher, you’re rushing from lesson to lesson a lesson. But so far your students, and they might not find that they are finding success, because they have to do something new every day. And you might be feeling as a teacher, “Well, I am the STEM teacher, I do need to make it fun.” It’s like a party every day. It kind of is like a party. But it doesn’t have to be something brand new. It’s okay, if you are not implementing every single fun thing that you’re seeing all over Instagram. You don’t even know with these teachers if they taught this lesson five years ago, and maybe they’re just posting an idea to give you some inspiration. You have no idea what’s really going on behind the scenes, it really is a highlight reel. So don’t feel like you have to change it up every single day to keep your kids entertained. In fact, this is something that I did when I first got started. And this is what was really taking up my weekends, coming up with new ideas every day. However, when I switched it to having more long term projects, where we were working on the same thing throughout the week, or throughout the days that I saw them if it was once a week, then what the new things that I would be implementing is the new things using the Engineering Design Process, or the process that we were using at the time. So students were able to improve and really think about the project that they were doing. Rather than switching from project to project to project to project. There’s a book that I have read years ago that I highly recommend it is called the Talent Code. And it shows these case studies of famous people who are experts in their craft, athletes, people who are sharing content, artists, and it shows that they are more successful because they have more repetition and more ways to practice. So think about that with your projects. If you are rushing from project to project or project and they’re all completely different, sure, you might be giving them some awesome exposure, but they’re not really getting the time to really go deeper into that process, and really improve what they are working on. So in the long run, they aren’t really refining what they are doing. One way that can really help with this too, is to take a supply audit, look at the materials that you actually have in your classroom. And this is actually going to really give you a big picture of how you can use these things in more effective ways with all of your different grade levels. Also think about are there things that are in your supplies that are outdated, maybe you need to replace a few things, maybe you will have things that are actually better suited for older students or an after school club. So understanding all of the materials and supplies that you have in your classroom can really help with this lesson overwhelm certain supplies. And I’ve talked about this in past episodes before, certain supplies can actually be used again, over and over again within the same grade level, or even multiple grade levels, but you’re switching out the content, and they can practice it in a different way. So it all doesn’t have to be brand new every day. That’s exhausting. thing about being a classroom teacher, you don’t always have to do brand new every day. So why do you have to as a STEM teacher, just because you’re the STEM teacher. So thinking about that whole supply audit will really, really be helpful. In my STEM into center group coaching program, I actually have created a template, the same one that I used, when I looked at all of my supplies to really think about what do I have on hand? What do I need to get donations for what could be something I could write a grant in the future years, or what kind of human purchase with the limited budget that I had. So this will help you again, make that big picture and really help you not have to rush through all these different things, but zone in on the topics that you want to teach your students. 


Naomi Meredith  09:46

The second thing that is probably contributing to your STEM planning overwhelm, is all of the grades are doing different themes. So we just talked about how you’re planning all these different lessons for one class, think about what you’re teaching all the grade levels. Maybe you’re teaching all different themes. So possibly first grade, you’re working on animals, maybe fourth grade, you’re working on space, third grade, you are working on fossils, that’s a lot of content to track. You found all these cool project ideas, and again, you want to teach them all and keep track of everything. But then you have certain supplies for one grade level, and then you’re switching it out for another, you need robots for this one. And then you’re going over to 3D printing, you have all of these different things going on. It’s not even controlled chaos, it’s chaos, and you have all the supplies out too. That’s a lot. You have Makerspace things out, you’re charging all this stuff. What’s happening in all there, it looks like a tornado hit your room. So what is actually the solution for that? Think about can you plan in your grade level theme? So let’s say you have K through five, or K through eight? Can you plan in content themes. So if you are going to teach robotics, can you do robotics for everybody, K through five, they could be learning different standards within those robotics lessons. But that way, you’re only worrying about robots at the time, maybe you have a handful of different kinds, that you can switch out throughout the classes, the robots will actually hold a charge better than you think I have tried it. So definitely try it out. But when it comes to your planning, if you are planning within that same theme, and maybe you also have that same, let’s say you have earth science, and then robotics, you are doing this whole umbrella within the earth science and the robotics, and then this is going to get you in the mind as a teacher to find lessons and really think through those lessons that will work in that theme. This is also going to help you with supplies, some of you actually go into the classrooms and have to bring your supplies with you. So if you are planning within this whole consistent way, then you’re not switching out things as often that you have all the things in your mindset, but also ready to go. So you’re not switching out from Makerspace, through robotics to 3D printing, you have a whole consistency and differentiation within all of those different grade levels. So a great way to do this is having that big picture of your year long plan, and then taking an audit of the lessons that you are going to teach or the ones that you have taught for each grade level. And think about how long that lesson is going to go. What standards are going to apply to those lessons, what materials are you going to need, and really think through every single grade level in this way. And it’s really going to help you with that progression of learning. And again, help you beat that overwhelm and that complicating of all the lessons, this is something that I actually did one summer, I used to have a little bed and my home office and me and my little dog Frederick would cuddle. And he loved all this time it took me because he got extra cuddles while I was lesson planning. But this is exactly what I did to help create my STEM year long plan. And this is something that I am also constantly updating as there are more materials come out and other ways to look at standards. So taking that time really sitting through during the summer. And this is something that I will definitely help you with and you’re in the STEM into summer group coaching program is giving you that template with spreadsheets with drop down menus that will really help you think through those lessons. And this is also a really great time to to think about, oh, is this lesson even good? Or is this just a fun activity kids could just do for fun, but it’s not really getting getting to the standard at all. So that will be part of the first thing that we will really take a look at in that first month together is the supplies and also your lesson planning so that you can be set up for success and then go from there and actually create the year long plan. 


Naomi Meredith  14:14

And the third way that you might be complicating your second lesson planning is planning the same way for all your grade levels. So I was just talking about how you can use those same content themes and STEM ideas for the grade levels. But when it comes to the actual lesson planning for each of those grades, are you planning everything the same? Or are you really keeping in mind the ages of your students and their capabilities? When I first got started, I kind of really didn’t. I did and I didn’t. I was really planning the same way and I was really getting so frustrated as a teacher because I felt like I was a failure. We weren’t finishing the projects at all, especially With my younger students, we weren’t finishing them. There wasn’t any motivation of the students, I wanted to do a cool project over the course of five days. By day four, and five, they were super over it, and then didn’t want to do it anymore. They just didn’t have the stamina. Likewise, when it came to my older students, I actually was making the projects way too hard. “Nothing is impossible. Everything is figureoutable,” as Marie Forleo says. But the way I was planning things I had too much going on, I was changing up the process I was using each time the way that they were taking notes, adding in too much digital or even too much paper things. I was making things way too hard. I was too ambitious. And likewise, I was kind of planning the same for all the grade levels, and that wasn’t going to work. So again, after taking that audit of my lesson plans and thinking about the materials that I had, this is when I actually figured out the hack when it comes to planning for K through two, and then three through five and above. And I kept that same system up for those grade levels, just changed out the content, change that the themes. And it was like magic. My planning was so easy. And also the way that I was teaching made it easier. The students knew what to expect. They weren’t complaining about brainstorming and planning their ideas anymore, because they knew this was part of the process. This is what we do in the projects. I had my younger students begging me are we doing STEM stations today, I’m like not today we’re doing our projects, like, okay, it sounds great. But really thinking through the way that I plan for my littles is helping prepare them for when they get to the older grades. And likewise, the ways that I was planning for my older grades was something that they were actually ready for, and not feeling overwhelmed. Once I figured this out for myself, I was way less stress coming into the classroom, I felt prepared, even if I was teaching something new I’ve never taught before, like 3D printing. And I think I’ve said this before, 3D printing is weirdly one of my favorite units to teach. There’s quite a few I really like I really like video and audio production. I also really like 3D printing. Even if it was something new I haven’t actually taught before, I still felt really prepared. Because I was using this same process of planning, I was just plugging in those content themes and thinking about those standards and creative ways that all the tools would come through, it would actually start working out those are just little troubleshooting things that as a teacher, that’s what we do. Anyway, we’re not going to know every single tool every single time. But it was exciting to try this new stuff. Because the structure of my lessons were very consistent. And again, for same for my students, the structure was consistent, but the other things would change out. So then they didn’t feel stressed out overwhelmed, probably because I was stressed out and overwhelmed. Planning and engaging lessons is literally one of my most favorite things to do as a teacher. Even as a classroom teacher, I loved doing this. And I think sometimes my teammates would get annoyed with me, because I had all these creative ideas. But I think they were a little annoyed because I actually could do them. And they’re like, Okay, I guess we’ll do this. But it makes it so much fun. Come on you. If you’re having fun as a teacher, so are the kids. So it’s all for the kids. Okay, part of my role. Also, in this case, your STEM teacher position is also being a co-teacher and co-planner with the classroom teachers in my building to help them implement innovative strategies. So I was working with our first grade team, and they had an upcoming insect unit. And they had a whole system of things that they would do in the past, but they really want to make it more hands on and engaging, which I was so excited that they were on board with this. And we came up with a whole thing for students while they were with our classroom teacher. They were researching more about insects and all of the things on their anatomy. So we’re thinking about their antennas, their segments, their eyes, they have six legs. So all of those things that insects have. And then they had to pick their favorite one. And they came into my space. We got donations from the parents. So this was something that we did. We played up to this. So parents had donated things. And they came into my space and they had the opportunity to build their insect or a new insect. And they had to make sure to include all of the parts that An insect has. And their little things that they came up with were absolutely adorable. And I gave them some strategies have different things that they could actually use to put on the insect. How could they represent the antennas? How could you represent the eyes? What could you use for the legs? So we’d talked about those different strategies, and then they had the opportunity to build. So this really beefed up their projects, they were actually just drawing things before great way to plan. But then we went from there and created this whole experience for the students that they were so proud of. If you are actually interested in this lesson, you can find the whole Makerspace lesson that uses the Engineering Design Process in my TPT shop, I will link that in the show notes. But this was a really great lesson, especially for the end of the year, getting those little hands busy. 


Naomi Meredith  20:35

Also, in my STEM into summer group coaching program, you will actually have a similar experience by being able to audio message with me, where maybe you have this idea for a lesson or maybe you have a standard, that you’re not quite sure how to take it to the next level. Oh my gosh, this is my jam. And I love brainstorming with people. You can hear it in my voice. I’m like so pumped up about it. So this is something that we’ll be able to do over the summer, it gets feedback on chat back and forth. We also have the live calls with the other teachers where you can feel successful and not feel like you’re planning alone, because that can definitely help that can definitely contribute to the overwhelm as well is you are doing this all alone. And I didn’t list that as one of the three ways because that’s not really always in your control. You’re not the one hiring other seven teachers usually. But there are options out there. And there are teachers I know who are feeling that same way. So let’s support you this summer is a great time to feel inspired, you have the sunshine, you are ready to go. And I would love to be in your back pocket where we can chat with each other and really think about things that will work best for your classroom and the time that you have with kids. 


Naomi Meredith  21:52

As a recap, here are the three things that are contributing to complicating your STEM lesson planning. First is you might be doing too many ideas at once. Next, we talked about how all the grades might all be doing different themes. And third, that might be complicating things is that you might be planning the same way for all the grade levels. Like I said, STEM is such an exciting thing. And it’s such a great opportunity that you are bringing to your students, and you are really getting their creativity and collaboration flowing. But it doesn’t have to be as complicated as you might think. And again, I am here to support you here with my podcasts and all of my resources. And we’d love to be in your back pocket where we can actually chat and almost like bringing this podcast live a live elementary STEM coach, but I would love to chat with you this summer and join me in my STEM into summer group coaching program. You can reserve your spot so we can get started in June 2023. You can find that at Naomi meredith.com/stemintosummer

STEM lesson planning

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a K-5 STEM educator and business owner in Colorado supporting elementary teachers world-wide navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there. She has over a decade of experience teaching, 5 years teaching elementary STEM, along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM Certificate.

She offers a variety of resources 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!

sustainable in the stem classroom

3 Quick Fixes That Aren’t Sustainable in the STEM Classroom [ep.88]

3 Quick Fixes That Aren’t Sustainable in the STEM Classroom [ep.88]

sustainable in the stem classroom

Check out the full episode on 3 Quick Fixes That Aren’t Sustainable in the STEM Classroom:  

 

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Episode Summary

As new STEM teachers, we often start with quick and easy strategies and activities as we adjust to our new role. We have to start somewhere, right? The thing is that if we stick with the quick and easy way of doing things, we will not create a structure that is sustainable in the STEM classroom. In today’s episode, I share three quick fixes that aren’t sustainable in the STEM classroom and what to do instead.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 3 quick fixes that aren’t sustainable in the STEM classroom
  • My experience with implementing these quick fixes
  • Strategies to use instead that are sustainable in the STEM classroom

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith  00:00

There are quick and easy ways to get started in STEM as an elementary teacher. And these are definitely awesome things to get your feet wet in the STEM space. You definitely have to start somewhere, right? But when it comes to those quick and easy things, are they really best for the long run? Are your students really wanting more? How does that even pertain to their behavior? Is there a way that you can keep them engaged while doing even more complicated things? In this episode, I’ll be sharing with you three quick fixes in the STEM space that aren’t always sustainable for the long term, and what you can do to integrate other things into your teaching practice that will be beneficial in the long run. 


Naomi Meredith  00:57

If you are listening to this episode, while it is coming out, I wanted to remind you real quick of my STEM into summer group coaching program that is starting in June 2023. So in this program, we will set you up for success for the school year, you’ll get to get hands on with me and other teachers for 16 weeks to set up your year long plan. Take an audit of the lessons that you are teaching, make a purchasing plan for your materials and also get feedback and coaching along the way. You can send me an email if you have any questions at contact Naomi meredith@gmail.com. Or if you are ready, and this sounds like you and this is the extra hands on support that you need, you can claim your spot out of the limited spots I have available at Naomi meredith.com/stem into summer. Also for being a podcast listener, you can get an extra 25% off by joining this program. If you use this promo code at checkout STEMsummerpod all one word, no spaces STEM summer pod for your extra 25% off, would love to see you in there and build up your STEM year together. 


Naomi Meredith  02:34

Teaching is hard. No matter what you teach, I promise you, we all have really hard positions. My teacher honey teaches high school Spanish. And there are so many challenges when it comes to teaching in that space. And likewise, I teach K through five STEM. And that comes with its own challenges as well. So as teachers, we are always looking for those quick fixes and those things that can help us with those solutions. But there are some things in this STEM space that when you’re thinking about the long term, and your lessons for the whole entire year, and for years to come, sometimes those quick fixes and those things that you do to get you started might not always be the most sustainable option when it comes to your whole year, and building things off one another. So all these things that I am going to be talking about aren’t wrong. And these are all things that I also did to get started. And it’s a great place to start somewhere. But then you also want to build and grow and improve. And in turn that’s going to build and grow your students along the way. So here are those three not sustainable things in your STEM space and what you can do about it. 


Naomi Meredith  03:48

The first quick fix that always isn’t the most sustainable in your STEM space is only doing one day challenges. Like I said, when I first started teaching, this was my go to method, I was really getting day to day, I was spending my weekends planning, I was missing out on time with my friends and family because I needed to go into my classroom, and really wrap my head around this whole STEM teaching thing. And in turn, I was doing a lot more day by day lessons. Now this was great. The kids had something to do. But I realized pretty quickly if I was doing these one day challenges, then I was planning a lot more. Yes, I could repeat these for all the grades, which is awesome. Also great for sub plans. But I was thinking if I’m always doing these one day challenges and then the same thing for every grade, I’m going to have to do a lot of planning for a lot of grades. And they will say oh, we already did this last year which I don’t want to have to repeat the same exact lesson every year. It’s cool to practice the same skills but the same lesson over and over again. What are we really learning? So really, these one day lessons, were taking more of my planning time because I had to be creative and thinking of a lot more things to do. Also, a big thing that I noticed with these one day lessons is that I could only go so far when it comes to being deep in these concepts. So when I really switched to having these longer projects, we could go deeper on that one topic, showing a play up plan a lot of short activities that go along with the same topic. But having things that could stretch out multiple days, whether I saw them multiple days in a row, or even just once a week, I’ve had both kinds of schedules, that the results were actually a lot better with my students. And you can even check out how I plan these projects with my students with a free K-5 STEM year long plan. You can grab that at naomimeredith.com/yearlongplan. But I ended up taking a whole summer I would sit down and plan and research and really dive into the standards, and really thinking about my students and the time that I have with them. And I ended up mapping out a whole year long plan that had longer projects for my students. So yes, we could go deeper in these projects. They were making those connections, they were excited for the next day of my class, not that they weren’t excited before. It’s always a good time. But they were excited to come because we are continuing the work on this project that they were so excited about taking the time to really go through that summer. And spending extra hours yes, upfront. Yes, it was during that summer time and definitely did some planning outside as well. But when it came to coming back into school, I wasn’t taking up my weekends and really sitting there on a Sunday catching up on The Bachelor and planning my lessons while in my classroom. Yes, I absolutely did that, sadly, more times than I can count. And I wasn’t spending my Sundays anymore. My plan times during the week during the school year, was really dedicated to planning and just some basic lesson prep. So those are the things like Oh, I’m doing robotics coming up, I need to plug in my robots, or oh, we’re going to be doing LEGO education kits, I need to pull those down off the shelf, make sure all my apps are uploaded, maybe this whole few months, I am loading 3D prints and managing that on the side. So my time during my planning time was really prepping materials, going over lessons adding and updating things, but not so much. Oh my gosh, what am I teaching today? What am I rushing to do? There’s no rushing, it was already done, it was already planned. So just setting that time during the summer was so transformational for me to really set me up for success for the entire school year. And that way I could do all the extra fun things I could do the after school clubs, I could be on that planning committee. I know that everybody’s situation is different when it comes to how often you see kids how much time you have with them in a week. But this is definitely possible for you too. I’m sure you all want to gain back your Sundays and your time after school, you don’t want to spend it all on STEM planning. But taking that time during the summer can definitely again be transformational for you. And that is something in my STEM into summer group coaching program we will exactly do. And the cool thing about this, I was doing this all by myself. You don’t have to do by yourself, you can bounce ideas off of me and other people in our group, and really find success when it comes to your year long plan so that you’re not rushing from class to class and that you can be find peace in your lesson planning. 


Naomi Meredith  08:51

A second quick fix that isn’t always sustainable for the long term when it comes to teaching STEM in your classroom is only connecting STEM lessons to literacy. Again, there is nothing wrong with this at all. But if this is the only thing that you are doing, it’s time to branch out. Don’t get rid of it completely, still do it. I still do a lot of STEM in stories for when I’m not feeling Well that day. Or if I have a sub plan, maybe it’s the next day when I really don’t feel well. There’s nothing wrong with a seven stories lesson. Again, this is an excellent way to get started. But if this is the only thing that you are doing, you might be boxing your kids and to only doing literacy things. Maybe there are some real world problems that you aren’t attacking. There are some great books about real world problems, not saying there aren’t. But there are other ways that you can introduce the STEM project that aren’t always tied to a book. Likewise, it might be a little tricky to find the books all the time. It’s something that I would have a hard time with too is like I can’t find the book, or I don’t want to buy it right now or it’s not available in the library so that can be stressed Still tooth, again, goes back to the planning one day lessons, a lot of times these book lessons are a one day thing, which is great. But then you have to find a lot of books to do a lot of lessons. So definitely still sprinkle those in think of other ways that students can attack real world problems. And again, having those multiday projects can really be transformational for your students, and have that high engagement. Also, when you’re thinking about planning with your STEM and stories, what standards are you using to plan you probably have the reading literature standards, the RL and the Common Core State Standards. But are you having student is doing more informational reading, when I was teaching third grade before this position K through five STEM. So much of the reading that my third grader said was actually a lot of nonfiction. And there’s of course, there’s studies that everything but there’s a lot of stories about the real reading that we do as adults to gather information is nonfiction reading, and we need to have our students be informed citizen scientists of the world and do more nonfiction reading and using that reading to inform their practices. Back in the interview, actually, when I interviewed that children’s book author, Dr. Rajani, la Rocha, we were talking about this and how there’s so much reading in her position even as a doctor. So yes, maybe you are reading the story to kids, but think about your projects. Are you having kids read to gather information? Are you doing multiday projects where they are planning, revising gathering materials? So yes, still do that literacy, but maybe flip that literacy on them, and have them access the information, even think about what types of STEM careers or related careers can students explor as another option to connect to your projects as well. I actually recently hosted a STEM career day at my school, which I saved everything that I did for this, I will be talking more about this in the fall. So don’t worry, I know I talked about on my Instagram, but I haven’t forgotten about it. I have a whole series coming up about family engagement that I’ll do in the fall. But really think about what are those STEM careers are likewise, those skills that students can be exploring? What are those other standards that you’re not hitting? Or you have a hard time hitting? Or maybe you’re like, I haven’t even been planning with standards anyway, in my STEM space, that’s also very common as well, you just say, Oh, this fits, how are you actually planning with standards. So thinking about that other ways to plan when it’s not just stories all the time, there are more effective ways to plan on top of stories. And that is something when working with me and my program, I would love to be your guide, lesson planning is totally my jam, I get in the zone. It’s like my zone of genius when it comes to coming up with ideas for projects. I thrive on that. And let me tell you, I’ve been loving it for my wedding as Well, I have all the ideas. And I’m really good also at executing ideas. So I am a big picture person. But I can also get down to the details and make it happen. So that is something that if that’s not your strong suit, I love love, love to think of those things, and help it relate to your space. 


Naomi Meredith  13:17

And the third thing that isn’t always sustainable for the long term and your STEM space is only doing Makerspace projects. So again, Makerspace projects, I would say are the easiest things to get started with because of the materials they’re very easy to get your hands on and definitely stock up on those because we teach all the kids in the school, you need a lot. And I did so many Makerspace projects by first year I had a huge misconception that that’s what I needed to be doing all the time. They always need to be building with reusable things, and then always taking them home. Also, I had to be a free for all i just like kids build whatever and get whatever they want. And after my first class, I didn’t have anything for my next class and I had 24 classes, I ran out of supplies really, really fast. So even if you go back to Episode Six, you can hear how exactly how I managed my Makerspace. But I thought that’s what I should have been doing all of the time. And Makerspace is wonderful. And I still mix it in multiple times throughout the year. But what really changed for me is again, going back to those STEM skills in those STEM careers and also knowing your students. Not every kid likes to build with cardboard. Some guys really don’t like that. Some kids don’t like robotics, some kids love robotics. Some kids really love designing on the computer when it comes to 3D printing some not so much. So exposing kids to a lot of different topics is going to pull out these interests in kids that you might you probably never knew that they had and they probably didn’t even know that they had in themselves and a lot of kids will definitely surprise you. Of course, those expensive materials are something to work up to. Oftentimes, more often than not, we are given these spaces where we don’t have the supplies to do all of those amazing things. But it’s not impossible, there are opportunities to plan for that for the future. And to gather those supplies, that is definitely something that you can work up to. So really thinking through of all the inventory that you have in your space. So this can even help you when you have your year long plan. If you take inventory of your space, what do you currently have, and what are things that you can work up to in different ways of doing that, then that can really help you when it comes to your lessons, and really merge that together when you’re auditing your lessons based on the materials you have and where you want to go. So I even created a whole spreadsheet for both of these, like I said, big picture person really good at the little details to get there and make it happen. So I really had this inspiration to create this whole spreadsheet of how to keep track of all the lessons so really thinking through what lesson are you teaching? What grade level? What standards does it hit? How long does the project go? When are you actually teaching this project? What time of year? What materials do you need? So really going a deep dive of all these ideas that are floating in your head? And then in turn, creating a whole inventory of your space? And a plan from there? How are you going to gather the supplies? Who could you ask? What are some donations? So this is that whole thing that will really help set up your program where you are feeling successful, and you have a long term goal. Yes, you want to be prepared for the day, you want to be prepared for the week. But a lot of times I feel like that we’re missing because it is such a creative role. How are we prepared for the year, but also years to come? That’s when you get to that building a program. My kids are doing completely different things. Five years from when I started, I’ve grown as a teacher, but we really want to build up these things so that they are prepared for the world ahead of them. They’re having that exposure, they want to do these things in middle school. And that is what I am definitely here to help you with, I have those spreadsheets. So the first month when we will work together in the STEM into summer program is I have a whole lesson that’s actually never been released before. And these templates that you can have this foundation, you know what you’re working with. I’ll give you feedback on that. And then we can jump into our coaching from there. So really doing that work to be successful. And again, building up a program your principal probably asks you what do you want to buy? I don’t know, maybe I’ll just buy some cool robots. I’m going to ask this random Facebook group and see what they have to say. That can be really helpful. But what is their credibility? Who are these people? How do you know it’s gonna work, you don’t know why they teach. So really, breaking it down into really a sheltered group in a way, having people that you can continuously talk to and having me in your back pocket with that with audio messaging, and weekly video calls can really be transformative for you so you can be prepared and know what lies ahead. 


Naomi Meredith  18:18

As a recap, here are the three quick fixes that aren’t always sustainable for the long term and your STEM space. First is only doing one day activities. Next is only connecting your sound lessons to stories. And third is only doing Makerspace activities all the time. Again, I invite you into my STEM into summer group coaching program starting in June 2023, where you will be in a small group where we will chat with each other support each other. You have me in your back pocket to help support you when it comes to setting up your year long plan. Those lessons that you know are going to work and also taking inventory of the materials that you have on hand and also building out that program that you have always dreamed of. So I would love to have you jump on in to your limited spot. The doors are closing soon at the end of the month. So make sure to claim your spot and I would love to see you in there. You can grab that at Naomimeredith.com/stemintosummer.

sustainable in the stem classroom

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a K-5 STEM educator and business owner in Colorado supporting elementary teachers world-wide navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there. She has over a decade of experience teaching, 5 years teaching elementary STEM, along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM Certificate.

She offers a variety of resources 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!

stem teacher struggle

3 Things I Struggled with Most as a STEM Teacher [ep.87]

3 Things I Struggled with Most as a STEM Teacher [ep.87]

stem teacher struggle

Check out the full episode on 3 Things I Struggled with Most as a STEM Teacher:  

 

 

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Episode Summary

I share a lot about the highs and some of the lows of being an elementary STEM teacher on my Instagram and here on the podcast.

In today’s episode, I’m sharing the three things I struggled with the most as a new STEM teacher. 

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • The three things I struggled with the most as a new STEM teacher
  • How I navigated those struggles
  • Ways I can support you with navigating similar struggles

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith  00:00

I know on my Instagram, you often see the highlight reel of all the good things that happen in my STEM space. I love to share these things with you to help you be encouraged as to what STEM can look like at the elementary level. Likewise, I definitely still share the not so pretty things, too, especially on my Instagram Stories, you can definitely see what I look like without makeup, all the messy things in my classroom. And with that being said, I am here to share the not so pretty things and three things that I struggled with the most when I first started as a K through five STEM teacher. 


Naomi Meredith  01:09

After being a classroom teacher for six years and jumping into the K-5 STEM space, where I didn’t know any of the students or teachers, it made me feel like a brand new teacher all over again. Now luckily, in this situation, I had some experience under my belt. But there are also those things whenever you go into a brand new building, like what’s the Wi-Fi password? Where’s the staff bathroom? And how do I connect to the printers in the building? It’s all those things you don’t know, and it gets a little bit frustrating. And with that being said, I was literally thrown into this role, where not only would I be teaching all the kids in the school as a specialist teacher, but also being the manager of all the school-wide technology and also all the teachers when it came to co-planning and teaching to help them implement STEM technology and innovative practices. So leaving the classroom and into this big role was completely a big feat, not impossible, but definitely a lot of challenges. And so, speaking of the STEM role, specifically, here are the three major things that I struggled with the most. I think that you’re actually going to be able to relate to them too. I always tell my students that I wasn’t born knowing how to teach STEM, they weren’t born knowing all the STEM things. And they always laugh at that. But it’s true. Like I’m learning with you, I have to research everything. So it’s okay if you’re going into this role, or you’re in this role. And you still don’t know everything, I don’t still know everything. But here are those three biggest struggles. 


Naomi Meredith  02:55

The first thing that I struggled with the most was understanding what each grade level knew and needed to learn. So like I said, this was a brand new school to me, I didn’t know any of the students or the teachers. And I was really trying to figure out what they knew and didn’t know, the students and also the teachers too when it comes down to it. So this is really, I mean, when it comes down to teaching, when you have a brand new class, you don’t always know what everybody knows. That’s just getting to know your students. This was definitely brought out at a bigger scale, having 500 plus kids, and even the fact to learning their names. I’ve never learned that many people’s names at one time. So that was a huge thing. But even just being new to a building, I didn’t even know what curriculum they were using. What practices are done in the classroom? I came from a school that was really big on training us as teachers to be better with our instruction and have high-level learning and teaching with the workshop model. I came into a building, I found out later that wasn’t the case. So completely different. So that was a huge thing, just how students were learning in general. And also, my students had never had STEM before. And so, like, pretty much every single thing that I was doing with them was brand new. So I found out pretty quickly that everything was taking 10 times longer. And I couldn’t get done with everything that I wanted. I have this big vision in my mind. I’m a big picture thinker. I can definitely work up to the details, but I can envision things very, very well. And then I can get it done to get up there. So I really had to understand the kids’ starting point and really had to gradually build up to the program that I had dreamed of and created. I think in the episode, I can’t remember when we recorded this, or we talked about it on the side, but when I did the interview with Jennifer Mahin when we were talking about grant writing, she saw the same thing that when she got first started, she had to start everybody kind of at the same spot when it came to materials because they didn’t have any background in STEM. And I definitely had to do the same thing. Everyone was pretty much at that same level, I didn’t have a need or have the money, necessarily, to buy everything I wanted. But also, the kids weren’t ready for all of those things I wanted to buy. And we’ll talk about that too because that was also a challenge as well. But I really had to gradually build up to the program that I had dreamed up and created. And this is something that my principal at the time, when I first got started, definitely talked about that. And she was super supportive in my program, at least my first principal was. If you really want to hear about how I built up to this program, just finished a grade level STEM series, and that’s episodes 81 through 86, where I give you a snapshot of every grade level K through five and what I teach with them, and then a breakdown of their week and what we do. So definitely, through this time, I was nervous, I didn’t know if things would work. I still feel that way when I teach brand new things. But when everything’s brand new, I was not sure if it was going to work. How would we do this? How would we do that? I’m okay with failing. But it was just really, really stressful. But I can definitely say now that I am very confident that my lessons will work, even new ones. For the most part, I have that same structure, where I only have to do some adjustments. But the way that I plan and the way that I think things through now through my learning process is that I’m very confident that my lessons are going to work and also be adapted to each grade level. And in turn, has built up a whole year of lessons and curriculum that are planned out. So as students are going through my program, they have that progression of learning. And it’s not discussed jointed and random things where oh my gosh, like, okay, we’re doing this, we’re doing that, everything has a nice flow to it, there’s some organization, and they can definitely learn all of those skills. 


Naomi Meredith  07:19

The second thing that I really struggled with the most when stepping into this STEM teacher role was I didn’t know what content themes to teach. So this goes along with the first one as well. But it is a little different, too. So I was a classroom teacher before, and I took every free training that I could, I didn’t have a master’s degree in STEM education I do now instead leadership. But at the time, I was taking as many trainings as I could for your paid, trying to piecemeal everything together, watching videos, when I could didn’t have a mentor, just kind of figuring stuff out. Reading books, I had a little bit of background, but not really. I really knew enough, but not really. I don’t know how they hired me. Maybe because I was willing to learn, you can listen to that story in episode one. But I really was trying to piece this all together. And luckily, there were other STEM teachers in my district that I could reach out to and connect with and just hear them talk about their experiences. And they had been doing this for a couple of years more than me was really, really helpful to wrap my mind around things. And I know that this is super fortunate for me, not everybody has another STEM teacher, another them that they can connect with. Maybe it’s only a middle school teacher, which is similar but different. That could be helpful, too. But what was really, really helpful with my growth was connecting with other teachers who were in a similar role to me because, as I said, I didn’t have a mentor. I didn’t have anybody I could really ask besides a few teachers, which I was really thankful that I wish that I had somebody who was on the outside and could really guide me. And my district doesn’t even have leadership like that they didn’t really have that before. So just kind of figuring stuff out. And the leader in me had to figure it out. At the time, my district was providing training, so not necessarily a mentor, but they were getting some trainings and with some of the materials that we had in our classrooms or some things that they would give us and that happened all before COVID. So my first three years had some of that support. It was kind of inconsistent, but it was better than nothing. And then after COVID there was nothing so not really any support or anything like that. So really, I would say felt like an island, even within the five years have felt that still but I know that my lessons work and I’m confident. I’ve had even a middle school teacher, I chatted with her and after having my kids for five years, she can tell actually, she told me this: they know, the teachers know, especially the science and technology teachers know when there are kids who come from my school compared to the other schools in the theater, because my kids are able to critically think and they’re creative. They’re excited about doing projects, they have the stamina to do projects. And they try to rope in the other kids because they know what this can be. And she says it’s super apparent because not actually all the schools in my district have STEM, it’s actually the first thing to be cut in our elementary schools. But knowing that it took a while from going from, I don’t know, anything to really researching and reading and finding out those best practices. So through this time, I definitely can say that I have a community of teachers that I can bounce ideas off of, and feel like that I’m a part of a group that understands exactly what I’m going through. And that’s definitely huge. Because, think about it, you’re the only adult in your room all day, I mean, you might have a pair of TAs here and there to help you with those students. But you’re kind of in your own head, like everybody’s there, all the kids are there, but you’re kind of alone. So definitely through this whole time in this position, I’ve definitely been documenting everything, really thinking through and evaluating how things are going with students, and my lessons and how they’re learning and even making connections with our classroom teachers. Classroom teachers tell me, Oh, they were like, so excited that their kids had some background knowledge about a topic. So when they’re going into science, they could further that, which is really exciting. So learning those big content themes throughout the year. So thinking about robotics, Makerspace, coding, and all of that, it really helps having that community. So I could bounce ideas off of them and hearing what they’re doing in their classroom or things that I definitely wanted to grow with. 


Naomi Meredith  12:09

The last thing that I really struggled with when I came into this K-5 STEM space, and this is a very common one, is I didn’t know what to buy. So this was actually a huge shift in itself that as a classroom teacher, I had a very, very, very limited budget. And I mean, oftentimes you’re given those materials, right? So you have those math manipulatives, or you have some books that you can read with the kids, there’s not always a whole ton to buy. Of course there is, as a classroom teacher, I bought a whole lot. But it was so different being a K through five STEM teacher where I actually had to buy like really expensive stuff, and things that could be used over and over and over again. And that was like, Whoa, I did have actually a pretty decent budget my first year, and then it really dwindled after that. But I did not know where to start and what to buy and what would work. So when I came into my room, like I said, it wasn’t STEM before it was technology, there was a few buckets of LEGO bricks and an old 3D printer. And there were some random materials that were better suited for middle school, which I ended up testing out with elementary, found out was better for the older kids, not impossible, just they weren’t there yet, actually gave them to our middle school teachers. And they were really grateful for that. But like I said, I was given a decent budget. And I knew that I had to be strategic in my purchasing. So thinking about, yes, I have all this students in the school, but how can I really be strategic and what I buy? So I actually made a spreadsheet and took inventory of my whole space, and was really thinking about what are the consumable things that I needed in to replace the things that would get used up? What are some of those non-consumables that can be used over and over and over again, also, there’s a huge shift with the primary and secondary. I didn’t have anything for the little kids. And you’ve heard me talk about the little kids a lot. I love Kindergarten, they need a lot more when it comes to different types of activities. I didn’t have anything for them at all, I didn’t have crayons. So definitely thinking about what are those primary things that I needed, and also the secondary things. And from there, I definitely needed a mix of that high tech type of things. And also the low tech both have different importance. So really being strategic, I would spend so many hours researching and figuring this out, and really being thoughtful about how I would spend my money and also what did I really need now and what I need in the future. So I was able to create a budget plan for my current situation and for my future supplies, like my wish list for things in a five year timeframe. Of course, there’s always things to buy, there’s always that new thing or some updates or pieces that needed to be fixed. But I was able to find those resources. Even though my budget was small, after those five years, I was creative with my money. Often getting donations in various ways or grants were definitely a source of abundance in my classroom, and also connecting with other teachers in my building. So definitely not impossible, but definitely a strategic plan I really had to be thoughtful about and think about what the long-term could be instead of the day to day supplies. 


Naomi Meredith  15:41

As a recap, here are those main things that really were the biggest struggles for me when I came into the K-5 STEM classroom. First was understanding what each grade level knew and needed to learn. Next was also I didn’t know what content themes to teach. So connecting that with what they need to know and what they need to learn. But also what are those big things and STEM I should be teaching. And then also, I didn’t know what to pie. But like I said, these weren’t things that kept me stuck. These are things that I was able to work through, and document and really come to a place where this is something whole thing with this podcast. The reason why this podcast is saved the elephant tree STEM coach is to be your coach and your guide. So you’re not feeling alone, you might be listening to me in the car, or walking your dog or on your lunch break, maybe after school when you’re cleaning up all of the cardboard scraps. So that is definitely the whole thing with this podcast is just making sense of all of this. So that you’re not feeling and stuck in this place. Now, the podcast is definitely a great source. And I am so we are almost to 100 episodes, you guys, which is so insane to me. And we’re not even quite a year old yet. But definitely just taking this podcast and bringing it to life where definitely I’m here to actually be your coach. And I am so excited about this new opportunity to really serve you even better. Because I don’t want you to feel alone anymore, I definitely want you to feel successful. And in turn, your students can be successful too. So I am so excited to start my STEM into summer group coaching program, where we will have a awesome 16 weeks together where the first month will really be focused on your lesson plan and supply auditing, where I’ll give you those templates to do that, and also provide you some feedback. And then from there, those next 12 weeks we’ll have some live group coaching calls where you do get to have that community of teachers where we are talking about things to help us be successful, also have those replays in the form of video and a private podcast. So over those times throughout those live calls, you’ll also get that audio connection with me one on one, where we get to chit chat through audio, and I get to guide you and really get to be your coach and literally be in your back pocket. So you’re hearing this recording, but we actually all get to chat back and forth with each other. And the whole purpose of this time together is to create your customized and scaffolded STEM curriculum that works best for your unique situation, and also provides that engagement that you’re looking for adaptable lesson plans for multi grades, some of you teach pre K to eighth grade. That’s a huge span. To really think through a different type of unit for every single part of the year by yourself. It’s definitely not impossible. But that’s a whole lot to do on your own. And I would love to help you through that. And of course, creating those templates and outlines and resources that will support your planning. This is something that when I was co teaching in my building that teachers thoroughly enjoyed is they would have this idea they didn’t know how to bring it to life. And I would sketch some some things out and be able to create something that they were envisioning. So having that support and having somebody to talk through those things is something that I thrive in and absolutely love. Also, when through this time you will also get some bonuses so you will get a free 30 minute one on one live coaching call with me so we can see each other face to face and set up that foundation so we can create something that works best for you. And that I know a lot of you have been waiting for this summer to sign up because I know readings the best time reading by the poles of us but you’ll also get a free three months from June through August of the STEM teacher bookshelf. So you’ll get access to those three new guides and also the past months that are in there. So This is definitely something I have envisioned, like I said, the big picture person that I am even envisioning just with the name of this podcast, the elementary sim coach and bringing the coaching to, which is so much fun, so exciting. So I only have 10 spots available. I wish I could serve all of you at once, but I only have 10 spots. So you definitely want to grab your spot now so that you don’t miss out. And we will get started in June 2023. So you have until May 31, 2023, to sign up, which is not very much time you only have like a handful a couple of weeks to do that. So check it out at naomimeredith.com slash STEM into summer to claim your spot. And if you have any questions or if you are concerned about is this right for me, what what else does this entail? All those types of questions, definitely send me a DM at Naomi Meredith underscore on Instagram. Or you can also send me an email at contactnaomimeredith@gmail.com. And I would love to chat with you, but definitely bringing this podcast to life, the actual real life coaching that, yes, you can get all the ideas and tips and tricks for me, but it’s different when it is specialized to you. So thank you so much again for being here, and I will chat with you soon.

stem teacher struggle

 

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Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a K-5 STEM educator and business owner in Colorado supporting elementary teachers world-wide navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there. She has over a decade of experience teaching, 5 years teaching elementary STEM, along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM Certificate.

She offers a variety of resources 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!

5th grade STEM curriculum

5th Grade STEM Curriculum, Tips & Ideas [K-5 STEM Series] [ep.86]

5th Grade STEM Curriculum, Tips & Ideas [K-5 STEM Series] [ep.86]

5th grade STEM curriculum

Check out the full episode on 5th Grade STEM Curriculum, Tips & Ideas [K-5 STEM Series]:  

 

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Episode Summary

Today’s episode is the final episode in the K-5 STEM series. In this episode, I give an overview of my 5th grade STEM curriculum. I share an overview of the 5th grade STEM curriculum, a breakdown of a week of 5th grade STEM curriculum, and the top three skills I believe every 5th grader should leave the STEM classroom with.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • An overview of my year long 5th grade STEM curriculum
  • A breakdown of how I structure a week of 5th grade STEM curriculum
  • The top 3 skills every 5th grader should leave the STEM classroom with

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

What should a fifth grade STEM curriculum look like? In this episode, I am breaking down exactly how to plan for your year when it comes to fifth grade, an example of what a week and a project can look like, and also, in my opinion, the top three things that a fifth grader should walk away from my STEM class knowing. This is part six of the six part series where I am doing this whole system for all the grade levels K through five. So you definitely want to make sure you go and check out all those episodes, because you can see the whole wide spectrum of things when it comes to planning STEM and K through five. Whether you are a STEM teacher, a classroom teacher who’s implementing STEM, or any type of specialist who is also implementing STEM in their spaces, you’re gonna walk away with a ton of useful information. 


Naomi Meredith  01:22

Like I mentioned in the intro, this is the last part of this series. I do love recording series, because I can get in the mindset and the zone when it comes to talking about this topic. So this has been a really great series when it comes to your planning. And this is actually by request. So I had a lot of you fill out my audience podcast survey way back in February of 2023. And there was so much interest when it comes to planning and what that actually looks like in K through five. So I heard you and I answered on this series. So when you guys respond to me, sometimes it takes me a while just based on what I have planned for the year. But I hear you and I love saying what you need, and how I can fill those needs for you whether it’s me talking, or finding the right guests to talk about it. Now, when it comes to your needs, I just hosted a free live training, when it comes to actually planning out your full year. And what that looks like. If you missed out on the live training, have no fear, it was all recorded for you. And you can still jump in on that. So not only can you rewatch the video recording and see my lovely face, but a lot of you are here and listen to the audio of this podcast. So there’s also a private podcast option that you will get once you sign up. So you can access this at Naomi meredith.com/maytraining. And I am here to support you along the way. And it’s so exciting. This training was so much fun. And there was a lot of success in this. So you definitely don’t want to miss out. So you if you’re listening to this live, you only have until May 31, 2023, to access this training, and then it’s going to disappear. So I would love for you to jump in on that. So you can feel successful when it comes to planning out your whole year and STEM a great time ending the school year or going into summer. So you can have some time to think through everything and how it will work best for you. I can safely say after teaching all the grades K through five, there are some that are my favorites when it comes to ages and some that are not my favorite. I love children. Regardless, don’t get me wrong. There are some grades that are not my fave. And I would say for me personally fifth grade is pretty much up there next to first grade. I told you in the first grade episode, my thoughts about that. So go back and listen to that. Fifth grade, I love the content. I love being able to dive deeper with the kids. Their stamina on projects is incredible, especially when they are invested in things. But there’s just some things about fifth grade again, the attitudes. Maybe I don’t like the attitudes because I was one of those fifth graders with an attitude. I was very nice at school, just a little sassy at home. But there’s just submit about that. And I don’t do Well with that, because I’ll give it right back to them. So maybe I would be a really good fifth grade teacher because I don’t deal with that kind of stuff.


Naomi Meredith  04:22

But no, fifth grade is good, especially when I’ve had him for so long. We have a good relationship. And there’s some things like hey, you know me, I know you were not doing this in here. So fifth grade is very interesting for me. Like I said, I like the content, the age is not one of my faves. So let’s talk about what an overview of fifth grade can actually look like. Like I said, fifth grade lessons are actually really, really fun. So when I actually do my planning, I always start when I plan out my unit K through five. I actually start with third grade. I start in the middle because I know third grade really well. And then oftentimes I will flex all the way to get up to fifth grade. So a lot of times, I’ll do third, fifth, fourth, and then do second K and one. So that’s a lot of times what happens. So not always, sometimes I might think of a fifth grade lesson first. And then I have to pare things down. So here’s how this actual year looks like for fifth grade. If you’ve been listening along to this whole series, it’s fun that you can actually hear the progression of learning how it’s gotten up to this point. So we first start off the year. And this actually is one of my favorite STEM survival camp lessons. And it is build the shelter challenge, because that is the number one thing that they do in the show alone. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, go back and listen to episode four, because I talked all about STEM survival camp. So students are tasked with building a shelter that will withstand the elements that are different stations for them to test. And they have a little small prototype of what their shelter could look like. After that, we get into digital citizenship, and we talk about a topic that you might not think that you should talk to students about. But it’s super important. And it’s all about information privacy, how websites might be trying to trick you to get your information. So when you’re thinking about the past lessons is digital citizenship, when we’re talking about private and personal information. This is really about what our websites doing to try to get that information and how we can’t fall for fake. This can be websites. But this can also be humans, different types of scams, and they’re getting trickier and trickier, even text messages, I tell them about things that happen to me. But this is a really good topic that aligns with Google’s Be Internet Awesome curriculum, which is free, or you might have also heard as Interland, but they actually have lessons that I like to teach in this unit. And students design a digital sticker that will be cut on cut out on our class Cricut machines that will represent how to stay safe online. So they have to get really thoughtful in their design. So it can be cut out Well and be used as an actual sticker. Then we go into our Maker month and all of our Earth Systems, K through five, and we get into that Makerspace. What’s interesting about this fifth grade lesson is yes, they have Makerspace items, but a lot of the things that they are using in this project are things that can be reused over and over again. So think about that. When your projects, yes, you have Makerspace. But there are things that students can use and actually put back. So that’s a little twist on this lesson. So we talk about chain reactions, and Rube Goldberg ecosystems where students research about different ecosystems. They’re provided those resources, and then they have to create a Rube Goldberg machine to show the chain reaction when it comes to all of the living things in that environment. And their pathways can get super complicated depending on how many steps that they add. Then after that, we get into our sensational space, our video and audio production unit, which is a fun one. And this one also intrigues the fifth graders a whole lot because we talk about podcasting. Now there are a couple episodes that I really go into depth when it comes to podcasting with kids. In Episode 80, I actually interviewed Jerry Colbert, who is from the who’s smarted podcast, and he gives his perspective on why podcasting is important. And then this lesson, specifically that I’m talking about is in Episode 65. So you can actually go back and listen to that one. Of course, it’ll be linked in the show notes for you to check out. But for this unit, students actually designed their own short podcast, it’s one to three minutes long, not very long when it comes to actual podcast. And you know, me, I like doing short projects, they can get all the things done, but jam packed in that tiny little project. So we actually go through the whole process of podcasting, which I’m also going to talk about when it comes to the breakdown of the week, then we end the year with our Hour of Code month. And by now students have had a lot of different experience when it comes to coding and feeling very proficient in their block coding. Now it depends on the grade, I will get into more of that JavaScript typing. So bitsbox is a great example of this. Or if it was my students need more practice, we will stick to that block coding and connect it using the Makey Makey, which is a system that there are little alligator clips that you clip on and it connects electricity. And when you touch the Eclipse or, or when you touch the item, it will then send the message to the computer and perform the code depending on it. So it’s making that more interactive. So like I said, it will switch off with a year depending on my kids knowledge and experience and also the time that we have. But you can see from there that progression of learning when it comes to the coding. After that we dive into our winter robotics in January. And the lesson that we are jumping into is all about the identity Right now here in Colorado, my students really haven’t heard about it yet are out. And you probably also sign out, have seen a theme with my lessons, I tried to make them more obscure because then they can’t tell me they know everything about the lesson, they have to listen to me and learn because we’re in school. So we learn about the idea to Rod and students are given a path of the identified race. And then they have to design a sled that their robot will pull through that pathway, and successfully complete the race through coding. After that, we will get into a 3D printing. And this is a more open ended design, when it comes to what they are creating. What has been really cool with my fifth graders, especially when it comes to their 3D printing is that their designs have really progressed over the years. So we are using that same platform when it comes to creation Tinkercad. So they’re used to the platform by this point, if they’ve been with me, but the way that they are manipulating the shapes and putting things together or deconstructing things, so that they will print better is pretty amazing. So their challenge is how can they create an invention that will help the environment to either protect the resources, prevent the resources from being harmed, or even stop a problem all together. So this is really helping them bring that awareness and that empathy, which I even talked about in that fifth grade episode, why your fifth graders might not be engaged in STEM, but really thinking about others that are not themselves, whether it’s their world around them, like their school world, or even bigger than that, and showing them all these problems out there. And what’s pretty amazing in this project is they actually do care. They are, they do care of what’s happening. So there’s some pretty cool things that come out of that. After that, I jump into LEGO builds, and there is some state testing tagged during that spring season. And I talked about it in the third grade episode. But it’s the LEGO spike essential kit, which is an excellent kit that I highly recommend. And it really differentiates first, first second through fifth grade. And we like I like to do the carnival games lessons in there. So students will build and actually code their design. And their code can get really sophisticated, again, re emphasizing having that circle, having that review of the skill and they can actually practice coding and figuring it out. So actually don’t do a whole lot of pre teaching when it comes to coding. It’s more of that. What are you now how are we going to apply it to this program. You can also fill in, of course, what LEGO education kits that you have, if you have your students for a while, I would actually say that the LEGO we do to point out when it comes to the actual building instructions, is quite simple. Now students can build and design on their own. But also the coding is pretty simple, too. So if you are able to level up your LEGO education kids, I would recommend that now in my opinion, the LEGO Mindstorms a little bit too complicated for fifth grade during a class time, I tried it three years in a row, even with a class that had a gifted and talented cluster. And just during that amount of time, it would just eating more time than what you have in a week. So you could do it as an after school club. But that’s just based on my experience, just how complicated not too hard, but just how it’s more involved when you’re using that tool. If we have time, we then will get into stop motion animation, whether students are building physically or doing things digitally. And they are talking about all of Earth’s spheres, sort of the hydrosphere, the biosphere, all of those spheres and what they are, how they connect together, and also how much water is on earth. So they create an animation to teach others about that. Then we end the year with our STEM-musement Park. And we talk about the different types of force and motion when it comes to also that potential and kinetic energy and students design their own roller coaster that a marble can travel through. And you might think that this is too simple, but these designs get very, very intricate and so much fun to see their creativity shine. And with me their last project that they end the year with. 


Naomi Meredith  14:08

Now you have an overall picture of what the year looks like. What does it look like when you break down that structure of the week? So I’m going to be breaking down that podcasting lesson if you want to hear more about it. There’s an episode that is more in depth about this lesson because I think podcasting is a great skill to teach students. It’s an awesome, awesome skill and it’s not as hard as you think even recording this podcast. I don’t think it’s too hard. Now I do have somebody who helps me. Thanks, Andria. But I could do it on my own if I had to. So if you need more help when it comes to planning, I actually do have a workshop a three to five step planning workshop that is pre recorded. You can jump on in everything’s there for you as soon as you sign up. So you can grab that at Naomimeredith.com/secondaryworkshop. Just like fourth grade fifth fifth grade. We can hit the ground running with these projects. And because the topics are so obscure, they really want to know what we’re going to do and how we’re going to get it done. So with this projects, we’re learning all about light pollution, which is a type of pollution that they don’t know about, and haven’t heard about. I hadn’t even heard about until my master’s program, maybe you have, but that’s where I’m at. So we actually before we even get into that learn actually more about what podcasts are some kids have an inkling of that not so much. I even show them my podcasts a little bit. And they’re super amazed. And then also a lot of podcasts that are made for kids to give them inspiration. So we do that ask and imagining for that first day getting ideas of what a podcast is, and what it could be, then the second day, we move into the plan. And it’s a little bit different, because they are planning out what their script is actually going to be like. So they take specific notes that are aligned to the standards. And then they take these notes to put it into their script and what they’re actually going to say and who’s going to say what, now a little bit different than my podcast, I do have an outline when I’m talking that I’m not typically reading word for word, what I’m saying, I’m looking at the camera the whole time. And so I look a little bit of a notes, but then I just start talking. But for kids, they need more guidance. So it’s not taking away their creativity. It’s setting up a base of what a podcast could be. And trust me, a lot of kids after this project end up creating their own podcasts on their own, but then they have a structure of having producing a really good podcast. So from there, the third, fourth and a little bit of the fifth students are recording and editing their podcasts. The podcasts are pretty short one to three minutes. Like I said, I like smaller projects because they can get everything done. But once they record, they can take out the parts they don’t like they can rerecord the introduction, maybe they want a little bit of a song for intro music. So they really start experimenting of what a podcast could be. And the best part their favorite part, especially for a fifth grader, because they care about what other people think about them. Other kids their age, so they get about them is they post their podcast on our class seesaw. And then they listen to each other’s work and give meaningful feedback, which again, we reiterate from what they’ve done in fourth grade. 


Naomi Meredith  17:24

So finally, when it comes to a fifth grader, what are the three things that I would want them to walk away my STEM class knowing. So in no particular order, here is what I have observed. And here’s what I would hope for. So first is really being thoughtful and not rushing through their work, I see a lot of trends when it comes to first and fifth graders, that’s probably why they’re kind of my least favorite ages of kids. But they kind of do a lot of the same things. So I noticed that they like to rush through their work and just get it done to be done so they can sit and chat with their friends. So of course I need not giving a more work, but more thoughtful work. How can you modify this, you’re not just checking the box off your list? How are you really thinking through this project and making it better. So that is something I’m always pushing to do with my first fifth graders, and they don’t like it, but then they really secretly do and their projects turn out so much better. So that is something that I want my fifth graders to walk away with knowing next, this is actually a fun one for the upper grades is having projects that will show off their skills, and using things that they have learned throughout the years, not just here years. And having some of that choice, it is pretty neat saying kids will talk kids will actually bring up past projects, they’ll say, remember when we did this, and I did this, and now I’m adding it to this project. That’s actually pretty cool. As a STEM teacher, if you teach multiple grades, you don’t always get that as a classroom teacher unless you’ve looped with them. So they’re taking those skills that we learned. I even gave the example of the 3D printing projects, how they are using those skills along the years. So giving them opportunities to keep practicing those skills, and showing what they know is pretty awesome for these fifth graders. It’s cool for them, but cool for me as a teacher. And the last thing that I would want my fifth graders walking away with is being able to share with a greater audience. And so yes, they have their classmates which are so important to them. But what are ways that we can share with the outside world? Maybe not for every project, but could we share a podcast with a another classroom? Could we share it with our book buddies who are in a younger grade and teach them about it? Can we have a STEM Maker Faire where we’re sharing our projects, so just other ways where they’re actually sharing with that greater world? This might even be in the form of an after school club or a competition that can also happen too, but Just really sharing getting out of their comfort zone and sharing their audience with the bigger world, which of course is great for any age, but they really start understanding it more when they are in fifth grade and beyond. 


Naomi Meredith  20:12

As a recap, here’s what we talked about when it comes to your fifth grade STEM curriculum. First, we talked about the overview of the year and what your lessons could look like. Then we broke down the structure of the week of how it actually plans out for a typical project. Then I shared with you my top three things that I would hope a fifth grader could walk away from my STEM class knowing, of course, I’m always here to support you. So jump in on that live training when we talk about planning out your year more in detail. So by this point, it is recorded, but definitely still meaningful, you can watch the video or get the private podcast link, it’ll just pop up in your podcast player, which is super cool. So that’s pretty fun. But you can grab that at Naomi meredith.com/may, training all one word, no spaces. And also I have all of these lessons in my TPT shop already done for you. So if you don’t want to spend all the time planning and researching and finding out all the things, I love this kind of stuff. And I love talking about it. And I love making them. So you can grab the whole year K through five all done for you. And there’s a lot more things that are going to be updated in this next year, including how I can actually be teaching the lessons. So you definitely want to jump in on that now at the lowest price because that will definitely go up with all the updates. So you can grab that in my TPT shop, I have the full K through five STEM bundle, you can buy just fifth grade, you can even buy just three through five. So that’s all in there for you. So if you want to save some time planning and start the year knowing everything’s all done for you, then jump in on that. Of course I am here for you. That is the end of this series when not the end of this podcast. There’s a lot more to talk about. So I can’t wait for those other episodes and how I can help support you with your STEM planning.

5th grade STEM curriculum

 

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More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a K-5 STEM educator and business owner in Colorado supporting elementary teachers world-wide navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there. She has over a decade of experience teaching, 5 years teaching elementary STEM, along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM Certificate.

She offers a variety of resources 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!

3rd grade STEM curriculum

3rd Grade STEM Curriculum, Tips & Ideas [K-5 STEM Series] [ep.84]

3rd Grade STEM Curriculum, Tips & Ideas [K-5 STEM Series] [ep.84]

3rd grade STEM curriculum

Check out the full episode on 3rd Grade STEM Curriculum, Tips & Ideas [K-5 STEM Series]:  

 

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Episode Summary

In today’s episode, I’m continuing the six-part K-5 STEM series. In this episode, I provide an overview of my 3rd grade STEM curriculum, a breakdown of a week of 3rd grade STEM curriculum, and the top three skills every third grader should leave the STEM classroom with.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • How I structure my year-long 3rd grade STEM curriculum
  • A snapshot of a week of 3rd grade STEM curriculum
  • The top three skills I believe every 3rd grader should leave the STEM classroom with

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

What should a third grade STEM curriculum look like? In this episode, I am sharing with you an overview of what the year can look like, a breakdown of a sample week, and, in my opinion, the top things that a third grader should walk out of STEM knowing. This is part four of a six part series where I am breaking down each grade level, and what it can look like with your STEM instruction. Whether you are a STEM teacher, a classroom teacher who is implementing STEM, or even a grade level specialist, you will find some useful information in this episode when it comes to implementing STEM with your third graders. 


Naomi Meredith  00:51

If you haven’t already had a chance, go back and listen to the first three episodes in this series. In those episodes, I am talking about Kindergarten, first, and second grade when it comes to teaching STEM with those grade levels. And even if you don’t teach those grade levels, it is still useful information to hear the broad range of grade levels. So this can help with your long term planning, especially if you’re jumping into a STEM space. If you’re thinking, “Oh, where should my students be at,” and they’re not quite where you think they should be, you might need to start them off at a level that is a little bit lower than what you might typically be used to, and then build them up throughout the years. So definitely worth your time. I also understand how hard it can be planning for multiple grade levels. I’ve done it and I’m doing it. And I want to help you out and ease that stress. I wish that past Naomi had this opportunity. But I am hosting this for you, and that is a free live masterclass that is going on on May 9. And if you’re listening to this live in 2023, I will be giving you the tips and tricks on how you can plan out your year long plan and help you feel confident going into the summer. Again, this is 100% free this class and I don’t want you to miss out on it. There will be a replay of the recording. So you can still grab that and if you’re listening after May 9. Again, you can catch the replay. So you can grab that at Naomimeredith.com/maytraining, M-A-Y training all one word, no spaces. And it will also be linked in the show notes for you. 


Naomi Meredith  02:54

When I started my teaching journey, I started teaching second grade for two years at a title one school. Around the time my second year of teaching second grade, I was going to move and I actually needed to find a school that was a bit closer to where I was moving. So I ended up applying to a few districts and some possibilities. And I ended up getting an interview at a school for Kindergarten, which I was super excited about. I’ve said this a few times, I’ve always wanted to be a Kindergarten teacher. So I applied and I got an interview. Well, when I was talking to one of my second grade teammates, she actually mentioned, “Oh my gosh, I think one of my friends actually works at this school.” So I already had the interview. But funny enough, it she was right. She had a friend from her master’s program who was working at this school. And I guess my teammate had talked a lot about me to this friend. So she texted her said that had an interview coming up and to put in a good word. And funny enough, that friend that masters friend did put in a good word for me even without knowing me. She had heard a lot of good things about me, which was pretty amazing. And so I already had a good word coming into this interview. When I walked into this interview, I look across the table, somebody different in the interview, I said, Oh my gosh, hey friend, and it was somebody from my master’s program, who was across the table. So I already had two connections at the school. Granted, I had the interview but I had two connections after the fact. And I interviewed and instead of getting this set Kindergarten job, they offered me third grade, and I almost didn’t take it. I thought they’re gonna be too old for me. But I ended up loving the teaching third grade so much I ended up doing it for four years. And when you think about that friend, that connection I never knew. She is actually a really good friend of mine to this day, Becca McMillan who was on the podcast in Episode 40. So you can go back and listen to that. And so we’ve become lifelong friends ever since then. And we knew each other without knowing each other, which is pretty fun. So besides Kindergarten, I love third grade. And so I can still say that teaching third grade for four years, and also teaching third in my K through five for five years. So definitely, again, they have another special place in my heart, it’s the best age. And let’s get into how I break down their curriculum gear. 


Naomi Meredith  02:54

Like I mentioned before, in the past episodes, I like to plan my year for K through five and thematic units. And I think of it in themes when it comes to the actual topic, and also the tool that they are going to work on. So I do a mixture of both. So you’ll hear very similar things. If you’re listening to this whole series and how everything connects together. This is a great series to binge listen to, because everything’s gonna make a lot of sense. But if you’re listening to this in isolation, that’s okay too. But that’s just how everything is plans and goes together. So when it comes to the overall year for third grade, I like to start off my year for K through five with my STEM survival camp unit, and you can hear all about STEM survival camp in episode four. So for third grade, their challenge is the game from the land. So they have to create a game to keep them entertained while they are out camping. Or if they’re isolated by themselves in the wilderness for more long amount of time, they are creating a game from the land, and they are gathering materials from the outside and also using some of the items that I have in my classroom, to design their game and what the rules of that game are. This is a great introduction to the Engineering Design Process and how that works and getting them used to that or refreshing their memory. So this is a great one for my third graders, and they get super proud of their games, and they love testing and sharing by playing each other’s games. Then we move into September when we talk about digital citizenship. Again, this is a topic that should be taught throughout the year. But how I zoned in on it and STEM is that I take those Common Sense Media lessons. And then when it’s in third grade moving into that Google Interland be internet awesome lesson plans, and how students are diving even deeper when it comes to private and personal information. With second grade that is also the topic that I talked about at more of a basic level. But we’ve dive in a little bit deeper when it comes to third grade. And we read different stories watch different videos, one of my favorites being #Goldilocks, a cautionary tale. And it’s a version of Goldilocks and the Three Bears which I know in third grade, you talk a lot about fractured fairy tales, and different versions of things where Goldilocks goes into these houses and does all of these bad things and documents her journey. So again, we talked about that private and personal information. And I have a project for them with this STEM twist, where they are creating game pieces that show their private and personal information, the private information, they don’t actually write it out, I have it listed for them. And then we do some coding unplugged with this game. on from there is my maker month for K through five. And we talk about different type of earth systems. So we do some Makerspace things in our STEM survival camp with a little more guidance. But this one is more open ended with more materials in my classroom. This lesson is pretty fun. And I realized when I was planning my year long plan, I do my lessons with water than I thought I did. So having some plastic buckets on hand are very helpful for all of your grade levels. And we talk about severe weather in this unit for third grade specifically about flooding. So I touch on all of the different types of severe weather, but we zone in on more on flooding, and they have a little house that they have to protect, and they are creating an invention that will help slow down the flooding or even better stop it from hitting the house. So we talk about different flooding inventions that are out there to give them some ideas. And then students take their ideas and run with it to create their invention that that actually will be tested with water. I did this unit a bit differently. The last time I taught it and for some reason I was the person pouring the water and I don’t know why I put myself through the trouble of that. And I took this as an opportunity to actually teach students how to measure liquids, which is a math standard. So I gathered a bunch of measuring cups, I enlisted the grade level teachers and I taught them how to measure and we documented how much water would hit the house. So when you get this lesson if you already have this lesson in mind, make sure to redownload it because I added that update with the measurement and it is so much better and how they can keep track of that. After that, Novemember, we move into our sensational space. And that is all about video and audio production. This is a topic I have actually become very interested in teaching kids, and how they can share their information. And the students love it too, because we all know they want to be on camera and YouTube stars hashtag, it’s only for me, I’m the cold teacher with the YouTube. Just kidding, I’m not that cool. But we talk about video and audio production. And with third grade, we do some more of that green screen. So I talked about was second grade, we did a green screen project, I use a different app for students. So again, taking that same concept, I talked about this a lot, taking that same concept or taking that same tool, but using it in a different way, whether it’s a more, whether it’s a more sophisticated tool, or you are doing different content, or both. So in this situation, it’s both. So we talk about worldwide weather reports and they are researching a place that they want to explore in the world, we write a whole script about it and how it changes throughout the seasons, what to expect with the weather. And then they record their green screen. And they do the editing on their own. I like to use Wii video. But there’s other great platforms out there. And the cool thing with third grade is instead of having one or two backgrounds throughout the whole time, they are developing the skills where they can add multiple backgrounds throughout their video. After that in December is the Hour of Code and computer science month. Again, this is something you can do at any time, it is really good at this time of year. And I do more of exploratory of different types of coding languages. So in third grade, if you know as a third grader, they most can read. And they are learning how to use reading as an informative tool. So they’re not necessarily learning how to read, they’re reading to learn. And so there’s coding languages that you can use can be more sophisticated, and still using that block coding, but there might be more words involved. And then they can just keep upping their skills from there. So I like to give them a choice board when it comes to their coding. After that we entered January and we talk about the Winter Games, the Olympics and how those are all above the equator, which you can figure out the reason why behind that. And we do some research using Google Earth to learn more about the different Winter Games and where they were held. And then students code their robot to travel to the different locations on the map. I use Ozobots. For this lesson, I know at the time of this recording, they’re hard to get your hands on, so you can modify with different lessons that would interest you. I do have an episode about winter robotics that I’ll link in the show notes that will explain more about this lesson, and just all of my winter robotics lessons in general. After that, we move into 3D printing for K through five. And this is one of my favorite 3D printing projects that I’ve done. And this was inspired by me traveling to museums and zoos and aquariums, which I love to do when I travel. We don’t have kids, but I still love traveling and seeing these types of things. And I get a lot of inspiration when I go I always am taking pictures like oh, this would be a really cool STEM lesson. So I noticed that museums and aquariums, there are a lot of displays and ways to learn about the animals in the exhibit. And a lot of times those can be helpful for people who can’t see as Well. And they might need more of that textile way of learning that more hands on learning, which is great for anybody hands on learning, we know has a lot of great implications. So for this 3D printing project, students are designing a model of a living thing after their research. And they design that and that’s printed out on a platform that can teach others about that living thing. Next, I will do some LEGO education kits and I used to do this at the end of the year. But I talked about this before I like to switch it up during testing season. I would say LEGO education kits are the easiest lesson to teach out of any of the STEM lessons because they are very guided. And so it also gives students a break in a sense, yes, there is creativity. There’s a lot of great things. But as a teacher, you don’t have to pull in as much. There’s a lot of great resources already out there. For my third graders I use the LEGO education kits we do to point out I don’t know if you can still get your hands on those. Those are like kind of like the OGs of LEGO education kits that a lot of us might have. Where students are building the science rover Milo the science rover, excellent kit. Love this kit. It’s still awesome and my third graders are obsessed about it. So if you have these don’t get rid of them. They are super, super awesome. I love them. Now if you’re looking to buy things that are brand new, I’ve mentioned the LEGO spike essential kit is excellent as well it can work first through fifth grade. And so if you need a different option to replace them what I talked about recommend that kit After that, if you have time, you can get into stop motion animation, which is really fun. Third graders really grasp this concept, where you take a ton of different pictures that have tiny, tiny movements. And in third grade, we talk about paleontologist, and how finding fossils and where they’re located can really help you tell the story of that fossils. So that’s what they will do with their stop motion animation, do some research about different fossils that have been found. And then they’re taking on the role as a paleontologist, and telling the story of what probably happened to that fossil based on its location and the type of fossils. Finally, we end the year with STEM-musement Park where we talk about force in motion in all of the grade levels. And third grade is talking about transportation in the park and how that can be done through the use of maglev trains. And so not all transportation is maglev. But we talked about how magnets are another form of clean energy that can be used. And it could be really cool if more trains use that. And so they design a theme park and then how the Maglev Train will travel in their park to get to different destinations. So if you’ve been listening to this series, you can see that the projects are a bit more sophisticated when it comes to their STEM skills. And you’re really thinking about that, too. If you have been a classroom teacher before, that’s just kind of how it goes in third grade, they are more simple at the beginning of the year. But as the year progresses, things are getting more and more sophisticated. And third graders will do almost anything you say it’s a really fun grade, and teaching their STEM projects are really fun. So let’s talk about what the structure of the week can look like. Now, if you really want to zone in on the planning and really see my whole process when it comes to planning with the Engineering Design Process, you can jump in on my pre-recorded workshop for third through fifth, I plan very similarly for all of those grade levels. And you can grab that at Naomimeredith.com/secondaryworkshop that will be linked in the show notes. And I give you all the planning templates, too. And the reasoning behind the way that I do things and give you some ideas. Now there were teachers on this live call, we talked a lot about video and audio production, which is an awesome skill for students to have. So you can hear that conversation when you go in on that workshop. And actually, I’m going to talk about an example here. So we can all connect together. I will say with my third graders, of course, it’s different for everybody the things that I do with my third graders now, and definitely my older kids now is way different than what I did with them when I first started. And so I’m definitely doing the things I always envisioned to do with my third graders. Now, you might have to take a step back, like I said, and do things that are more simple. But if you keep it up and build those systems and processes and have a structure for learning, that is just really inclusive of building up their skills, you can do these hard things with them, trust me, it will work. 


Naomi Meredith  02:54

So during the week, and this will be very similar for my third, fourth and fifth graders. So if you teach a little older, you could do the same thing. But I will see my kids all five days in a row for 45 minutes each. A lot of you actually see students once a week for 45 minutes. So you could still do this, it would just take you longer for the project. But who cares, it’s totally fine. I’m actually reading the book right now invent to learn the second edition, which is actually our book for June and the STEM teacher bookshelf membership. And I’m creating the guide for that right now. But it also talks about like for project, there’s no set timeline for things, we get stuck in our head as teachers, oh, we have to do a project in 45 minutes for five days. And it should be this long, it doesn’t matter. Like it could take all year, and that’s totally fine. So give yourself a break. When you hear me talk about these things. It’s the time that works best for you and your students. It doesn’t have to match up with mine. So during the week, I will propose things. So let’s say if I had five days, do whatever works best for you. But let’s say I have five days I will use the Engineering Design Process. And we will use the five days for this project. And sometimes we need to work on it after that when I see them a month later. So I will propose to them the question you can definitely develop the question with them. And I always like to phrase it as how can so we talk about the question and do some imagining and research and planning the first couple of days. So for this project, this is our green screen worldwide weather reports and how they’re reporting out on a place that they want to find in the world. This one it was a bit a little bit tricky because it was more open-ended. So we did do a mixture of using Epic Books as a research source. And then also some links to some other websites that had credible information of different places in the world throughout the year that I provided the links to them. They also had a script template to help them fill out and yes, they have a template, but all of their projects look the same and kids would scratch things out and add in their own things which is awesome. I know this sounds like too cookie cutter of a project. But I will say when it comes to video and audio production, you need to have some sort of script and kids will add their own creativity, for sure. But I’ve made the mistake of not doing any script at all. And the kids come up with some of the most random stuff. And that’s great, too, but also doesn’t answer the question. And so there is a lot of flexibility and creativity in this project. But that just gives them that structure so that they stay on topic, and get that practice to be on video and audio. I always give them the example of my podcast, I do you have some sort of script an outline, I have a lot of bullet points, I do pause. When I am recording this video and audio, I’m doing it simultaneously. So I’m looking at the camera the whole time. But this has taken years of practice when I first made videos long ago, like whenever I started, I wrote scripts, I still write scripts for a lot of videos I do and I record them in chunks. So it’s just a good skill for kids to have. And like anybody can make a video, but a high quality video and or audio is completely different. So there’s nothing wrong with writing a script, and then you just build off from there. When we are doing our green screens, it is hard to find places that are quiet. My classroom does have a blue and green wall, which is so beautiful. And technically, yeah, you can record videos. But when you have a class of 25 plus kids, you cannot record videos, they’re not going to be quiet, I’ve tried it, they won’t be quiet. So I did purchase some pop up green screens that are really great. And I will try to find more quiet places around the school kind of near my classroom. It’s not perfect that kids get frustrated, they want to be movie stars, like it’s the best we could do this. It’s a school, it’s going to be loud. But it is a lot better than just recording in the classroom. After the students record their videos, we go through some editing. And there’s always a couple kids who finished first, and they are great helpers. And they’re really into the editing. And then I just create some experts from there, we just learned together and we add all the things. So it’s a really fun and just very nice flow to the project. Everybody’s in different stages, but they are all able to produce something as they are collaborating together. 


Naomi Meredith  02:54

Finally, here are the three things in my opinion that I would say that a third grader should leave my STEM classroom knowing these are in no particular order. But these are things that I’ve seen in my students that I would hope for them. First is being able as a third grader to create more in depth plans. So taking from that K through two experience, they are drawing and labeling their plan. They’re being more thoughtful about the materials that they are using. As a third grader, I would want them to start getting more detailed with their plans by Yes, their drawing and labeling, but also explaining why they’re using certain parts. Why does is this going to work? Why is it going to be here. So being more thoughtful about that plan, and not just throwing something together, say, Hey, I made a plan. Good for me. So just being more thoughtful, I would really hope that for my third graders. The second thing that I would want a third grader to know after leaving my STEM classroom is having more stamina to their STEM projects. And this is in general with a third grader, they just any projects in general. So with my second graders, our projects last for maybe five, maybe three, not usually the full five days. But a third grader just based on the amount of work that we’re doing. It’s not more work, it’s just more sophisticated work is more tools, there’s more things to add more cool details, more awesome, fun things to try. And so I would hope that their stamina can increase to doing things at least five days, and really reiterating and developing their projects. So it’s just again, more sophisticated. And finally it goes back to that group work, I would hope for a third grader that they can work to in groups up to three to four, and also holding a role within their groups. I will assign specific roles when it comes to the projects that they are working on. And so being able to really hold that role in their group and being a good team member. This is just as good soft skill in general for any students, but third grade especially they are capable of this. And just being very explicit with that and giving them those opportunities and in a sense training on how to work together as a group when they’re holding a specific role. 


Naomi Meredith  02:54

As a recap, here are the three things that we talked about when it comes to planning your STEM year for third grade. First, we talked about the overview of the year and sample lessons you could teach and having a variety of those. Next we broke down the structure of the week and how you could go through the Engineering Design Process or whatever process you choose to go through an actual lesson. Then I gave you my top three things that I would have a third grader could walk away with when they are leaving my STEM classroom. Of course, this has a lot of information and a lot of things through trial and error. And I totally understand it’s a lot I’ve lived through it, I’m living through it. And so I invite you again to join my free live training, where I will break down the whole year of K through five, and how I actually plan this out. So make sure to not miss out on that that will be live on May 9, 2023. So you can jump in at Naomi meredith.com/maytraining, if you’re listening after the date, you can still watch the recording that will be available for you with the same link. So no problem at all. Or if you can’t join us live, you could definitely jump in on it there. Also, when it comes to your lesson plans, I have created everything. And there’s lots of updates coming in new lessons as Well. And so you can grab the entire year, you can see that with my free year long planned Naomimeredith.com/year long plan, you could see what I was talking about. But I have everything broken up, you could buy the whole K through five STEM plan, maybe you just need third through fifth grade, maybe you just need third grade. And so I have different options and bundles for you and my Teachers Pay teacher’s store so that you don’t have to come up with all these lessons. These are already tested with kids and kids love them. So you can implement those into your classroom right away. So you can not have to worry about other things. Maybe you just want to learn the tools, but you want to have the lesson prepared for you. Again,


Naomi Meredith  26:30

thank you so much for being here. I am so happy to support you. This is such a fun journey for me. And I can’t wait for all the future episodes. And all the feedback you’re giving me and the kind messages and lots of podcasts ideas. I’m not running out of ideas. I didn’t plan on doing two episodes a week for this long as you guys keep asking for really good content. So here we are, it’s still going. So make sure to check out the next two episodes of this series, where we’re going to talk about fourth grade, and then fifth grade. So thank you so much again, and I will see you then.

3rd grade STEM curriculum

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a K-5 STEM educator and business owner in Colorado supporting elementary teachers world-wide navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there. She has over a decade of experience teaching, 5 years teaching elementary STEM, along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM Certificate.

She offers a variety of resources 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!

2nd grade stem curriculum

2nd Grade STEM Curriculum, Tips & Ideas [K-5 STEM Series] [ep.83]

2nd Grade STEM Curriculum, Tips & Ideas [K-5 STEM Series] [ep.83]

2nd grade stem curriculum

Check out the full episode on 2nd Grade STEM Curriculum, Tips & Ideas:  

 

 

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Episode Summary

Today’s episode is part 3 of the K-5 STEM series. In this episode, I’m breaking down my year-long 2nd grade STEM curriculum, highlighting some of the lessons I teach in a week and the top three skills 2nd graders should leave the STEM classroom with.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • An overview of my year-long 2nd grade STEM curriculum
  • A snapshot of a week of implementing 2nd grade STEM curriculum
  • The top three skills I believe 2nd grade students should leave the STEM classroom with

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

What should a 2nd grade STEM curriculum look like? In this episode, I am sharing with you an overview of the year for a 2nd grade STEM curriculum, the breakdown of a typical week and the top three things in my opinion a 2nd grader should walk away with after being in a STEM classroom a full year. This is part three of a six-part series where I am breaking down each grade level in K through five when it comes to a STEM curriculum. Whether you are a STEM teacher, a classroom teacher, or a specialist that teaches STEM, there is a lot of useful information in here to help you with your 2nd grade STEM curriculum.


Naomi Meredith  01:09

If you haven’t already, you can go back and listen to the first two episodes in this six-part series where I talked about how the this structure works for my Kindergarten students, and my first grade students. I walked into my K-5 STEM space with minimal tools and zero curriculum and only being a classroom teacher before with a lot of different experience to teaching different grade levels. So it is overwhelming. It is a lot of work. And you are typically the only person by yourself trying to figure this out. And that has been a huge mission of me creating this podcast and creating the resources that I actually teach my students. Because I am impacting the students in my classroom, but also you and your students. I don’t want you to feel the way that I felt. It’s a lot of work. I’ve been trying to document this for you to make it so much easier. So with that in mind, I have something special coming out for you. This is brand new to me brand new to you, and it is five years in the making, and I want you to benefit from it. I invite you to join me live on May 9, 2023. And if you can’t join live, it will be recorded and sent to you. So make sure you jump in on this link so that you get this special recording. I am going to break down how I have this whole year and how I really go through planning this whole year with K through five. So I’m breaking down all the grade levels right now but how does this work as a whole entire year. So join me in on this masterclass and there are some awesome goodies in there that I will be talking about. So again, you don’t want to miss out, you can grab that at Naomimeredith.com/special. And you’ll be sent the link to that masterclass where you can join in or if you want to listen to the recording later, you are definitely going to love this and you don’t want to miss out. I am here for you and I don’t want you to feel overwhelmed. I’m here every step of the way with all of these things and more coming up. If you’re listening too after this date, you can still use the same link and it will still be sent to you. So don’t worry about that. 


Naomi Meredith  01:52

In this episode, we’re talking about 2nd grade STEM. And here’s a little bit more about my story. So when I first started teaching, I actually got a job at the school I student taught at. In my college program, they connected with partnering districts and we were placed in our schools. So we then get a choice as to where we got to be. So I student taught in various grade levels Kindergarten, first and third grade. I ended up getting a job in 2nd grade and it was a Title one school. It was a big learning curve, but it definitely made me a way better teacher. And I had the best team that I ever had. We hung out together, divided up the curriculum, take turns on who would be planning what, analyze data together, and shared students. We were so connected and so involved and it’s one of the best teams I’ve ever worked with. So if any of you are listening, you know who you are. So it was an amazing experience. And I am so glad that I got to meet those wonderful ladies and had some awesome students back then. So, 2nd grade definitely has a special place in my heart not my favorite grade, but it’s very special to me. I definitely understand 2nd graders. So first I’m going to talk about the overview of a year. If you’ve listened to the past two episodes, you’re going to hear those similar themes and you’re going to hear them in the other grade levels. When I am planning my units I plan with a progression of learning in mind. So when we are all doing STEM survival camp in August, everybody K through five is doing STEM survival camp. When we’re doing 3D printing, everybody’s doing 3D printing. So it really is taking that differentiated and broad spectrum of learning in mind. So keep that in mind when you’re listening to all these projects, and how they are sprinkled in throughout the year. If you want to see a breakdown of my year, you can grab it at naomimeredith.com/yearlongplan. It’s completely free, and you can see all the lessons are linked in there and the different standards that I teach. I’ve mentioned this before, there’s going to be a lot more updates in this upcoming year just based on what I have done with my students, and things that are working and things I’m modifying. So grab that now. And then I’ll share with you guys too when it’s updated. And you can see all that fun stuff. So let’s jump into the overview of a year when it comes to second grade. 


Naomi Meredith  05:53

As I just said, we start off the year with STEM survival camp. And this is one of my favorites. If you want to hear more about STEM survival camp, go back and listen to episode four, it is a very fun one. And I even decorate my room a little bit for it. So we start off the year with STEM survival camp, and they use some items from my classroom and some items from nature to complete the challenge. And in 2nd grade, their challenge is protect the food challenge. So they have to create an invention that will keep the food safe if they were camping. And this is a small prototype, it’s not huge. So it’s a small version of what the real version could be. Once we are accustomed with each other. And by this time, I’ve already had them for two years. So we’re on to year three, and we move into digital citizenship. And I talked about this before. Digital citizenship is important to teach all year. I used to teach digital citizenship first. But then I realized we needed that first month to really get acquainted with one another. So I switched it up and that’s why I actually do digital citizenship second. So in 2nd grade, we talk a lot about private and personal information. So what is information that we should keep safe, and to ourselves that private information, if we wouldn’t tell a stranger in person, we’re not going to tell them those things online. And then we go into what is that personal information, what could be true about anybody, this closely aligns to what the Common Sense Media curriculum is talking about. And then I give it that my own STEM twist in the classroom. So students build their own version of what a computer could look like. And then they have moving on their screen, different things that are personal, that could be true about anybody, and would be safe to share if they were to share any information. Obviously, sharing nothing is best. But there are some times where that happens. And so we talk about what that information is safe to share. Next, we move into our Maker month, and we talk about Earth systems. So how all of those connect together. And in 2nd grade, they have a standard that talks about how the land changes, and we’ve really zoned in on that water erosion. I know that’s not the only type of erosion, but that’s the one that we zone in on. So I talked about the different kinds of erosion. And then we’re really thinking about how we can slow down or stop water erosion. So through their research with the articles that I wrote for them, and their thoughtful planning, they design an invention that will help them slow down or stop water erosion. And we test their designs either inside using dirt in buckets. Or if the weather’s nice enough, I’m in Colorado, so you have no idea what’s gonna happen, or we’ll test our designs outside. After that we’re in November, kids are comfortable, they are using more technology. They’re more used to me as the teacher, and we move into our sensational space unit. And it’s all about video and audio production. We talk about green screen in 2nd grade. And they are definitely old enough to do green screen and do the editing on their own. I’m not doing the editing for them. I’ll do an episode in the future more about green screen. I know I’ve talked about video and audio production in different ways, specifically a lot about podcasting. But I definitely will plan some green screen because I know a lot of you might be interested in that. So we talk about green screen. And their green screen is all about Earth events. So how things on earth can change through either earthquakes, volcanoes, a lot of those things that we might think about as natural disasters. So we talk about those Earth changes. After that we move into the era of code. And like I mentioned in the other two episodes, it’s still great to do the Hour of Code if possible during the month of December. There’s so many resources out there and when it comes to the Hour of Code, so make sure to go and check out that episode my Hour of Code podcast episode, and I break more of that down for you. But this is when students in 2nd grade are getting into more hour coding. So before and first in Kindergarten, they’re doing more directional coding or coding with pictures. And so kids are moving into a little bit harder coding with more multi-steps, maybe they’re adding in more of loops. And maybe they’re adding in a different type of coding language. So they’re doing a little bit more written. They’re doing a little bit more of block coding when it comes to words written on the blocks. After that, we take that coding knowledge, and we’re into January, and we do some robotics. So we move into an animal migration unit, where we talk about different ways that animals migrate throughout the year and the reasons why. So students will research using the articles I gave them. And they will code the migration pathway of certain animals that we talked about. And they will code that pathway to where they migrate to, and they have to get them back home. So they have very specific maps with those locations. Sometimes I’ll have them actually put those locations on the map. But with time, I also have maps that have the locations for them. And then they have to figure out the coding that goes along with it. Next in February, I move on to 3D printing. So students have more skills, and they’re ready for the next step. And for students in 2nd grade, this is where I try out Tinkercad. So again, you can hear more about 3D printing and my 3D printing episode. And students may use Tinkercad to design a custom birdhouse to help animals in the area. And when I print these out, all of my designs are super small, so it’s more of a prototype of what the birdhouse could look like. And they could actually build the real thing at home. So they get really proud of themselves. Because they’re using a different program that they haven’t used in second grade, they use something else in first grade. So that’s very exciting for them. After that, we move into LEGO builds. And again, I have a kit, they only had for a short amount of time, they probably have something similar and it’s a simple machines kit. But you can replace this with any LEGO kit that you have. So I mentioned in the first grade episode, the LEGO spike essential kit is awesome. So it works for first through fifth grade. Or maybe you have a random collection of LEGO bricks and then maybe think about planning something that would be specific to that grade level. Also, I would say the LEGO wedo 2.0. If you have those kits, I think a lot of us might have those, those are still great as well. I would also recommend using those with 2nd grade. So during this spring state testing time, LEGO education kits are a great refresh. If you have more time or depending on the time, I will do stop motion animation. It depends when we did green screen. And that’s just a different type of video production. So maybe I want them to do more animation if we have time. And we will create a stop motion animation all about pollinators, and the different pollinators out there and how they actually help and why they are important. And finally, we end the year with STEM-musement park and I think this is one of my most favorite, STEM-musement park lessons. I’m a little bit biased because my Teacher Honey is a girl’s High School golf coach. And fun fact, we met at a golf course and he didn’t help me with any golf and I’m horrible at golf and I actually worked on a golf course. So I have some like background on golf but not really. And so for this lesson, 2nd graders create their own mini golf course. And we use our Makerspace supplies again. And then they test each other’s designs. So that is a breakdown of what I actually teach 2nd grade throughout the year. 


Naomi Meredith  17:10

So let’s talk about what does an actual week look like. So again, if you want to join in on my K-2 STEM planning workshop, you can actually see how I break down a unit when it comes to planning standards. And if you want to implement STEM stations, I did a lot more STEM stations with my 2nd graders my first three years in this position. My schedule looked a lot different and I didn’t have as much time to do things with kids. So I would switch off between STEM stations, and also doing a mini project with them. The last two years in my STEM position I have taught the kids K through five for the full week. So I have the same six classes every day for a week. And so I haven’t had to do much stations. My kids are more used to me and we can actually do bigger projects. So the projects I would say lasts between three to four days. And then the fifth day is kind of like a makeup day slash free time. It just depends on the class and what is going on throughout the week. So when it comes to that water erosion project that I talked about in that Maker month or Earth Systems unit that takes about three to four days where we are researching or thoughtfully planning our designs by drawing and labeling. They are thinking about how much money they have in their budget so you can listen to episode six where I talk about how I use a Makerspace budget, but students are purchasing their supplies, they’re building their design, and then we test it. And then we even share by taking a video. So I will actually take the video of it, I don’t want them near water with devices. So I will actually add that to their Seesaw. So that is how a week will break down. If students need more practice, then again, you can implement STEM stations that go along with this standard. So it really depends on your kids and how much time you have with them. 


Naomi Meredith  17:11

So when it comes to a 2nd grader, what are the top three skills that they should walk away with from your STEM space. So based on my experience, working with K through five, here is what I have seen and what I would hope a 2nd grader could leave my classroom doing and in no particular order. I would definitely want a 2nd grader to be able to use research to inform their plan. So in Kindergarten and first grade, I still have them research. And they do use that information to help their plan. A lot of times when they start building, they change their mind and they do something else that is related, but not exactly what they wanted to do. That is fine, as long as they’re still on topic. And they’re learning how things are connected together. But in 2nd grade, I think they are very capable of starting to use that research to actually be more thoughtful. And yes, your plan will change but it’s not going to change too much. And so using that research to thoughtfully plan is super important. Also, what I would hope a 2nd grader to do is to begin really making changes when things don’t work the first time. A lot of times with the younger students, I will make something and they’re one and done. I did it Whoo, yay. Look at my work. Look at my work. Look what I did. So a 2nd grader, they do that a little bit at the beginning of the year. But I really encourage them to think about ways to make their design even better. So yes, this didn’t work. What could we do instead? or Yes, we have finished here some other ways to make it better. So starting to use modification checklists are really helpful to think through their actual design. And the final thing I would want a 2nd grader to leave my STEM classroom knowing is using more sophisticated tools. I use a lot of similar tools with my kindergarteners and first graders. But in 2nd grade, I have them use more of their computers. Now this can definitely depend on the devices that you have and what access you have to everything. But I have my 2nd graders use their computers a lot more. And they are capable of those things. So it does take more practice, it does take them a lot longer. When I use Tinkercad, the 3D printing software, there is a lot of tears the first day when they’re typing in the class code, but they do it. They are capable, and then they are able to create something so it’s not impossible. It’s a little bit harder, especially if they don’t use their computers very often in the previous grades or even with their classroom teacher. They are very, very capable. So that is something I really try to push my 2nd grade students is using things that are a bit more sophisticated and have more multi-steps compared to the click one click solution for a first and kindergartener. 


Naomi Meredith  18:07

As a recap here is what we talked about when it comes to a 2nd grade STEM curriculum. First, I broke down the overall year and what that can look like in terms of the lessons for your 2nd graders. Next, I explained what a sample week can look like for that actual unit. And then I gave you my top three tips when it comes to what a 2nd grader should walk away, leaving your class knowing. Of course, I have a lot of ways to help support you when it comes to the STEM space and for your second graders and all your elementary students. So make sure to sign up for that live masterclass that I have going on May 9, and I would love to see you there, definitely jump in on the link, you will get sent the recording and you can watch that. So make sure to sign that up if you haven’t already at Naomimeredith.com/special. And all the lessons that I talked about are available for you that you don’t even have to create them. They’re already researched. Especially in second grade, I actually write a lot of the articles that they use research on, because they’re doing these high level topics that aren’t typically written at a second grade level. So I got you on that one. So you can buy the lessons individually or I have it in a second grade bundle for you. Or you can break it into the K through two bundle or go for the full year K through five. So that is all ready to go to save you some stress and overwhelm lessons that my second graders love. And I know that your students will too. Thank you so much again for joining me today and I will see you in the next episode where we will talk about STEM in third grade.

2nd grade stem curriculum

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a K-5 STEM educator and business owner in Colorado supporting elementary teachers world-wide navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there. She has over a decade of experience teaching, 5 years teaching elementary STEM, along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM Certificate.

She offers a variety of resources 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!