Tag: STEM Teacher Job

What Does a STEM Coach Do? with Becca McMillan [ep.40]

Check out the full episode on What does a STEM Coach Do? with Becca McMillan:

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Episode Summary

Do you teach STEM, but you are exclusively in a co-teaching or coaching role?

Or, if you are a classroom teacher and you are looking for ways you can co-teach and plan with an instructional coach in your building, this episode is for you.

In today’s episode, I interview my longtime friend Becca McMillan. Becca gives us insight into what a STEM coach does, tips for co-teaching, and lesson plan ideas.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

What a STEM coach does
Co-teaching tips
STEM lesson ideas

Meet Becca McMillan:

Becca McMillan is a STEM Teacher and Coach at a Title 1 elementary school in Colorado. After teaching in the classroom for 9 years in all different grade levels, she took on this role as a new passion and challenge. For the past 4 years, Becca has taught K-5 STEM and also coaches teachers to integrate STEM into their classroom curriculum. She is in a unique, flexible role that allows her to meet the needs of her school community. Becca plans and co-teaches with teachers, which allows STEM to be applied in all content areas rather than being an isolated subject. Becca believes that STEM education is more than just Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math, it is a mindset that provides engaging, real-world problem-solving experiences for students.

Connect with Becca McMillan:

Instagram: @beccaroniandcheese22

Email: becca.mcmillan22@gmail.com

Episode Transcript:

Naomi Meredith 00:00

Do you teach STEM, but you are exclusively in a co-teaching or coaching role? Well, part of my role in the past included co-teaching along with teaching K through five STEM specials. My longtime friend Becca has more extensive experience when it comes to this role. Becca co-teaches, plans, and coaches exclusively in our building for K through five STEM. You are going to take a lot of valuable information away from this episode when it comes to her role and lesson plan ideas. If you are a classroom teacher and you are looking for ways you can co-teach and plan with an instructional coach in your building, she has some great takeaways for you as well.

Naomi Meredith 00:40

Becca McMillan is the STEM teacher and coach at a title I elementary school in Colorado. After teaching in the classroom for nine years in all different grade levels. She took on this role as a new passion and challenge. For the past four years, Becca has taught K through five STEM and also coaches teachers to integrate STEM into their classroom curriculum. She is in a unique flexible role that allows her to meet the needs of her school community. Becca plans and co-teaches with teachers, which allows STEM to be applied in all content areas rather than just being an isolated subject. Becca believes that STEM education is more than just science, technology, engineering, and math. It is a mindset that provides engaging real-world problem-solving experiences for students. I'm excited for you to listen to this episode. I adore Becca with all my heart, and I am so glad that you get to hear from her and all of her amazing experiences.

Naomi Meredith 01:37

Well, thank you, Becca, so much for being here. today. We are on take two, we actually recorded this podcast a while back, and then half of it, they record, so it's gonna be even better the second time. I'm so excited about this. I've known Becca for a long time. I don't know how long, maybe eight years. Sounds right. Yeah, we kind of knew about each other before we even met. So I worked with a girl at my first school who was getting her Master's at the same time you were getting your Master's and so you two connected. Then I ended up applying to the school you were working at to teach. I really wanted to teach Kindergarten, and I ended up getting the third grade. But I got the interview. Then my friend put two and two together. Then you had heard about me before, so then you talked to the principal at the time, and then I ended up getting a job. So I like I remember I made you a plan book. You know, we like emailed or something, and I made a plan book, and I gave you something else, but then we were friends ever since.

Becca McMillan 03:10

The rest is history.

Naomi Meredith 03:11

The rest is history, in the classroom out of the classroom, and we've been taught together. So I am so excited to have you because you have such a unique role. Even though we teach in the same district. Your role is so unique and so cool. So I think other people really resonate with what you do because I know not everybody has their own STEM classroom, they do more of what you do. So if you wouldn't mind telling us about yourself, your teaching background, and then how you stepped into your unique role in K through five STEM.

Becca McMillan 03:43

Yeah, so this is my 13th year in education. I've taught first, second, third, and fifth in the classroom as an elementary teacher. I did that for nine years. Then this opportunity for this STEM position became available at the school that I moved to after I taught with Naomi at the school where I'm currently at. We had a technology class as part of our specials rotation, and that technology teacher was retiring, and my principal wanted to kind of add more of a STEM aspect to our school, so she transformed the technology position into a STEM position, but we also had lower enrollment, so we didn't need for specials. So my principal's goal was to have kind of a STEM teacher/coach role that could be flexible to make STEM more integrated into all of the content areas of the grade levels. So not in the specials rotation but more flexible so that I was available to create projects with teams and with teachers as it became wanted and needed, and based on what kids wanted to learn and do. So yeah, my position is awesome. I feel really lucky, like you said that it's very unique in the district, which comes with its challenges, but it is also amazing. I love that at our school STEM isn't necessarily an isolated subject, it's integrated, and the kids get to do things with the content that they're learning in real-life problem-solving in a hands-on way. So it's really fun to get to work with all of the teachers and all of the kids in the school to kind of bring us together, I guess.

Naomi Meredith 05:43

And I love it, too. I know that from what you've told me, your principal is really supportive of STEM, which isn't always the case with admin, so you have a really great admin because she really fights for your position. I know that you're a valuable asset in this school, but it's so cool too. We'll talk about some of the lessons that you do with the kids. But like you said that they are integrated. I feel like the lessons you teach are more authentic because a lot of times, we'll see lessons just even on social media that “Oh, we played with robots today, good job.” But really, what you're doing is you're really looking at the standards, you're using that classroom experience. Then the lessons that you're doing are real in your work in Title One, too. So you've gotten your kids to do some amazing things. We've talked about this with other guests on the podcast, like having them shine in really unique ways. So with your co-teaching and your role, how does that work out? When you're implementing lessons with the teachers, do you have a set schedule? How do you set that all up with the teachers in your building?

Becca McMillan 06:45

Yeah, so my schedule is hardly ever the same from day to day, which I love most of the time, because it keeps me on my toes. It's all based on the needs and wants of the teachers and the kids. So sometimes it's me knowing what content is coming up for teachers and suggesting trying something different, or sometimes it's teachers coming to me and saying, “Hey, I have this unit coming up, and I'm wanting to make it more engaging for the students. What are some ideas you have for that?” Sometimes it's let's give some extra plan time to teachers who need it in a busy time of the year like parent-teacher conferences. So it's nice to be able to be flexible based on what our school community needs and wants. So one of the things that have been helpful is if I'm doing a project with teachers, and they're wanting to try something new, it's helpful to have an extra adult in the classroom to make it feel less scary for the teacher and for the kids. I think it is important to create a safe space where kids and adults can take risks and try new things that maybe they wouldn't have tried on their own. So sometimes, I'll even help with a project. If there's a new tool that we need to learn, a tool to review or say we are using the robots in a project, I'll take the kids for an hour, give the teacher some time to breathe, and I'll review the tool with them. Then the teacher and I will co-teach our content, which has been beneficial in many different ways for the teachers at my school and the kids.

Naomi Meredith 08:37

That's super smart, too, because since you don't see them in a specialist rotation, they need a little bit of experience just using the tool just as a tool. So that's really smart. Where you build that background, the expectation, so then the classroom teacher may not know those things. So then, when you come back, you're like, “Hey, we are ready to jump right in. We're ready to go.” I know you've done something too because you're also the tech person like me where you manage the school-wide technology. You did something really cool at lunchtime with the boxlight touchscreen boards. What did you do to help teachers with that?

Becca McMillan 09:15

Yeah, we did a lunch and learn because, as we know, sometimes it is hard to find time for teachers to meet because there's a lot happening. So we did this at the beginning of the school year during our teacher work week. We had an hour-long optional lunch and learn. We had just got the new box light interactive panels for all of our classroom teachers. This is something that they're using every day, so I knew they would need some direct instruction with that. So Naomi and I actually took a training together, and then I took what I learned and did a little more research based on what I knew teachers would need and created just a lunch and learn experience with a note catcher. I've organized it so that it would be easy for teachers to look at the notes and remember what they needed to press or do to use the screen when I'm not there. So that was how we did that training. And yeah, teachers are doing awesome with those interactive panels.

Naomi Meredith 10:23

Oh, and your slides are really good because I use them to help train my staff. They're like, wait, go back to that slide. So it was just very simple. You took screenshots, had little arrows, and it was really helpful. You even help my building. Yeah, well, I know when I'm in professional development and I take notes, I oftentimes do not remember what I meant if I'm just writing down scribbled notes. So I wanted it to be notes that teachers could take away and use later when they had the time. Oh, definitely. So with that, back to the lessons that you teach, have you had any favorites that you've taught in this role? I'm sure it's really hard to choose because you do a lot of cool stuff. But you mix it up to like, is there anything cool that you've done with your kids that you think other teachers would love hearing about?

Becca McMillan 11:10

Yeah, definitely. Last year, my favorite project that I did with the fourth-grade team. Some of their new science standards are not necessarily new but new-ish. The Next Generation Science Standards talk about learning the internal and external structures of a living creature that helps it to survive. So we did a project where the students first learned about lots of living things and what their internal and external structures were. Then their kind of culminating project was to create an imaginary creature that had structures that helped it to survive. They went through the whole Engineering Design Process of imagining solutions and creating a plan. Next, we built, out of recyclable materials, their creature, and they also used our hummingbird robotics, which is really cool. They come in servos, or motors, and different things that kids can then code to make their recyclable creations come to life. Then we hosted a zoo for the school, so groups of kids could show off their creatures that they created and had their code ready to go so they could flap their wings or light up their eyeballs and explain how the creature protected itself and used its structures to survive.

Naomi Meredith 12:45

I remember you showing me the videos there. It was cute. And now what I love is younger students ask like when are we going to do we get to do that in fourth grade, and we're going to have our own Zoo. So that's what I love. Was the coding part hard with that because I haven't tried the hummingbird robotics? I think last time when we first recorded this, I was waiting to see if I got the grant, and I did. So I will get to try these out. Was that hard? Because we're used to building stuff, but you took it to the next step where they're actually building a robot. Was that a hard process for you?

Becca McMillan 14:18

It was. I remember taking a kit home of the robotics and when trying to build something and then doing my own code. I eventually figured it out. But it is hard to learn something new. So I was a little nervous going into the project, not knowing everything. But then what was so cool was I didn't need to know everything, the kids, it's kind of an innate thing. I think this generation figures it out. Before each day of creating, we would gather all the fourth graders in the library and have groups share what they learned about coding the hummingbird robotics, and then they would become the experts. So I remember one group figured out how to make their creature make noise. So then they were the experts to go help their kids if they wanted to do that with their creature.

Naomi Meredith 15:49

Oh, that's so smart. You're gonna have some teachers like, “Oh, you're the one kid who knows all the tech stuff.” Like you had, it just very differentiated itself. Like, oh, you figure it out. Alright, go ask this kid like is more on the spot because you never know. Yeah, so that's so good. I'm gonna have to steal some of those pictures and videos to put in the show notes for this because it's hard to visualize what you're talking about. But it's super cool. Like, it's really cool what they did with her. I know your little kids, they're not there yet. What have you done with your little kids that's been a cool project?

Becca McMillan 16:27

Yeah, something that is happening right now, which I am really excited about, is with one of our second-grade teachers. She was hoping to find more of an authentic audience for her kids with their writing, which one of our school-wide goals is to help kids grow in writing. Also, one of her personal goals is to use Seesaw in more authentic ways. So she reached out asking what my suggestions were. Something I had always wanted to try and never had was connect using the Seesaw blog with another classroom somewhere else outside of Colorado. It just so happened that the writing that they were doing at the time was descriptive essays about Colorado. So we were imagining that it would be really cool to connect with a class outside of Colorado. That's an authentic audience of teaching them about where we live, and then hopefully, they would teach us about where they live. So I posted on the Seesaw ambassador Facebook group, just hoping to find someone that would want to connect, and the teacher that ended up reaching out was a teacher in Tanzania. So she is actually from Colorado, and moved out there and teaches third grade in Tanzania. So now the Seesaw blogs are connected, and they just happen to also be writing informational texts about Tanzania. It just worked out really cool. Kids read their descriptive essays in front of a green screen, and then they picked a Colorado background. So that was how they published their writing. Then we posted it on Seesaw for their pen pal to listen to, and they also did an introduction of themselves. So that's been a fun way to integrate writing, technology, global citizenship, and building relationships.

Naomi Meredith 18:32

Yeah, and that's a real authentic audience because I talk about Seesaw all the time in this podcast. But we know on Seesaw, it's usually their peers, their parents, and their teacher who can see it, which is really great. But it's someone who's their age across the world. I bet that would motivate kids who have a hard time staying motivated with writing and might not be their favorite, but they know that someone their age far, far away is going to hear it, and they have to produce something because they're going to produce something for that.

Becca McMillan 19:00

Exactly. They're loving it. They're learning about Tanzania, and now too, which I don't think they ever would have before, and with kids their age that actually live there.

Naomi Meredith 19:11

That is so cool. That is amazing.

Becca McMillan 19:14

Making the world a smaller place.

Naomi Meredith 19:16

Yeah, I love that. I know like you're super connected in your school, too. I mean, it's super cool that you're in the classrooms all the time. I know your co-teacher, the PE teacher, and that you've even brought your whole school community altogether. Like even having that authentic audience. Tell me more about what you've been doing this school year. I talked you into it, but you've been loving it.

Becca McMillan 19:40

So Naomi was my inspiration to start school-wide news broadcasts. Naomi is doing the same at her school. So we have a performing arts teacher this year instead of a music teacher, which has been really cool for our school as well, and she was on board with starting the news broadcast as well because that's in her wheelhouse. So it was nice to go into it having a partner to do that with. We've become this team where she organizes the kids to record the news, and then I edit with some help from the kids. We're slowly putting more responsibility on the kids to do all of the recording jobs and the editing jobs. What I love is that it is really bringing our school community together. We started out recording teachers to do the news, and then hilarious just seeing the younger kids now, the older kids, the teachers, and vice versa. We were having teachers do book recommendations, and I've seen multiple times kids who aren't in that grade level go to that teacher and ask to borrow their book. So that's been really heartwarming. We've come up with some quirky segments we just started, would you rather Wednesday, and two of our fifth-grade teachers are hilarious and give us all kinds of bloopers. But they did our first would you rather Wednesday, and it's just an authentic way of also getting kids to talk about their opinions, kind of a little debate, which is only going to help their writing as well and bring their classes together to talk about those topics. Yeah, it's been fun. Kids are begging to be on the news there. So it's just been strengthening our school community even more. It's been really fun to be on the other side of it and connect people in that way too.

Naomi Meredith 21:46

Oh, totally, it's one of the most favorite clubs I've ever done. I've done clubs my first year teaching, and it's like one of those things. You're building the airplane while it's flying. I started last year. Like when I was telling you like, Well, we tried this, and then this, when you probably see the same thing. I have to do a whole podcast episode about how to set it up. But yeah, it's pre-recorded, not live. You do pre-recorded also, which I highly recommend just thinking about your time. I feel like when you do things live, it's just something's bound to not work. But it's so much fun. It's such a cool thing too, and your role. It's almost like having your own class again, have you felt that way?

Becca McMillan 22:27

Yeah, because now I have my editing kids, they come down at their lunch and recess time on certain days. Even if I have a class in the Makerspace or I'm doing a project, they still know where to find me. They can sit and do their editing work while I am doing what I need to do. So that's been a nice way of building independence for them, too, in our little crew. They're really proud to be on that editing crew and the same with the kids who report the news as well.

Naomi Meredith 22:59

Oh, yeah, it's living their YouTube dreams. Even though it's not on YouTube, they're living it out. So I know that I mean, with any role, it's not all perfect and beautiful. Everything has its challenges. Is there any advice that you would give to somebody who might be in a similar role to you? Anything that surprised you, since it can be a little bit scary working with teachers and then making connections with kids? What would you say to someone who's doing something like you or wants to get started in that role?

Becca McMillan 23:30

Yeah, I think with any big change, it's important to just start small and grow from there when you're doing anything new. I've leaned on Naomi a ton and other people that are in similar positions. I think that's super important. Reach out to people who have similar mindsets that you can learn from and grow from, and then put your own twist on things and be inspired by other professionals. I would say that in a role like mine, it was really important to capitalize on teachers and students who were already ready to try new things and get on the STEM bandwagon and share the strengths and the successes that we've had to inspire other people to take those risks and try new things as well. That's how it's spread at my school. That would be my advice in a similar position. But with anything, it's a big change or something new. I think that it's important to start with the positive, and then it will spread like wildfire.

Naomi Meredith 24:37

Oh, I think so. I mean, you're doing a great job. As I said, your principal wants to keep you and does everything she can to keep you around. So I know that you're doing a great job, and as I said, I love seeing the pictures and videos you send me or text me. We always text all sorts of that stuff, but I love the STEM stuff especially because it's just so exciting to see what you're doing. You have a really cool role. So I think your advice is really good for people because it can be like, I don't know, some teachers might not like to be told what to do, but you're not someone who tells people what to do. You're very good at collaborating and meeting them where they're at. So I think you're the perfect person for the role with your growth mindset and willingness to try new things all the time. So yeah, great advice. So if teachers wanted to connect with you, what would be the best way they could reach out if they have any questions?

Becca McMillan 24:42

They can reach out to me on Instagram at beccaroniandcheese22. I'm happy to get any emails. You are welcome to email me. Yeah, I'm happy to connect.

Naomi Meredith 25:44

Perfect. Well, I'm sure you'll be hearing from some people. I know they got a lot of good ideas from the lessons you talked about. I'll grab some pictures from you, too, especially those hummingbirds. Those are super cool. Yeah. But thank you so much again for take two. It all worked out. I would have never known this is a second time. But I appreciate your time. I'll have to have you come back and talk about some other things. I know there's something else I want to ask you about in another episode.

Becca McMillan 26:10

That'd be great!

Naomi Meredith 26:13

Yes, please. Perfect. Well, thanks again, Becca.

Becca McMillan 26:16

Thank you for having me!

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

Check out more inspiration on her website: naomimeredith.com
Connect with her on Instagram: @naomimeredith_
Watch this episode on her YouTube Channel: Naomi Meredith
Join the Facebook Group, The Elementary STEM Coach Community | Technology & STEM for K-6 Teachers

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

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

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

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

How to Teach a STEM Lesson [ep.35]

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

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

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

Watch the video version on YouTube here:

Episode Summary

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

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

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

In this episode, you’ll learn:

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

Resources Mentioned:

K-5 Core Year Long Plan Lessons: https://naomimeredith.com/k5stem
- Exclusive Code for $30 off the bundle Podcast Listeners: PODCASTK5
Engineering Design Process Poster
Classroomscreen.com
STEM Station Rotations Digital Slides
Free STEM Station Planning Guide
Technology Troubleshooting Posters

Episode Transcript:

Naomi Meredith 00:00

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

Naomi Meredith 00:11

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

Naomi Meredith 00:59

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

Naomi Meredith 02:22

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

Naomi Meredith 04:12

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

Naomi Meredith 05:55

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

Naomi Meredith 07:28

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

Naomi Meredith 08:41

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

Naomi Meredith 09:53

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

Naomi Meredith 11:07

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

Naomi Meredith 14:14

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

Naomi Meredith 15:47

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

Naomi Meredith 17:21

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

Naomi Meredith 18:36

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

Naomi Meredith 19:39

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

Naomi Meredith 21:22

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

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

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Check out more inspiration on her website: naomimeredith.com
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Watch this episode on her YouTube Channel: Naomi Meredith
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More About your host, Naomi Meredith

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

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

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

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Episode Summary

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

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

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

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

Resources Mentioned:

Episode Transcript:

Naomi Meredith 00:00

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

Naomi Meredith 00:40

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

Naomi Meredith 01:53

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

Naomi Meredith 03:15

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

Naomi Meredith 04:11

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

Naomi Meredith 05:12

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

Naomi Meredith 06:29

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

Naomi Meredith 07:54

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

Naomi Meredith 08:46

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

Naomi Meredith 09:38

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

Naomi Meredith 10:32

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

Naomi Meredith 12:07

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

Naomi Meredith 13:28

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

Naomi Meredith 14:34

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

Naomi Meredith 15:46

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

Naomi Meredith 16:58

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