Teachers, if you’ve done STEM activities for awhile, you may be able to relate to these struggles: Any of that resonating with you today? Let’s talk about it! I’ve spent the last year obsessed with creating resources that solve these problems and can be done in under 30 minutes. Today, let’s discuss three resources I […]
Creativity and Critical Thinking in STEM: Getting Students to Actually PLAN! Read More »
Students LOVE building solutions to problems. They don’t always love planning those designs first! It can lead to frustration when we (teachers) feel like we’re forcing students to walk through the steps of the Engineering Design Process when they really want to dive in and build. I have a few tips for you today. 1.
Encouraging Students to Plan Before They Build in STEM Challenge Activities Read More »
Finding appropriate Halloween costumes for teachers can be tricky! Over the years, I’ve worked in some schools that allowed teachers to wear costumes as long as they weren’t at all scary. Not gonna lie — I kind of love playing dress up, but I don’t have a ton of time to put something together. With
5 Easy Halloween Costumes for Teachers Read More »
Welcome back, STEM friends! Today is our sixth installment in the 30 STEM activities in 30 minutes or less series, and it’s all about hard skills.. Don’t worry if you’ve missed the previous posts, you can click that link above to catch up. 🥰 One thing that we often overlook in STEM is taking time
5 Ways to Teach Hard Skills in STEM Read More »
Sometimes we get frustrated when students give up on STEM challenge activities too easily, but if we stop to think about it, it makes so much sense. Our culture is one that ridicules failure and avoids it at all costs. So we have an uphill — but seriously important — climb to help students shift
5 Ways to Teach Perseverance and Productive Failure in STEM Read More »
These 5 Halloween STEM challenge activities are perfect for keeping kids engaged!
5 Halloween STEM Challenge Activities Read More »
In strange times like these, I like to find silver linings where I can. As teachers around the country are being thrown into preparing weeks of distance learning for their students due to coronavirus precautions, I’m seeing so much generosity in the educational community from large businesses to smaller sellers alike. I’ll be compiling
Distance Learning Freebies Read More »
For years, I’ve struggled to figure out how to help my students think like scientists. After all, I gave them plenty of hands-on experiences with STEM Challenges, labs, and more (but who can ever have enough, really?)! I finally sat down one day and journaled about it. What traits was I really looking for students
STEM Ideals Character Education Read More »
Time is a precious, precious classroom resource. We are forced to make concessions and compromises to all the wonderful lessons, projects, and labs we know will enrich our students! With that in mind, when it comes to STEM Challenges, what should be our focus: breadth or depth? I share my thoughts in the video
STEM Challenges: Breadth vs. Depth Read More »
Everyone LOVES STEM Challenges, right?! Nothing in life is that simple! Good news though: most students do love STEM Challenges, and the few who don’t might just learn to if you make a few small adjustments in how you implement STEM Challenges! In the video below, I’ve identified the three most common student types who
Help! Why Do My Students Hate STEM Challenges? Read More »
