My Blog
lessons, stem, & more
Build a Haunted House STEM Challenge 🎃
Looking for a low-prep, Haunted House STEM challenge in October for your K–2 classroom or STEM lab? This Haunted House STEM Challenge is perfect for introducing design thinking, collaboration, and a little seasonal fun! How It Works Students work alone or in small...
Teaching NGSS Science and Engineering Practices and Cross Cutting Concepts Daily
Do you ever get the question, "Why are we learning this? When am I ever going to use this in my life?" If you're anything like me, some really inquisitive students will do precisely that. Here's your go to answer on what you can say: "While you may not use this in...
How to Organize STEM Materials in Your Elementary Classroom
Picture this: Rummaging through bags and bins trying to find the one set of popsicle sticks you *know* you have. But having to give up and call down the hall to your teammate who you know has them. Sound familiar? Being organized in your elementary classroom makes...
How to Make STEM Part of Your Morning Meeting
Why STEM Belongs in Morning Meeting This was years ago, but I remember doing morning meeting "share" one day with my students when the topic of estimation came up. You see, my students were all trying to guess how many pieces of candy were in our schools jar for a...
What’s in Your First Week STEM Toolkit?
I’ll never forget my first year trying STEM in the classroom. I was excited, my students were curious, and…I had no idea what I actually needed. I had a few random supplies tucked in bins, a handful of science books on the shelf, and big dreams of engaging, hands-on...
How STEM Builds Curiosity in Early Elementary Students
In the early elementary years, children are naturally full of questions. Take my toddler (He's only 3 right now) but I was asked "Why is the sky blue?" "What happens if I mix these two things?" "How does a plane stay in the air?" in the first 10 minutes he was outside...
Kickstart the Year with STEM: 5 Easy Wins for K-2 Teachers
Looking for quick, engaging ways to bring STEM into your K–2 classroom from day one? These 5 easy, low-prep STEM activities are perfect for the first week of school. They are fun, hands-on, and designed to spark curiosity in young learners. I remember my very...
Elementary Science Back to School Problems
As summer winds down and students prepare to return to school, elementary science teachers face a unique set of challenges. From ensuring safety to engaging students with diverse interests and backgrounds, creating a dynamic and effective learning environment requires...
FAQs about Teaching Science with Social Distancing
This year has brought around challenges for our science instruction like never before. In the past, I think the hardest part was gathering supplies but now we’re faced with a plethitude of challenges. See how I battle these problems while I still teach science with...
The Secret to Cross Curricular Science Activities
When I was in college, my University stressed the importance of teaching with thematic units. If you’re not familiar, it’s when you teach a theme a week and link all your educational content around it. I still use this but now focus it on my science topics for that...