Lots of teachers do great activities each year to celebrate Read Across America Day and Dr. Suess's birthday. While this event is generally focused on literacy, Jennifer Esfandiary and her 1st grade engineers at Meadowmere Elementary did an activity that illustrates just how well STEM activities fit with Reading.
Groups of students were tasked with working together to build as tall of a hat for The Cat in the Hat as possible. After identifying the problem, students worked through a form of the engineering design process to complete their task. Check out the process below.
Groups of students were tasked with working together to build as tall of a hat for The Cat in the Hat as possible. After identifying the problem, students worked through a form of the engineering design process to complete their task. Check out the process below.
Building a Prototype
Prototype Evaluation
As you can see from the above pictures and videos, these 1st grade students are excited about this problem solving activity and are able to articulate their thinking and learning.
As educators we know how reading can spark the imagination and tap into a child's natural curiosity. This is where STEM activities, like the one Mrs. Esfandiary and her 1st graders did, can take traditional reading education to the next level; incorporating problem solving, collaboration, creativity, and choice.
Another great example that some Grandview teachers have done is turning the traditional Three Little Pigs story into a science experiment by having student work in groups to build houses and test their durability against the power of the Big Bad Wolf.
In another example students at Belvidere designed contraptions to help the Three Billy Goats bypass the bridge in order to escape the clutches of the Troll.
As educators we know how reading can spark the imagination and tap into a child's natural curiosity. This is where STEM activities, like the one Mrs. Esfandiary and her 1st graders did, can take traditional reading education to the next level; incorporating problem solving, collaboration, creativity, and choice.
Another great example that some Grandview teachers have done is turning the traditional Three Little Pigs story into a science experiment by having student work in groups to build houses and test their durability against the power of the Big Bad Wolf.
In another example students at Belvidere designed contraptions to help the Three Billy Goats bypass the bridge in order to escape the clutches of the Troll.
Although the above examples come from our elementary schools, the possibilities for incorporating STEM activities into literacy education at all levels are pretty much limitless. All you need is curious and creative students ✔︎ a few cheap materials and/or technology ✔︎ and the willingness to give it a shot❓
Scott Sisemore
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