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Emphasizing STEM at home
Build a foundation for STEM with your elementary children.
What Questions do you have?
Find opportunities to encourage your child to ask questions. Challenge them to ask a lot of questions about what they are seeing or doing. If you are reading a book, ask what they think is going to happen next, why they think the character made that choice, or how they would finish the story if he were the author. If you are watching a science related show, ask her what questions she has about it. Model curiosity for your child, let him know what questions you have about things. One Nobel Prize winning physicist said that he became a scientist because his mom always asked after school, 'Izzy, 'did you ask a good question today?'
How can we find that out?
Resist the urge to tell. If your child asks you a question, ask her how we could figure out the answer together.
How do you know that?
When your child answers a question, encourage him to support his answer with evidence. How does she know that their answer is correct? If you are reading with your child, you can also encourage him to identify the evidence that a character or the author is using to support their ideas.
How can you improve it?
Linus Pauling, a Nobel Prize winning scientist, once said, “The only way to have good ideas is to have lots of ideas…” Find opportunities to ask your children how they could do something better – and encourage them to support their ideas with reasons. Whenever you get a chance, give your child supervised opportunities to work with tools to build things.
How can you measure that?
Provide opportunities for your children to practice measuring things. Have them help you measure things while cooking, doing projects, or just for fun. In kindergarten, they should focus on relative size – is it bigger, smaller, heavier, lighter, or the same. As they get older, they can measure using “non standard” units. For example, they can measure the height of a chair in paperclips, shoes, or paper cups. As they become more comfortable, they can measure to the closest unit (1 inch, 1 foot, 1 cup). When possible, have your child measure using both English Standard & metric units. Eventually, they will be ready for ½ and ¼ of a unit and eventually decimals. Ask your teacher if you are not sure what is appropriate for your child!
Resist the urge to tell. If your child asks you a question, ask her how we could figure out the answer together.
How do you know that?
When your child answers a question, encourage him to support his answer with evidence. How does she know that their answer is correct? If you are reading with your child, you can also encourage him to identify the evidence that a character or the author is using to support their ideas.
How can you improve it?
Linus Pauling, a Nobel Prize winning scientist, once said, “The only way to have good ideas is to have lots of ideas…” Find opportunities to ask your children how they could do something better – and encourage them to support their ideas with reasons. Whenever you get a chance, give your child supervised opportunities to work with tools to build things.
How can you measure that?
Provide opportunities for your children to practice measuring things. Have them help you measure things while cooking, doing projects, or just for fun. In kindergarten, they should focus on relative size – is it bigger, smaller, heavier, lighter, or the same. As they get older, they can measure using “non standard” units. For example, they can measure the height of a chair in paperclips, shoes, or paper cups. As they become more comfortable, they can measure to the closest unit (1 inch, 1 foot, 1 cup). When possible, have your child measure using both English Standard & metric units. Eventually, they will be ready for ½ and ¼ of a unit and eventually decimals. Ask your teacher if you are not sure what is appropriate for your child!
Resources for All Ages
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Student Competitions
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