Create meaningful and transformative K-5 STEAM learning experiences for each and every student Make the most of your limited instructional time and become part of the Step into STEAM movement! Seamlessly design and implement K-5 STEAM inquiries that align carefully to key mathematics and science content and practices and prepare elementary students for their bright futures. Taking an opposite approach to existing resources that provide collections of disjointed STEAM activities, this book empowers teachers and schools to build cohesive and sustainable STEAM infrastructures—grounded in grade-level standards and purposeful assessment—to deepen the mathematics and science learning of each and every student.
Create innovative and equitable experiences that prepare your learners for the future! STEAM education is crucial for preparing learners to meet the demands of a rapidly evolving world. Not every learner is going to pursue a STEAM-related career, but each and every learner needs to be challenged with opportunities to transfer what they are learning in mathematics and science instruction to seek solutions to the complex problems of today—and to meet our future world head on! In this Second Edition of Step Into STEAM, authors Sarah Bush and Kristin Cook guide and inspire PreK–5 educators through a seamless process of designing and implementing STEAM inquiries that align precisely to key mathematics and science content and practices—all while meeting the demands of guiding assessments. Going far beyond a collection of STEAM activities, this book shows educators, as well as school and district leaders, how to build a STEAM ecosystem that can measurably improve every learner’s mathematics and science achievement, as well as engagement, belonging, and interest. What truly sets this book apart is its masterful integration of problem-based inquiry as the foundation for STEAM instruction. This updated edition: Expands on the latest research in STEAM education across PreK-5 in various educational settings Incorporates strategies grounded in Universal Design for Learning to engage all learners Provides updated STEAM resources aligned to the Integrated STEM Practices Embeds actionable tips throughout each chapter that educators can implement immediately in addition to suggestions for ongoing learning and growth for all Offers an updated companion website with additional templates for brainstorming sessions or book studies, action plans, and checklists to help educators put their ideas into practice This is an essential guide for educators looking to implement STEAM education in their classrooms and beyond. Step Into STEAM provides a comprehensive roadmap for cultivating the creativity, problem-solving abilities, resilience, and empathy that will empower the next generation of innovators, entrepreneurs, and global citizens. Make the most of your limited instructional time and become part of the Step Into STEAM journey!
How do you create an innovative and equitable classroom experience that prepares elementary students for jobs that don’t yet exist while placing a critical focus on mathematics and science content and practice standards—all while meeting the demands of high-stakes testing? The answer to this question is Step into STEAM, which provides a practical and accessible approach for educators to create meaningful and transformative learning experiences for each and every student. This book guides and inspires K–5 educators through a seamless process of designing and implementing STEAM inquiries that align carefully to key mathematics and science content and practices. Taking an opposite approach to existing resources that provide collections of disjointed STEAM activities, this book empowers teachers and schools to build cohesive and sustainable STEAM infrastructures—grounded in grade-level standards and purposeful assessment—to deepen the mathematics and science learning of each and every student. STEAM instruction is for each and every student; STEAM instruction is about mathematics; and STEAM instruction can and should be implemented for student success and to engage students in making their community and our world a better place. Loaded with resources to help K–5 teachers and instructional leaders develop, implement, and assess meaningful STEAM inquiries, this research-based book: Provides practical, on-the-go resources to help busy teachers get started in creating purpose-driven STEAM instruction Allows educators to interact deeply with the content and create equitable STEAM experiences that blend community and societal interests Includes online companion printable resources to help educators jumpstart or deepen STEAM learning throughout a school or district, supporting STEAM professional development, professional learning communities, and book studies Checklists, pictures, graphic organizers, reflection questions, "Try it Out!" sections, and example STEAM inquiries help teachers seamlessly connect multiple subject areas, create transformative learning experiences, engage elementary students in developing creativity and empathy, and enable students to solve meaningful and authentic problems for others—all to prepare students for their bright futures. Make the most of your limited instructional time and become part of the Step into STEAM movement! "Through carefully crafted research-based frameworks; inspirational, authentic, and approachable practical strategies rooted in the reform efforts of student-centered STEAM learning; and opportunities for professional self-reflection, Step into STEAM rightfully re-elevates educators to their proper places as innovation experts and agents of change in their own classrooms, schools, districts, and communities. An inspirational step in a needed direction, this book from Drs. Bush and Cook is what educators have been craving: a guide to transforming ourselves, our learning spaces, and our profession." Richard Cox, Jr. Expert STEAM Teacher Instructional Coach Bullitt County Public Schools "Step into STEAM offers a rare opportunity for anyone concerned with education to consider what learning would be like with equity, empathy, and experience. By providing examples from teachers who have dared to put children first, this book offers more than just new way to teach, it offers hope for youth today. By considering what youth will need to be successful in jobs that are not yet created, Cook and Bush provide a platform for educators to create authentic, real-world problem-solving in classrooms with attention on the often forgotten about component of STEAM—the M! As a proponent of STEAM education, my recommendation is to grab this book and watch your students love learning again!" Cassie Quigley Associate Professor of Science Education at University of Pittsburgh Author of An Educator′s Guide to STEAM: Engaging Students Using Real-World Problems
If your STEM lessons are falling on disinterested ears, it's time to mix things up. What you need are more engaging, brain-based science and math strategies to captivate your students' attention, activate their prior knowledge, and invigorate their interest. Blending current research on the student brain with practical methods for teaching science and math, John Almarode and Ann M. Miller identify six essential "ingredients" in a recipe for student success. In their book you'll discover A customizable framework you can use right away Classroom-ready, content-specific attention grabbers Overt and covert strategies to boost behavioral, emotional, and cognitive engagement Techniques for making relevant connections that maximize retention With this new approach to captivating STEM lessons, you'll energize classroom time and keep your students on task and engaged-every day.
Time-tested activities to teach the key ideas of science—and turn students into scientists! This witty book adapts classic investigations to help students in grades 3 through 8 truly think and act like scientists. Chapter by chapter, this accessible primer illustrates a “big idea” about the nature of science and offers clear links to the Next Generation Science Standards and its Science and Engineering Practices. You’ll also find: A reader-friendly overview of the NGSS Guidance on adapting the activities to your grade level, including communicating instructions, facilitating discussions, and managing safety concerns Case studies of working scientists to highlight specifics about the science and engineering practices
Create meaningful and transformative K-5 STEAM learning experiences for each and every student Make the most of your limited instructional time and become part of the Step into STEAM movement! Seamlessly design and implement K-5 STEAM inquiries that align carefully to key mathematics and science content and practices and prepare elementary students for their bright futures. Taking an opposite approach to existing resources that provide collections of disjointed STEAM activities, this book empowers teachers and schools to build cohesive and sustainable STEAM infrastructures-grounded in grade-le.
"The list of math books to truly synthesize what we know so far and what we need to know is a very short and exclusive list. Well, you can confidently add Mathematize It to this collection. Written by three of the most respected math educators today, the book zeros in on that often poorly traveled journey between the question and answer in problem solving. Mathematize It will be your go-to resource to install the mathematical play revolution in elementary classes everywhere!" Suni Singh Author of Pi of Life: the Hidden Happiness of Mathematics and Math Recess: Playful Learning in an Age of Disruption Help students reveal the math behind the words "I don’t get what I’m supposed to do!" This is a common refrain from students when asked to solve word problems. Solving problems is about more than computation. Students must understand the mathematics of a situation to know what computation will lead to an appropriate solution. Many students often pluck numbers from the problem and plug them into an equation using the first operation they can think of (or the last one they practiced). Students also tend to choose an operation by solely relying on key words that they believe will help them arrive at an answer, which without careful consideration of what the problem is actually asking of them. Mathematize It! Going Beyond Key Words to Make Sense of Word Problems, Grades 3-5 shares a reasoning approach that helps students dig into the problem to uncover the underlying mathematics, deeply consider the problem’s context, and employ strong operation sense to solve it. Through the process of mathematizing, the authors provide an explanation of a consistent method—and specific instructional strategies—to take the initial focus off specific numbers and computations and put it on the actions and relationships expressed in the problem. Sure to enhance teachers’ own operation sense, this user-friendly resource for Grades 3–5 • Offers a systematic mathematizing process for students to use when solving word problems • Gives practice opportunities and dozens of problems to leverage in the classroom • Provides specific examples of questions and explorations for all four operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division) with whole numbers, fractions, and decimals • Demonstrates the use of concrete manipulatives to model problems with dozens of short videos • Includes end-of-chapter activities and reflection questions How can you help your students understand what is happening mathematically when solving word problems? Mathematize it!
Create meaningful and transformative K-5 STEAM learning experiences for each and every student Make the most of your limited instructional time and become part of the Step into STEAM movement! Seamlessly design and implement K-5 STEAM inquiries that align carefully to key mathematics and science content and practices and prepare elementary students for their bright futures. Taking an opposite approach to existing resources that provide collections of disjointed STEAM activities, this book empowers teachers and schools to build cohesive and sustainable STEAM infrastructures—grounded in grade-level standards and purposeful assessment—to deepen the mathematics and science learning of each and every student.
A school-wide solution for students’ mathematics success! Do you sometimes start to teach a mathematics concept and feel like you’re staring at a sea of bewildered faces? What happens when you discover students previously learned a calculation trick or a mnemonic that has muddied their long-term understanding? When "rules" seem to change from year to year, teacher to teacher, or school to school, mathematics can seem like a disconnected mystery for students. Clear up the confusion with a Mathematics Whole-School Agreement! Expanded from the highly popular "Rules that Expire" series of NCTM articles, this essential guide leads educators through the collaborative step-by-step process of establishing a coherent and consistent learner-centered and equitable approach to mathematics instruction. Through this work, you will identify, streamline, and become passionate about using clear and consistent mathematical language, notations, representations, rules, and generalizations within and across classrooms and grades. Importantly, you’ll learn to avoid "rules that expire"—tricks that may seem to help students in one grade but hurt in the long run. Features of this book include · Abundant grade-specific examples · Effective working plans for sustainability · Barrier-busting tips, to-dos, and try-it-outs · Practical templates and checklists · PLC prompts and discussion points When teachers unite across grades, students hit the ground running every year. Take the next step together as a team and help all your students build on existing understanding to find new success and most importantly, love learning and doing mathematics!
In the best science classrooms, teachers see learning through the eyes of their students, and students view themselves as explorers. But with so many instructional approaches to choose from—inquiry, laboratory, project-based learning, discovery learning—which is most effective for student success? In Visible Learning for Science, the authors reveal that it’s not which strategy, but when, and plot a vital K-12 framework for choosing the right approach at the right time, depending on where students are within the three phases of learning: surface, deep, and transfer. Synthesizing state-of-the-art science instruction and assessment with over fifteen years of John Hattie’s cornerstone educational research, this framework for maximum learning spans the range of topics in the life and physical sciences. Employing classroom examples from all grade levels, the authors empower teachers to plan, develop, and implement high-impact instruction for each phase of the learning cycle: Surface learning: when, through precise approaches, students explore science concepts and skills that give way to a deeper exploration of scientific inquiry. Deep learning: when students engage with data and evidence to uncover relationships between concepts—students think metacognitively, and use knowledge to plan, investigate, and articulate generalizations about scientific connections. Transfer learning: when students apply knowledge of scientific principles, processes, and relationships to novel contexts, and are able to discern and innovate to solve complex problems. Visible Learning for Science opens the door to maximum-impact science teaching, so that students demonstrate more than a year’s worth of learning for a year spent in school.
