I had the privilege of providing virtual professional staff development for the staff of Kids at Work Preschool in the Dominican Republic last week. I was scheduled to conduct the project-based learning training in-person. However, the training became a virtual experience due to COVID-19 travel restrictions. Last year I introduced the Kids at Work Preschool staff to foundational principles of project-based teaching and learning, as well as two PBL units that are ideal and meaningful to incorporate at the early childhood level. The training this past week was a follow-up to the 2019 introductory session. A major part of our training sessions was spent on revising classroom learning experiences into virtual, and those that can be undertaken within the home with support from the children’s parents/caregivers. We started off the training by revisiting teaching via inquiry-based practices, and strategies to truly engage and immerse the young child in the virtual learning experience. To promote inquiry practices, I had teachers use a soap solution and a straw to blow bubbles. They made predictions, asked questions, theorized, drew in their journals, etc. We also made observations of objects found in nature. I introduced teachers to two new project-based learning units to incorporate within their classrooms “Math Is All Around Us” and “Transportation: Things That Go“. Both of these units are ideal for incorporating meaningful and authentic PBL learning experiences within the early childhood + settings. There was plenty of time during each of the virtual training sessions to share questions, participant video of the mini inquiry investigations they were conducting, etc. Our closing session was spent discussing ideas for a PBL unit as a group to assure that all of the staff were confident in designing and teaching a project-based learning unit over an extended period of time. As always it was a great group of dedicated educators, who like so many educators worldwide have spent countless hours on their own tweaking their teaching skills and lessons for the virtual learning platform. The following photos were taken during the sessions, as you can see it is possible to make virtual teaching and learning engaging! For more information on virtual and in-person science and STEM-based professional staff development, Diana provides worldwide complete the contact form here.
Category: Early Childhood Education
Webinar: Engaging Young Children in STEAM and Maker Ed Explorations at Home
With the closing of so many schools nationwide and throughout the world due to the COVID-19 Pandemic educators and parents have turned to Zoom and other webinar platforms to learn as well as to teach digitally. I recently had the opportunity to conduct a Webinar via ZOOM for Region 9 Head Start Association based in Sacramento, California. We had 1000 early childhood educators from California and beyond attend the live webinar. The webinar entitled “Engaging Young Children in STEAM and Maker Education Explorations at Home”. The webinar provided early childhood educators who are working with parents remotely during the COVID-19 school closures with foundational principles of STEAM and maker education, best practices in incorporating STEAM explorations within the classroom and at home, as well as numerous STEAM and maker-based explorations that can be readily undertaken at home. The webinar provided examples of affordable and meaningful STEAM and maker ed explorations that parents would be able to incorporate within the home. From incorporating STEAM content with building blocks to exploring patterns and shapes in nature, tinkering and deconstructing, as well as introducing young children to the fundamental principles of coding through screen-free coding toys. Attendees of the webinar had access to a PDF of the webinar as well as a manual with the STEAM and maker ed explorations introduced in the webinar. Check out the recording of the webinar below, it will remain on the Region 9 Head Start YouTube Site indefinitely. I want to thank Fernando Alvarenga of Region 9 Head Start Association for being such a great host during the webinar, and all of the attendees for attending and taking an active role during the webinar. In closing, I am looking forward to presenting professional staff development in person again in the very near future. Until then, may all of you remain motivated, inspired, and healthy.
Fostering Social and Emotional Learning Through STEAM Practices and Explorations in the Early Childhood Environment
There is a natural connection between the engineering design process and social and emotional learning core competencies. By incorporating science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM) practices, and engineering design challenges young children will have opportunities to develop and nurture SEL skills. When young children engineer and undertake engineering design challenges they learn how to empathize with others, make responsible decisions, regulate their emotions, share materials, collaborate, and communicate with one another. Check out research to support connecting STEM curriculum with social-emotional learning in early childhood here. During a recent teacher training session early childhood teachers were introduced to the foundational principles of STEAM education, and incorporating engineering design challenges that develop and nurture SEL in young children. Through engaging hands-on-minds-on experiences, participants explored how incorporating STEAM-based practices, explorations, and engineering challenges within the classroom and outdoor play spaces provide opportunities for young children to support and grow social and emotional learning skills. Materials used during the workshop were readily available and affordable materials and included recyclable materials. Additionally, participants were introduced to age-appropriate technology and tools that can be incorporated within STEAM explorations and centers. Check out some of the photos taken during the session below. For more information about professional staff development and interactive keynotes that I offer worldwide check out my training and keynote pages.
University Lecturers and Professors of Early Childhood Education Attend STEM Teacher Training Course in Vietnam
I’m always grateful to travel to foreign countries to share my knowledge and passion for inquiry-based teaching and STEM education. In July of 2019, I had the privilege once again of traveling to Vietnam to provide two weeks of STEM teacher training courses for early childhood educators and university professors who specialize in early childhood education. One of the participants Nguyen Thi Thanh Ph.D., Rector of Hoa Sen MNTH wrote the following summary article of the STEM teacher training course. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting and working with Nguyen and her peers. During the training participants were introduced to inquiry-based teaching and learning, designing and implementing authentic and quality STEM lessons that are investigative based vs. activity-based. At the close of the session, participants were given the assignment of designing one STEM-based lesson which was reviewed by myself, as well as their peers. The university staff will share their acquired knowledge with their college students. I am anxiously awaiting to see how receptive their students will be in embracing STEM practices and content. Imagine, the impact of quality and authentic STEM learning experiences for the students of Vietnam. Thanks for writing the article Nguyen. Check out the summary article here.
Head Start Teachers Introduced to STEM Practices and Content
Over 60 Madera Head Start Teachers and administrators gathered for a day of STEM training. The room was filled with excitement, building blocks, a mountain of recycled materials to be used in engineering design challenges, low-cost technology and tools, STEM-based children’s literature, and more. Teachers were introduced to the foundational principles of STEM education including teaching via inquiry, designing lessons that engage and empower students, incorporating 21st-century skills within all STEM-based lessons, and incorporating real-world STEM challenges for young children. During the day-long training, teachers were introduced to using low-cost, meaningful technology mathematical and scientific tools, using the outdoors to teach STEM practices and content, building dimensional structures, patterns, shapes, ramp science, tinkering, block building, journaling, and incorporating STEM-based children’s literature within STEM explorations and centers. The teachers were engaged throughout the session, experiencing the beauty and power of STEM education like their young students. I am grateful to be providing ongoing STEM teacher training for Madera Head Start, it takes time and quality professional staff development experiences for educators to truly feel confident to implement STEM learning experiences within their own classrooms. I am excited to see what takes place during the 2019-2020 school year in Madera Head Start Classrooms, the teachers and administrators have truly embraced STEM education. Check out the following video below which gives you a birds-eye view of two different days of STEM training conducted for Madera Head Start Teachers. More ongoing training to take place in February of 2020.
STEM Education in Vietnam
In March I had the privilege of returning to Vietnam to continue providing on-going science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) professional staff development to teachers and administrators of STEAMe Garten and Apax Leaders. Early childhood teachers of STEAMe Garten in Hanoi and Apax Leaders from both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City were introduced to STEM practices and content during five-day STEM teacher training institutes. Participants were introduced to the foundational principles of STEM education, best practices in STEM education, and STEM content. Participants took an active role in the training by working in small groups to conduct a wide-array of STEM-based investigations. Participants were introduced to inquiry-based teaching practices, incorporating journaling in the classroom, using STEM-based children’s literature within STEM lessons, and the engineering design process. A great deal of time was spent on providing opportunities for the participants to see what a quality STEM lesson entails, how it should be delivered, and creating a classroom learning environment that provides opportunities for students to develop and strengthen their 21st-century skills. STEAMe Garten, Vietnam is one of the first private educational corporations to incorporate STEM within early childhood and kindergarten classrooms. Additionally, Apax Vietnam is now offering ESL after school programs that teach English through STEM-based learning experiences. During the two-five day STEM, teacher training institutes participants were actively engaged in conducting “real-world” STEM-based lessons that could readily be incorporated within their early childhood through kindergarten classrooms, and ESL lessons. From designing and building marble roller coasters, to reverse engineering and coding teachers were immersed in exploring the power and beauty that STEM education has in transforming education. The following photos are a sampling of the two five-day institutes that took place in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City for STEAMe Garten and Apax Leaders.
Early Childhood Teachers Introduced to STEM Practices and Content
In early Spring I traveled to beautiful Sunnyside Washington to introduce early childhood teachers of Inspire Development Centers to STEM practices and content. During the two day STEM training 50 School Readiness Liaison and Early Head Start Teachers were introduced to foundational principles of STEM education and content appropriate for early childhood classrooms. The second day of training introduced the School Readiness Liaison Teachers to STEM explorations that can be incorporated in Family STEM programs and at home. Throughout the two-day training teachers were actively engaged in conducting inquiry-based STEM explorations from building with recycled materials to conducting STEM explorations outside, water science, incorporating affordable and meaningful technology, incorporating children’s literature within STEM lessons, journaling for preschoolers, and more. It was a great group of dedicated educators who will go onto share what they learned during the training with their students and their parents, making a positive impact on the children of the Migrant Workers and the community. Check out some of the photos taken during the two training.
Connecting STEM and Loose Parts
It’s been a very busy six months, and I’m finally, getting a chance to share what I’ve been up to. From conducting teacher training within the state of Florida, throughout the nation, Southeast Asia, and the Carribbean it has been a fulfilling and very rewarding past six months. In February I had the opportunity to travel to East St. Louis to provide professional staff development to early childhood educators at Southside Early Childhood Center. What an impressive school, staff, and administrators with a long history of providing quality childcare to children of families with low-income. During the training, early childhood teachers were introduced to the foundational principles of the Theory of Loose Parts. The Theory of Loose Parts was developed by Simon Nicholson in 1971. Loose parts are materials that can be moved, carried, combined, redesigned, lined up, and taken apart and put back together in multiple ways. The idea of ‘loose parts’ uses materials to empower a creative imagination. The more materials and individuals involved, the more ingenuity takes place. The theory of Loose Parts and foundational principles of STEM are a natural blend. Both promote exploration and creativity, are student-centered and encourage building and engineering. The teachers were immersed in exploring methods of connecting STEM practices and content with Loose Parts throughout the day-long training. Teachers were introduced to inquiry-based STEM explorations, journaling, the engineering design process, as well as having the opportunity to review a wide array of children’s literature that make great connections to STEM and loose parts. As always the teachers truly enjoyed themselves as they became students for the day exploring, investigating, and discovering the powerful impact STEM has on developing and strengthing 21st-century learning skills, as well as empowering and engaging the learner. Check out the following photos of the STEM and Loose Parts training.
Loose Parts and STEM Teacher Training Workshop
It’s been quite a while since I’ve shared summaries of my training sessions with my readers, I will try and catch up over the next couple of weeks with summaries. As always I’m so grateful to have the opportunity to share my passion and knowledge of science and STEM with educators throughout the world. It’s always nice when I am able to conduct teacher training sessions within the state of Florida, where I’m based out of. In December of 2018, I had the privilege of providing a Loose Parts and STEM training session at Forty Carrots in Sarasota, Florida. During the training, early childhood teachers were introduced to the foundational principles of the Theory of Loose Parts. The Theory of Loose Parts was developed by Simon Nicholson in 1971. Loose parts are materials that can be moved, carried, combined, redesigned, lined up, and taken apart and put back together in multiple ways. The idea of ‘loose parts’ uses materials to empower a creative imagination. The more materials and individuals involved, the more ingenuity takes place. The theory of Loose Parts and foundational principles of STEM are a natural blend. Both promote exploration and creativity, are student-centered and encourage building and engineering. During the training, teachers were immersed in exploring strategies for incorporating loose parts within STEM-based learning experiences. Teachers were actively engaged in using low-cost technology tools, building structures with loose parts, exploring states of matter, exploring the senses through loose parts, and more. Additionally, teachers were introduced to STEM-based themed children’s literature. The following photos provide a glimpse of what the training entailed. For more information about Loose Parts and STEM teacher training workshops please complete the inquiry form found on the Contact Page. [envira-gallery id=”1697″]
STEM Explorations for Young Children
Looking for ideas to incorporate STEM practices and content within your early childhood through the primary-level classroom. Check out the following photos of VPK and Kindergarten students conducting hands-on STEM investigations as they rotate through a dozen or so STEM-based exploration centers. Children were free to explore a dozen STEM exploration centers of their choice and spend as much or as little time as they chose. Children had the opportunity to build dimensional structures with recyclable materials, code with simple robotics, explore electronics with Snap Circuits and Circuit Conductors, build a model robot, explore unique states of matter, test out an earthquake table, build with bricks, build ramps with paper tubes and marbles, use levels and draw in the block center, tinker, take household gadgets apart and more. Each of the centers helped to develop and strengthen 21st-century learning skills as well. The following photos and video provide a wide-array of STEM-based exploration centers that are age-appropriate and manageable. The following photos and video are from a recent STEM-based program I conducted for a local school for VPK and Kindergarten students. [envira-gallery id=”1568″] [embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvRLomlZstQ[/embedyt]