Let’s Build a STEM Playground!

Christine Dixon - Innovation & STEM Coordinator

Giving students a choice in STEM activities not only recognizes their unique differences in what and how they learn, it also often leads to more creative outcomes. A STEM Playground has many different “play areas” that students can rotate to, all with written and/or digital directions easily laid out.

This playground format enables STEM to be less teacher-directed or “sage on the stage,” rather, teachers can be facilitators or “guides on the sides” of students’ learning….a lot more fun for ALL!

In this session, you will get ideas, resources, and lessons you can use to build your own STEM Playground during the school day, as an after school class, or even a school-wide family STEM night!

Maker Engineering

Terry Phillips - STEM Technology Teacher

Ms. Phillips holds certifications as a Nearpod and Makey Makey Invention Literacy Educator. She has won several grants in education and has led an Engineering Technology Camps in VA and North Carolina during the summer.

She is developing a Robotics Technology Maker-Space Curriculum and Technology Books for primary students.

This session will explore best practices for organizing the curriculum, lesson planning, materials for the STEM lab, and the integration of play within the Engineering design.

Capturing Play in STEM

Jennifer Mahin - STEM Teacher/ Technology Integration Specialist

Jennifer Mahin is a K-5 STEM teacher and Technology Integration Specialist in Belleville, KS. Jennifer is a STEM blogger passionate about rural education and the importance of STEM and CS in the K-5 classroom. Jennifer has presented across the country sharing how she started a maker space and STEM program in her school in rural KS.

This session will provide ways for educators to foster play while students capture their knowledge and creations in a STEM classroom and beyond.

You will learn how to provide voice and choice for students to showcase your knowledge with peers.

Fostering Creativity and Curiousity through STEM Play, K-4 STEM

Kelly Moorman - K-4 STEM & Teacher and Coach, STEM Curriculum Developer

It’s no secret that children LOVE to play! But, there are a few tricks to the trade when it comes to fostering creativity, wonder, and curiosity in our young STEMMERS!

Cognitively speaking, children learn to think, read, reason, and imagine through play. 

Play can help students exchange thoughts, develop a high level vocabulary, and even learn to read body language. The social emotional gains are remarkable, too! 

Typical STEM lessons focus on exploration, experimentation, and genuine wonder. But, when you pair those concepts with PLAY, students come alive!!! Get ready to learn exciting strategies to foster creativity and curiosity through STEM Play!

Dumping the Standards Out Of the Box!

Kim Collazo -Digital Integration Facilitator

Addressing and planning lessons around our curriculum standards doesn’t have to lead to another whole group lecture, worksheet, textbook assignment, or packaged online practice.

In this session let’s dump those standards out of the traditional box and into the STEM sandbox! Playing in the standards can actually help students master the content with less repetition than traditional methods.

Kim will share ways she incorporates simple, inexpensive items as well as the occasional robot into STEM lessons that support mandated standards. Let’s play!

LEGO Your Curriculum and Play!

Erik Murray - STEM Educator

Erik has been a teacher for 12 years and in Education for 15. He is currently a 6th-grade Science and Engineering teacher in Massachusetts.

His focus is on making simple hands-on activities that everyone can do to learn about STEM.

LEGO blocks are such a powerful tool for play. With just a few modifications, they can be an amazing tool to use for learning.

In this session, you will learn tips and tricks to add LEGO to any curriculum and lessons that you have.

Let's Play with Music!

Tiffany Pace - STEAM Specialist

Tiffany Pace is a STEAM Specialist at Cross Lanes Elementary in Charleston, West Virginia. She is the WV 2020 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching for Elementary (PAEMST), a Fulbright Teacher for Global Classrooms participant, and a National Geographic Certified Teacher.

Tiffany is an author and reviewer for the National Science Teaching Association’s Science & Children journal as well as a presenter and reviewer for their national conferences. She is an Executive Board member for the West Virginia Science Teachers Association as the Elementary Representative and is a presenter at their yearly conferences. For her district, she is a member of the Global Diversity Collaborative and a virtual curriculum designer. 

Get ready to feel the beat as we explore four STEM lessons that will let your students play with music! Can't sing? Can't play an instrument? No problem! With these easy-to-implement lessons, your students can explore sound and music and even create their jingles with recycled instruments.