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50 Holiday STEM Labs

2/28/2016

The 50 STEM Labs Series is all about increasing the level of fun while teaching engineering. In this latest volume, the 50 STEM Labs are all based around holiday and season themes. Add a bit of holiday cheer to your STEM lessons and STEAM activities for holidays and occasions like:

April Fool’s Day
Arbor Day
Birthdays
Children’s Day
Christmas
Cinco de Mayo
Columbus Day
Earth Day
Easter
Father’s Day
Flag Day
Groundhog Day
Halloween
Hanukkah
Independence Day
Kwanzaa
Labor Day
Lunar New Year
MLK Day
Mother’s Day
Memorial Day
New Year’s
President’s Day
Read Across America Day
St. Patrick’s Day
Thanksgiving
Valentine’s Day
Veteran’s Day

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STEM PROGRAMS @ SCHOOL

2/28/2016

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TEAM BULLETIN BOARDS:
Printed images of project results, team names, graphs, etc...
HIGH SCORES:
High Scores Board/Trophies for the teams that do the best on certain projects. 1st/2nd/3rd ribbons are pretty cheap, as are other such rewards. I know it can sometimes be disheartening to students who don't necessarily win, but I've always thought rewarding excellence and offering new opportunities for positive competition are important things - real life skills.
THEMATIC UNITS:
Working on correlating the projects with other subjects when possible - PE, History, Music, etc... Some of the connections might be sort of vague, but at least inventors and whatnot could be pulled into it. I imagine early boat-making and the story of the Kon-Tiki would be great for the boat projects. Similarly, Robert Goddard, the Apollo Missions, and that sort for the rocket missions...
TECHNOLOGY:
Have students to typed write-ups and presentations to report their findings/ideas. Graph data and present ideas before and after the projects. All that use of technology is going to be amazingly important in middle/high school and beyond.
GET THE WORD OUT:
Add reports of the missions to a school newspaper/newsletter. This might encourage parent donations of project materials as well.
PARENT INVOLVEMENT:
Have parent/student teams day This would be a fun activity to add to any school activities and events, like Fall or Spring Festivals. It would have to be a fast one, like paper airplane distance or something.
SCIENCE FESTIVAL:
Instead of just science projects, these STEM projects can be featured at a science festival if your school holds one. If it does not, this is something that can be added to other school events, like Spring, Winter, or Fall Festivals and/or curriculum nights.
MATERIALS COLLECTIONS:
Ask for donations of card stock, paper, cardboard, tape, and the common things that you will QUICKLY run out of. I have gone through an inordinate amount of packing tape! You can even make special sponsors stickers for projects that will be displayed.
TEACHER VS. STUDENTS:
Make your own projects! Compete against the kids. I can usually win, but sometimes I get surprised! The kids get really excited when they beat me!
EXPERT OPINIONS:
Have local experts come in to offer advice and/or judge the projects! Engineers, Architects, Pipe-Fitters, Construction Workers... There are a lot of people who can offer help in these projects!
MYSTERY CRATES:
Have boxes of random materials, like popsicle sticks, yarn, spools, paper, tape, notecards, and a task card. Students must accomplish the given task with ONLY the materials provided!

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STEM MATERIALS

2/14/2016

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One of the things that seems to stop a lot of teachers and parents from doing STEM at home is the misconception that science projects are expensive to do. This is occasionally true, but most projects I design can be done on the cheap, and they are no less valuable in terms of learning than projects that require expensive materials. In fact, I find that a lot of expensive projects tend to be flashier and more for show than for actual learning.

I wanted to make a list of common items that I love to use in a lot of my projects, things that are easily accessible and cheap. They're things you might already have at home or in your office/classroom, or they are things you can easily get at a dollar store. Dollar Tree is amazing for projects!

In no particular order, here's a great list of 25 cheap and common STEM materials:

Pasta Noodles
Paper Clips
Popsicle Sticks
Rubber Bands
Index Cards
Post-It Notes
Plastic Straws
Coffee Stirrers
Cotton Balls
Beads
Pipe Cleaners
Pom Pom Balls
Plastic Eggs
Plastic Silverware
Copy Paper
Card Stock
Marbles
Tape (all kinds!)
Pencils
Coffee Filters
Muffin Cup Liners
Brass Fasteners
Stickers
String
Gumdrops
Wax Paper
Mini Marshmallows
Glue
Fishing Line
Cardboard Tubes
Toothpicks
Cups
Coins
Thread Spools
Foam Bowls
Paper Plates
Clay
Dry Cereals
Chocolate
Pretzels
Tissues
Water Bottles
Packing Peanuts
Plastic Wrap
Magnets
Flour
Sponges
Hair Dryer
Boxes
Envelopes

This list could easily be expanded to 100 or more items! Dig around your office, home, or dollar store to see what you can find to put together a STEM project today!

Get more ideas from the 50 STEM Labs Series

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50 Holiday STEM Labs

STEM PROGRAMS @ SCHOOL

STEM MATERIALS

Andrew Frinkle

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