STEM Everyday

EarthEcho International , the global nonprofit founded on the belief that youth have the power to change our planet, is accepting submissions for the 2021 OurEcho Challenge until April 22, 2021.   The STEM competition is designed to engage young problem solvers in studying, respecting and protecting the diversity of species and ecosystems that make life on earth possible. Teams of middle school st...

Did you know that our planet is over 70% covered by ocean? Maybe it should be called Ocean instead of Earth. Patricia Newman wrote Planet Ocean to share the story of what happens in the ocean. Patricia has also written a number of books with a nature theme to help educators combine STEM & Literacy in their classrooms and to help parents get their kids reading about STEM at home. Learn more abo...

Joshua is a Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Michigan Tech . He currently runs the Michigan Tech in Open Sustainability Technology (MOST)  group and is also an adjunct professor in Mech and at Queens University, Canada where I run the Queens Applied Sustainability Group . Joshua's new book is designed for people interested in making and creating. It's filled with ways to...

Emily just wants to help make STEM practical, simple, and easy enough for every classroom and every family to experience STEM learning together. Her new book 15-Minute STEM Part 2   is filled with 40 simple projects to get kids making and creating. Emily Hunt is an experienced primary school teacher whose role as a science subject leader at a school in Bristol ignited a passion for promoting STEM...

Kids love superheroes. They know that superheroes solve big problems, and they want to solve big problems too.  Shari & Matt Brady are super educators who contributed to DC Comic's first STEM themed comic book Flash Facts ! Flash Facts —DC’s newest middle grade graphic novel—takes readers ages 8-12 on 10 thrilling adventures, mixing heroic tales of DC Super Heroes with valuable lessons in...

Growing up, Miriam's dad wanted her to go into computer science. She thought that computers were gray and boring. "It took me 30 years to find the creative and human side of technology and I don't want the same to happen to our children." As a coding teacher, Miriam Tocino has taught hundreds of students to switch their careers into tech. TELLING STORIES has helped her to make...

Maybe you're an educator wondering how to really make technology easy in your school? Keven explains that it's all about trying, sometimes failing, and getting back up again. No matter what type of tech you're thinking of using in your classroom, there are people who can help. "If each and every project goes off without a hitch, our students are going to miss out on an essentia...

From now until Jan 15, 2021, your students in 4th-8th grade can participate in a Virtual Science Fair sponsored by Future Goals & EVERFI. The Future Goals Virtual Science Fair gives kids the chance to imagine how STEM can enhance the NHL hockey game experience in three creative categories: Virtual Fan Engagement, Sustainability and Technology/Innovation. If their idea scores, they could take h...

Did you ever wonder what it would take to get your students, your kids, to think with an engineering design mindset? Did you ever wonder what engineering really is? Marsha Tufft has a wonderful story of perseverance as she earned a degree in Mechanical Engineering and went on to a successful career at GE Aviation. She's turned her passions for all things making and creating and STEM into a &q...

Paul Shircliff is not your typical makerspace or STEM educator. He doesn't just know about coding or cardboard or tools or electronics...he knows about ALL of it! And when someone says something about a makerspace, he's quick to remind that "the real makerspace is between your ears" Paul has been a nuclear engineer, a teacher, and most importantly a maker. Connect with Paul: We...

Paul Shircliff is not your typical makerspace or STEM educator. He doesn't just know about coding or cardboard or tools or electronics...he knows about ALL of it! And when someone says something about a makerspace, he's quick to remind that "the real makerspace is between your ears" Paul has been a nuclear engineer, a teacher, and most importantly a maker. Connect with Paul: We...

About codeSpark Academy The Parents Choice Award-winning codeSpark Academy, which has a presence in more than 1/3 of US school districts, teaches the ABCs of coding through a combo of structured challenges and open-ended play. The app is ideal for at-home learning as its self-directed, project-based model allows kids to learn a complex subject like coding at their own pace. Kids can even learn vir...

Just a few short years ago, Ethan Klein and his sister Ayana were making things with cardboard. Now, they're teenage entrepreneurs who created a tool to help kids build creations out of cardboard. Their 3Dux connectors allow pieces of cardboard to be connected together, which allows kids to build "castles, kingdoms, characters, and communities" This podcast isn't just about a g...

What if we took all the good ideas of coding and combined them with the lessons of kindness? That's the idea that Valerie Sousa came up with for her book Coding To Kindness! Valerie Sousa has been a Kindergarten teacher in Massachusetts for 10 years. She began coding with her students three years ago and loved what she saw throughout the process. Her students were engaged, kind, worked collab...

Relevance. Empathy. Action. Lifelong learning. That's the REAL education that Anthony Chiles wants to see in his school and in all of education. Anthony Chiles is a STEAM Educator, consultant, and Student Support Coordinator in Burke County Public Schools, Georgia. When the Mutual, Visual and Physical Spaces (MVP spaces) combine with the four foundational principles of Relevance, Empathy, Act...

STEM isn't just for elementary kids. In Baltimore, Building STEPS is building opportunities for kids to pursue STEM college and career opportunities. Their program launched in 1999 with the sole purpose of creating a college pathway for underrepresented students to become STEM professionals. Each year, the Building STEPS team helps approximately 200 HS students, 200 College students, and 100...

If you've ever thought that biology (or any science) seemed hard to learn, or hard to teach, Melanie Peffer has the solution: "Where have you experienced biology today?" That's the question to ask any kid (or any adult) to help them think about the interconnectedness of biology (or any STEM subject) to the world around us. Melanie is a university educator & researcher in Co...

Robotics used to mean an intro to STEM subjects and head to college, but robotics is part of every career today. Kids are excited to build, program, and drive robots. Robotics can even help kids build friendships! "I don't just want the next generation of STEM leaders & thought leaders, I want kids to learn to accept and understand. Robotics is a universal language for technology, ac...

What if there was a podcast with real scientists sharing how they solved big problems? And what if that podcast was designed for kids? Jen Swanson and Jed Doherty designed the Solve it For Kids podcast with that exact goal! Each episode features a great scientist sharing their stories and ideas in easily accessible terms, all in a fun format. Jen is also a prolific children's book author and...

What if you took the skills of design thinking and problem solving and applied them to books for kids? Vicky Fang is a children’s book author with a background as a product designer (she worked at Google & Intel). She helped create things like cars that talk to each other, robots you can build at home, and games you can play with your voice. She started writing to support the growing need for...

What if kids, especially girls, really believed they could grow up and be anything? Laurie Wallmark was one of those kids, and so are the women she's written about. Laurie is a full-time, award winning children's book author, and she "loves it." Some previous jobs she's held are software engineer, owner of a mail order company (she had a bookstore on the Web before Amazon...

“Find a problem in your school that can get solved, then work backwards to find some science  to learn from it. That makes good STEM curriculum.” Spencer Sharp has been making great STEM in the classroom for years, creating his own STEM curriculum from scratch. He also provides great resources for educators, and just launched a podcast The Innovative Teacher Podcast. Connect with Spencer: Twitter...

An effective makerspace or STEM program is all about appropriate entry level challenges that kids can do & helping kids extend that initial challenge after they are successful. Chuck Stoffle has been building a super Makerspace and STEM program in Ontario Canada for the past decade. He is STEM certified, a LEGO robotics coach, math specialist, consultant, teacher librarian, father, husband, an...

"Go buy them a book!" Kids are interested in science & STEM, but they don't want to read dry, dull books. Jennifer Swanson has written over 40 books that don't just inform...they engage kids with STEM. " Getting kids of all ages excited about science, technology, and engineering is what I DO. After all, science is ALL AROUND you, you are always a part of it. I encourag...

STEM isn't just bits of facts or information. Great moments in science need great stories of the people involved in the science! Storyteller, writing teacher, children’s book author, & founder of Mims House publishing , Darcy Pattison loves finding an engaging story in a bit of science. Always active, before her tenth birthday, she (almost) climbed the Continental Divide, turning back at...