During the Spring school holidays, we found ourselves with a morning to kill in Canberra, and like many families made our way to Questacon. What a treasure trove of wonder and awe! Spiralling level upon level of STEM experiments, activities and information on display for both big and little minds. If you do find yourself in our nation’s capital with your toddlers and preschoolers in tow, do yourself a favour, and take the time to spend a couple of hours there enjoying the hands-on educational experience on offer.
We returned home inspired and enthused to incorporate a STEM mindset into our family’s tool kit.
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) was historically seen as something children engaged in older, more formal schooling years, and even then, encouraged more in boys than girls. However, with STEM’s relaunch and rebranding it is being recognised as the basis of many fundamentals of learning for all and being more intentionally introduced to younger learners. At The Owl & The Pussycat Preschool we actively look to include STEM opportunities in our day-to-day programming, lesson planning, and child-led learning. Watch as your children’s young, developing, open and curious minds are guaranteed to respond in delight to some of these simple STEM ideas you can share in together at home.
You’d be surprised how many household items you have lying around at home that are basic science experiment ingredients. Food colouring, milk, shaving cream, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, vinegar, and soda water to name a few. With these you can be making magic milk, exploding volcanos or rain in a jar in no time. A quick YouTube search should give you some helpful step by step videos to get you started.
Building is a great way to get budding engineering minds into gear. Duplo, Lego and wooden or magnetic blocks like Connetix can become dams and bridges. Household items along with a basket of sheets, towels and pegs can turn a dining room into an expertly engineered fort. Or use paper rolls along with pom poms or marbles to make a pinball game or marble run. These simple acts of play promote spatial awareness and problem solving.
Build-a-bots and coding toys that can be programmed to follow maps and go through mazes using interactive apps are an engaging way of introducing technology in age-appropriate and interactive ways. Our preschoolers in the Owls at Warriewood, have recently got a Bee-Bot, which they are loving.
Sorting and counting found objects such as sea glass, stones or sticks into colour, size or shape is a fun way of recognising mathematics in the everyday. Weighing, measuring and dividing while cooking together, or recognising patterns and shapes on a walk to the shops or at the supermarket are easy, go-to ways of incorporating mathematical thinking in your child’s day.
Or simply taking a walk outside to notice nature’s science lab of changing leaves, observing shadows at different times of the day, collecting and recording rainwater or watching the rolling tides along our shorelines are all easy ways to lift little eyes to the wonder of the everyday.
At The Owl & The Pussycat Preschool STEM has become apart of our everyday, from our morning’s spent outside measuring, building and engineering in the sandpit, to our lunchtime’s dividing up pizza and counting plates. We hope you can recognise and invite it into your home too.
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