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For those who love Bethany Barton’s, I’m Trying To Love Spiders, and have a favorite pollination/bee unit, this book is for you! One of my favorite STEM lessons involves the use of the picture book What If There Were No Bees by Suzanne Slade.
In that lesson, after reading the book, students choose a flower image, color it, and position it in their team’s “field”. They then use our BeeBots to practice their coding skills; getting the bees to pollinate each flower.
In that lesson, after reading the book, students choose a flower image, color it, and position it in their team’s “field”. They then use our BeeBots to practice their coding skills; getting the bees to pollinate each flower.
This picture book would be such a wonderful addition to this lesson, setting the stage for more of the STEM pollination activities listed below!
Featured Picture Book:
Give Bees A Chance (2017)
By Bethany Barton (awesomebARTon on Twitter)
Illustrated by Bethany Barton
Summary:
The author tries to convince her bee-phobic friend how valuable bees are. Through humor, clever illustrations, and fun facts sprinkled throughout the pages, kids will learn so many interesting things about bees. Including the process bees go through from nectar to honey – who knew?
Related Themes and Standards:
SEL:
Respecting nature
Facing fears
Communicating effectively
Science:
Animal Adaptations
Pollination
All kinds of bee facts
STEM Ideas:
1. Use these clipart flowers to conduct the Beebot lesson mentioned above.
2. If you have access to LEGO 2.0 kits, have students conduct the plant pollination build. Or if you have LEGO Spike Essentials here’s a similar pollination build lesson.
3. This Pinterest Board by Beth Sharkey has some fun pollination STEM activities.
4. Have your kids use Scratch or ScratchJr to code a bee going on one of the missions related to the story.
5. Being a HUGE fan of SciShow Kids, I love this video which not only teaches about bees but has a great project to make a Bee House using recycled items! You could have your students build this exact one (would be a great team project) or engineer their own using other materials. You could then locate their bee houses around the school campus and have ongoing observation/data-collecting trips to see how they are doing!
6. Here is a great lesson to have your students engineer a 3D model of a beehive using toothpicks and mini marshmallows. If you have access to Tinkercad, you could take it a step further and have them practice digital modeling of a beehive! Have them screenshot their build and add it to a Padlet wall so they can see each other’s, or if you have lots of filament, print them out!
7. If you have access to a drone, create "flowers" using colored spots and have your students either free fly from the flowers back to the "hive" or kick it up a notch and have them use DroneBlocks to code an autonomous drone flying mission.
Give Bees A Chance (2017)
By Bethany Barton (awesomebARTon on Twitter)
Illustrated by Bethany Barton
Summary:
The author tries to convince her bee-phobic friend how valuable bees are. Through humor, clever illustrations, and fun facts sprinkled throughout the pages, kids will learn so many interesting things about bees. Including the process bees go through from nectar to honey – who knew?
Related Themes and Standards:
SEL:
Respecting nature
Facing fears
Communicating effectively
Science:
Animal Adaptations
Pollination
All kinds of bee facts
STEM Ideas:
1. Use these clipart flowers to conduct the Beebot lesson mentioned above.
2. If you have access to LEGO 2.0 kits, have students conduct the plant pollination build. Or if you have LEGO Spike Essentials here’s a similar pollination build lesson.
3. This Pinterest Board by Beth Sharkey has some fun pollination STEM activities.
4. Have your kids use Scratch or ScratchJr to code a bee going on one of the missions related to the story.
5. Being a HUGE fan of SciShow Kids, I love this video which not only teaches about bees but has a great project to make a Bee House using recycled items! You could have your students build this exact one (would be a great team project) or engineer their own using other materials. You could then locate their bee houses around the school campus and have ongoing observation/data-collecting trips to see how they are doing!
6. Here is a great lesson to have your students engineer a 3D model of a beehive using toothpicks and mini marshmallows. If you have access to Tinkercad, you could take it a step further and have them practice digital modeling of a beehive! Have them screenshot their build and add it to a Padlet wall so they can see each other’s, or if you have lots of filament, print them out!
7. If you have access to a drone, create "flowers" using colored spots and have your students either free fly from the flowers back to the "hive" or kick it up a notch and have them use DroneBlocks to code an autonomous drone flying mission.
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To say I absolutely love the book featured in this post is an understatement! The Baddies is by the same author as Room on the Broom – Julia Donaldson.
I’m sure many of you reading this have some favorite Room on the Broom engineering; it is perfect for integrating the engineering design process with our youngest STEMsters.
The Baddies is just as entertaining and lends itself nicely to some engineering challenges as well! Because of its hysterical characters, embedded onomatopoeia, and fun rhyme scheme, I’m definitely ordering this one for my personal collection!
I’m sure many of you reading this have some favorite Room on the Broom engineering; it is perfect for integrating the engineering design process with our youngest STEMsters.
The Baddies is just as entertaining and lends itself nicely to some engineering challenges as well! Because of its hysterical characters, embedded onomatopoeia, and fun rhyme scheme, I’m definitely ordering this one for my personal collection!
Featured Picture Book:
The Baddies (2022)
By Julia Donaldson
Illustrated by Axel Scheffler
Summary:
Three “baddies,” a troll, a witch, and a ghost, are overheard bragging about their “badness” by a little mouse who challenges them to a contest to steal a little girl’s hanky. They each give it their best shot, only to be outsmarted by the little girl who ends up giving her hanky to the little mouse to keep her family warm.
Related Themes and Standards:
SEL:
Kindness
Humor
ELA:
Rhyming words
Onomatopoeia
Character traits
Science:
Friction (if you do the hovercraft activity mentioned below)
STEM Ideas:
1. Engineer a way to get a hanky from one spot to another without touching it. (You can get cheap handkerchiefs at most dollar stores, or you can order a dozen HERE)
2. If you have access to drones, have students engineer an attachment to transport the girl's hanky to a safe location.
3. Since one of the characters was a ghost, have students design and engineer a hovercraft that would carry a hanky from one spot to another. Science Buddies has a nice lesson HERE or this one HERE uses paper plates instead. Better yet, show your kids this video, provide lots of different materials and let THEM figure it out through the engineering design process!
4. The bridge in the story didn’t hold the troll very well. Have students engineer a bridge and test it to see what the maximum weight the troll could be.
5. The kids will laugh at the little girl’s toffee flying out of her pocket and getting stuck on the witch’s nose. Create a simple cardboard witch and have students engineer catapults or other inventions to launch “toffee” at the witch’s nose. (You could add velcro or two-sided tape to the witch’s nose and the kids could launch cotton balls or small pompoms to represent the toffee.)
6. In the end, the little girl gives her hanky to the mouse family for a blanket. Have students brainstorm other uses for a hanky and create a promotional video demonstrating the new use using Canva, Flip, or another video creation platform.
Have you used this book to integrate STEM? I'd love to hear about it! #BetterTogether
The Baddies (2022)
By Julia Donaldson
Illustrated by Axel Scheffler
Summary:
Three “baddies,” a troll, a witch, and a ghost, are overheard bragging about their “badness” by a little mouse who challenges them to a contest to steal a little girl’s hanky. They each give it their best shot, only to be outsmarted by the little girl who ends up giving her hanky to the little mouse to keep her family warm.
Related Themes and Standards:
SEL:
Kindness
Humor
ELA:
Rhyming words
Onomatopoeia
Character traits
Science:
Friction (if you do the hovercraft activity mentioned below)
STEM Ideas:
1. Engineer a way to get a hanky from one spot to another without touching it. (You can get cheap handkerchiefs at most dollar stores, or you can order a dozen HERE)
2. If you have access to drones, have students engineer an attachment to transport the girl's hanky to a safe location.
3. Since one of the characters was a ghost, have students design and engineer a hovercraft that would carry a hanky from one spot to another. Science Buddies has a nice lesson HERE or this one HERE uses paper plates instead. Better yet, show your kids this video, provide lots of different materials and let THEM figure it out through the engineering design process!
4. The bridge in the story didn’t hold the troll very well. Have students engineer a bridge and test it to see what the maximum weight the troll could be.
5. The kids will laugh at the little girl’s toffee flying out of her pocket and getting stuck on the witch’s nose. Create a simple cardboard witch and have students engineer catapults or other inventions to launch “toffee” at the witch’s nose. (You could add velcro or two-sided tape to the witch’s nose and the kids could launch cotton balls or small pompoms to represent the toffee.)
6. In the end, the little girl gives her hanky to the mouse family for a blanket. Have students brainstorm other uses for a hanky and create a promotional video demonstrating the new use using Canva, Flip, or another video creation platform.
Have you used this book to integrate STEM? I'd love to hear about it! #BetterTogether
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Since retiring, I've been spending a lot more time working to improve my craft as a picture book writer. This includes connecting with a lot of the children's writing community online.
Having been in education my entire life, this new world of traditional publishing: querying agents, learning from editors, lurking as new online connections converse about the overwhelming process, has been very interesting!
Last night when I saw others tweeting (yes, I will always call it that!) about Susanna Leonard Hill's 2023 Holiday Writing Contest, I knew I had to give it a shot (my first writing contest ever)! The theme this year is Holiday Countdown so the piece had to include counting something down.
The hardest part was reducing my first draft to the 250 word limit, especially while trying to keep the rhyme and meter as tight as possible. Some of that smoothness was sacrificed, but lesson learned!
Those of you who know me, know I am passionate about integrating relevant STEM at the elementary level! So you KNOW I had to include a drone in my entry!
As I wrote Devoted Drone Deliveries, I thought back to missions our GLIDE girls had done over the years and how it is so important for girls to see themselves represented in drone education and the drone industry.
I knew the main character had to be one of the most caring and amazing young drone pilots I'd had the pleasure to teach, Jordan.
As a side note, the importance of growing this representation and elementary drone integration is exactly why I am so honored to be part of the curriculum team at Drone Legends! They share that passion!
Having been in education my entire life, this new world of traditional publishing: querying agents, learning from editors, lurking as new online connections converse about the overwhelming process, has been very interesting!
Last night when I saw others tweeting (yes, I will always call it that!) about Susanna Leonard Hill's 2023 Holiday Writing Contest, I knew I had to give it a shot (my first writing contest ever)! The theme this year is Holiday Countdown so the piece had to include counting something down.
The hardest part was reducing my first draft to the 250 word limit, especially while trying to keep the rhyme and meter as tight as possible. Some of that smoothness was sacrificed, but lesson learned!
Those of you who know me, know I am passionate about integrating relevant STEM at the elementary level! So you KNOW I had to include a drone in my entry!
As I wrote Devoted Drone Deliveries, I thought back to missions our GLIDE girls had done over the years and how it is so important for girls to see themselves represented in drone education and the drone industry.
I knew the main character had to be one of the most caring and amazing young drone pilots I'd had the pleasure to teach, Jordan.
As a side note, the importance of growing this representation and elementary drone integration is exactly why I am so honored to be part of the curriculum team at Drone Legends! They share that passion!
So anyway! Here is my debut writing contest entry! Enjoy!
Devoted Drone Deliveries
Jordan loves the people who
live in her neighborhood!
Holidays are here again
and so to do some good…
She wants to use her trusty drone
to give each house a gift,
that way she’ll stay anonymous
and spirits she will lift!
House number 10, Mr. Frost
works down at the deli.
To him, she gives some homemade bread
and jar of apple jelly.
Number 9, Mrs. Green,
a mom with seven kids,
her gift is cookies, sweetly baked
in tins with matching lids.
Number 8, on down the street,
John and Jerry Knox,
they work out in the cold all day
their gifts, knitted socks.
Number 7 is the place
the Lopez family lives.
They always wave and shout hello,
a smiley flag she gives.
Number 6, Grandpa Frank,
although he’s not related,
he’s loved by everyone around
his gift, art she created.
Number 5, with fading paint
belongs to Captain Smoots,
he works hard daily catching fish;
her drone delivers boots.
Number 4, Mrs. Nell
who has a bunch of cats,
Jordan gives her treats and toys
that look like little rats!
Number 3 belongs to Ann
who sleeps during the day,
she works the night shift at the mill,
for her, a big bouquet.
Number 2, a tiny home
owned by Officer Mark,
a flashlight is his gift this year
to help him in the dark.
Number 1, the final stop
is Jordan’s own home place.
She views the pictures from the drone,
smiles on EVERY face!
Devoted Drone Deliveries
Jordan loves the people who
live in her neighborhood!
Holidays are here again
and so to do some good…
She wants to use her trusty drone
to give each house a gift,
that way she’ll stay anonymous
and spirits she will lift!
House number 10, Mr. Frost
works down at the deli.
To him, she gives some homemade bread
and jar of apple jelly.
Number 9, Mrs. Green,
a mom with seven kids,
her gift is cookies, sweetly baked
in tins with matching lids.
Number 8, on down the street,
John and Jerry Knox,
they work out in the cold all day
their gifts, knitted socks.
Number 7 is the place
the Lopez family lives.
They always wave and shout hello,
a smiley flag she gives.
Number 6, Grandpa Frank,
although he’s not related,
he’s loved by everyone around
his gift, art she created.
Number 5, with fading paint
belongs to Captain Smoots,
he works hard daily catching fish;
her drone delivers boots.
Number 4, Mrs. Nell
who has a bunch of cats,
Jordan gives her treats and toys
that look like little rats!
Number 3 belongs to Ann
who sleeps during the day,
she works the night shift at the mill,
for her, a big bouquet.
Number 2, a tiny home
owned by Officer Mark,
a flashlight is his gift this year
to help him in the dark.
Number 1, the final stop
is Jordan’s own home place.
She views the pictures from the drone,
smiles on EVERY face!
- Published on
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One of my favorite Citizen Science activities with kids involves ants, so this picture book really appealed to me! Although you may need to take another look at this one in the spring, I wanted to share it now. It would also make a great hook for a study on where insects go in the winter!
Featured Picture Book:
Hey, Little Ant (1998)
By Phillip and Hannah Hoose (@PhillipHoose)
Illustrated by Debbie Tilley
Summary
A boy and an ant have a discussion about whether the boy should step on the ant. They compare aspects of their lives that are similar and different. The final decision is left up to the reader!
Related Themes:
SEL:
Taking the perspective of others
Caring about others
Peer pressure
Similarities and differences
Science:
Insect studies
STEM Ideas:
1. There is a great lesson on Mystery Science that you could tie in after reading this book called Where do bugs go in winter?
2. Here are my lesson slides that incorporate the Mystery Science video and an engineering challenge with Hex Bugs!
3. Engineer a safe trap to bring with you on a picnic so no ants get harmed. Use recyclable materials during the design process!
4. Plan out, write a script, and record a video convincing the boy to save the ant.
5. Create a green screen project (either video or just still photos) where the kids are small like ants. DoInk is my favorite app for these types of projects, but you could use whatever green screen app you like!
6. Bring live ants/ant farm into your classroom for student observations! Here is a great site with ideas and support. Or take your kids out into nature to do some ant observations - make sure you bring the hand lenses and science notebooks!
Do you have other ideas? I'd love to hear about them in the comments! #BetterTogether
Hey, Little Ant (1998)
By Phillip and Hannah Hoose (@PhillipHoose)
Illustrated by Debbie Tilley
Summary
A boy and an ant have a discussion about whether the boy should step on the ant. They compare aspects of their lives that are similar and different. The final decision is left up to the reader!
Related Themes:
SEL:
Taking the perspective of others
Caring about others
Peer pressure
Similarities and differences
Science:
Insect studies
STEM Ideas:
1. There is a great lesson on Mystery Science that you could tie in after reading this book called Where do bugs go in winter?
2. Here are my lesson slides that incorporate the Mystery Science video and an engineering challenge with Hex Bugs!
3. Engineer a safe trap to bring with you on a picnic so no ants get harmed. Use recyclable materials during the design process!
4. Plan out, write a script, and record a video convincing the boy to save the ant.
5. Create a green screen project (either video or just still photos) where the kids are small like ants. DoInk is my favorite app for these types of projects, but you could use whatever green screen app you like!
6. Bring live ants/ant farm into your classroom for student observations! Here is a great site with ideas and support. Or take your kids out into nature to do some ant observations - make sure you bring the hand lenses and science notebooks!
Do you have other ideas? I'd love to hear about them in the comments! #BetterTogether
- Published on
This blog post contains Amazon Affiliate Links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
I LOVE this book! Although it’s an older picture book, the message and science in it are timeless. If your students are studying insects or animal adaptations, this would be a great foundational read for a fun STEM challenge!
Featured Picture Book:
The Very Ugly Bug (2004)
By Liz Pichon (@LizPichon)
Illustrated by Liz Pichon
Summary:
A bug who thinks she is ugly tries to disguise herself using some of the adaptations of her friends, but finds out she’s perfect just the way she is!
Related Themes and Standards:
SEL:
Respecting differences
Managing envy
Being yourself
Supporting friends
Science:
Animal Adaptations
Insect Camouflage
STEM Ideas:
1. Students could engineer their own insect using various inexpensive/recycled items and then
3. Have drones? Students could create flying insects that have to maneuver through a forest or other habitat to avoid a predator.
The Very Ugly Bug (2004)
By Liz Pichon (@LizPichon)
Illustrated by Liz Pichon
Summary:
A bug who thinks she is ugly tries to disguise herself using some of the adaptations of her friends, but finds out she’s perfect just the way she is!
Related Themes and Standards:
SEL:
Respecting differences
Managing envy
Being yourself
Supporting friends
Science:
Animal Adaptations
Insect Camouflage
STEM Ideas:
1. Students could engineer their own insect using various inexpensive/recycled items and then
- create a green screen project with them (using green file folders makes this manageable for small items like an insect!).
- create their own picture book starring their insect using Canva, Book Creator, Seesaw, or another program.
- upload a picture of their insect into Scratch/Scratch Jr. and code some movements or “a day in the life”-type project.
- include some circuit work with copper tape, coin cell batteries, and small LED lights to make parts of their insect light up.
- take their insect outside to see where it would be safest from predators (in the leaves, stuck to the bark, in the grass, etc.).
3. Have drones? Students could create flying insects that have to maneuver through a forest or other habitat to avoid a predator.
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This blog post contains Amazon Affiliate Links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
This is an adorable rhyming picture book that is perfect during those times you are either introducing the Engineering Design Process or need to reassure your young engineers that plans don’t always bring success and failure often leads to big inventions!
Featured Picture Book:
The Fix-It Man (2016)
By Susan Hood (@sHood125)
Illustrated by Arree Chung (@arreechung)
Summary:
Joshua James is a boy who loves to fix problems around the house with his little sister playing the role of assistant/tester. The book includes detailed and fun illustrations of his plans and inventions, many of which resemble Rube Goldberg style devices. Some are successful, while some are not! The main problem is humorous and kids will love to see how JJ and his sister solve it!
Related Themes:
Engineering Design Process:
STEM Ideas:
1. Great book to include in a study of Rube Goldberg. Have students engineer that style machine to solve a simple real world problem (ie. getting a pencil to a friend).
2. This would be a super book if you are starting a take-apart or backward engineering activity where you give students old electronics/toys and they dismantle them and build something else with the parts.
3. Have students study the simple machines featured in this book. Create a chart of the ones they notice. Then have them engineer something small focusing on just one of those simple machines. For example, there are some great pulley systems in the book they could try to recreate with recyclable materials.
4. Studying forces and motion? This book is LOADED with illustrations of various forces. Have a discussion about them and then have students recreate them using simple materials.
Feel free to add your ideas or leave a comment! We're better together!
The Fix-It Man (2016)
By Susan Hood (@sHood125)
Illustrated by Arree Chung (@arreechung)
Summary:
Joshua James is a boy who loves to fix problems around the house with his little sister playing the role of assistant/tester. The book includes detailed and fun illustrations of his plans and inventions, many of which resemble Rube Goldberg style devices. Some are successful, while some are not! The main problem is humorous and kids will love to see how JJ and his sister solve it!
Related Themes:
Engineering Design Process:
- Importance of planning
- Persevering through failure
- Thinking outside the box to re-engineer
- Solving real world problems
- Kindness
- Importance of apologizing
- Helping others
- Simple machines
- Forces and Motion
STEM Ideas:
1. Great book to include in a study of Rube Goldberg. Have students engineer that style machine to solve a simple real world problem (ie. getting a pencil to a friend).
2. This would be a super book if you are starting a take-apart or backward engineering activity where you give students old electronics/toys and they dismantle them and build something else with the parts.
3. Have students study the simple machines featured in this book. Create a chart of the ones they notice. Then have them engineer something small focusing on just one of those simple machines. For example, there are some great pulley systems in the book they could try to recreate with recyclable materials.
4. Studying forces and motion? This book is LOADED with illustrations of various forces. Have a discussion about them and then have students recreate them using simple materials.
Feel free to add your ideas or leave a comment! We're better together!
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This blog post contains Amazon Affiliate Links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Today’s pick is a sweet story by Kate Banks called The Winter Bird. This is a perfect book for this time of year as the seasons change. There are many ELA and Science integrations that would create a powerful lesson! The beautiful illustrations by Suzie Mason make this a picture book that kids will love.
Featured Picture Book:
The Winter Bird (2022)
By Kate Banks (@KateBanksBooks)
Illustrated by Suzie Mason
Summary:
A nightingale with a broken wing is unable to leave for the winter. Many animals in the forest help care for the bird and teach it to survive the winter, sharing resources and company. The nightingale learns about winter and celebrates with the others when spring returns.
Related Themes and Standards:
SEL:
STEM Ideas:
1. Engineer a new nest for the nightingale designed to keep it safe and warm for the winter. Students could use natural materials from outside or recycled materials.
2. Engineer objects to keep the nightingale warm (in the story it is given extra feathers and nutshell “slippers” from other animals).
3. Make snow using one of these simple recipes and experiment with how it felt to the nightingale. Students could create a snow cave for the nightingale to live in.
4. Use Canva (or another program) to create a thank you note the nightingale could send to the other animals for all their help.
5. Spread white packing peanuts on the floor and have students program a robot to get through the snow to a nest or cave.
6. Engineer a bird feeder that will help birds in the area during the upcoming winter months.
7. Research the animals mentioned in the book and create a class book using Book Creator or other program.
Would love for you to share your ideas! We're better together!
The Winter Bird (2022)
By Kate Banks (@KateBanksBooks)
Illustrated by Suzie Mason
Summary:
A nightingale with a broken wing is unable to leave for the winter. Many animals in the forest help care for the bird and teach it to survive the winter, sharing resources and company. The nightingale learns about winter and celebrates with the others when spring returns.
Related Themes and Standards:
SEL:
- Friendship
- Sharing
- Caring about others
- Personification
- Metaphors
- Migration
- Animal Adaptations
- Seasons
- Habitats
STEM Ideas:
1. Engineer a new nest for the nightingale designed to keep it safe and warm for the winter. Students could use natural materials from outside or recycled materials.
2. Engineer objects to keep the nightingale warm (in the story it is given extra feathers and nutshell “slippers” from other animals).
3. Make snow using one of these simple recipes and experiment with how it felt to the nightingale. Students could create a snow cave for the nightingale to live in.
4. Use Canva (or another program) to create a thank you note the nightingale could send to the other animals for all their help.
5. Spread white packing peanuts on the floor and have students program a robot to get through the snow to a nest or cave.
6. Engineer a bird feeder that will help birds in the area during the upcoming winter months.
7. Research the animals mentioned in the book and create a class book using Book Creator or other program.
Would love for you to share your ideas! We're better together!
- Published on
This blog post contains Amazon Affiliate Links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Over the decades that I read picture books to students, I noticed that many of their favorites were stories that were just plain silly! This book is one of those, but it can still lead to some fun STEM challenges that integrate ELA, Science, and Computer Science!
Featured Picture Book:
Stuck
By Oliver Jeffers (2011)
Summary:
This is a silly book about a boy, Floyd, who starts off getting his kite stuck in a tree. He begins to throw things up into the tree trying to knock it down. Each object he throws also gets stuck as the items continue to get bigger and more outlandish! Finally, in the end, he gets his kite back, with a little twist!
Themes:
STEM Ideas:
1. Of course, loving drones in the classroom the way I do, I immediately thought of a drone challenge!
3. Have students create and code a program in Scratch/Scratch Jr. that recreates the story.
4. Have students create a path using pictures of the objects that were thrown into the tree in the correct order. Use Beebots, Dash, Sphero, Ozobot, or other robots to follow the path to retrace the story.
5. Have students engineer a tree that will hold the most weight without tipping over.
6. Have the students create a stop motion video that recreates the story objects getting stuck in the tree.
Do you have other ideas or need some tips for the ones I suggested?
Let me know in the comments!
Stuck
By Oliver Jeffers (2011)
Summary:
This is a silly book about a boy, Floyd, who starts off getting his kite stuck in a tree. He begins to throw things up into the tree trying to knock it down. Each object he throws also gets stuck as the items continue to get bigger and more outlandish! Finally, in the end, he gets his kite back, with a little twist!
Themes:
- Perseverance
- Developing a new plan
STEM Ideas:
1. Of course, loving drones in the classroom the way I do, I immediately thought of a drone challenge!
- Create a tree (this fort kit we use with our drone lessons works great for lots of builds!) and suspend kid-made mini-kites in it. Students have to engineer an attachment and fly their drone to retrieve the kites.
- Use robotics kits like LEGO WeDo 2.0 or Prime if you have them to create the grabber
- Create the grabber with recycled materials
3. Have students create and code a program in Scratch/Scratch Jr. that recreates the story.
4. Have students create a path using pictures of the objects that were thrown into the tree in the correct order. Use Beebots, Dash, Sphero, Ozobot, or other robots to follow the path to retrace the story.
5. Have students engineer a tree that will hold the most weight without tipping over.
6. Have the students create a stop motion video that recreates the story objects getting stuck in the tree.
Do you have other ideas or need some tips for the ones I suggested?
Let me know in the comments!
- Published on
I am EXCITED about this new blogging adventure! Every other day or so I plan to highlight a picture book and its STEM possibilities! As always, feel free to comment and bookmark!
If you have heard any of the presentations I’ve given over the past 20 years, you know I believe picture books are one of the best tools we have to integrate meaningful STEM, especially at the elementary level.
One of my favorite parts about being an elementary educator has always been reading picture books and imagining engineering challenges that would engage our young students.
So here we go!
If you have heard any of the presentations I’ve given over the past 20 years, you know I believe picture books are one of the best tools we have to integrate meaningful STEM, especially at the elementary level.
One of my favorite parts about being an elementary educator has always been reading picture books and imagining engineering challenges that would engage our young students.
So here we go!
Featured Picture Book
I Knew You Could! - A Book for All the Stops in Your Life
by Craig Dorfman and Illustrated by Cristina Ong (2003)
Summary
The narrator in the story continually gives life advice to the little train as it journeys through good times and bad times, as well as everyday life changes.
Themes
STEM Ideas
This would be a great book to read when introducing the engineering design process to kids. It has short tips for dealing with failure/hard times.
If your class has been integrating STEM activities related to academic standards and needs to take a little break to do a challenging teamwork build, this book would be perfect! It will help refocus everyone on the big picture, especially as they work on developing SEL (social-emotional learning) skills.
Because this story’s character is a train on tracks, I can see designing the following STEM lessons:
I Knew You Could! - A Book for All the Stops in Your Life
by Craig Dorfman and Illustrated by Cristina Ong (2003)
Summary
The narrator in the story continually gives life advice to the little train as it journeys through good times and bad times, as well as everyday life changes.
Themes
- Perseverance
- Independence
- Trying New Things
- Maintaining Hope
- Dealing with Jealousy/Envy
- Staying true to self/being unique
- Friendship
- Asking for help when needed
- Self Confidence
- Maintaining positive mental health
STEM Ideas
This would be a great book to read when introducing the engineering design process to kids. It has short tips for dealing with failure/hard times.
If your class has been integrating STEM activities related to academic standards and needs to take a little break to do a challenging teamwork build, this book would be perfect! It will help refocus everyone on the big picture, especially as they work on developing SEL (social-emotional learning) skills.
Because this story’s character is a train on tracks, I can see designing the following STEM lessons:
- Students have to build a track and program/code a robot to move along it.
-
Students build a train using recyclables and have to create a way for it to move. Will it be a propulsion system maybe involving a balloon or other air power? Will it be a pushing system using more of a catapult-type force?
- Over a bridge they’ve engineered (constraints - bridge has to span a determined gap)
- Through a tunnel they’ve engineered (constraints - tunnel has to measure a determined distance)
- Across a certain distance within a given amount of time
- Carrying a determined amount of weight or the most weight possible
- The book talks about the train changing paths so students have to engineer a simple track-switching mechanism.
- Design a train station and engineer a device that safely puts passengers on the train.
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