Hi All,

First off I want to Thank Amy for getting us going on this challenge and for all the work she put in coordinating and organizing this fabulous event! Doing a straight up post about  classroom curriculum is a refreshing departure for me, so here goes!

The Early Childhood STEM Classroom

When I first started teaching Kindergarten, the “master teacher” had our science curriculum all worked out. We measured the apple, counted the seeds, decided which kind of apple we “liked best” in a taste test and graphed it in the packet. Unit 1, done. Next up, pumpkins. We hugged it, measured it, scooped it and counted the seeds again. Unit 2, check. By January, for science, the kids had filled out two fill-in-the-blank packets, ate some apples and hugged a pumpkin.

To me, this wasn’t science. I knew from my friendships with actual, practicing scientists that what they did…