Elementary Education students learn engaging strategies for teaching STEM
What does a girl who dreams about playing the drums have to do with science, technology, engineering and math (STEM)? A group of teachers-in-training at Chaminade learned the answer to that intriguing question—meant to challenge traditional divisions between subjects—as part of a recent workshop.
Some 16 day undergraduate students majoring in Elementary Education attended the 90-minute workshop with Karen Ansberry, co-author of the Picture-Perfect Science series and lead speaker.
The professional development opportunity, designed by Picture-Perfect STEM and funded through the Takatani Foundation and School of Education and Behavioral Sciences, was one of four workshops offered to students in September to help them think about new strategies for teaching STEM.
Madison Polendey ’25, who will begin her student teaching in Kaneohe Elementary School in January, said the workshops helped her re-imagine how to design STEM lesson plans that engaged students.
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“These workshops helped me learn how to integrate math and reading into my STEM lessons,” she said.
Like that girl who aspires to play the drums.
Ansberry talked to workshop attendees about the female protagonist in “Drum Dream Girl: How One Girl’s Courage Changed Music,” which was inspired by the story of Millo Castro Zaldarriaga, a Chinese-African-Cuban girl who broke Cuba’s traditional taboo against female drummers.
Using the book, a lesson plan was designed to highlight the principles of sound and math.
In the exercise, students create their own drums, using empty coffee cans, Pringles tubes and other household items. The next step would be to add some confetti or rice in a bowl and seal the top. Once the drum is banged next to the bowl, the vibration of the sound causes the confetti or rice to move.
That action proves to students that sound is a type of energy made by vibration.
“Kids can add some rhythm into their banging, which will also teach them about math,” Ansberry explained to workshop attendees, who were delighted by the example. “Studies have shown that rhythm helps teach such mathematical concepts as fractions, ratios, and pattern.”
Chaminade senior Pūnohu Keahi said the workshops taught her how to better engage students, especially through the use of picture books, which helped her learn when she was younger.
With co-author Emily Morgan, Ansberry wrote the Picture-Perfect STEM series to offer teachers engaging pedagogical approaches for teaching young kids about STEM.
“Future teachers didn’t have the skills to teach science,” said Ansberry, before the start of the final workshop. “And picture books didn’t really exist for the sole purpose of teaching STEM courses.”
Picture-Perfect STEM offers an approach to teaching that is designed to encourage students in STEM through a combination of inquiry-based learning and literacy. The approach integrates children’s literature with hands-on activities, promoting a deeper understanding of STEM concepts.
According to Chaminade Director of Teacher Preparation Programs and Associate Professor Katrina Roseler, Ph.D., Picture-Perfect STEM is particularly aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and the 5E instructional model, making it a powerful tool for modern educators.
The 5E instructional model is a widely-used framework in science education that consists of five phases: Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate and Evaluate. The model is designed to facilitate active learning and help students construct their own understanding of scientific concepts. Picture-Perfect STEM complements the 5E model, making it an effective approach for teaching STEM concepts.
Roseler added that the NGSS are the K–12 science standards that guide educators in providing students with a science education that reflects the interconnected nature of science in the real world.
The goal is to engage students in Picture-Perfect STEM activities, which will inspire them to think critically and ask questions, connect ideas across different domains of science, and explore fundamental scientific concepts through both literature and hands-on experiments.
“This integration ensures that students not only learn scientific facts,” said Roseler, “but it also develops a deeper understanding of the scientific process and how it applies to the world around them.”