STEM by Design: Strategies and Activities for Grades 4-8 / Edition 1

by Anne Jolly

Overview

How do you create effective STEM classrooms that energize students, help them grow into creative thinkers and collaborators, and prepare them for their futures? This practical book from expert Anne Jolly has all the answers and tools you need to get started or enhance your current program. Based on the author’s popular MiddleWeb blog of the same name, STEM by Design reveals the secrets to successful lessons in which students use science, math, and technology to solve real-world engineering design problems. You’ll learn how to:

• Select and adapt quality existing STEM lessons that present authentic problems, allow for creative approaches, and engage students in meaningful teamwork;
• Create your own student-centered STEM lessons based on the Engineering Design Process;
• Assess students’ understanding of basic STEM concepts, their problem-solving abilities, and their level of engagement with the material;
• Teach STEM in after-school programs to further build on concepts covered in class;
• Empower girls to aspire to careers in STEM and break down the barriers of gender bias;
• Tap into STEM's project-based learning style to attract and engage all students.

Throughout this user-friendly book, you’ll find design tools such as checklists, activities, and assessments to aid you in developing or adapting STEM lessons. These tools, as well as additional teacher resources, are also available as free downloads from the book’s website, http://www.stem-by-design.com.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781138931060
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	07/07/2016
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	184
Product dimensions:	6.60(w) x 9.60(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Anne Jolly is a STEM consultant, MiddleWeb blogger, and online community organizer for the Center for Teaching Quality Collaboratory. She began her career as a middle school science teacher in Mobile, Alabama and has co-developed nationally recognized STEM curriculum with support from the National Science Foundation.

Table of Contents

eResources

Meet the Author

Acknowledgements

Introduction

1. What is STEM Education?

2. Why Teach STEM?

3. STEM Variations

4. Gearing Up for Teaching STEM

5. Choosing Good STEM Lessons

6. Analyzing Lessons for STEM Potential

7. STEM Lesson Design Preliminaries

8. Designing a STEM Lesson

9. Assessing STEM Impact

10. Coordinating CTE and STEM

11. Teaching STEM After School

12. Including Girls in STEM Class

Epilogue

Appendix A: STEM FAQs and Practical Tips

Appendix B: Resources Pages

Editorial Reviews

"Anne Jolly’s brilliant how-to guide for designing STEM lessons offers practical advice for engaging students and building their teamwork and communication skills. She offers words of wisdom for what STEM teachers need to know and do. Her book is bound to inspire a system of STEM teacher leadership that can spread her expertise."

—Barnett Berry, CEO and Partner, Center for Teaching Quality (CTQ)

"I was hooked on STEM by Design right from the introduction. Jolly shows the reader what STEM looks and sounds like and shares with us that we can do it too. The chapter on analyzing lessons for STEM potential will especially be of value since educators don’t always have time to start from scratch. The tools and resources provided in the book will help provide quality learning experiences for all students."

—Kathy Renfrew, Science Assessment Coordinator for Vermont and NSTA NGSS Curator

"This book offers accessible, user-friendly support to anyone seeking to start or improve a STEM program. Educators at multiple levels will value Jolly’s intimacy with the classroom, empathy for the challenges of implementing a successful STEM program, and specific guidance and tools to help chart out the path from wherever they are today to their STEM education destination. At times, it felt like Jolly was in the room, just over my shoulder, helping me think through this journey. It’s especially helpful that Jolly launches the whole adventure with a straightforward description of her vision for this destination, and that she acknowledges that it is not the only way to pursue high-quality, integrated STEM. In this, she avoids prescriptive language and a one-size-fits-all approach that can turn reform into regression. However, she does clearly delineate the difference between integrated STEM learning and STEM-in-name-only—a vital contribution to her readers! Throughout, Jolly demonstrates that STEM and 21^st Century thinking is not just for students but part of being a dynamic and successful STEM educator. Not just a great starting point, this book can serve as an important big-picture companion to other resources that educators will also want to tap into on their journey into STEM. I can’t wait to share it with my clients and participants in my professional development programs."

—Carolyn DeCristofano, President, Blue Heron STEM Education

From the Publisher