“Look!” squeals three-year-old Eleanor. “I can pick up these two balls! It’s magic!” Have you ever seen young children playing with magnets? The “magical” properties of magnets never fail to captivate early learners and spark a play buzz! Children learn by investigating, observing and figuring out how things work. Magnets fuel that curiosity in […]
Rock balancing or CAIRNS has found its way into our play again this week! Stacking and balancing rocks encourages math and science investigations that are always developmentally appropriate. My adrenaline starts flowing and a smile grows on my face when a two-year-old child exhibits an innate sense of how to balance many more rocks […]
“LOOK!” screams a four-year-old with such joy that we know this isn’t a garden-variety “I want to share something with you” moment. As the gang rushes to her side, they come to a complete standstill, frozen in awe. Oh happy day! Some kind souls have shared a fort with the community! There before us […]
“I found an empty nest! Can we keep it?” Owen’s joyful discovery captures everyone’s attention. Three-year-old Avery comes running. “Are there eggs?” she asks her older and wiser five-year-old friend. “Can I see?” she begs. “Please let me see?” “There are no eggs, just an old nest. Can we please keep it?” pleads Owen. After […]
“I found GOLD!” squeals Laura. Four little friends are quick to join her in the latest gold rush in the sandbox. In the wee hours of the morning, often when the sun is barely above the horizon and the coffee is still being brewed, gold will magically appear in our sandbox. Spray-painted rocks that […]
“If the squirrel comes down from this direction, we can trap him under here!” yells Elliot. The playground equipment sits empty as Elliott, Harper and their fellow “squirrel trappers” congregate at the base of a towering oak tree in our neighborhood park. The children have long been captivated by this venerable old oak, which has […]
One bright fall morning, I notice that the noise level at Under the Gingko Tree is exceptionally low. A quick glance around reassures me that all of my early learners are safe and accounted for. Then I notice a quiet but intense play buzz happening in our rain garden, so I wander over to […]
“Look! The snow packs! Let’s make a snowman!” Today’s sunshine and rising temperatures have transformed yesterday’s powdery snow into packable fun—ushering in an afternoon of playful math and science learning. These are the times when I love to pull out my camera to document the many foundation-building moments that find their way into our play. […]
After months of sequestering and social distancing to stop the spread of COVID-19, we could all use some fresh winter air! Nature is just what the doctor ordered to stimulate our senses while we meet our early learning standards. The winter months offer an abundance of STEM learning opportunities, so don’t let the falling […]
” Hey guys! Look over here! My magnet sticks to the bike!” On this warm November morning, our magnetic wands have brought STEM learning to our outdoor classroom. By leaving the other magnetic materials behind, I am hoping to encourage the children to harness their curiosity and creativity for other forms of magnetic exploration. […]
“Do our shadows look like the monsters in the book?” asks James. I glance over and see James and Noa connecting their shadows by overlapping their arms. When we engage children in outdoor shadow play to support active exploration and discovery, their creativity is endless! James and Noa are playing out their version of […]
“AUGGGHHHH!” I hear screams, a crash and giggles galore. The joy of Magna-Tiles® has returned to our ever-popular window-stacking play. When these colorful magnetic tile mosaics come crashing down from the window frame, the children respond with laughter and joy. By contrast, the collapse of three-dimensional block formations often elicits groans and tears. Something […]
“I see the daddy cardinal, do you know where the mama bird is?” Four-year-old Noah, binoculars in hand, is busy counting birds in our outdoor classroom. Are you aware that the annual Great Backyard Bird Count is coming up later this week? This is a great opportunity to create a bird-watching station and knock out […]
“AAAAUUUUGHHHHHHH! Worms! Look, look! They are everywhere!” Eleanor is jumping up and down hysterically. Nothing will bring our crew running faster than a good worm sighting! Let the earthworm exploration begin. We love worms! Last spring, we witnessed an unusual natural phenomenon as a mass of earthworms wiggled out of their subterranean homes in […]
“Evie, come look! I’m a superhero! I have superpowers!” calls Jamie from the foyer. Curiosity piqued, Evie leaves her blocks behind to see what her best friend is up to now. “Rainbows!!!” Evie shrieks as she spies the colorful light pattern on Jamie’s wrist. Everyone within earshot dashes over to see the rainbows. And, […]
“Hey, Hudson! How did you do that?” Eleanor is amazed at Hudson’s success as he races a car down the ramp. This is the same car that she couldn’t get to stay on the ramp just minutes earlier. I listen as Hudson turns the car over and explains, “See those wheels? The front ones […]
I recently grabbed our dusty box of beanbags off of the top shelf of the closet and took the beanbags outside. We rarely played with them indoors, so what was I saving them for? If a beanbag gets lost or forgotten under the plants and soaked in the rain, who cares? At least it […]
As I look around me, I see busy, contented children. Jimmy and Tali are seeing how high they can stack their rocks. Eve and Noa are creating a tea party for fairies near the sandbox. Eleanor and Salli are creating homes and meals for the squirrels who frequent the rain garden. Everyone is happy and […]
‘Why are they moving so fast?” This windy summer morning has Harper and his fellow STEM explorers racing toward the pinwheels in our outdoor play area. “They are really, really fast today,” Jimmy agrees. “They move faster on windy days!” adds five-year-old Noah. “You can stop them and then watch how fast they start up […]
“I smell cinnamon rolls!” exclaims Henry as he races through the gate towards our outdoor classroom. Everyone stops what they are doing to inhale deeply. “I do too! I want a cinnamon roll!” pleads Noah. My group is quite disappointed to learn that I am not baking cinnamon rolls this morning. The delicious cinnamon-roll smell […]
“Hey everybody! Look at all of the tomatoes that are ripe today!” shouts Jacob to the gang. “Can we eat them for lunch? Can we?” asks Lucus. “Can we eat them now?” pleads Elizabeth. It’s early September and preschoolers around the country are learning about apples, but we have tomatoes at our fingertips. The same […]
“Hey, Evelyn! Go get your cell phone and meet me at the stumps!” calls Noa. My head whirls around as I check the classroom to see if a cell phone has actually made its way into school today. Then I see Evelyn running to the basket of dominoes to get her “cell phone.” Whew! […]
“Look what I made!” shouts Parker. Our moment of silent concentration and focus is interrupted by Parker ecstatically showing off her geoboard. “You made a house?” asks Linnea, looking a little wide-eyed and confused. “How did you do that?” “I just added shapes and it worked!” Parker answers, equally amazed by her own creation. “I […]
As the days grow shorter and the slanting rays of sun that create our rainbows are replaced by clouds, we shift our energy to other forms of investigative play with light and color. “Saaliha, come play with me at the light table!” Nora calls out. Saaliha joins her friend and the STEM investigations into light, […]
To be a child again and rediscover the joy of a simple box? This lesson represents STEM creativity at its finest!
“It’s a murmuration! Hurry everybody, come look!” Five-year-old Elizabeth is jumping up and down, joyfully shouting for her friends to share in the delight of her discovery. Have you ever seen a “murmuration” of birds? It is such a magical and mesmerizing sight that it will stay in your memory bank forever. “Starling murmurations” are […]
In this lesson, children will use magnifying glasses to explore the world around them.
In this lesson, children will learn scientific facts as they follow the book, “If You Decide to Go to the Moon,” which documents a boy’s fascinating excursion to the moon and back. The children will then construct and launch straw rockets to learn about the physics of space.
In this lesson, children will be magnet detectives as they investigate and experiment with magnetic forces.
Celebrate the warm winds of spring with a colorful, breezy pinwheel investigation! In this lesson, students will learn about wind energy as they use a pinwheel to model a wind turbine.
Activities that engage a child’s sense of smell can also help develop a child’s sense of taste and language skills. In this lesson, children will learn how to use their sense of smell as an important observational tool.
In this lesson, children will explore force and motion concepts as they play with boxes and objects found around the classroom.
Designing a skyscraper involves choosing the best materials and arranging them in the best way to keep the structure stable as it grows taller and taller.
In this lesson, children will be introduced to map reading and create a map of their own classroom.
In this lesson, children will investigate footprints left in the snow and follow the clues to discover who left those prints!
In this lesson, children will combine two simple ingredients—root beer and vanilla ice cream—to observe a reaction between a liquid and a solid that releases a gas.
In this lesson, you will introduce young learners to STEM concepts such as velocity, speed and wind as they blow on dandelion puffs to disperse the seeds.
“No, Trey! You have to blow out—like when you blow out the candles on a birthday cake,” Noah counsels. “Don’t suck the seeds in!” I look over to see Trey, our youngest learner, pulling dandelion seeds off of his lips. There are no giggles from his peers, just many suggestions and a short science […]
“Who wants to play chemistry with me?” asks five-year-old Katie. “What is that?” asks Annika as she jumps off of her swing to see what adventures this moment may bring. “You mix things up, like concoctions or recipes,” Katie explains. “Sometimes things change colors or the mixture gets real thick and gooey. It’s an experiment. […]
“It is so hot!” moans five-year-old Manual, who is sweating profusely in the sweltering heat. The temperature—which has soared unexpectedly during this second week of May—is in the high 90s, with a heat index of over 100. “It is so hot!” Can we have a popsicle?” pleads Lauren, who knows that I’m a sucker […]
Last month, the Early Science Matters team presented at the Midwest Early Childhood Educators Symposium. Sponsored by the Northern Illinois Nature Preschool Association, the symposium took place at a particularly inspiring site for nature lovers: the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois. Surrounded by nature and in the company of a truly amazing audience of […]
“Noa, what are you doing?” questions Jose. “I’m giving this rock a swing!” giggles Noa as she embarks on her latest investigation into force and motion. “Are you sure that will work?” James asks. “I think the rock will fall off!” We all stop what we are doing to observe as Noa cautiously pulls […]
“Hey Trey! Want to play hardware store?” asks Jamie. The hardware store that Jamie is referring to? It’s not really a store at all, but an area that we set up at our center to give children an opportunity to play with nuts, washers and bolts. The activity turned out to be a surprise […]
“Miss Diann, I need a hammer! Look! Look! See? I need a hammer!” Three-year-old Jonathan—our “fix-it man”—is pointing to a loose wagon screw that needs his immediate attention. We turn the wagon on its side to take a closer look at the wheel. Yes! We definitely have a loose screw. “Do you need a hammer […]
“Saaliha, can you hold this side down for me? I am trying to measure the sidewalk! I have the longest tape measure!” We brought out the tape measures this week. There is nothing like a tool in the hands of young friends to get the juices flowing and the neurons firing. When children are […]
“Rain before seven, clear by eleven!” exclaims Pierre as he bounces through the door with his ever-present smile and positive attitude. “My mom told me it was raining before I got up this morning. But she also said we will be outside by lunchtime!” “Is that true?” asks Michael, who is standing nearby. “It usually […]
“Get him, Avery! Get him!” Auuughhhhh! “Did you get him?” “He’s over there, Rowan, get him!” The children’s search is punctuated by high-pitched screams. Is it a snake? A grasshopper? What garden creature could be causing such a stir on a lazy Monday afternoon? “I got him!” Rowan declares as she cradles a garden toad […]
“If you wiggle your hands like this, you can make lots and lots of bubbles!” exclaims Hudson. “Watch!” Piper and Hudson are elbow deep in a tub of water, splashing about happily as they investigate cause and effect in a moment of playful learning. Science begins with curiosity, which leads to discovery and exploration. […]
“Look, look, I made a rainbow!” exclaims three-year-old Evelyn to the rest of the group gathered around our clay table. I look at her clay creation, which consists of a small orange arch supported by a yellow base decorated with gemstones, tree bark and Mardi Gras beads. “It is a rainbow!” Noa responds gleefully. “I […]
“Look, the snow packs! Let’s make some snow people!” The sunshine and rising temperatures have transformed yesterday’s powdery snow into packable fun for an afternoon of playful math and science learning. This is a great time to pull out your camera to document the many foundation-building moments that find their way into winter play. This […]
“Hey, Hudson, look! Animal tracks! Let’s be detectives and see where they go!” Hudson and James are on the hunt. It’s one of those peaceful, quiet winter mornings when freshly fallen snow blankets our outdoor area and muffles the sounds of the morning rush hour. The sun is shining and the scene is so sparkly […]
“Is this the eagle triangle?” Kiana asks, holding up a MAGNA-TILE for my inspection. “An eagle triangle?” I respond, baffled. “Kiana, I don’t think I know what an eagle triangle is.” “Yes you do,” she insists. “You were helping Joseph and you showed him two of the MAGNA-TILES. One looked like an eagle and the […]
“Thalhah, can you bring me that rock over there? I think it is just the right size we need.” Noelle points to a long, narrow golden rock. “Okay, but this rock is really heavy!” Thalhah grunts as he carefully lifts the large river rock from one area of our rain garden and carries it over […]
Four-year-old Jordan is deep in thought and uncharacteristically quiet. When Jordan—one of our more rambunctious early learners—is this quiet, he is either sleeping or engaged in a scientific investigation. I walk over to see what has captured his attention. Sure enough, Jordan is engaged in an impromptu physics experiment, which involves placing a piece of […]
“Did you hear that? shouts Arden, our resident naturalist. “I just heard an owl, and it’s not even bedtime!” he reports, his eyes as big as saucers. “He must be really hungry to be hunting this early in the day.” “Are you sure it wasn’t our mourning doves?’ I ask. The mourning doves nest in […]
Crash! The Magna-Tiles that the children have been stacking against the window come crashing down to the floor. “Fast fail!” shouts Mallory. “I think that was a fast-FALL!” quips Noah, our resident punster. The children giggle and pick up the tiles to restart the stacking process—but only after they share their ideas about […]
In this lesson, children will design and build a strong house that will not be “blown away”
In this lesson, children will design and build using materials found in nature.
Winter is a magical time of year, full of wonder and excitement. On this particular day, the air is crisp and cold, and a special kind of magic is in the air: static electricity! To take advantage of this teachable moment, we’ve embarked on a scientific investigation that involves a classroom full of preschoolers, […]
“Look, look! Come and see what is inside this flower!” It’s a warm, late-spring day and our friends are scattered around the yard, discovering the new surprises that have popped up overnight. The flowers are finally showing their beautiful blooms! “Is it a bumblebee?” I ask. They look at me—their eyes big with wonder. […]
In this lesson, children will graph the different vehicles that they scoop out of a bucket and then analyze their collected data, creating rules for why a vehicle is similar or different than other vehicles.
In this lesson, children will start with one object and decide which objects in the room are heavier or lighter than that object.
In this lesson, children will measure the time that it takes to move quickly versus moving slowly.
In this lesson, children will use a variety of open-ended materials to create engineering designs of bridges and then construct and test their designs.
Two-year-old Eleanor squeals with delight: “I did it! I made a ball! Look, I made a ball!” Whether they are using homemade play dough, modeling clay or Play-Doh from a can, children can spend hours learning, playing and collaborating with that little ball of STEM magic.STEM play integrates science, technology, engineering and math learning while encouraging […]