We were recently asked about our STEM program here at the center and we decided it would be a good time to remind people what our company is about and how we see the STEM component of our program in its current phase and how it will evolve going forward. While it is true that we are relatively new as an early childhood education company, our owners have vast experience with STEM programming for K-12 schools, and our leadership team at the Denton location is strong and committed to growing our programs. That means that what we do today will look different from how we do things in the future.
What is covered in this article?
- STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
- Our school day curriculum includes STEM enrichment
- We support children through activity exploration and questioning strategies
- We have after school activities planned, teacher will be a university student
- We run fun STEM activities in the summer every week
- Regular STEM activities are included in weekly tuition, do not increase cost
- Eventually we will offer optional “pay for” activities
What Is STEM
STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. This might mean simple experiments, working with circuit kits, building blocks, LEGO robotics, and any math that could come into play in those situations. STEM enrichment at this age is all about playful, hands-on learning that sets the stage for critical thinking and problem-solving skills. You might also consider us a STEAM program, with the A standing for ART, another component of what we do in the classroom.
The Curriculum – What We Teach
As a program in preparation for Texas Rising Star (TRS) certification, we needed a curriculum that was approved by the state. The support staff for TRS presented us with a few options, and provided support for us to get a program started. For the Early Preschool and Preschool Age (3-5) classrooms, we use HighScope, a curriculum that has been around since the 1960’s and has been studied and evolved to better improve learning in preschool age children. You can read a previous blog posts to learn more about HighScope and its benefits here. HighScope has STEM built into its lessons and it provides support materials to expand on those ideas.
How We Teach It
During the regular school day, our process is simple. Provide an environment where children can ask questions, make mistakes, and grow from their experiences. The role of the teacher is to provide materials, and sometimes problems and questions, and allow the children to explore, whether it be a guided exploration or creative free play. In either case, the teacher has an additional role: support. They can ask questions, make small suggestions, and play along with children as they learn. Our teachers are facilitators, and the children are scientists, artists, engineers, and storytellers.
Additional STEM Enrichment
We love our curriculum, but there are more hours in our workday with the children than there are in our “school day”. Additionally, we take children in the afternoon that are not a part of our preschool program, and we want to provide them with STEM enrichment as well. To do this, we have 2 types of programs: After School and Summer Programs
After-School STEM
For the after-school program, we must keep in mind that children have spent their entire day in a classroom at school, possibly sitting at a desk, and they may have been a captive audience. We want all learning to spark joy, so we strive to put activities before them that they might not get during the regular day. All STEM enrichment is hands-on, normally with a chance for the children to perform an experiment themselves and talk about what will happen and why (before the experiment/project) versus what did happen and why (after the experiment/project). These activities are typically planned by a student at one of the local colleges and approved for work at the center in the same fashion as our teachers.
Summer STEM
In the summer we like to amp it up a notch when we can. On top of similar activities to the after-school program, we plan to expand into clubs for the 5-12 range students. They can choose a club each month that aligns with their interests and do a deeper dive each afternoon into that subject. While it may take some time to get there, we would even like to have a robotics club, and have the children participate in competitions.
What Is the Cost?
All of the activities previously mentioned are included in the weekly tuition. Eventually we may offer some additional “pay for” activities based on parent and student feedback, but we are not ready to implement that part of the program yet. Participation in any activities that are extra cost will be completely voluntary and not rolled into the price of regular tuition.
DreamSpark Academy believes that providing STEM/STEAM enrichment is key to developing curious learners. We want to help them discover the wonder in the world and set the stage for them to remain curious while they attend school. Our programs are developing and evolving constantly. We hope this clearly explains our educational belief and structure, and that upon reading this you will want to join us as we take children through the learning process that forms our STEM programming.