Thursday, February 9, 2017

Valentine's Day STEM Activities that Students will LOVE


It's almost that time of year, Valentine's Day! This year why not add some flair to your Valentine fun with a STEM activity. 

Think outside the box this Valentine's Day with these four Valentine STEM activities that students are sure to fall in love with. Click on the pictures to learn more!

Keep your students creating and designing this Valentine's Day with activities like Cupid's Bow and Arrow. For this activity the students receive a letter from Cupid informing them that he has lost his bow and arrow. The students are then instructed to build him a new and improved bow and arrow. 


Another fun Valentine STEM activity is Design a Candy Box. For this challenge the students must create and build a box to hold an entire bag of conversation hearts. 


One of my favorites and an activity that students are sure to love is Valentine Mail Delivery. For this STEM activity the students receive a letter from the post office explaining that they need the students to build a plane to help deliver all of the gifts and cards in time for Valentin's Day.


Another engaging Valentine STEM activity is Valentine Flower Design. For this project the students must design a new species of flower for Valentine's Day. The new flower must contain all of the flower parts and it must solve a problem that flower gardeners face.


You can get all four Valentine STEM activities at a discounted price with the Valentine STEM Bundle

For other STEM activities check out the STEM section of my TPT store. 

I hope you have found this blog post helpful. To stay connected with Carly and Adam's teaching tips and classroom freebies be sure to follow us on FacebookPinterestTeachers Pay Teachers, and subscribe to our blog!

We would love to hear your thoughts. Please leave your feedback in the comments. We can't wait to connect with you!


-Carly

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Increase Student Fact Fluency with Emojis


No matter what grade level you teach odds are that your students love emojis. My students are no exception!

One day as I was thinking about this ridiculous craze it hit me. Why not use the students' love of emojis to motivate them to learn their math facts? 

A couple of years ago I discovered the many versatile uses of the clip chart. One of these uses is as a math fact motivational tool. To learn more about other clip chart uses check out my blog post, 5 Ways to Use Clip Charts Other Than Behavior

Using this concept I designed several emoji theme clip charts for addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Check out the examples below. 

How does it work you may be asking? Simply print the chart, laminate it, and tape the pieces together. Next, write all of your students' names on clothespins and clip them to the bottom of the chart. As students pass each timed test they clip up the chart.

Students love to track their progress, and you will love how easy and motivating this system is!

For other clip charts check out the clip chart section of my TPT store. 

I hope you have found this blog post helpful. To stay connected with Carly and Adam's teaching tips and classroom freebies be sure to follow us on FacebookPinterestTeachers Pay Teachers, and subscribe to our blog!

We would love to hear your thoughts. Please leave your feedback in the comments. We can't wait to connect with you!



-Carly



Saturday, January 7, 2017

Make Your New Year's Resolution Be STEM (January STEM Activities)


The new year is always a great time for teachers to reflect on the school year. What things are going well in your classroom? What aspects could use some improvement?

Are students engaged in learning? Are they collaborating with one another and using problem solving skills on a daily or weekly basis? 

Have you tried STEM in your classroom? If not the new year is the perfect time to get on board with STEM!

I am so excited to launch my newest batch of STEM activities for January! 

Check out Build a Polar Bear Den.



For this challenge the students receive a letter from the STEM polar bear stating that their challenge is to build a snow den for a mother polar bear and her cubs. 

Another fun STEM winter activity is Design a Snowflake. For this activity the students receive a letter from the STEM snowman stating that they need to design a snowflake using symmetry. 


One of my favorites and an activity that students are sure to love is Build a Penguin Raft.



For this challenge the students receive a letter from the STEM penguin stating that they need to design a raft in order to help the penguins move around better in the water.

Another engaging January STEM activity is the Martin Luther King Jr. Build a Podium challenge. For this activity the students design a podium for Martin Luther King Jr. to use when he delivers his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. What I love most about this activity is that it integrates Science, Social Studies, Reading, Math, and Writing!

You can get all four January STEM activities at a discounted price with the January STEM bundle

For other STEM activities check out the STEM section of my TPT store. 

I hope you have found this blog post helpful. To stay connected with Carly and Adam's teaching tips and classroom freebies be sure to follow us on FacebookPinterestTeachers Pay Teachers, and subscribe to our blog!

We would love to hear your thoughts. Please leave your feedback in the comments. We can't wait to connect with you!



-Carly