Supporting STEAM in Your School or District

Purpose & objective

The purpose of this presentation is to provide participants with ideas on how they can support STEAM education in their schools. The district showcased in this presentation faced the problem of how to bring more STEAM activities and strategies to more schools and classrooms. The program focused on design thinking, inquiry-based learning, and the Engineering Design Process, with emphasis on inclusion and the Universal Design for Learning to help support teachers as they attempt to meet the needs of ALL students. Several technology integration models, such as SAMR and the TIM Matrix, were evaluated. The presenter will show the process she went through to create a STEAM teacher training program and the strategies that were taught within it, as well as how to adapt these strategies for K-12 classrooms. Whether they are teachers or administrators, participants will be able to leave this session with ideas on how to better provide STEAM activities and lessons that incorporate a number of skills and meet a number of standards. Participants will be able to take ideas on how to get started with building a STEAM program in their classroom, school, or district back to their colleagues. Participants will be able to identify some of those integral teaching strategies related to STEAM education. They will also be able to explore some resources that can support their own learning related to STEAM pedagogy. The presentation will include some polling questions as well as a digital parking lot for questions and ah-ha moments, to be presented using Pear Deck and Jamboard. Success with this presentation will be evidenced by participants leaving with and sharing (via Jamboard) new ideas that they plan to take back to their schools.

Outline

Content and activities: Participants will be able to engage in some poll questions using Pear Deck to help the presenter understand where folks are coming from with their STEAM teaching experiences. Content of the presentation will be shown through slides with images and videos of what took place during the program showcased. Participants will also be able to engage with a collaborative Jamboard to ask questions, state “ah-ha” moments, and share ideas of what they are doing or may plan to do after attending the presentation.

Time: Opening Pear Deck-5 minutes, presentation of content-30 minutes, idea solicitation and sharing-Throughout the presentation with emphasis on 10 minutes towards the end of the session

Process: Pear Deck and Jamboard will be used during the presentation in order to engage the audience. Pear Deck will be used at the beginning of the presentation, and Jamboard will be introduced at the beginning and left open throughout the presentation to be used as a “parking lot” for questions and ah-ha moments.

Supporting research

Step into STEAM by Sarah Bush and Kristin Cook
STEAM Power by Tim Needles
An Educator’s Guide to STEAM by Cassie Quigley and Danielle Herro