We love doing hands-on activities, it’s what most of our homeschool consists of to be totally honest with you. Being able to review the STEM Activities, Full Year of Challenges with Close Reading by Tied 2 Teaching was so exciting because we get to combine two of our favourite things, hands-on projects and STEM activities. These activities are set up in a way that they are really great for any level. Both of my children who are in grade three and kindergarten really enjoyed the activities and they enjoyed listening to the information as well. With four STEM activities for each month, you can add some fun and excitement to every week of the year!
how the activities are set up
Each of the STEM activities has a mini little lesson to go along with it. The lesson will provide you with a link to wonderopolis.org where you will be able read an article relating to the topic. For example, with the “Love Bug” activity there was an article about being scared of bugs along with a short little video of a boy and his bug collection and a few pictures of bugs for the kids to look at. There is also a worksheet with long answer questions and multiple choice that goes along with the article. The worksheets aren’t really something that works with our family, my son struggles with lots of writing and my daughter is unable to write yet but we still found a ton of value even without doing the worksheets.
Then there are the actual STEM activities. You are given a “challenge” which tells you what you will be making as well as showing you some picture examples of the project. Some of the projects are less challenging while others are a little more difficult and children might even need some help. Each STEM Design Challange comes with a really handy sheet that has things like the design criteria, a list of material suggestions, and what your final project should include. This sheet makes it super easy for parents to explain what to do without much preparation. The STEM challenge section of the activity also includes some worksheets that you can complete as you plan and create your projects. The nice thing is that some of these worksheets are designed in a way that children could draw pictures rather than writing.
Our Favourite things about Tied 2 Teaching STEM Activities
I think that this is a great way to add some fun hands-on STEM activities to our monthly homeschooling activities. It makes planning and getting the activities ready for my children super easy because all the hard work is already done for you. I also like that we are able to use the parts that work for us and just leave out the rest without decreasing the value of the activities! Sometimes planning activities for your children to do can be pretty stressful and having the list of materials as well as all of the instructions right there I think these will be used during the times when I am not feeling well and need my children to be occupied. Another great way to use these would be when your friends have a play date or you’re watching a friend’s children and you need something to keep all the kids occupied!
What I think you will like
- Very cost effective
- Most things can be found at home
- Activities are simple and can be done independently
- Includes activities, reading, pictures, videos, and worksheets
- Able to print only what you need
- Adds something exciting to your monthly plans
What my children thought
Kayden (Gr 3) – “So my thought for all of them together was that some of the activities had hard pictures to explain how to make it. (ex. the love bow) My favourite thing to make was the bow and arrow. I didn’t really like the articles but the videos attached to them were good.”
Emily (Kindergarten) – “I liked the leprechaun trap. I didn’t really like the stories but I liked the videos. I liked the video we watched about a boys bug collection.”
Where can you find these STEM Activities
You can find the STEM Activities, Full Year of Challenges with Close Reading at the TeachersPayTeachers store of Tied 2 Teaching here: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/STEM-Activities-FULL-YEAR-of-CHALLENGES Tied 2 Teaching also has a whole bunch of other activities that are available for purchase. Some of the things that caught my eye where the bundles, lapbooks, and units. Tied 2 Teaching also offers some really great freebies, which you can find here: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Tied-2-Teaching/Price-Range/Free
You can read other Homeschool Review Crew Members reviews by clicking the picture below or follow this link —> http://schoolhousereviewcrew.com/stem-activities-full-year-of-challenges-with-close-reading-tied-2-teaching-reviews/
