Engineering is Elementary: I'm still here!

Saturday, November 2, 2019

I'm still here!

I am thriving in the transition from Einstein Fellow back to classroom educator. I did not return to my same teaching position and have had many changes along the road. I am finally catching my breath and able to spend a little time on my blog.

I am thrilled to be back in the classroom and teaching in a 3rd grade general classroom. One of my big goals for returning to the classroom was to bring the STEM experiences I have had to the students. This is always easier said than done when considering all that goes into classroom instruction. There have been days when I said, "I got this!" and other days when I have to reset and try again. While I have a lot of experience, ideas, and possible resources, I still do not have all the answers, and I am definitely not perfect. I am enjoying learning from my colleagues and my students.

Examining primary sources for a playground design project

I can't believe we are a quarter of the way through the school year. It has felt at times as though I have been on a hamster wheel, except a little more productive. At times, I have to remind myself to slow down and breathe because if I get stressed over things that need to be done, it usually transfers itself to my students.

Counting our unifix cubes

Composing and decomposing numbers

It has been a whirlwind of collaborative activities, projects, and working to integrate STEM instruction into the core classroom instruction. The students do quite a bit of engineering whether through a 3D printing project, prescribed build, or a free build.

Constructing out of cardboard

They share a lot of their project work on Seesaw digital portfolios (web.seesaw.me). The digital portfolios allow me to keep records of student work and performance based assessments. Families are also able to view student work and helps them understand what we are doing in our classroom.