Educators, administrators, and corporate leaders all agree: we need to encourage girls to explore STEAM skills and consider STEM careers for their futures. But how? We asked members of the Discovery Educator Network to share content, programs, and ideas they have found to be successful in bringing more girls to the world of STEAM!
Infusing STEAM Content in All Classrooms
A major goal of the K-12 experience is to prepare students for their next step in life. So, when thinking about how to encourage girls to explore STEAM topics or pursue STEM careers, bringing these concepts into the classroom is top of mind for educators. Exposing students to STEAM experiences frequently will help them see how their personal interests align with process used in STEM careers, like researching concepts, testing ideas, and sharing results.
Check out these top four recommendations from the DEN for infusing STEAM into all classrooms:
- Offer a variety of opportunities for creative expression in the planning phase of projects. Consider how students can draw, sketch, or creatively outline plans for projects to help bring the “A” of “STEAM” into the learning process early. Some students may choose to create sketch notes from their research on a topic while others may choose to draw a prototype for a model they will create later in the process—offering a variety of arts-forward options for planning helps students connect all letters of STEAM throughout a project.
- Find creative outlets for students to share their learning. On the tail end of a project or unit, allow students to use an artistic method—like designing posters, writing songs, performing skits, or creating digital visual aids—as an opportunity for them to reflect on and share their learning. STEAM learning can inspire innovation—sharing the successes should be an exciting part of the process and easily lends itself to artistic expression.
- Designate a Maker Space for students to work on independent and collaborative projects. Creating a Maker Space in your school or classroom can sound overwhelming, but it should just be a place where students can gather to collaborate on projects and access a variety of art supplies. It can be a space in a common area such as the media center or just a corner in a classroom!
- Find opportunities for all teachers to utilize content or concepts. Collaborative planning can help all teachers find inspiration for future lessons. For instance, if your students are studying laws of motion in science class, the Physical Education teacher may have some motion-focused games where students can test the hypotheses and theories introduced in science class!
STEAM lessons will pave the way for new innovations and collaborative experiences, and it can also help girls picture themselves as scientists, tech-wizards, artists, mathematicians, and engineers. Use content that puts successful STEM women in the spotlight so students can envision how their interests can align with a career they may not have considered or even heard of before.
Explore STEM Career Resources
Girls4Tech
Career Tours by Amazon
If/Then STEM Professionals
Five Ideas for Dynamic STEAM Programming
Finding space for girls to comfortably explore STEAM topics and collaborate with other girls can mean extending your programming in new ways through clubs, contests, and special events. Read on for five ideas from the DEN to make your STEAM programming fun and flexible for girls!
We cannot hope that girls turn their graduation tassel and suddenly take an interest in STEAM topics. Instead, we need to find ways for them to explore STEAM early, frequently, and in encouraging settings. STEAM learning can be exciting for all students when there are clear connections between the different letters and students’ interests!
