What is STEAM? STEAM is an acronym for Science, Technology/Tools, Engineering, Art, and Math. This is a summary of the STEAM opportunities that the students of Harmony's House have experienced during their studies of polar animals.
(While so many of these activities could fall into a few STEAM areas, Ms. Harmony has tried to evenly assign the lessons across the subject areas.)
SCIENCE-
Penguin Movements: Although, penguins are birds, they do not fly. After reading a book about penguins in Circle Time, we tried out what it would be like to move like penguins. To experience having short legs, we tied bandannas around our ankles and attempted to walk around. We also hopped and pretended to slide on our bellies and swim. The students learned about the various ways penguins, as polar birds, move around.
Finish the story: During Small Group, Ms. Harmony read the first part of this book Little Polar Bear. Then she invited the children to use their knowledge of these Arctic animals and the environment around the North Pole to finish the story in their own way. After devising our own ending to the story of helping little Lars to find his way home, Ms. Harmony read the ending that the author chose for the little polar bear.
TECHNOLOGY/TOOLS-
Ocean Jello: Many polar animals use the ocean as a method of survival because it is a source of food. The fish, squid, penguins, seals, walruses, and whales find their feasts in the ocean. To discuss the subject of animal feeding habits, we mixed up a small box of blue jello during Small Group. In addition to talking about the phase change from liquid to solid and feeding habits of the animals, we also learned the names of cooking tools such as "liquid measuring cup" and "wire whisk." After the jello set up, we enjoyed eating it with Cool Whip "snow" on top!
Puzzles and Magnifying Glasses: This puzzle had a map and pictured animals found at both the North and the South poles. After completing the puzzle in Small Group, we used magnifying glasses to search for the different animals. We determined that penguins are only found in the southern hemisphere, while the Arctic circle has a wider range of animal diversity, and yet no penguins. Further discussion about how the students interacted with the magnifying glasses can be found in this post.
ENGINEERING-
Polar Landscaping: The children were invited to use loose parts such as stones, flattened marbles, cotton balls, felt, and Arctic animals to create these animal homes.
ART-
Black and white collage: During Small Group, the students tore pieces of black paper while we discussed why animals that live at the poles often have black skin (even if its under white fur!) or feathers. This color is best for absorbing heat from the Sun! Polar animals also often have white fur or feathers for camouflage purposes. Once the paper was torn, the school friends glued it onto white paper in collage fashion according to their personal preferences.
Pipette Icicles: "What is an icicle?" Friend "K" asks. That was a great question that we attempted to answer through an art experience. Icicles are made when water melts, drips, and then refreezes. We used pipettes at the easel with diluted grey and blue paint to see how liquid drips down. More can be read on this activity here.
MATH-
Iceberg Number Recognition and Counting: Ms. Harmony prepared these "icebergs" with numbers 1-10, star foil stickers, laminant, and blue painters tape. First the children put the numbers in order. If they weren't sure which number they had, they counted the stars to find out. Then we tossed a beanbag on the icebergs. Whichever number it landed on, the child hopped (like a penguin) to the iceberg and shouted out the number.
Snowflake geometry and shapes: This was one of our most recent awesome experiences! The children learned about a new shape called HEXAGON that has six sides. Snowflakes, although 100% unique, share a common trait of having six sides. The school friends used large shapes to design their own "snowflakes" all over the rug during Circle Time.
We have really enjoyed the STEAM power through our studies of animals at the North and South poles!
