Looking ahead at the new year, we’re excited to be launching new cybersecurity lessons, professional development cycles on climate change and new, free resources for families. To give you a preview, we spoke to one of our expert curriculum developers at EiE^®, Derek Butterton, who shared insights with us into the things educators have been asking for and the resources we are creating in response to those needs.

We know elementary school is a critical time for students’ career interests. By the end of fifth grade, some students have already decided to pursue a career in STEM, while others have concluded such a career is “unthinkable” (DeWitt, 2011). The good news is that teaching about professions at the elementary level can affect this trajectory: students with greater knowledge of STEM careers are more likely to aspire to careers in those fields. (Blotnicky, 2018).

We know that EiE’s Habits of Mind encourages student growth, but did you know how we consider social emotional learning in our resource development? Students’ SEL learning is key to helping kids achieve their best selves, both in and out of the classroom. 

Whether at home or in the classroom, this Halloween offers a great opportunity to keep the learning going with hands-on activities. Festive projects with spooky themes can teach your learners about engineering, physics, chemistry and more — check out these suggestions for making this holiday a learning occasion.

With congressional funding earmarked for education, curriculum leaders and administrators from Central Kitsap School District in Washington state were on the lookout for new materials to support their teaching goals. After seeing success in STEM among teachers who were already using EiE^® units in their classrooms, Doug Dowell, STEM Coordinator and Grant Supervisor for CKSD, sought to partner with EiE to expand upon that success district-wide.