My fourth grade students are curious, energetic, out of the box thinkers, who find solutions to problems most would not. They absolutely love hands-on, active, engaging projects and challenges that allow them to think outside the box to find solutions! They come to school each day ready to try new things and take brave chances in order to grow both personally and academically. Truly, they are my inspiration!
My inquisitive students thrive on hands-on learning experiences and academic challenges that truly encourage growth!
My Project
Often times during our teaching day we hear the words, "I'm done. Now what should I do?" Sometimes students are instructed to read, write in a journal, play an educational game on an iPad, or complete a worksheet. Although there is value in these activities, I'd like to provide my students with hands-on, engaging, and open-ended work. My fourth graders have a natural curiosity to explore and engineer whenever possible. STEM bins fit this need perfectly!
STEM bins are small plastic boxes filled with engineering manipulatives, such as dominoes, LEGO bricks, Plus Plus building blocks, and a Roller Coaster marble run.
The boxes also contain photo task cards of real world structures and challenge students to use the items in the bins to create and invent as many structures as possible. When students' regular classwork is complete, they can take a STEM bin to get a quiet moment to engineer. Students will be involved in creative, complex tasks while being encouraged to think like inventors.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. Haynes and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.