- Kelly H.
- Friday, August 23, 2019
It all started with STEM – Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics.
The idea was to educate children in subjects that would allow them to tackle the challenges they’ll face in this constantly changing world.
And then someone inserted an “A” in the equation to make STEAM – Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics – which allows children to add a creative component to their learning.
Now I’m proposing a new acronym: STREAM – Science, Technology, Reading, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics.
Combining reading with sciences and arts is a natural progression. For example, let’s consider slime. Yes, slime. Nowadays, slime is a big thing. You can find how-to-make-slime videos on YouTube and slime kits on the shelves of every big box store.
"Now I’m proposing a new acronym: STREAM – Science, Technology, Reading, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics."
But I was making slime before slime was cool.
Of course, I didn’t call it slime. Add a little green food coloring and you have oobleck. Add a reading of Dr. Seuss’s classic Bartholomew and the Oobleck and you have a library program.
I don’t claim to be a scientist, but science makes me geek out just a little. Some experiments have an almost magical quality. Take slime. You mix two liquids together and you get a perfectly oozy, gooey concoction that kids can – and do – play with. And in the course of all that, you slip in a simple scientific explanation of how the ingredients combine to form polymers.
In my years at the library, I’ve done dozens of programs with a scientific bent. I read books about boats, then the kids made boats powered by balloons – a fun lesson in air propulsion. Another program began with a book about a family of refrigerator magnets, then the children used magnets to paint pictures – science, art and reading combined for a STREAM trifecta.
Other programs were inspired by real life events. During the weeks leading up to the 2017 solar eclipse, I did several programs about space. The recent 50th anniversary of the first moon landing prompted programs about rockets and the moon.
By now you might be thinking that this is the kind of thing your children go to school for, and you’re right. So why does science belong in the library? The difference is the approach. When children go to school, they’re expected to learn. And there’s a test at the end. When children come to the library, the only expectation is that they have fun. And if they accidentally learn something in the process, that’s a good thing.
So the next time you read a book to your children, think of an experiment or art project you can do to supplement your reading.
Here are some ideas to get you started:
- Read Bartholomew and the Oobleck by Dr. Seuss, then make a batch of slime.
Get the Book | Do the Activity - Read Bubble Bath Pirates by Jarrett Krosoczka, then make your own bubble solution and learn a little about how bubbles work.
Get the Book | Do the Activity - Read Drummer Hoff by Barbara Emberley, then make an air cannon.
Get the Book | Do the Activity
Of course, we still want you to bring your children to the library – after all, pairing fun activities with books is the kind of thing we love to do.