5TEM
Sally Moomaw and Jaumall A. Davis
Asia carefully turns the handle of a hand-
held drill that her teacher holds in place
over a piece of soft wood. Soon sawdust
begins to appear. "Round and round it
goes," they sing, as Asia cranks the handle.
Suddenly the drill bit slips through the
wood. "A hole!" exclaims Asia. "Let's do
it again." The teacher replaces the drill bit
with a smaller diameter bit. "You made a
round hole with the big bit," he says. "Do
you think this new bit will make a round
hole too?" Asia shrugs. "Do you think it
will make a big or a little hole?" the teacher
asks. Asia shrugs again. "Well, let's find
out," he says, and Asia eagerly begins to
turn the crank again.
I ath and science and the related
technology and engineering are
natural pairings. These four disci-
plines form the acronym STEM (Science,
Technology, Engineering, and Math) and can
be readily combined into an integrated cur-
riculum for early childhood classrooms.
Many educators believe that children learn
best when disciplines are interconnected.
An integrated curriculum, such as STEM, is
in keeping with developmentally appropri-
ate practice In early childhood education;
"Teachers plan curriculum experiences
that integrate children's learning within
and across . . . the discipiines" (Coppie &
Bredekamp 2009, 21). The National Council of
Sally Moomaw, EdD, is assistant professor of
early childhood education at the University of
Cincinnati, in Ohio. She taught preschool and kin-
dergarten for 25 years and has authored numer-
ous books on curriculum, sally.moomaw@uc.edu
Jaumall A. Davis, MEd, is an early childhood
Intervention specialist at Taft Elementary in the
Cincinnati Public Schools, Ohio. He has taught for
'•'»r".
more than nine years. Jaumall@fuse.net
Photos courtesy of the authors.
2,3
Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM 2000) encourages teach-
ers to help children connect mathematics to other con-
texts, while the National Science Education Standards (NRC
1996) urge teachers to coordinate science and mathematics
programs.
Some adults mistakenly think that STEM activities are too
challenging to integrate into preschool settings, particularly
if the children have special needs. Appropriate STEM activi-
ties, however, allow young children to explore materials
using all their senses. As they experiment and investigate
with the materials, they develop an understanding of impor-
tant mathematical relationships, such as more/less, far/
near, and fast/slow. We also found that the STEM curriculum
helps children focus, increase their vocabulary, collaborate
with one another, and create scientific relationships.
This article explores the reflective practice of a pre-
school early intervention teacher and a university teacher
educator working to develop and incorporate a STEM-
based curriculum in an inner-city, inclusive classroom. The
classroom included 14 children, ages 3 through 5, of whom
12 had documented disabilities, including cognitive delays,
severe language delays, cerebral palsy, autism spectrum
disorder, and behavioral disorders.
Preschool STEM activities
Although opportunities abound to integrate STEM educa-
tion into preschool classrooms, teachers must help chil-
dren construct learning connections among the disciplines.
For example, in the opening vignette the teacher directs
Asia's attention to the shape of the hole made by the drill
and creates an opportunity for her to compare the size of
the drill bit to the hole it makes.
The following three activities were developed as part of
a university/public school partnership to increase STEM
learning in urban preschools. Pattern, pendulum, and
incline activities ignited intense interest in the children.
Birds sing in patterns
Patterns are important elements of both mathematics and
science. Math educators consider recognizing, describing,
and extending patterns as key concepts for young children
and include these in both national and state content stan-
dards (NCTM 2000; Ohio Department of Education 2004).
Young Ch/Wren« September 2010
 TRAPITI#NAL ANP INNOVATIVE T # # L S FOK LEARNING

Patterns. The concept of pattern as repeating elements

To help children recognize, remember,
and represent melodic patterns, we intro-
duced the standard vocal syllables from
music (do, re, mi, and so on). We added
corresponding hand signs, a teaching
strategy called the Kodály method.
Understanding patterns helps children construct key mathe-
matical relationships; for example, in counting, each number
is one more than the previous number, but each odd or even
number is two more than the previous odd or even number.
Similarly, patterns occurring throughout science can
be observed by children within many contexts, such as in
the recurring cycle of day and night, the forward and back
motion of a swing, or the songs of birds. Understanding
systems, order, and organization is a unifying concept of
the National Science Education Standards (NRC 1996), and
patterns are a key element in this regard.
can be difficult for young children to understand. Given
the diversity of the children in our preschool, we decided
it would be best to introduce patterning through multiple
modes of learning: auditory, visual, vocal, and movement-
related. We chose toy Audubon birds, realistic plush repli-
cas of real birds, as an intriguing way to integrate natural
science, technology, and mathematics. A squeeze of the
birds activates a microchip that plays the authentic song of
each species (as recorded by the Cornell University Lab of
Ornithology).
Our preschoolers showed immediate interest in causing
the birds to "sing" their birdsongs, but they could not ini-
tially name any of the birds nor identify any of their songs.
Yet they quickly realized that birds sing in patterns. Some
birdsongs are melodic, a short tune that repeats; other birds
emit only one tone but in a pronounced, rhythmic pattern.
To help children recognize, remember, and represent
melodic patterns, we introduced the standard vocal syl-
lables from music (do, re, mi, and so on). We added cor-
responding hand signs, a teaching strategy—called the
Kodály method—frequently used by music educators to
approximate the physical placement of the tones within

Audubon Birds with Melodic and Rhythmic Representations

Audubon Bird Bird & Song Representation
Black-capped Chickadee

Great Homed Owl hoo HOO hoo hoo

I I I I I I I
(steady beats)

clap clap (sh) (sh) clap (sh) clap (sh)

Northern Cardinal

ininn
Blue Jay jeer jeer jeer jeer jeer jeer

J JJJJ J (steady beats)

clap clap clap clap clap clap

Western Meadowlark

Young Children'September 2010 13

 KT",

the music scale. Selected Children's Books about Birds children initially knew the
For strictly rhyth- names of the various birds;
mic birdsongs, several could not even
DK Publishing. 2008. See how they grow: Owl. verbalize the word bird.
we clapped the
New York: Author. Many had difficulty recog-
rhythm patterns
Ehlert, L. 1990. Feathers for lunch. Orlando,
with the children. nizing or repeating visual
FL: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
The first bird we patterns.
Gans, R. 1996. How do birds find their way?
introduced was New York: HarperCollins. But quickly, every child
the hlack-capped Henkes, K. 2009. Birds. NewYork: Greenwillow. learned to copy and extend
chickadee, a bird Hoglund, R. 2002. Roger Tory Peterson's the sound patterns of the
common to our Numbers: A book for beginner bird watchers birds by singing, clapping,
midwestern area. and counters. New York: Universe. and using the hand signals.
The bird sings a Hutchins, P. 1972. Good-night, Owl! New York: Simon & Schuster On succeeding days, when
melodic pattern Jenkins, PB. 1995. A nest full of eggs. New each bird made its appear-
York: HarperCollins. ance at circle time, many
that alternates
Kirby, PR 2009. What bluebirds do. Honesdale, children spontaneously
the tones so and
PA: Boyds Mills.
mi from the music broke into the correct bird-
Mazzola, F. 1997. Counting is for the birds.
scale. This pattern song, complete with Kodály
Watertown, MA: Charlesbridge.
(interval), which Post, H., & K. Heij. 2006. Sparrows. Honesdale,
hand signs. A child with
forms the begin- PA: Boyds Mills. language delays was soon
ning of the familiar Yashimo, T. [1955] 1976. Crow boy NewYork: pointing to and naming
tune "Rain, Rain, Penguin. each bird in the Hutchins
Go Away," is easy book.
for young children
to sing (Moomaw 1997). We encouraged the children to Reflection. Most important, we observed that the chil-
listen to the song of the chickadee and sing along. At the dren's learning seemed to generalize to patterning In other
same time, we modeled the hand signs for the two pitches, contexts, such as extending color patterns. For example,
which the children quickly copied. during assessment on the state content standard "Students
Next, we Introduced the great horned owl to accompany will copy or extend a simple pattern," the teacher discov-
Pat Hutchins's children's book Good-Night. Owl!-which also ered that many of the children who previously could not
includes many other bird species. The song of the great complete the task were successful after being exposed to
horned owl is a single pitch with a distinctive pattern of the bird-patterning activities. When asked to extend an
long and short sounds (see "Audubon Birds with Melodic alternating pattern of red and blue cubes, the children
and Rhythmic Representations," p. 13). We clapped this verbalized the pattern as they added the correct cubes.
pattern with the children. Sam, the previously mentioned class expert at producing
the birdsongs, was one of the successful ones. Prior to the
Outcomes. Within a week, many of the children could birdsong activities, he was not able to complete this task.
identify the black-capped chickadee and the great horned To identify and study birds in your area—and to hear their
owl by their sounds, often giving the hand signs for the distinctive birdsongs—visit the Cornell Lab of Ornithology
chickadee's song while singing the pattern. The birdcall website: www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/secirch.aspx.
activities seemed particularly beneficial for Sam, a child
with significant language impairment. Although Sam rarely
Physics and engineering interest begins eariy
spoke any recognizable words, he could mimic the calls of
the birds without prompting. His imitations were so real Several children in our classroom were particularly
that the teacher and assistant thought there was a real bird interested in blocks and outdoor play. These seemed ideal
in the classroom! for introducing two activities related to physics and engi-
We introduced the birds during group time, but they neering: pendulums and inclines. Both activities encourage
were also available during choice time. Over two months, active experimentation. In addition, both are examples of
we gradually introduced three other birds. None of the technology that have a work-related purpose: knocking

We observed that the learning seemed to generalize to patterning in other contexts,

such as extending color patterns.

14 Young Children'September 2010

structures down (pendulum) or moving objects faster and
more easily (incline). Quantification and measurement were
embedded in the activities.
DeVries and Kohlberg (1990, 92-93) offer four important
criteria to follow when designing physical knowledge activi-
ties for young children.
1. The child should create the action that causes the
phenomenon. Being the source of the action helps demys-
tify the response of the object and leads children toward
scientific, rather than magi-
cal, thinking.
2. The child should be able
to vary his or her action.
This helps children form
cause-and-effect relation-
ships and construct physical
principles.
3. The result of the action
shouid be observable by the
child. Children must be able
to observe the effects of their
actions in order to under-
stand causality.
4. The reaction of tlie object
shouid be immediate. This
allows children to accurately
pair the two events (action/
reaction).
Pendulums. Our pendu-
lum consisted of a lVé-inch-
diameter hard rubber ball
suspended from a wooden
frame (16 in. high and 12 in.
wide) mounted on a base-
board. For easy access, we
placed the frame on either
the floor of the block area or
a bench where children could
try to knock over blocks, a
popular childhood activity
(which also fit DeVries and
Kohlberg's first criterion).
We read Bam, Bam, Bam, by
Eve Merriam, to connect the
activity to real-life engineer-
ing projects.
Children could vary the
placement of the blocks,
change the direction of the
pendulum, and alter the
force they used to swing it
(criterion 2). They could
immediately tell whether they
16
had hit any blocks (criterion 3) and see the reaction of the
blocks (criterion 4). Thus, all four criteria of a good physi-
cal knowledge activity were met.
Outcomes. Predictably, many children placed the
blocks too far away from the pendulum. Swinging the
ball harder proved ineffective, as the tethered ball only
wrapped around the frame. One very inventive child placed
a block on top of the frame, realizing that when the pen-
dulum wrapped around, it would hit his block. "I got it!"
he proudly exclaimed as his
block crashed down.
Some children began to
What Is STEM? examine the ball and cord
The acronym STEM originated with the National Sci- more carefully. "It won't
ence Foundation in reference to its education-related reach," one child correctly
progranns in the disciplines of science, technology, concluded and promptly
engineering, and mathematics. The term is now widely
moved her blocks closer.
For children who seemed
used across educational settings. Some educators
too frustrated to continue,
use the term to refer to the individual disciplines, while
like the child who insisted
others believe that some, if not all, of the disciplines
the pendulum was "broke,"
should be integrated to designate a learning activity as
the teacher intervened with
STEM (Carnegie Mellon University 2008).
leading questions, such as
In recent years, educators and policy makers have "How can the cord reach the
shown increasing interest in STEM education as chil- blocks?" and modeled lining
dren in the United States continue to trail their peers in up the cord with the blocks.
certain Asian and European countries in science and As children altered the block
mathematics (NCES 2009). placement, they began to
Sources: From Carnegie Mellon University, STEM education in experience success.
southwestern Pennsylvania: Report of a project ro identify the Some children counted the
missing components (Pittsburgh, PA: Author. 2008); NCES
(National Center for Education Statistics). Highlights from blocks they knocked down,
the "Trends in International Mathematics and Science Studies " while others continued to
[TIMSS], rev. ed. (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Educa- swing the pendulum until no
tion, 2009).
blocks were left standing.
Their persistence paid off.
Teacher Resources for STEM-Reiated Activities
"They all fell down!" one child
Chalufour, I.. & K. Worth. 2003. Discovering nature with proudly announced. "Let's
young children. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf. do it again" was a popular
Chalufour, I., & K. Worth. 2004. Building structures with request. ' ,
young children. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf.
Reflection. In their eager-
Chalufour, I., & K. Worth. 2005. Exploring water with
young children. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf. ness to knock over the
Copley, J.V. 2010. The young child and mathematics. 2nd blocks, children explored
ed. Washington, DC: NAEYC. key concepts related to both
DeVries, R., & C. Sales. 2010. Ramps and pathways. physics and geometry. Some
Washington, DC: NAEYC. children arranged blocks
Moomaw, S., & B. Hieronymus. 1997. More than mag- in a horizontal row and dis-
nets: Exploring the wonders of science in preschool and covered that the pendulum
kindergarten. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf. changes direction and can
Moomaw, S., & B. Hieronymus. 1999. Much more than reach more blocks if it keeps
counting: More math activities for preschool and kinder-
swinging. One child demon-
garten. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf.
Starbuck, S., M. Olthof, & K. Midden. 2002. Hollyhocks
strated a sophisticated under-
and honeybees: Garden projects for young children. St. standing of the pendulum's
Paul, MN: Redleaf. movement. "I'll try it here,"
Andre said, placing a block
Young C/i/Vdren* September 2010
 TRAPITI#NAL ANP INNOVATIVE T # # L S FOR LEARNING

off to one side of the pendulum. Much to the teacher's surprise,

he then swung the pendulum on a diagonal several times until he
struck the block. Although Andre didn't use a geometric term such
as diagonal, he clearly understood trajectory and adjusted his aim
accordingly. This scenario shows that children like Andre, who are
nonverbal or have limited language, may display higher-level think-
ing in physical knowledge experiences than traditional assessment
methods can reveal.

The teacher's car always loses

A second physics activity, suitable for outdoors or indoors, involved
a variable-slope ramp.
Inclines. Children set up a simple ladder frame and arranged two
lightweight boards (4 feet long, 1 foot wide, and '/4 inch thick) at vari-
ous heights on the frame. They chose identical cars to race down the
ramp. The children quickly discovered that the steeper the slope of
the ramp, the faster and farther a car traveled. Whenever the teacher
was asked to participate in the car races, the children assigned him a
low ramp, thus guaranteeing that his car would always lose!
Outcomes. The teacher was particularly gratified by the children's
verbal exchanges as they manipulated the cars and inclines. For
example, Michael, who had significant speech delays, suggested to his
friend Joey, "Let's play this again. You help me." Michael connected
two ramps, with the lower ramp overlapping the other, thus creating

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Young CMcfren* September 2010 17

 It was evident that all the children were drawing from past experiences as they
experimented. Even if they had been absent from school for several days, each
remembered that the steeper the ramp, the faster the speed of the car.

a bump. The boys then rolled their cars down the ramp. Conclusion
"He jump off!" exclaimed Joey, as his car hit the bump and
flew off the side of the ramp. The boys repeated the experi- These experiences confirmed for us that, regardless
ment again and again, each time delighted when the car of ability, young children, are ready, willing, and able to
jumped the ramp. engage in STEM activities. In this preschool classroom,
It was evident that children constructed
all the children were important scientific and
drawing from past mathematical relation-
experiences as they ships. They explored
experimented. For materials that piqued
example, even if they their scientific curios-
had been absent from ity and math discovery.
school for several They can build upon
days, each remem- these foundationai
bered that the steeper concepts in future edu-
the ramp, the faster cational experiences.
the speed of the car. Most important, they
Children who could learned that math and
not verbalize this rela- science can be exciting
tionship would adjust areas to explore.
the ramp or point to a
higher position for the
ramp they intended References
to use.
Coppie, C, & S. Bredekamp,
Reflection. The eds. 2009. Developmentally
appropriate practice in
large, lightweight early childhood progratns
materials allowed serving children from birth
children with physical through age 8. 3rd ed.
Washington, DC: NAEYC.
impairments to par- 1 )eVries, R., & L. Kohlberg. 1990.
ticipate actively in the Constructivist early educa-
experimentation pro- tion: Overview and compar-
ison with other programs.
cess, a primary goai Washington, DC: NAEYC.
in an inclusive class- Moomaw, S. 1997. More than
room. Many children singing: Discovering music
in preschool and kindergar-
who had never before ten. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf.
built ramps created their own ramps in the block area. NRC (National Research Council). 1996. The National Science Education
After about two weeks, when the initial excitement Standards. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics). 2000. Principles
had abated somewhat, the teacher added measure- and standards for school mathematics. Reston, VA: Author.
ment to extend the children's interest in the experiment. Ohio Department of Education. 2004. Early learning content standards:
Measurement is an important content area in mathematics Mathematics. Columbus: Author
(NCTM 2000) and a key element in scientific inquiry (NRC
1996). Children used chalk to mark the stopping points of
their cars. In trying to make their cars go farther, they dis-
covered that if the ramp was too steep, the car would bang Copyright © 2010 by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. See
the ground and not travel far. Permissions and Reprints online at www.naeyc.org/yc/permissions.

18 young Children'September 2010

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