S.T.E.M. in Kinder

I feel like I just might *maybe* be getting the swing of this school year?! Finally, 50 days in...BTW where is the time going this year?
I've never had a year go so fast.  
 I digress...
I really, honestly think that I just might have the sweetest bunch of kinder babies ever! Seriously, y'all! They are caring and thoughtful!
So I've been working really hard on making my stations memorable, fun, and integrating S.T.E.M. into their literacy stations.
 
So here is what we've done this week...

In our Science/Engineering Literacy Station we are designing a tepee.  Seriously! This station has been a favorite station amongst the group! I just put the materials out that I thought they could design and engineer with and let them at it!  Of course it was beside my life size tepee for an example to since their actual schema of what a tepee is made of is limited...BTW if you need an engaging, purposeful and extremely fun center for Thanksgiving for your lil' kindergarten students...this has hands down been the easiest and most self directed center I've ever had...

 You can see their little tepees! Presh, I tell ya! They are so proud of them!  They also drew their blueprints in their science journal but somehow I forgot to take a picture of those...#busynewmama!

We've also been introducing some new technology into our lil' kindergarten classroom.
Here are the two newest ones we've used...
Dance Dance Revolution for the PC...

this is all my own opinion and I'm not being compensated in anyway for this...

 

I tried to get a picture of the pad and the screen...you don't need an actual SmartBoard to use this, just a projector for your PC.  I just happen to project my projector onto the SmartBoard. #needbiggerwalls

Anyhoo...you actually create the games with this software.  So for the game my kiddos are playing I wanted them to work on beginning sounds.  I uploaded the letters I wanted them to work on and the clipart with the beginning sounds and it creates an interactive center that they L.O.V.E!  They get to move and get their energy out and they actually stay in their station!  I'm working on a game for this dance pad for them to practice sight words!

I may be a little behind but there is a listening device called the Playaway...the books are already loaded to it and you just plug in a set of head phones!  What?  Easiest listening center EVER! Hands down!  Our sweet librarian recently bought several of them! My kiddos think they are the coolest thing ever!

 

 And my own sweet boy goes to this wonderful S.T.E.M. campus...now he is all about designing and working on science.
Here is what he did after school today!

Have a great night!
Brandy