- Tuesday 30 January 2024
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If you want to be the coolest teacher in school this coming year, then STEM is the go-to subject to teach.
From hands-on learning to creative problem solving, STEM lessons are often full of engaging activities, stimulating experiences, and exciting new discoveries – making these lessons a favourite among students.
But knowing how to plan new activities and effectively align them with the Australian Curriculum can be a challenge – especially when you need to cover specific learning material or teach a more complex concept in a way students will understand but also have fun engaging with.
That’s where our STEM projects boxes come into play!
Designed to be flexible, the STEM projects boxes allows for more creativity in the classroom by providing lesson planning inspiration and ideas.
Plus, they’re easy and low effort to integrate, and are packed with cards containing short-term and long-term projects, time allocations for using the cards, tips for planning, differentiating, teaching, and assessing STEM projects, as well as classroom management and resource management ideas.
Better yet, our STEM projects boxes ensure students participate in each of the following areas to develop their skills:
Design process – each activity encourages students to follow a consistent design process, including sourcing required information, planning and designing a labelled diagram, creating the project, evaluating that the criteria have been met, and explaining their work.
Teamwork and communication – students can complete projects in small groups or as a whole class, which encourages effective communication and collaboration skills in order to plan, design, create, and evaluate a thoughtful and innovative solution to a given task.
Presentation skills – when satisfied with their solutions, students are encouraged to explain the science behind their project and showcase their work through various methods such as oral explanations, video demonstrations, and digital slide show presentations.
Our STEM projects boxes cover all essential Australian Curriculum: Science areas. Need some lesson planning inspiration? Take a look at what’s inside:
Biological sciences
Introduce students to the basic concepts of biology such as living organisms, life processes, adaptation and habits, ecosystems, plant biology, biodiversity, and more!
Our STEM projects boxes provide fun, hands-on activities to develop an understanding of the living world. Here are just a few examples:
Bird feeder from Year 1 STEM box
Students must use recycled materials to create a hanging feeder for wild birds. The bird feeder must also be able to get wet and hold the weight of 10 marbles without breaking.
Guess which living thing from Year 3 STEM box
Students must design a Guess Who?®-style game from cardboard and printed images of living things.
Digital food chain game from Year 4 STEM box
Students must create a digital game that involves arranging organisms in correct food chains, using simple coding or game development software.
Chemical sciences
Matter, material properties, chemical reactions, and everyday chemistry – the chemical sciences are a world of wonder and there’s so much for young minds to learn!
That’s why our STEM projects boxes are packed with engaging and creative activities that will empower students to test and learn chemical science concepts firsthand. Some examples include:
Aluminium foil tower from Year 1 STEM box
Students must use aluminium foil to design and create a model of the Eiffel Tower. It must be able to hold the weight of five people figurines for 30 seconds.
Oobleck speaker from Year 5 STEM box
Students must use a speaker, cling wrap, and oobleck to create and produce a music video with dancing oobleck.
Gas-powered boat from Year 6 STEM box
Students must use recycled materials, bicarbonate soda, and vinegar to create a gas-powered boat. The boat must move across water for a distance of 50cm.
Earth and space sciences
The study of the Earth, the atmosphere, and the broader universe is a big undertaking. From understanding Earth’s structure and composition, to surface changes, weather and climate, the solar system, moon phases, and more, there’s so much waiting to be learned.
One of the easiest ways to truly grasp these large concepts is to visualise them, which is why our STEM projects boxes contain activities that encourage students to get creative and replicate what they’re learning on a smaller scale. Here are just a few of the activities included:
Class moon art calendar from Year 2 STEM box
Students must use art supplies and printed pictures of the Moon to design and create a calendar that tracks the Moon’s changing patterns each day.
Waterwise video from Year 4 STEM box
Students must create a waterwise video to teach younger children how to save water. The video must be at least three minutes long and be filmed on the school grounds, showcasing at least five different ways to save water.
Papier-mâché globe from Year 6 STEM box
Students must use papier-mâché (i.e. strips of newspaper, water, flour, a balloon, and printouts from the internet of the continents) to design and create a globe of the world, with an axis it can spin on and a stand.
Physical sciences
Introducing students to non-living matter and energy can be challenging, which is why it’s so helpful to demonstrate basic concepts such as matter, force, motion, energy, sound, light, electricity, and more.
Our STEM projects boxes make complex concepts simple by encouraging students to discover and demonstrate basic concepts with their own hands, through various activities including:
Zip-line from Foundation STEM Box
Students must use recycled materials, tape, and fishing wire to create a zip-line with a carriage that slides down the zip-line. The carriage must carry five marbles safely, and the zip-line should be four metres long.
Stormy soundscape from Year 2 STEM box
Students must use classroom materials and an audio recorder to create a digital soundscape of stormy weather. The audio recording must last for 30 seconds, and contain sounds similar to thunder, rain, and wind.
Kaleidoscope from Year 5 STEM box
Students must use reflective materials, craft supplies, and tubing to create a kaleidoscope that uses mirrors and light to display an image. The reflective material should be used to create a sturdy triangular prism that is inserted inside the tubing.
Just in time for back-to-school season ...
If you already thought our STEM projects boxes were the coolest thing in school, well, it gets better – our newly revised boxes are ready for the 2024 school year!
Integrating Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, our revised STEM projects boxes focus on the
knowledge and understanding of the Australian Curriculum: Science (and have been updated to align with ACARA
Version 9.0.)
Plus, we’ve added some new resources and features, including:
- differentiation and assessment suggestions
- digital technologies links
- fresh artwork and use of full-colour, realistic images
- glossary cards for younger years (Foundation to Year 2).
Explore the real world from your very own classroom through STEM – shop our Revised STEM projects today!