LEARNING CULTURE

• Arrive on time

• Greet everyone

• Complete Bell Work

• Raise hand to be recognized by the teacher

• One person talks at a time

• Shake hands with the teacher before going home

STEAM+3Rs APPROACH of LEARNING

(Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics plus Reading & wRiting, and Relationships)

Curiosity, inquiry, finding solutions to a problem, and being creative in finding the solutions are at the heart of the STEAM approach, meaning that humanities, English language arts, or social studies are constructed into STEAM just like everything else.

STEAM lessons are fundamentally built upon asking really good questions and then seeking solutions to the problems presented in those content areas.

• Literacy is ALWAYS a part of every content area. It is an action with common components embedded into how we consume and share information; it is naturally a part of STEAM.

• The key is the intentional selection of naturally aligned standards within these identified content areas, including equitable assessment of different areas in the lesson. It is guided by inquiry and is focused on application.

• WAYS to INTEGRATE LITERACY and STEAM INTENTIONALITY

• • Visual Thinking

    • Utilizing visual thinking draws upon the foundation of literacy: reading a piece of art or music or a piece of traditional text.

      • Visual Thinking Strategy asks the following questions:

        • What is going on in this text/ image/ process?

        • What do we see/ hear that makes us say that?

        • What more can we find?

= The foundation of visual thinking is in the questions asked and in listening to student responses which are also the hallmarks of STEAM - so visual thinking and literacy make sense.

• Embodying Text

• It is being able to make personal meaning requires moving from the abstract to the literal. Many of the STEAM areas deal with abstract concepts which are hard to visualize or feel. Movement is one way of doing this quickly and easily, like a dance - a tool in exploring a concept and then translating that into a literal interpretation; thus, a form of writing.

• Reciprocal Teaching

• • • It is all about using comprehension strategies to have a formal conversation about the text. The reciprocal teaching strategy work regardless of content, be it a piece of art or scientific finding. The steps are the following:

      1. predict

      2. question

      3. clarify

      4. summarize

The strategy is often used to analyze traditional text, a core literacy component, or any content area. As an example of application, I ask students to predict an outcome based on a problem, process, or artistic prompt. Then ask some guiding questions and encourage students to ask each other questions about the work. Students can then point out the problem, process, or art prompt elements that they do not understand. The approach encourages students to research answers to these questions and summarize their findings.

4C' 21st Century Skills: Collaboration, Creativity, Critical Thinking, and Communication are easily woven into a quality STEAM lesson.

Learning does not need to happen inside the classroom, but rather it should be a frame of mind that uses the Arts and Literature as a lever to explosive growth, social-emotional connections, and the foundation for the innovators of today... tomorrow!