Activity: Using a packet of mixed wildflower seeds or bird seed, ask your child to sort the seeds by properties they observe. Maybe they can sort the seeds by size, by color, or by shape. Count how many different kinds of seeds there are. Safety Tip: Some seeds can be eaten, like sunflower seeds, but all […]
Tag: WashU
From Sun to Food
Explore the interactions of living (plants, animals) and nonliving (water, light and air) parts of the environment. Then think about what living things need to grow. Activities: If you have dry beans at your house, soak them and see if they sprout. See if they can grow without air, without water, without light, or without […]
How Do Clouds Form in the Sky?
Activity: Using a mason jar with a lid, boiling water, a little hairspray and some ice cubes you can make a cloud in a jar. First boil about 1/3 cup of water and add it to the jar. Quickly spritz a bit of hairspray in the jar and add the lid upside down to the […]
Life Cycles
Explore the similarities and differences of life cycles of plants and animals. Activities: Grow a plant from seed and watch its life cycle from birth, to growth, to seed production, to death. Observe plants around your house or neighborhood in different life cycle stages. Draw realistic pictures of what you see. Label your drawing. https://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/tdc02.sci.life.colt.lp_plantcycle/plant-life-cyclesGo […]
Plants and Animals in Your Yard
How do plants and animals interact? How do ecosystems change over time? Activities: Make a list of the living and nonliving things in your yard or neighborhood. Use the free iNaturalist app to identify the kinds of plants and animals in your yard or neighborhood. Try to make a food chain from things you find, […]
Note from ISP's executive director: COVID-19
STEMpact highlighted in Connected Science Learning journal
By 2022, employment in the STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and math) in the St. Louis region is projected to grow by 12.4%, according to the most recent State of St. Louis Workforce report focused on STEM. But St. Louis employers are struggling to fill these positions. In 2018, 41% of St. Louis companies cited a […]
Video: successful first convening of Transformational Leadership Initiative
On January 16 and 17, 2020, the Transformational Leadership Initiative held its first international convening in St. Louis. The convening brought together over 100 education leaders from across the globe along with key partners. At the convening, participants celebrated the work of TLI school leaders, learned from dynamic speakers, observed deeper learning in action and shared […]
WashU Expert: how to pick a science fair project
To the 80,000 parents — um, make that students — who will compete in the upcoming St. Louis Science Fair, Washington University in St. Louis senior Sam Martorana offers this advice: Follow your passion, not the rubric.“Science fair projects can be stressful for the entire family,” said Martorana, who has led multiple workshops for parents […]
St. Louis Public Radio highlights Math314 program
What is there to say about the number 7? It’s odd, it’s prime. It can be reached by adding 3 + 4, 5 + 2 and 6 + 1. That may be how a teacher has a “math conversation” with young students under a new approach to math education piloted by Washington University’s Institute for […]