Tied 2 Teaching ~ REVIEW

As a family we enjoy creating, learning and having fun.  Don't you wish you could do this while homeschooling?  Well, you can and we do by presenting opportunities for our children to discover new possibilities for various situations concerning what we are currently learning about.  To make things even easier to do this we have been blown away by the STEM Activities, Full Year of Challenges with Close Reading from Tied 2 Teaching.  It has taken my STEM game to a whole new level.  No more countless hours searching Pinterest for our next big project.  Let me tell you exactly how this all works and what we did over the past few weeks.



 
The bundle includes more then 70 STEM design challenges that you are able to add into your day.  The grade range is 3rd-6th, but is totally adaptable for younger or older kids.  It comes to you in a zip file packed full with everything you need to facilitate these projects.  Most of the things needed are easily found around the house and since you have so many to pick from you are sure to be able to start right away.  Included are helpful links, resources, questions which go along with the reading passages and of course fun STEM activities. You can print them out and keep them in a binder or view online.  I decided to start a special STEM notebook for Kaden to collect all the information.  But, he ended up resorting to his favorite school resource...the Everlast notebook so he doesn't have to waste paper. :)  Whatever works!

Here is a little peek at some of the activities that can be used over the next few months if you want to group things by months.  We skipped around and truly don't stick to a specific theme.

 

March STEM Challenge Bundle with Close Reading

St. Patrick's Day STEM Challenge - Build a Leprechaun Trap
Basketball Tower STEM Challenge
St. Patrick's Day STEM Challenge - Build a Rainbow Bridge
New Hat for Cat Challenge Read Across America STEM

April STEM Challenge Bundle with Close Reading

Jelly Bean Tower Challenge
Easter STEM Challenge Design a Carrot Carriage
Earth Day STEM Challenge - Design Something Useful
Earth Day STEM Challenge - Upcycled Birdhouse

First off we decided to make our own fidget spinner STEM.  The unit discussed fads and trends.  The article was from a link directed to Wonderopolis.  Afterwords we went through the questions based on what we read.  Once these were finished, we looked at the challenge.  This one was building our own spinner.  I love that they provide example photos.  Actual photos to help get the creative juices flowing. I also appreciate that the instructions are easy to read and follow.  And all of the materials that you can print out to track everything and answer questions are clear, simple and just fabulous. . The different sheets you can print are in a few different styles, so you could pick the one that works the best for you... I love the options. 

  
We have made boats out of foil, learned how jelly beams may have morphed from the yummy Turkish delight and even built houses out of a deck of cards all while tracking our progress.  We would ask ourselves the question of how to complete the task.  Then we imagined, planned, created and finally improved until it was our very best effort.  This was interesting for Kaden.  Having autism makes him fly though things quickly, getting frustrated and not knowing how to express himself so that others understand.  This process allowed me to physically see what he was expecting to happen, so I was prepared when or if it didn't and he was overwhelmed and upset.

We read how jelly beans were made...yum!  And built a tower with them and toothpicks.  This one was a little hard, or I should say the jelly beans were a little too hard, we didn't get as high as we wanted.

After reading about the penny and conversing about precious metals, currency and digging through our stamped penny collection we tried our luck at building a structure out of pipe cleaners.  Kaden tried to get away with a single pipe cleaner under the cup...but, I knew he could come up with better.

SO, I HAVE TO SAY THIS WAS ONE OF THOSE REVIEWS THAT I DIDN'T KNOW HOW MUCH I NEEDED IT IN MY LIFE, UNTIL I HAD IT IN FRONT OF ME.  

I don't mind hunting for things online or putting together little unit studies and projects.  But, I just don't always have the time.  And from what I see with this bundle is that the topics are cool and interesting.  The questions are on point and thought provoking while the activities wrap up the whole experience with a gleaming bow.  We have had some great afternoons doing these activities, we look forward to many more over the next several months.  I think this would be perfect for summer time, holidays or like us STEM days every Wednesday.

Make sure you connect with Tied 2 Teaching on Social Media and click below to see what other reviewers thought about the
STEM Activities, Full Year of Challenges with Close Reading.

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