Stem Guide
Stem Guide
Stem Guide
The STEM Sprouts Teaching Kit is the product of a collaboration between National Grid, Boston
Childrens Museum, and WGBH. The goal of this curriculum is to assist preschool educators in
focusing and refining the naturally inquisitive behaviors of three to five-year-olds on science,
technology, engineering, and math (STEM).
Peep and the Big Wide World is produced by WGBH Education Foundation and 9Story
Entertainment. The award-winning animated series gives wings to the idea of teaching science
and math to preschoolers. Wry and distinctive visual humor, lovable characters, charming
plotlines, and live-action videos featuring real children combine with a preschool science and
math curriculum to attract and engage three to five-year-olds, as well as their parents. Families
and caregivers can watch Peep and the Big Wide World daily on public television and on the Web
site, peepandthebigwideworld.org, where there are also fun games, family activities, and much
more! Find PEEP and the Big Wide World on Facebook.
n!
All the collaborators want to remind you that: Have fu
Preschool is the perfect time to cultivate positive attitudes.
Resources ............................................... 21
References ............................................. 23
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What Is STEM All About?
STEM is an acronym. It was used originally by the US government to describe fields of study that
helped immigrants get work visas: science, technology, engineering, and math. Today, educators
are linking these areas together in what is called STEM curriculum. When we break down the
acronym into its parts, we see that early childhood programs practice STEM activities every day.
Science activities include exploring water and sand, comparing and contrasting natural materials
like rocks and soil, rolling balls across the room, and looking through a magnifying glass to count
how many legs are on the bug that was caught during outdoor play. Technology activities include
computers, but also identifying simple machines like gears and wheels and pulleys. Engineering
in preschool happens in the block area. There children are planning and designing structures
every day with little teacher direction. Math activities include counting and matching shapes and
making patterns. Measuring is easy too, especially with unit blocks where two of one size equal
one of the next size up.
As a preschool educator, you can expand kids science learning and lead them toward discovery
by encouraging their natural curiosity; noticing what they are doing during play with water,
shadow, or sand; and asking the right questions. You can get involved by asking children open-
ended questions: Tell me what you are working on now. What do you notice about how its
moving? What else have you seen other kids try? Writing down their thoughts and ideas is a
good way to document their growth in STEM curriculum to share with their parents.
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Brain Building 101
An explosion of research in neuroscience and other developmental sciences shows us that the
basic architecture of a childs brain is constructed through an ongoing process that begins before
birth and continues through adulthood.
Like the construction of a home, the building process begins with laying the foundation, framing
the rooms, and wiring the electrical system in a predictable sequence. Early experiences literally
shape how the brain gets built. A strong foundation in the early years increases the probability
of positive outcomes. A weak one will require remedial education, clinical treatment, or other
interventions that are less effective and more costly than providing crucial brain-building
interactions early in life.
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Asking Good Questions: Focus on What
Youve probably noticed that preschoolers ask lots of questions when theyre exploring:
Where do clouds come from? Why is the ice melting? Why is the ball rolling over there?
Sometimes it feels like no one educator could have all the answers to their questions. But we
have good news for youyou dont need to have the answers to create memorable STEM
experiences. In fact, the key to effective STEM learning at the preschool level is asking great
questions right along with the kids!
One strategy for asking great questions is focusing on what instead of why. When you ask
why questions, it implies there is a correct answer and the child is being tested. For example, if
you ask, Why is the magnet sticking to that kind of metal? you may be just as unable to answer
that question as the child is. But when you ask what questions, youre starting a conversation
and exploring right along with your children. What questions focus on what is happening,
what you are noticing, and what you are doingand those answers are right in front of you and
your kids. By focusing your questions on what kids have observed and noticed, not only are you
helping them develop valuable communication and observation skills, but you are also building
their confidence by giving them questions they can answer as experts.
What Questions
What happened there?
What did you try?
What have you changed about what you
are making?
What are some of the ideas you have
talked about that you havent tried yet?
What have you seen other people trying?
What do you notice about ________?
What do you think will happen if we _______?
What do you think will happen if we ________? is a great question for helping kids who are
struggling with something they are making or with an experiment. This question requires that
you observe what the students are working on and that you determine why it is not working.
In addition, rather than telling children how to fix a problem, you can ask them to focus on
something that will lead them toward discovering the answer. For example, if a team is creating
a roller coaster with blocks and ramps and the ball is falling off at a point where the track is
twisted, ask them, What do you notice about what is happening right at the part where the ball
falls off? By focusing their attention on the point of the problem, you will not only be helping
children learn how to focus on details, but you will also lead them toward answering their own
questions and solving their own problemswhich is much more empowering than being told
the answer!
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A Day in the Life of a Preschooler
STEM activities are fun any time of the day. Choose a topic and greet the children by setting
out open-ended materials. Introduce the topic at morning free play or circle time and plan
ahead to create the main activity. Check out these activities for examples of incorporating
STEM in a preschoolers day.
11 12 1
7:30 AM Children begin to arrive 10 2
8:00 AM Free play time
8:30 AM Circle time
9 3
9:30 AM Outdoor play time 8 4
10:30 AM Morning snack 7 5
11:00 AM Cooking activity 6
12:30 PM Lunch
1:00 PM Quiet activity and nap time (puzzles, books, etc.)
2:30 PM Story time
3:00 PM Afternoon snack
3:30 PM Music time or outdoor play
4:30 PM Free play time
5:00 PM Transition to home; parents pick up their children
6:00 PM Program closed; clean up
Here is an example of how preschool educators can incorporate STEM into the day:
8:00 AM Free play time: Put out some books about fruits and vegetables. Add a sorting game
with plastic fruits. Create a market in the dramatic play corner featuring fruits and vegetables.
Make sure the market worker has an apron and some recycle bags for his customers!
8:30 AM Circle time: Plan a field trip for apple picking or bring in a bag of apples to share. Read
the book Applesauce by Shirley Kurtz, and let the kids feel and smell an apple from the bag. Talk
about cooking applesauce as a special activity for the day.
9:30 AM Outdoor play time: Take children on a walk through the playground or around the block
and find trees that have fruit or flowers growing on them. Have kids collect what is growing on
the trees you see.
11:00 AM Cooking activity: Plan ahead to have a few volunteers come in and make applesauce
with the group. It can start as a whole group activity (peeling and putting apple slices in a pan to
be cooked), and then individual children who want to help with more of the cooking can work
with the volunteers to finish the applesauce. For kids who arent cooking, sing some songs, play
some music or read a book about Johnny Appleseed.
5:00 PM Transition to home: Write a note for parents about applesauce making. Tell parents to
ask their children, How did the apple turn into applesauce? Encourage families to try some
applesauce with their dinner.
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Massachusetts Guidelines for Preschool
Learning Experiences
The Early Childhood Program Standards and the Guidelines for Preschool Learning Experiences
excerpted here reflect the Massachusetts Department of Educations commitment to quality in
early childhood education in order to ensure a solid foundation for later learning and school
success. The role of the early years in a childs development has received a great deal of
attention in recent years. Research on brain development supports the value of high-quality
early childhood education programs for young children, and studies of such programs also
provide evidence of their benefits.
Young children are naturally curious. They wonder what things are called, how they work, and
why things happen. The foundations of scientific learning lie in inquiry and explorationthese
are the tools of active learning. Fostering young childrens sense of curiosity about the natural
world around them can promote a lifelong interest in it. Scientific learning should not be limited
to a particular science time.
Early childhood teachers should look for opportunities to develop childrens understanding of
scientific concepts in all content areas. To do so, children need to observe things first-hand as
much as possible. The younger the children, the simpler and more concrete the activities need to
be. Classrooms need to have scientifically accurate books about animals and their environments
such as field guides, as well as fictional stories. In all activities, teachers should make sure they
use, and encourage children to use, the precise language of science.
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Physical Sciences Activity
Experiment with a variety of objects to determine when the
objects can stand and ways that objects can be balanced.
The skills and processes of inquiry and exploration are fundamental to all the sciences.
At the early childhood level the processes of experimentation may require preparation of the
classroom environment, routines and materials as well as attention to how children operate and
utilize materials.
The Earth and Space Sciences describe the properties of the earth, ocean, atmosphere, and
universe (what things are called; what they do; how they look, act, and react to various stimuli).
It includes geology and astronomy.
The Physical Sciences investigate natural forces and the basic elements in natural substances.
The Life Sciences include the study of living things (what they are, how they survive, their
life cycles, how they change). Young children need concrete experiences that enable them to
observe, categorize, compare, and contrast living things. The three major components of the life
sciences are biology, physiology, and ecology.
Technology/Engineering involves finding out how things are constructed and work, and thinking
about what can make them work differently/better. Science tries to understand the natural
world; the goal of engineering is to solve practical problems through the development of
technologies. Technologies developed through engineering include the systems that provide our
houses with water and heat; roads, bridges, tunnels, and the cars that we drive; airplanes and
spacecraft; cellular telephones; televisions and computers; many of todays childrens toys, and
systems that create special effects in movies.
Preschool children can begin to develop concepts in engineering as they design, build, and test
solutions through their playas they construct sand castles and build cities out of blocks. They
can also begin to understand that tools help people do things better or more easily, or do some
things that could otherwise not be done at all.
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Guiding Preschool Learning in Mathematics
Mathematics relates to ideas and concepts about quantity and addresses logical and spatial
relationships. At the preschool level, the foundations of mathematical understanding are formed
out of childrens concrete experiences. Mathematical experiences should not be limited to math
time. They can be embedded in almost all daily classroom activities, challenging teachers to be
alert to opportunities for facilitating mathematical understanding. Mathematical thinking can be
incorporated into block play, dramatic play, sand and water play, and outdoor play. Children can
also make connections between mathematics and musical experiences or art when they explore
rhythmic or visual patterns or symmetry.
Preschool children can learn to recite numbers in order, compare quantity, comprehend position,
and match objects in one-to-one correspondence. Number concepts become significant to
children when they develop out of experiences that are functional in their world. Preschool
activities can build their understanding of number concepts, and also build foundations for
understanding characteristics and properties of two- and three-dimensional geometric shapes.1
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Copyright 2003 Massachusetts
Department of Education. Excerpted
with permission for non-commercial
educational purpose.
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Mathematics Activity
The Guidelines for Preschool Learning Experiences are based on the standards for
prekindergarten and kindergarten (or prekindergarten through grade 4) in the approved
revisions of the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks. Reprinted here are excerpts from the
guidelines for science, technology, engineering, and math. Following selected STEM-related
Learning Guidelines are ideas for learning experiences that you can incorporate into your work
with young children.
Mathematics
Explore and describe a wide variety of concrete objects by their attributes.
Try it: Sort everyday materialslike toys, rocks, leaves, seashells, shoes, or snacksaccording to
different features, such as size, texture, color, pattern, and weight. Introduce descriptive words
like big, round, rough, small, shallow, flat, crooked, and heavy.
Inquiry Skills
Record observations and share ideas through simple forms of representation
such as drawings.
Try it: Have each child select one item on a nature walklike a leaf, rock, or other small object
and draw the item when back indoors. Encourage students to notice the shape, texture, colors,
and weight of the object, noting fine detail if possible. Keep a journal throughout the year to
save these observations.
Physical Sciences
Investigate and describe or demonstrate various ways the objects can move.
Try it: Have children move their bodies to imitate moving objects from favorite books; for
example, float from the sky like a snowflake, pop out of an egg like a hungry caterpillar, or roll
on a beach like a coconut.
Try it: Cut out pictures (from magazines, catalogs, etc.) of both living
and non-living things. Have children sort them into living vs. non-
living on a large board or sheets of paper on the wall.
After sorting, discuss their choices and what all
living things have in common. Once
you all agree on your rules, be
sure to refer to them again the
next time you go for a walk or
look out the window!
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This section of the teaching kit includes STEM activities ready to use in your program. They
include a short description of a topic, three or four different activities to try, questions to ask
children, what to tell parents about the activity, and how the activity helps build a childs brain.
The materials for these activities are inexpensive and easily bought or found in your kitchen.
Science
Experiments help children develop basic science skills like observing what is happening, using
words to describe what they notice, and repeating the action to compare results. Questioning
and posing answers are skills used every day in the classroom.
Air can move things. Ask your children to blow air on their hands and to wave their
hands in the air. Ask them, What do you feel? and Can you hold air? Line up
floating toys in water. Use a straw to blow a toy across the water. Repeat the activity.
Ask, What happened when you blew on the toy?
Bubbles have one shape. In a bucket or tub, make a bubble solution with dish soap.
Using a variety of oddly shaped objectssuch as cookie cutters, a loop of string,
and a strawteach your children how to dip their object in the water and blow
through it to make a bubble. Experiment with blowing fast and slow. Ask, Which
method works better? Have students look at the shape of the bubble maker before
they use it. Ask, What shape do you think the bubble will be? No matter what
shape the object, the bubble will always be round due to liquid surface tension.
Tell Children
What happened when you blew on the toy? What happened when you made a bubble?
Encourage kids to use descriptive words like faster and slower.
What will the shadow look like with your hand close to the ground? Will it have sharp edges
or fuzzy edges? Ask what questions so kids can predict what will happen.
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Do it again. What was different the second time? Open-ended questions like this will help
kids compare results.
Tell Parents
Today we explored air, bubbles, and shadows. Find a flashlight at home and ask your child to tell
you about shadows.
Brain-Building Connection
By providing guidance and assistance and letting kids figure out what happened, you help them
understand cause and effect and helped build their observation and prediction skills.
Technology
When you hear the word technology, you might think of computers and smartphones, but in the
preschool curriculum, technology refers to using tools and developing fine and gross motor skills.
Tools can help children develop eye-hand coordination and strengthen their hand and finger
muscles for writing, typing, and drawing.
Follow the line. Draw a simple wide line from the top to bottom of a sheet of paper.
Direct the children to cut right above the line. Remind them that the thumb should
always be up (in the top hole of the scissors).
Basic shape cutouts. Draw three basic shapes on paper (square, circle, and triangle), and
let your children cut them out. Save the cutouts (and scraps) for use in other projects.
Practice pouring. Let your children learn how to pour using a small plastic pitcher and
a few plastic cups. Tell them that the cups are empty and that they should pour the
liquid into the cups until they are full. Try emptying the pitcher to fill the cups, and
then try emptying the cups to fill the pitcher. Experiment with different size cups.
Scooping. Using scoops for the beach, have your children practice moving dry material
like sand or dirt from one container to fill another. Try not to spill any of the sand between
the containers.
Observe closely. Using a simple magnifier, have children look at something up close.
What do they see with the magnifier? What do they see without it?
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Inquiry Skills Activity
Tell Children
Take your time. Scissors are tricky. Cutting with scissors
takes practice! Its hard work for a child, so stay positive and encouraging.
Try cutting out these shapes. Give some choices of what to cut, or just provide some recycled
paper and let your children cut in any way they want.
Wow! You are a good cutter. Applaud every effort, even if the shapes are raggedy.
Will the cup hold more water? Ask the child to make a prediction.
Its OK. Lets clean it up. Spills and messes are part of learning to do it yourself.
Tell Parents
Today we used scissors to cut shapes. Do you have a pair of child scissors at home?
Today the children started pouring their own snack and lunch drink. Do you practice pouring at home?
Brain-Building Connection
These activities will help children improve their visual discrimination and sensory motor skills.
Always allow children to discover opportunities on their own. Allow some children more time
with the materials if they want, even after other children have moved on. Even the most skilled
educators have no way of knowing when a child has had his fill of discovery.
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Engineering
Playing with blocks and other building materials develops math and science skills, helping
children learn about gravity, balance, shapes, and problem solving.
Tell Children
What do you think will happen? Will the structure stay by itself? Is it balanced? Ask
leading questions.
Here, you try. Share successful ideas among the group. Encourage children to learn
from one another.
Can you take turns building with the blocks? Encourage cooperative behavior.
Tell Parents
Unit blocks make it easy to measure. Use blocks at home to build a tower the same height as
your child or you! Your child may be four blocks tall and you may be eight blocks tall.
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Brain-Building Connection
Engineering activities encourage brain development as children solve problems, use a variety of
materials, design and create, and build things that work.
Math
Sorting and counting are great ways to develop logic and learn basic math skills. Through play
with blocks, colors, and shapes children begin to learn concepts such as classification and ordering.
Tell Children
What color is this? Great! Lets put it with the other (green) objects. Children begin to notice
things that are the same and different and learn how to sort them based on color, shape, or size.
Thats OK; lets count again. One, two, three... Its okay to practice over and over.
Tell Parents
We are sorting and counting, so try a home challenge! Ask your child to assemble a collection of
toys based on a particular criterion. For example: Find all of your toys that are red or Find all
of your toys that fit in this box.
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Brain-Building Connection
Math is about counting, classifying, matching, patterning, comparing, and divergent thinking.
These mathematical thinking skills build strong brain connections through music, organization,
predicting, and problem solving.
Seeing
In mammals, sight is one of the strongest senses, allowing us to notice color, texture, shape,
and movement.
Rose-colored world. Use the same viewing tube but this time
cover the end with colored cellophane. What is different this time?
Sorting colors. Have students wear colored glasses like 3-D glasses (not
sunglasses) and sort through M&Ms or jelly beans. Remove the glasses
and see the results.
Aim true. In circle time, roll a ball to another child in the circle, while
holding a hand over one eye. How is your aim?
Tell Children
What do you see through the tube? Encourage children to take their time observing and to
use lots of words to describe what they see.
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What else do you see? This time take the tube away. Looking a second time at the same place
will yield new answers.
Tell Parents
Today we explored our sense of sight. Try playing I Spy on the way home. Say, I spy with my
little eye, and then give some description of the object, such as something red, something
square, or something small. Let your child guess what you are spying.
Brain-Building Connection
The brain looks for patterns to make meaning and is constantly looking for similarities in
our environment. We are more likely to remember it if weve seen it before. Ask children,
Remember last week at the park when we saw a black and white dog?
Hearing
Hearing helps us gain a sense of our surroundings. It also facilitates communication.
Twist n Shout. Compare loud and quiet sounds by having children stand and sing
a song at normal volume. Have them twist down in a crouch and sing the song
in a whisper, as they twist back to standing they increase the volume.
Clap Clap. In circle time, start a short sequence of clapping and pass it along to
each child one at a time so that everyone in the circle has a chance to clap. Try
it again with a different pattern and notice if the group finds it easier the second
time around. Try the same pattern again only this time make it faster or slower.
Match the sound. Using several matching jars or cans covered so no one can see
whats inside, place a few noise making items in each jar. Such as beans in jar one,
cotton in jar two, toothpicks in jar three, etc. Put a sample of each item in a line
and have children shake each jar to see if the can match the
sound to the object.
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Tell Children
What did you hear? Encourage the children to use words to distinguish sounds.
Would you like me to repeat it for you? Help children remember the clapping rhythm by
repeating it.
Tell Parents
Today we explored our sense of hearing. Play a listening game by identifying some special
sounds you hear at home.
Brain-Building Connection
Both listening to music and making music build the brain. These activities have a positive impact
on expressive and receptive language, speech patterns, and gross motor skills.
Touching
Touching allows us to distinguish fine details our other senses miss. We use our sense of touch to
manipulate tools to help us communicate and create.
Mystery objects. Place a variety of objects in a pillow or similar bag. Invite the
children to feel each object and try to figure out what the item is without looking.
Pass the bag around so everyone has a chance to feel inside. Use a variety of objects
familiar and new.
Take the plunge. Assemble bags of a variety of small items such as beans, sand, mulch,
leaves, top soil, (yogurt or similar for the brave); etc. Have children plunge their hands
into the bags of stuff. Ask them a variety of questions to stimulate creative thinking:
What would you build with this? Who lives in that stuff? Where did it come from?
Eye sense. Using a piece of string, a feather, a tissue or similar; have children hold one
hand over their eyes so they cant see and slowly drag one of the items across the back
of their other hand. They have to guess which of the three items was used.
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Tell Children
Does it feel like a shoe or an apple? Give them hints to focus their attention.
Tell me about it. Ask open-ended questions. You may be surprised by the response.
Tell Parents
Today we explored our sense of touch. Ask your child to name something that is soft, hard,
prickly, goopy, squishy, bumpy, silky, or pointy.
Brain-Building Connection
The sense of touch never takes a break. Exploring touch encourages predicting, divergent thinking,
memory, and creative thinking by allowing children to learn about their immediate environment.
Senses Activity
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Smelling and Tasting
The senses of taste and smell are so tied together that it is almost impossible to explore one
without the other. Scent memory is among the most evocative of the senses.
Tasting with your nose. Hold your nose and put an orange
slice in your mouth, chew it a moment. Can you taste
anything? Let go of your nose and take a breath. Can you
taste anything now?
Match the scent. Using small jars, cotton balls and food
flavorings, assemble a series of jars with a few drops of
flavoring on a cotton ball to capture the scent in the jar.
Place pictures of the various flavors (peppermint, lemon,
almond, chocolate, etc.) in a line. Let each child sniff each
jar and match the scent with the picture.
Create a mood. Different scents can invoke different moods or feelings. Try
placing different spices and foods in your center every day. Ask the students
each day, how the scent made them feel: sunny like lemons, warm and cozy
like cinnamon, breezy like lavender. What are your best scent memories?
What other scents can you create?
I can taste the roast beef! Willy Wonka created a chewing gum that
tasted like a three course meal. Have children create an imaginary gum
with their favorite meal. What does their gum taste like?
Tell Children
What do you notice? When children talk about what they sense, it helps them understand
what is going on.
This is fun, isnt it? Have fun playing and exploring taste and smell with your children!
Tell Parents
Today we explored the senses of smell and taste. Encourage parents to ask their child about their
favorite smells and foods. Teach parents the Willie Wonka game, and encourage them to try it at
home during dinner.
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Brain-Building Connection
Color and scents work hand in hand to create visual and smell stimulation that generates a
positive connection to the nervous system. Scents can improve mental alertness. Lavender can
promote calm and relaxation; peppermint can wake you up.
Resources
Building
A Day in the Life of a Builder by Linda Hayward (Dorling Kindersley, 2001)
Follow construction worker Jack through a busy workdayfrom making early-morning phone
calls, to keeping dogs from ruining the wet cement, to presenting a finished house to a family.
The Three Little Javelinas by Susan Lowell (Rising Moon Books, 1992)
Everyone knows the story of the three little pigs, but now youre going to meet the three little
javelinas (pronounced ha-ve-LEE-nas)lovable, wild, southwestern cousins of pigs.
Sound
Clang! Clang! Clang! Beep! Beep! Listen to the City by Robert Burleigh (Simon and Schuster, 2009)
From morning to night, a little boy experiences all the exciting sounds of the city.
Water
A Cool Drink of Water by Barbara Kerley (National Geographic, 2006)
Color photographs show people around the world gathering, drinking, and sharing water.
Weather
Mirandy and Brother Wind by Patricia McKissack and Jerry Pickney (Dragonfly Books, 1988)
With the junior cakewalk fast approaching, Mirandy is determined to capture the best partner
for the dance. And who is the best partner? The wind, of course!
Science Suppliers
Carolina Biological Supply Company: www.carolina.com
Discount School Supply: www.discountschoolsupply.com
Steve Spangler Science: www.stevespangler.com
Wards Natural Science: www.wardsci.com
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References
Darling-Kuria, Nikki. Brain-Based Early Learning Activities: Connecting Theory and Practice. St.
Paul: Redleaf Press, 2010.
The Department of Early Education and Care and the United Way of Massachusetts Bay and
Merrimack Valley; Brain Building in Progress.
Early Childhood Advisory Council to the Massachusetts Board of Education; Guidelines for
Preschool Learning Experiences; April 2003. Available on the web at: http://fcsn.org/pti/topics/
earlychildhood/preschool_learning_eec.pdf
Rushton, Stephen, and Anne Juola-Rushton. Linking Brain Principles to High-Quality Early
Childhood Education. Exchange Magazine, no. 202 (November/December 2011).
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NOTES
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Peep and the Big Wide World is produced by WGBH and 9 Story Entertainment in association with
TVOntario. Major funding for Peep and the Big Wide World is provided by the National Science Foundation.
Additional funding provided by Northrop Grumman Foundation. 2011 WGBH Educational Foundation.
All rights reserved. Peep and the Big Wide World and the Peep characters and related indicia are
trademarks of WGBH Educational Foundation. All third party trademarks are the property of their
respective owners. Used with permission.
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