I am STEM Lesson Library for Grades PK/K

All lessons align to Grade-Level ELA Standards.

Lessons at a Glance

All Lessons

Grades PK/K • The Snowy Day

The Snowy Day

the snowy day book cover

Lesson Summary

Peter woke up on a snowy morning and explored the snowfall in his neighborhood. He made a large snowball and put it in his pocket before going back inside. He looked for the snowball before bed, but it was gone.

In this challenge, students will design and build a structure to reduce the warming effect of the sun on an ice cube. Students will use the Engineering Design Process to guide them as they plan, build, test, and improve their designs while using only the materials provided by the teacher.

ELA Standards:

Speaking and Listening:  Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas 

4. Describe familiar people, places, things, and events and, with prompting and support, provide additional detail.

 

STE or Math Standards:

Science

  • K-PS1-1(MA). Investigate and communicate the idea that different kinds of materials can be solid or liquid depending on temperature. Clarification Statements: • Materials chosen must exhibit solid and liquid states in a reasonable temperature range for kindergarten students (e.g., 0–80°F), such as water, crayons, or glue sticks. • Only a qualitative description of temperature, such as hot, warm, and cool, is expected.
  • K-PS3-1. Make observations to determine that sunlight warms materials on Earth’s surface. Clarification Statements: • Examples of materials on Earth’s surface could include sand, soil, rocks, and water. • Measures of temperature should be limited to relative measures such as warmer/cooler.
  •  K-PS3-2. Use tools and materials to design and build a model of a structure that will reduce the warming effect of sunlight on an area.*

 

Video

The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats

Grades PK/K • Ten on the Sled

Ten on a Sled

ten on a sled book cover

Lesson Summary

In the story, the animals keep falling out of the sled. Can you use the engineering design process to create a sled that will keep 10 friends inside all the way down the hill?

STE or Math Standards

Massachusetts Mathematics, Counting and Cardinality

Preschool
A. Know number names and the counting sequence: 1. Listen to and say the names of numbers in meaningful contexts.

B. Count to tell the number of objects: 3. Understand the relationships between numerals and quantities up to 10.

C. Compare numbers: 5. Use comparative language, such as more/less than, equal to, to compare and describe collections of objects.

Kindergarten
A. Know number names and the count sequence: 3. Write numbers from 0 to 20. Represent a number of objects with a written numeral 0–20 (with 0 representing a count of no objects).

B. Count to tell the number of objects: 4. Understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; connect counting to cardinality.
   a. When counting objects, say the number names in the standard order, pairing each object with one and only one number name and each number name with one and only one object.
   b. Understand that the last number name said tells the number of objects counted. The number of objects is the same regardless of their arrangement or the order in which they were counted.

C. Compare numbers: 6. Identify whether the number of objects in one group is greater than, less than, or equal to the number of objects in another group for groups with up to 10 objects, e.g., by using matching and counting strategies.

 

ELA Standards

Massachusetts English Language Arts, Reading Standards for Literature

Preschool

  • Key Ideas and Details 1. With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about a story or poem read aloud.
  • Integration of Knowledge and Ideas 7. With prompting and support, describe important details from an illustration or photograph.

Kindergarten

  • Key Ideas and Details 1. With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
  • Integration of Knowledge and Ideas 7. With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations and the text in which they appear (e.g., what person, place, thing, or idea in the text an illustration depicts).

 

Video

Ten on a Sled by Kim Norman

Grades PK/K • Harry the Dirty Dog

Harry the Dirty Dog

Lesson Summary

Problem: Design a way to keep Harry from escaping at bathtime

Harry is a happy dog who loves everything except for taking baths. When bath time comes around, Harry runs away and has a lot of fun getting dirty. Students will follow the Engineering Design Process (problem solving process) to solve the problem: How can we keep Harry from running away when it’s bath time?

Reading Standards for Literature (RL):

  • Pre-K.MA.1. With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about a story or poem read aloud.
  • Pre-K.MA.4. With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about unfamiliar words in a story or poem read aloud.
  • SL.K.1 Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about kindergarten topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups

STE or Math Standards/Practices

  • Describe mathematical attributes:
  • PK.CC.A.1. Listen to and say the names of numbers in a meaningful context
  • PK.MD. Describe and compare measurable attributes.
  • K.MD.A.1 Describe measurable attributes of objects, such as length or weight. Describe several measurable attributes of a single object.

 

Video

Harry the Dirty Dog read by Betty White