Need some new preschool Spring STEM ideas?
Today I’m sharing three of my favorite whole group STEM activities that are great for Spring. These challenges don’t only focus on science, but also literacy, vocabulary and critical thinking skills!
Grab a pen and paper, you are going to want to save these ideas!
1. Shaving Cream Rain Clouds
Guiding Question: Can we make it rain in a cup?
Vocabulary: cloud and precipitation
Book: The Rain Came Down by David Shannon
Prompt: Have you ever thought about how rain forms? Where does rain come from? Why does it only rain somedays and not others? Rain is a form of precipitation. We can learn about the process of rain by doing an experiment. Do you want to experiment with me?
Teacher Instructions: Fill a clear cup with water (up to about an inch from the top of the cup). Put shaving cream on top of the water (to create a ‘cloud’). Drip blue food coloring onto the shaving cream cloud. The more food coloring that is added, the heavier the shaving cream will become before the food coloring begins to drop from the cloud of shaving cream.
2. Thirsty Celery
Guiding Question: Can we see a celery plant drink water?
Vocabulary: stem and plant
Book: Exploring Stems by Kristin Sterling
Prompt: One day my mom gave me celery for a snack. I noticed it looked a lot like a straw. I wondered if water could go through it. Celery is a plant and I see tiny holes at the end where my mom cut it. I want to find out if water will travel through the celery plant. Will you help me?
Teacher Instructions: Fill a cup with water and food coloring (dark colors like red, blue and purple work best). Cut the end off of a piece of celery to get a fresh cut (you can choose to leave the leaves on, or cut them off). Place the cut end of the celery into the cup of colored water. Wait about an hour and observe how the water traveled up the stem of the celery.
3. Paper Bag Kites
Guiding Question: Can we make a kite using a paper bag?
Vocabulary: gravity and wind
Book: Wind by Erin Edison
Prompt: “It was a windy day! The perfect day to fly a kite. “Can we go fly a kit Mom?” asked Lilly. “We don’t have a kite. But, maybe you can make one.” said her mother. Lilly’s mom gave her a paper bag, string, a craft stick and some streamers. Together they worked to create a paper bag kite. Then, they took it outside to see if it would fly. Let’s make a kite just like Lilly!
Teacher Instructions: Decorate the paper bag. Cut a small hole in the middle of the bottom of the bag. Stick string/yarn up through the hole in the bag. Tie the string you just poked into the bag to a craft stick (the craft stick should be inside the bag, holding the string secure). Add streamers to the edge of the bag with tape. Encourage children to run with the kite or use on a windy day to see what happens.
Looking for more STEM activities that are perfect for preschoolers? I’ve got you covered!
What is your favorite preschool Spring STEM activity?
