Pre-K Students Undertake STEM Projects
Pre-Kindergarten students at The Benjamin School are diving into the exciting world of STEM. The acronym stands for science, technology, engineering and math and offers a student-centered approach to learning these four key disciplines.
The program, spearheaded by Pre-K teacher Joanie Garrettson, coincides with the School’s plans to break ground on a STEM center later this year.
“To keep our program competitive nationwide, it was imperative that we devoted more time in our Pre-Kindergarten curriculum to STEM studies,” Garrettson says. Teachers Kate Buettin, Laura Chesnes and Lindsey Robertson join Garretson in the STEM education program for Benjamin Pre-Kindergarteners. The team of teachers recently presented their STEM education findings at a conference hosted by the Florida Council of Independent Schools.
“STEM really is a philosophy. It’s a way of thinking about how educators (and parents) should be guiding children in integrating knowledge across disciplines, encouraging them to think in a more connected natural way,” Garrettson says.
Pre-Kindergarten students at Benjamin spend their Friday mornings learning a new STEM lesson. Already, the young learners have worked on 3-D trees, ladders, bridges and racecars as part of their STEM education. The goal of the program is to teach students to collaborate, problem solve and discover new challenges on their own, with little teacher guidance.
Garrettson says the STEM program shows that success in learning requires the learner, or student, to be at the center of the experience.
“The traditional approach of teaching topics in isolation does not always support the ways that children learn best. As teachers, we have learned that by asking the right questions we help stimulate collaborative problem solving, which leads to incredible discoveries.
“Just as we construct the foundation of a building first, we must begin building a foundation in STEM beginning in the early years. It is not difficult to teach STEM to preschool age children - during this time of development their brains are capable of much more than many adults think is possible. They are perfectly able to learn and apply concepts that once waited for much later years to be taught.”
Pre-K students will continue their STEM projects throughout the year, including work with pendulums, levers and catapults.
“We hope our students will continue applying their knowledge both on and off campus,” Garrettson says.
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11000 Ellison Wilson RoadNorth Palm Beach, FL 33408
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A premier PK3 - Grade 12 independent, coeducational day school with campuses in North Palm Beach and Palm Beach Gardens. Since 1960, The Benjamin School has provided a challenging college preparatory education to a diverse student body in a structured, nurturing community environment.