Emily Hunt is an experienced primary school teacher whose role as a science subject leader at a school in Bristol ignited a passion for promoting STEM education. During a recent year abroad in the USA she developed a popular website and blog - www.howtostem.co.uk - offering STEM activities and advice for educators working with the primary age range. She also worked within the US education system to deliver science outreach, and holds a master's in education from the University of Cambridge.
15-Minute STEM is full of activities that can be used to enhance
current learning and provide hooks to get children thinking about
new concepts. The tasks excite both adults and children alike, and
naturally lead learners to explore and discuss ideas at their own
pace. A real treasure trove of creative learning opportunities that
you can dip into time and time again.Gilly Tyree-Milner, Forest
School/Outdoor/Nurture Lead Practitioner, Worsbrough Common Primary
School
15-Minute STEM is a fantastic handbook for anyone looking to cram
STEM activities into a busy timetable. Each activity is presented
using child-friendly language, along with pictures and
easy-to-follow instructions, and is set out in such a way that
children will be able to pick up the aim of the task quickly.The
book features dozens of STEM ideas I have never come across before,
and I can instantly see how they would be applicable in any
classroom a either as stand-alone nuggets or as part of existing
schemes of work.STEM-sational. Ben Connor, Teacher, St Maxentius CE
Primary School
15-Minute STEM is a fantastic resource to get children of all
abilities hands on with STEM, both in school and at home. The
activities are easy to comprehend, are effective in quickly
conveying complex concepts and can be done with accessible
materials. I especially like how the learning helps develop a
growth mindset and relates to real-life jobs a and I believe that
this can inspire the scientists of the future.Joanne Fitton,
environmental scientist and parent governor
15-Minute STEM is an inspiration. Its 40 hands-on activities are
well-structured and, more importantly, intriguing. They are
designed to capture the imagination, and succeed in doing so a my
particular favourites are the Catapult Challenge and Rocket Racers
(although this may simply reflect my desire to send things hurtling
across a random space). The aWhat are we learning?' sections in
each activity also allow teachers to make connections to the
curriculum, and enable the learners to understand the ideas behind
the activities. The book itself has a serious purpose, too a which
is to engage and educate children in STEM education. This intention
is clearly articulated in the introduction, which serves as a guide
to effective practice in STEM. Here the exhortation to start with a
question, expose the children to the resources and allow them to
lead the exploration mirrors current thinking on the importance of
engaging children in learning with a real purpose, and trusting
them to lead elements of their own work. The STEM jobs glossary
illuminates another key purpose of the book a introducing children
to the huge range of potential routes that are open to those
interested in solving problems and tackling challenges. Certainly,
inspiring an initial interest in STEM in primary school may be one
of the key ways by which we can ensure that we have people
interested in such work in the future.Paul Warwick, Senior Lecturer
in Education, University of Cambridge
15-Minute STEM is an inviting, teacher-friendly resource packed
full of tried-and-tested activities to help develop children's STEM
skills, and is well suited to the teacher who is less experienced
in teaching STEM subjects. Each activity is explained clearly and
concisely, and the eye-catching icons tagged on to the activities
make it easy to prepare the ideal learning environment for each
task. The links to the variety of related jobs also provide
children with a useful introduction to possible STEM careers. A
great resource for teachers who are taking their first steps in
creating a STEM-rich classroom.Tanya Shields, Primary STEM Lead,
STEM Learning Ltd
15-Minute STEM is brilliant! It is packed full of fun and exciting
science- and engineering-based activities that will engage and
inspire children, helping them to develop enquiring minds through
practical application. With its clear illustrations and
step-by-step instructions, the book is great for parents to use
with children at home a as well as for teachers who want to
introduce more practical activities in the classroom. Fantastic!
Lynda Mann, Head of Education Programmes, Royal Academy of
Engineering
aaEmily Hunt's a15-Minute STEMa book contains 40 quick,
easy-to-resource activites, for 5-11 year old's. a15-Minute STEMa
reassures teachers and parents that they don't need to be experts
to deliver high-quality STEM education. 15 minute STEM is full of
engaging practical ideas that are quick to do and inspire
longer-term engagement. 15 Minute STEM offers activities that will
encourage children to question be creative while learning. Each
activity will tell you aWhat you needa, explain aHow to do ita,
opportunity to further aInvestigatea, and then give an explanation
regarding, aWhat we learned.. 15 Minute STEM will get children of
all abilities to get hands on with STEM, both in school and at
home. You don't have to be an expert to deliver a STEM education.
Today, Governments, industries and scientific bodies around the
world are increasingly prioritizing investment in STEM (science,
technology, engineering and maths) knowledge and skills because
these are regarded as key, to future employment and economic
growth. Emily Hunt is an experienced primary school teacher whose
role as a science subject leader at a school In Bristol. You can
check out her popular website and blog a www.howtostem.co.uk a She
also worked withing the US education system to deliver science
outreach, holds a Master of Education from the University of
Cambridge.aClick here to read the review on their website.Groovin'
Moms Merci and Liz
aI was impressed that this book has forty activities in it. At
first glance the book is rather unassuming. It's thin and only has
60 pages. Once I opened the book, I knew immediately that this was
going to be my ago toa book for many great activities to do with my
awork kids.a Many of the STEM activities that I have pinned on
Pinterest or bookmarked on my computer require a lot of materials
to accomplish. Our organization does have a budget it needs to
stick to, and I honestly don't have the time to drive all over town
looking for the materials to complete an activity. I was super
pleased to see that the activities in this book don't require a lot
of fancy materials, and many of the items needed we already have, I
have at home, or I can easily get locally. Take for example the
Tinfoil Cargo Boats activity. It requires tinfoil, coins, water, a
bowl or sink and a scale (optional). Who doesn't already have these
things around their home? In the Water Color Carnival activity you
need large clear bowls, beakers, a spoon, food coloring, water and
a mirror (optional). The beakers might not be as readily available,
but I'm sure you can substitute them with measuring cups or
something similar. If you don't have the items needed for each
activity, Iam sure you can find almost all of what you need at your
local dollar store. Each activity includes the necessary equipment
(as explained above), easy to follow step-by-step instructions,
what exactly the activity is going to accomplish (this information
is found in the aInvestigatea box) and an brief explanation for WHY
things happen in the activity. I am a firm believer that children
learn better when learning is fun. With these activities, children
are definitely learning, even if it doesn't look that way. Not only
that, these activities are fun and would work just as well as a
arainy daya activity for children, without any emphasis on the
awhya and ahowa of the activity. They don't have to be done to
learn something. They can be done just for the fun of it. As far as
the 15 minutes aspect is concerned, yes, these activities don't
take that long to set up and implement. I guess it all depends on
the children you are working with. Younger children might take a
wee bit longer than older children. I have adog earreda several
pages in this book of activities I want to do with my awork kids.a
I am finishing up taking inventory of what we have at school and
what I need to pick up from the dollar store (or take in from
home). I've been a bit busy lately, and we're currently on winter
break, so I haven't had the chance to try any of activities a yet.
Even if I did, it's not easy to take photos at school. I don't want
to get any of the children in the photos for safety reasons (plus
they are not my children, so I am not allowed to distribute their
images). Whether you are a parent, educator, scout leader or even a
babysitter, there are plenty of fun activities in this book that
make it worth checking it out for yourself.aClick here to read the
review on Kimberly''s blog.Kimberly, She Scribes blog
Complete with easy-to-use instructions, 15-Minute STEM offers an
impressive collection of imaginative, interactive activities which
encourage children to question, deduce and hypothesise as they
learn.The book's format is simple to follow, with photos provided
to illustrate a range of engaging tasks, and each activity is
introduced with a question that stimulates children's interest and
curiosity in STEM. Our pupils absolutely love it! Jo Lancett, Head
Teacher, Darton Primary School
I love this book! 15-Minute STEM is crammed full of engaging
practical ideas that are quick to do yet also inspire longer-term
engagement. It's equally suitable for teachers and parents a
definitely one of the best resources I have read in a long
while.Professor Bill Lucas, co-author of `Educating Ruby` and
`Thinking Like an Engineer`
Perfect for parents (including home educators) and teachers, this
practical and inspiring book is subtitled: Quick, creative science,
technology, engineering and mathematics activities for 5-11
year-olds. STEM activities are high profile and the 40 activities
cover a wide range of areas inclduing engineering, chemistry,
sound, environment and growth. All the activities are explained in
clear steps as well as explanatory text on the learning covered.
The layout is clear and attractive. Of particular note are the
links to STEM jobs which feature obn every page. There are also
extension ideas as well as blank pages to use to create a lasting
record. This is a well thought out book, easy to use and practical
in application, with enjoyable activities that are well focussed.
In today''s busy lives, activities that fit into short timescales
are highly practical, and these slot well into lessons or busy home
lives, making them practical and accessible. An excellent book.Read
the review on Parents in Touch website here.Parents in Touch
PROS: - Each activity is easily accessible to teachers and
practitioners, creating fun-filled challenges to help develop
skills. - Guidance and resources provided within the book, making
the planning process simple for teachers. - Activities cover all
ranges of abilities and ages within the primary school. - A focus
on aWhat we are learning?a with every activity. - Includes links to
different professions, linking the activities with real-life
relevance, helping aspirations. Click here to read the review on
UKEdChat's website.UKEdChat
Science can be found absolutely everywhere we look and is in
everything we do. Thanks to this, we can recreate scientific
phenomenons using every day objects to see it in action. But where
do you even start with setting up an experiment?! In comes ''15
minute STEM'', a brand new science, technology, engineering and
maths (STEM) activity book. This is packed full of quick and easy
experiments, giving you the inspiration you may be lacking. As they
all take about 15 minutes each, you can easily fit them into your
day, and you should already have most of the equipment needed! The
book itself has 40 different experiments which are easy to
understand and set up. Each experiment comes with a list of things
you''ll need, instructions (including an ''investigate'' section,
which gives an option to alter the experiment and compare with the
original) and a fantastic, short explanation of the science behind
the activity! They also have the great idea to give job titles
which involve similar types of science to the activity, to
highlight areas of interest. This is linked up to a glossary at the
back where you can find out about all the different jobs available
in STEM. I really can''t recommend this book enough and although it
is aimed at teachers, it is a fantastic book for students, families
and anyone else interested in STEM too! The activities may be
short, but they have huge scope to them and inspire a lot of
curiosity surrounding them. Our favourite experiment is the ''Magic
Milk'', check out our Instagram (@wonkscience) to see the video of
us trying it out!Click here to read the review on Wonk Magazine''s
website.Wonk Magazine
STEM skills (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) are
important to all aspects of our lives, from construction to space
exploration, from the digital world to caring for the natural one.
Here are 40 quick, easy to access STEM activities that can be done
just as easily at home as at school; you don't need to be an expert
to carry them out, and yes, they really do take just 15 minutes.
They are all hands on and will encourage curiosity, for example,
experimenting with soap bubbles explains tensile structure,
Newton's third law of motion is demonstrated using a balloon and
some bits of cardboard, while you can find out about kinetic energy
while making a catapult. Practical, fun and instructive.Andrea
Reece, Love Reading 4 Kids
This is a super book for primary teachers. It aims to help teachers
inspire and motivate primary aged pupils in the area of STEM
education. Children will love the forty activities which can, as
the title suggests, be completed in fifteen minutes but which might
be developed and expanded and could be used for homework, after
school clubs or parent workshops. If you''re looking for engaging
ways to make mathematics meaningful in the world, and we all should
be, this book is a very useful starting point. This book doesn''t
pretend to provide a considered rationale for STEM education or
what we might call Primary STEM education. This is an area crying
out for greater articulation, for example what is meant by
engineering in this primary context? And how exactly does
mathematics contribute and benefit, for example, in EYFS? And in
Year 6? However, the idea of fifteen-minute STEM activities is a
good one in the respect that it is achievable and might encourage
teachers and pupils to engage in a variety of STEM tasks. While
these cannot replace a well-organised curriculum of STEM subjects,
the activities do provide very useful stimulation and starting
points for further problem solving and investigation.Alan Cross and
Alison Borthwick a Primary Mathematics
15 Minute STEM is an excellent resource providing 40 different
engaging and interactive activities to get 5-11 year olds engaged
about STEM (Science, Technology. Engineering and Mathematics)
subjects. The activities are well planned and not expensive to do
(important as schools struggle on ever decreasing budgets). It also
allows the children to question and answer questions enhancing
critical thinking and problem solving skills in a creative
proactive way which is so important for future contributions to
society and employers. I am passionate about embedding the arts,
film and visual into the STEM subjects so that connections across
different subject areas can be made as well as enabling
contextualisation and relevance in the learning of STEM. I highly
recommend this book as a superb way to get children proactive in
learning of STEM subjects as well as providing a fun interactive
way of problem solving and making connections.Dr Christine Challen
![]() |
Ask a Question About this Product More... |
![]() |