Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 8 of 8
Full-Text Articles in Engineering Education
Ocean Underwater Scene Dioramas Of First Graders With Submarine Porthole Views, Ksenia Zhbanova, Audrey C. Rule, Denise A. Tallakson
Ocean Underwater Scene Dioramas Of First Graders With Submarine Porthole Views, Ksenia Zhbanova, Audrey C. Rule, Denise A. Tallakson
Journal of STEM Arts, Crafts, and Constructions
Ecology education of the younger generations is vital for worldwide change of people’s attitudes toward nature warranted by the current global ecological crisis. Yet, this goal needs to be addressed through age-appropriate activities that are educational and engaging. This practical article focuses on dioramas of ocean reef life made by first graders. This arts-integrated project served two main purposes: 1) education of primary students about ocean ecology and helping students realize their roles in saving nature 2) increasing student science content knowledge. Additionally, several other benefits of making dioramas emerged during this project, including highly creative student products, genuine interest …
Editorial: Developing Creativity Through Stem Subjects Integrated With The Arts, Ksenia Zhbanova
Editorial: Developing Creativity Through Stem Subjects Integrated With The Arts, Ksenia Zhbanova
Journal of STEM Arts, Crafts, and Constructions
This issue of the Journal of STEM Arts, Crafts, and Constructions is focused on creativity - one of the most highly-desirable 21st Century skills on personal and global levels. Time, pedagogical knowledge, and resource constraints limit the number of opportunities for teachers to develop creativity in students. In this editorial, creativity development steps and strategies are illuminated along with specific roles of STEM subjects and the arts in development of student creativity. The processes of creativity development used in STEM and the arts are compared to each other and to the non-subject-specific creative process model of Root-Bernstein and Root- …
Editorial: Arts Integration Allows Students The Opportunity To Be Original, Ksenia S. Zhbanova, Audrey C. Rule
Editorial: Arts Integration Allows Students The Opportunity To Be Original, Ksenia S. Zhbanova, Audrey C. Rule
Journal of STEM Arts, Crafts, and Constructions
This editorial explores the other six articles in this issue 2 of volume 3 of the Journal of STEM Arts, Crafts, and Constructions to examine how originality is displayed and supported by art projects. Originality, is a quality or a characteristic of an idea, approach or product. Originality can be defined as newness or novelty. To be classified as original, an idea must be new. It does not have to have a utilitarian value, which is a requirement for an idea to be categorized as creative. Helping students develop originality is important because it allows the freedom to make any …
Teaching Kindergarten Students About The Water Cycle Through Arts And Invention, Latisha L. Smith, Deepanee Samarakoon
Teaching Kindergarten Students About The Water Cycle Through Arts And Invention, Latisha L. Smith, Deepanee Samarakoon
Journal of STEM Arts, Crafts, and Constructions
Research evidence for the benefits of arts integration is mounting. The purpose of this study was to determine if integration of the arts was an effective strategy for teaching the water cycle to kindergarten students. The study included lessons that supported both a science and an engineering standard of the Next Generation Science Standards and national arts standards. The phenomenological study examined the lived experiences of children as they learned and demonstrated understanding through drawings, watercolor paintings, dramatization of a water cycle poem, and the invention and testing of a waterproof boot. Participants were 12 kindergarten students (7 male, 5 …
Students Explore Fossil Creatures Of The Cambrian Period Burgess Shale Through Model-Making, Andrea Anderson, Ksenia Zhbanova, Phyllis Gray, Jolene K. Teske, Audrey C. Rule
Students Explore Fossil Creatures Of The Cambrian Period Burgess Shale Through Model-Making, Andrea Anderson, Ksenia Zhbanova, Phyllis Gray, Jolene K. Teske, Audrey C. Rule
Journal of STEM Arts, Crafts, and Constructions
This practical article features an arts-integrated science unit on fossils of the Burgess Shale for fourteen elementary/ middle school students at a weeklong summer day camp. The day camp had a theme of recycling, reduction and reuse; all of the fossil models had substantial recycled components to support this theme. Next Generation Science Standards were supported by the course activities in which students examined fossil specimens, images, and comparative modern relatives to determine the anatomy and lifestyles of Burgess Shale Cambrian Period fossil animals (e.g., Olenoides trilobites, Anomalocaris, Canadaspis, Opabinia, Wiwaxia, Hallucigenia) through making scientific …
Ecosystem Food Web Lift-The-Flap Pages, Dana L. Atwood-Blaine, Audrey C. Rule, Hannah Morgan
Ecosystem Food Web Lift-The-Flap Pages, Dana L. Atwood-Blaine, Audrey C. Rule, Hannah Morgan
Journal of STEM Arts, Crafts, and Constructions
In the lesson on which this practical article is based, third grade students constructed a “lift-the-flap” page to explore food webs on the prairie. The moveable papercraft focused student attention on prairie animals’ external structures and how the inferred functions of those structures could support further inferences about the animals’ diets. In general, most students made simple causal connections between an animal’s observable characteristics and the food it would probably eat. Some students were also able to make multi-agent connections to develop a more complex mental model of a food web. Ultimately, the lift-the flap project was engaging to students …
Flipping About The Sun And Its Pattern Of Apparent Motion, Crystal Betts, Allison Pattee
Flipping About The Sun And Its Pattern Of Apparent Motion, Crystal Betts, Allison Pattee
Journal of STEM Arts, Crafts, and Constructions
Arts integration has shown to enhance student comprehension, retention, and engagement, while connecting to rich science content. The integration of the Next Generation Science Standards and the National Arts Standards into a first grade lesson illustrated how the arts enhanced the students’ understandings of the sun’s apparent motion during the day, an idea that is difficult for many young children to grasp. In this project students explored the sun outdoors throughout the school day to document changes by tracing their shadows in chalk and by making a shadow clock. Students also applied the information they learned to the creation of …
Editorial: The Journal Of Stem Arts, Crafts, And Constructions As An Ideal Venue For Showcasing Application Of The Next Generation Science Standards, Dana L. Atwood-Blaine
Editorial: The Journal Of Stem Arts, Crafts, And Constructions As An Ideal Venue For Showcasing Application Of The Next Generation Science Standards, Dana L. Atwood-Blaine
Journal of STEM Arts, Crafts, and Constructions
The Journal of STEM Arts, Crafts, and Constructions is an ideal venue for disseminating new ideas, lessons, and research developed in response to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). This editorial explains how arts integration is well-suited to addressing the Science and Engineering Practices and the Cross-cutting Concepts. The research articles in this issue provide evidence that arts integration is also effective at improving student retention of disciplinary content over time. Using specific examples from the articles in this issue, this editorial elaborates on the three-dimensional nature of NGSS and how the integration of arts, crafts, and constructions into science …