QUESTION OF THE MONTH : How Do You Inspire a Child's Interest in STEM?

I teach US history to 6, 7, and 8th grade. You have to let them have fun. Take little ones out to places with plants and animals if you want to inspire biology sciences, take them to where things are built to see how gears and mechanical stuff work, and to make it successful, you have to explain in their terms what is happening. The earlier you do this, the brain will reserve space with neurons for later information. Think of it as you are building storage drives, and very little will be stored on them. All they need is the basic knowledge they can comprehend at their age. Synapsis' pruning occurs between 2 and 6. If it detects empty neurons not being used to develop the brain, it will throw out unused neurons. Let the kids explore and learn on their own (with your encouragement) as their interests develop in the outside world.

Please don't overdo it. Just take a five-minute walk and stop when you see something you haven't talked about before. Ask them a few questions like "How much can an ant lift? 10 times its own weight!"

These little lessons keep the brain developing and building the network, and it slows the pruning process. Plus, getting kids off the phone and from in front of the TV for real exercise and fresh air is good for their health. Raise them to love math from a very early age. They don't have to understand it, just introduce them to it. Why? Because all of the sciences, engineering, coding, and other vocations need mathematicians. Math is the most important skill you can teach, and tie it to fun projects. 

I teach US history to 6, 7, and 8th grade. You have to let them have fun. Take little ones out to places with plants and animals if you want to inspire biology sciences, take them to where things are built to see how gears and mechanical stuff work, and to make it successful, you have to explain in their terms what is happening. The earlier you do this, the brain will reserve space with neurons for later information. Think of it as you are building storage drives, and very little will be stored on them. All they need is the basic knowledge they can comprehend at their age. Synapsis' pruning occurs between 2 and 6. If it detects empty neurons not being used to develop the brain, it will throw out unused neurons. Let the kids explore and learn on their own (with your encouragement) as their interests develop in the outside world.

Please don't overdo it. Just take a five-minute walk and stop when you see something you haven't talked about before. Ask them a few questions like "How much can an ant lift? 10 times its own weight!"

These little lessons keep the brain developing and building the network, and it slows the pruning process. Plus, getting kids off the phone and from in front of the TV for real exercise and fresh air is good for their health. Raise them to love math from a very early age. They don't have to understand it, just introduce them to it. Why? Because all of the sciences, engineering, coding, and other vocations need mathematicians. Math is the most important skill you can teach, and tie it to fun projects.