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STEAM Play & Learn: 20 fun step-by-step preschool projects about science, technology, engineering, art, and math!
With the simple instructions and large, full-color photos in STEAM Play & Learn, preschoolers will love tackling the 20 fun, easy-to-follow step-by-step projects as they learn about science, technology, engineering, arts, and math.
The acronym STEAM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math. At the preschool level, this doesn’t mean trying to teach your kids robotics and engineering, but rather presenting them with open-ended projects that allow them to problem-solve, make mistakes, get creative, and most of all, have fun.
While most preschool-age children are not yet reading, STEAM Play & Learn is meant to be child-driven. The images, illustrations, and projects are meant to appeal to kids of their age and abilities. Let them be the guide as you explore the projects in this book. Topics include symmetry and how light bounces to create reflections with mirror mandalas, diffusion and capillary action with tie dye towels, structural framing and bracing with marshmallow structures, and electrical currents with salty circuits. Other projects include:
Color Mixing Lab
Frozen Goop
Sound Tubes
Citrus Volcanoes
Paper Bag Blocks
Egg Carton Geoboards
Pool Noodle Marble Run
Potions Lab
Balance Scale
Spin Art Tops
Marble Mazes
Tinkering Set
Pattern Projectors
Newton’s Cradle
Art Machine
Lime Light
The projects in this book fall into three difficulty levels: Easy projects require parents and teachers to do nothing more than set out the materials and offer a challenge to children. A few of the easy projects will need parents to assemble components in advance of presenting them to kids. Medium projects will require some adult assistance while the project is underway. Children should be able to complete some of the tasks while stopping periodically for an adult to assist in a step. Difficult projects are meant to be adult-led. This is an opportunity for parents to encourage their child to offer problem-solving ideas along the way, giving children a chance to help and make suggestions.
The cross-subject approach to learning in STEAM Play & Learn will prepare young children for the subjects they will soon learn in elementary school and beyond. These 20 projects will provide hours of fun education for both kids and parents!
The acronym STEAM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math. At the preschool level, this doesn’t mean trying to teach your kids robotics and engineering, but rather presenting them with open-ended projects that allow them to problem-solve, make mistakes, get creative, and most of all, have fun.
While most preschool-age children are not yet reading, STEAM Play & Learn is meant to be child-driven. The images, illustrations, and projects are meant to appeal to kids of their age and abilities. Let them be the guide as you explore the projects in this book. Topics include symmetry and how light bounces to create reflections with mirror mandalas, diffusion and capillary action with tie dye towels, structural framing and bracing with marshmallow structures, and electrical currents with salty circuits. Other projects include:
Color Mixing Lab
Frozen Goop
Sound Tubes
Citrus Volcanoes
Paper Bag Blocks
Egg Carton Geoboards
Pool Noodle Marble Run
Potions Lab
Balance Scale
Spin Art Tops
Marble Mazes
Tinkering Set
Pattern Projectors
Newton’s Cradle
Art Machine
Lime Light
The projects in this book fall into three difficulty levels: Easy projects require parents and teachers to do nothing more than set out the materials and offer a challenge to children. A few of the easy projects will need parents to assemble components in advance of presenting them to kids. Medium projects will require some adult assistance while the project is underway. Children should be able to complete some of the tasks while stopping periodically for an adult to assist in a step. Difficult projects are meant to be adult-led. This is an opportunity for parents to encourage their child to offer problem-solving ideas along the way, giving children a chance to help and make suggestions.
The cross-subject approach to learning in STEAM Play & Learn will prepare young children for the subjects they will soon learn in elementary school and beyond. These 20 projects will provide hours of fun education for both kids and parents!
80 pages, Paperback
Published June 5, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
June 11, 2018
STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math) is becoming so important in the education of our children. Each component of the STEAM model is important, even during the preschool ages. This book is a wonderful asset to any home or school library that is looking for activities to help preschool aged children participate in activities that promote the development within the area of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math.
The activities within this book are organized into Easy, Medium, and Difficult projects that require various levels of adult participation. These activities are organized in a way that is beneficial for both adults and children, maximizing the learning potential for each activity. Each lesson includes a Materials List, Parent Prep section, and a Let's Talk STEAM section that explains the components the lesson covers.
This book contains excellent (colorful!) photographs that accompany the text, making it a wonderful visual resource for young learners. What a fun and exciting way to get young children engaged in STEAM activities, asking questions, and bringing experiments to life. This book is a must-have for anyone that works with young children!
Thank you Quarto Publishing Group, Walter Foster, Jr. and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this excellent book in exchange for an honest review!
The activities within this book are organized into Easy, Medium, and Difficult projects that require various levels of adult participation. These activities are organized in a way that is beneficial for both adults and children, maximizing the learning potential for each activity. Each lesson includes a Materials List, Parent Prep section, and a Let's Talk STEAM section that explains the components the lesson covers.
This book contains excellent (colorful!) photographs that accompany the text, making it a wonderful visual resource for young learners. What a fun and exciting way to get young children engaged in STEAM activities, asking questions, and bringing experiments to life. This book is a must-have for anyone that works with young children!
Thank you Quarto Publishing Group, Walter Foster, Jr. and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this excellent book in exchange for an honest review!
April 23, 2018
With vibrant photos and cute, colorful illustrations STEAM Play & Learn provides a bunch of fun activities for preschool or early-elementary-age children. Whether it's making a colorful volcano out of a lemon, a battery out of a lime, or giant building blocks from lunch bags and crumpled newspaper, this book includes activities that encourage problem-solving and engineering, but many also involve creative and artistic elements too.
The activities are grouped based on difficulty: easy, medium, and difficult. Some involve a lot of adult prep including hot-gluing and using tools (though the "Newton's Cradle" out of popsicle sticks does seem pretty cool!), but fortunately most fall into the "easy" category, and some can even be done with common household items. Food coloring is a common ingredient, as well as marbles, clay, baking soda, etc.
I've already gathered some inspiration on making building materials out of cardboard tubes with holes punched in them and straws (though we used pipe cleaners instead), and the "goop" recipe looks like it will be a fun thing to do outside in the summer.
It looks like there will be something here for everyone with young kids, whether you just want something quick and easy for preschoolers, or feel like tackling a multi-step activity for older kids, and each one includes some information about the particular scientific principles that are at work, plus each one looks like it would be a lot of fun.
(Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy.)
The activities are grouped based on difficulty: easy, medium, and difficult. Some involve a lot of adult prep including hot-gluing and using tools (though the "Newton's Cradle" out of popsicle sticks does seem pretty cool!), but fortunately most fall into the "easy" category, and some can even be done with common household items. Food coloring is a common ingredient, as well as marbles, clay, baking soda, etc.
I've already gathered some inspiration on making building materials out of cardboard tubes with holes punched in them and straws (though we used pipe cleaners instead), and the "goop" recipe looks like it will be a fun thing to do outside in the summer.
It looks like there will be something here for everyone with young kids, whether you just want something quick and easy for preschoolers, or feel like tackling a multi-step activity for older kids, and each one includes some information about the particular scientific principles that are at work, plus each one looks like it would be a lot of fun.
(Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy.)
April 20, 2018
Great book that walks you through STEM, what it means, how to use it, etc. Lots of experiments you can do with your child ranging in difficulty. Wonderful tool!!
I received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.
I received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.
May 22, 2018
Review can also be at https://littlebigreads.com/2018/05/23...
In her note to parents and teachers at the beginning of the book, the author has captured my beliefs in terms of encouraging children to be creative thinkers. Not only is this a wonderful resource that can be used in the home or school setting, the author reminds us that it is about the process and not the product, that it is okay to make mistakes, encourage them to tinker, and give them the freedom to be innovative. With a message like this at the beginning of a book it is certainly one that I want to share with everyone.
STEAM Play & Learn is the perfect book for your preschool children to be introduced to the concept of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and math; without the complexities of robotics. The author explains further what STEAM is and does so in a way that is easy to understand, She further explains how to use the book, including information on safety and difficulty levels.
The aspect of the book that captures my attention from the front cover and throughout is that it is just a celebration of colour, it’s engaging and makes you want to know more about the experiments.
The experiments and activities range from Colour Mixing, Frozen Goop, Marble Mazes, and Tinkering Set. Each of these have their own difficulty level, has a section on talking STEAM, and what more you can do to it e.g. make it wider or bigger. The items used for the experiments are predominately bits and pieces that can be found around the home, including: scissors, cardboard, vinegar and baking soda.
Just a little note for my Australian readers, some words and spelling will differ to our way such as color, yard and craft stick but can be easily explained to your child.
This has to be one of the best STEAM books I have seen for children and I like that the experiments are well suited to the preschool age group. While the children are learning as they do the experiments in the book, it certainly won’t feel structured or ‘school’ like as it is all about having fun and being creative. I highly recommend this book.
In her note to parents and teachers at the beginning of the book, the author has captured my beliefs in terms of encouraging children to be creative thinkers. Not only is this a wonderful resource that can be used in the home or school setting, the author reminds us that it is about the process and not the product, that it is okay to make mistakes, encourage them to tinker, and give them the freedom to be innovative. With a message like this at the beginning of a book it is certainly one that I want to share with everyone.
STEAM Play & Learn is the perfect book for your preschool children to be introduced to the concept of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and math; without the complexities of robotics. The author explains further what STEAM is and does so in a way that is easy to understand, She further explains how to use the book, including information on safety and difficulty levels.
The aspect of the book that captures my attention from the front cover and throughout is that it is just a celebration of colour, it’s engaging and makes you want to know more about the experiments.
The experiments and activities range from Colour Mixing, Frozen Goop, Marble Mazes, and Tinkering Set. Each of these have their own difficulty level, has a section on talking STEAM, and what more you can do to it e.g. make it wider or bigger. The items used for the experiments are predominately bits and pieces that can be found around the home, including: scissors, cardboard, vinegar and baking soda.
Just a little note for my Australian readers, some words and spelling will differ to our way such as color, yard and craft stick but can be easily explained to your child.
This has to be one of the best STEAM books I have seen for children and I like that the experiments are well suited to the preschool age group. While the children are learning as they do the experiments in the book, it certainly won’t feel structured or ‘school’ like as it is all about having fun and being creative. I highly recommend this book.
June 20, 2018
Creative entertainment!
Thanks to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing for the opportunity to read and review STEAM Play & Learn by Ana Dziengel. This is a wonderful book filled with twenty projects, ranging from easy to difficult and all geared towards science, technology, engineering, art and math. Fun and helpful illustrations bring this project book to life and the detailed instructions are perfect! I love the STEAM applications and notes following each project. A must-have book for anyone wanting a little creative entertainment in their lives- 5 stars!
Thanks to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing for the opportunity to read and review STEAM Play & Learn by Ana Dziengel. This is a wonderful book filled with twenty projects, ranging from easy to difficult and all geared towards science, technology, engineering, art and math. Fun and helpful illustrations bring this project book to life and the detailed instructions are perfect! I love the STEAM applications and notes following each project. A must-have book for anyone wanting a little creative entertainment in their lives- 5 stars!
May 21, 2018
I received this book, for free, in exchange for an honest review.
This book is organized by the rate of difficulty of each project; with each level of difficulty getting its own section composed of many projects. There were many novel projects here as opposed to many similar books. On the other hand, most of the projects didn't seem too interesting to. That being said, there were a few phenomenal projects but not enough to make the book too extraordinary.
This book is organized by the rate of difficulty of each project; with each level of difficulty getting its own section composed of many projects. There were many novel projects here as opposed to many similar books. On the other hand, most of the projects didn't seem too interesting to. That being said, there were a few phenomenal projects but not enough to make the book too extraordinary.
June 27, 2018
I love how easy the directions are to follow and how colorful the end projects area. Also, the projects use a lot of common materials making it easy to complete them. Each project comes with a clear STEAM lesson that is explained in language simple enough for children to understand. This book is perfect for educators and parents of preschoolers and honestly I think older children would enjoy the projects too.
July 15, 2018
I really love books like this that compile STEM and STEAM activities for parents and teachers. This book is packed full of different fun ideas, all on different levels, so you are sure to find something that your children or students will enjoy. Great book!
July 19, 2019
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This book is great. If you are trying to get your child interested in STEAM, this is a great resource. Very easy to follow and separated into degrees of difficulty.
This book is great. If you are trying to get your child interested in STEAM, this is a great resource. Very easy to follow and separated into degrees of difficulty.
February 5, 2019
Lots of good projects for preschoolers!
March 29, 2019
LOVE this
paper bag blocks are awesome
paper bag blocks are awesome
May 21, 2025
Many fun experiments to reference. More of the accessible ones would have been good.
May 6, 2018
An excellent book to wake up the curiosity for sciences to young children. The book can be used at school or at home. The activities are well explained and categorized by difficulty which helps to select the activities for age of the kids.
Want to Read
May 12, 2018Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.
May 18, 2018
This book had me extremely excited from the very first page... or actually from the cover, if I'm being honest. I can just envision how much fun these activities will be for children at school, as after school activities, to keep their brain stimulated while they're with a babysitter. So many fun, educational, and colorful activities that are so simple to do. I LOVE EVERYTHING about this book! I hope to see more additions added to this book... and soon!
A lovely addition to personal libraries, daycare collections, or classroom libraries. This book will be making it onto my "Must Gift" Book List, along with I Love You Forever By Robert Munsch, and Mr. Poppers Penguins.
A huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I truly appreciate it!
A lovely addition to personal libraries, daycare collections, or classroom libraries. This book will be making it onto my "Must Gift" Book List, along with I Love You Forever By Robert Munsch, and Mr. Poppers Penguins.
A huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I truly appreciate it!
May 22, 2018
Lots of fun activities to start your children off early with STEAM education. Most of the projects can be done with items you find around your house, so no need of special supplies. I also like that some of the activities are not things you see over and over in every other book. The marshmallow Tinker Toys might be my favorite project.
Read
May 25, 2018I received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
STEAM Play and Learn explores twenty preschool STEAM activities designed to encourage problem-solving, creativity, and fun. Each activity is marked as either being 'easy', 'medium', or 'difficult', and most can be done using materials found around the house. The steps are simple, and easy to understand. Each activity ends with a "Let's Talk About STEAM" box, which outlines with aspect of STEAM is addressed in the activity, as well as listing activities that can build on the initial one.
This is a really neat book and I intend to use some of the STEAM activities in my preschool library programs!
STEAM Play and Learn explores twenty preschool STEAM activities designed to encourage problem-solving, creativity, and fun. Each activity is marked as either being 'easy', 'medium', or 'difficult', and most can be done using materials found around the house. The steps are simple, and easy to understand. Each activity ends with a "Let's Talk About STEAM" box, which outlines with aspect of STEAM is addressed in the activity, as well as listing activities that can build on the initial one.
This is a really neat book and I intend to use some of the STEAM activities in my preschool library programs!
May 27, 2018
Most of the activities in “STEAM Play & Learn” are classic and everyone has done them as a child. However, the beneficial part of this book is that the STEAM concepts are spelled out for the adults in order to teach them to the children. Awesome!
June 18, 2018
STEAM Play & Learn is filled with engaging projects perfect for preschool and early-school aged children. One of my favorite parts of this book is that it is simply broken down into three sections: easy projects (put out the materials and let kids work), medium projects (some adult assistance will be needed), and difficult projects (adult-led). As a parent and a teacher, I love that I can quickly choose what will work best for me and my kiddos. The images and illustrations are colorful and attention grabbing and each project has clear, easy-to-follow directions. From Frozen Goop to Salty Circuits kids are sure to have a blast learning and exploring!
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews