From birth, children are inquisitive. Our educators nurture early STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) concepts and skills through daily routines, play and exploratory activities. These experiences are provided for babies and children throughout our programming. This month, our babies had so much fun with their educators as they talked, read, sang and played as they developed many avenues to develop their communication skills. Our educators are purposeful in their approach to developing the STEM skills of all children in their care.

For example, we count a baby’s toes, describe the changing leaves with our children and talk with our babies as we play together! Research shows that having a strong foundation in early mathematics, for example, can lead to higher achievement in both mathematics and reading later in school.

What is STEM? “STEM” stands for science, technology, engineering and mathematics. STEM can refer to the subjects individually or one or more working together, but can also mean a way of doing things that includes solving problems, asking questions, and exploring the world around us. For example, children learn about the concept of technology when they’re exploring tools or simple machines and investigating how they work. These can be items they use every day like a pair of scissors or things they might see like the wheels of a car as they walk outside. For young children, we focus on STEM through exploration, play, and building curiosity about the natural world and the way things work. STEM learning is important for everyone and can happen anytime, anywhere. The real-life skills that people develop when learning STEM help make everyone better problem-solvers and learners.

In addition, interacting with many different materials prepares our babies for science and engineering later in school.  Take a look at what our little ones have been up too.