i. Why is it important to teach STEM with hands-on activities?
ii. Why do you think that?
iii. What personal examples do you have of successfully teaching a hands-on activity?

From recipes and crafts to deciding if a new sofa can fit in the living room, the ability to measure and estimate sizes and amounts is an extremely important STEM and life skill young people need to master.

Did you know that the National AfterSchool Association is a great resource for STEM professional development?

Did you know that the National AfterSchool Association is a great resource for STEM professional development?

In recent years, there has been momentum to include the arts in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) learning.

Over the past 10 years there has been a focused and well-researched shift for STEM education to be based on hands-on, inquiry-type activities. The afterschool environment is perfect for implementing these types of activities.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about my visit to our NAA storage facility to go through years and years of organizational files. With NAA's 30th anniversary coming up in 2018, I find myself spending more and more time thinking about how to honor the past of our work, while also looking toward the future.

The process of teaching and learning science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) offers youth opportunities to make sense of the world they live in and prepare them for the future workforce.

Working in the private and public sectors, I have been involved in science education for over 20 years. From parents and principals, to CEOs and administrators, I am passionate and accustomed to fighting for STEM. Today, I need to speak about something more fundamental.

Yikes, math! Unfortunately, the sentiment is often shared by young people and adults alike. Math has a bad rap in the United States, and this attitude reflects in the country's test scores.