Think back to your childhood: What are your fondest memories? Did you play outside? Did you use your imagination? Did you play in groups? How much time did you spend alone in front of a screen?

From preparing young people with the 21st-century skills they—and in turn, America—will need for the careers of tomorrow, to the unique talents and environment that afterschool provides for fun hands-on STEM enrichment that inspires excitement along with understanding, the case for STEM activities Afterschool is well documented and researched.

Over the past 10 years, developments in technology and how we interact with information have been racing forward at a staggering pace. We are living in the future—and these changes have impacted young people and their education.

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.

"Two heads are better than one."

This age-old adage contains a lot of wisdom when related to incorporating best teaching practices for STEM: The ability to collaborate is essential in our modern, information-rich workplace.

"Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn." —Benjamin Franklin

Today we find ourselves in the midst of an information revolution—the internet has grown and weaved itself completely into our lives. Work, communication, shopping, banking, news and education are all increasingly only available with an internet connection.

Technology has had a huge impact on today's employment landscape. One of the key changes is the increasing necessity to be able to work as part of a team.

Spatial thinking, or reasoning, is the capacity to mentally or physically understand the location and movement of objects and ourselves in space. It is not a single ability or process, but a number of concepts, tools and processes that work together.