Even though our Summer Reading Program is over and school is right around the corner, there is still plenty of time, and many ways, to celebrate all things STEAM! Science, technology, engineering, art, and math activities are easy to accomplish right in your house and also in your backyard. Your yard is a classroom full of learning opportunities. In the video below, we highlight three ways to use your backyard to learn and have fun with your child.
Is your child a budding artist? Use materials from your backyard to make a nature map. Come up with fantastical names for the worlds you’ve created together. If your child loves this kind of activity, check out books on maps and map making, such as the titles listed below. Don’t forget our online resources too, such as CultureGrams Online and Grolier’s America the Beautiful.
- Mapping Penny’s World by Loreen Leedy (picture book)
- Map Art Lab by Jill K. Berry (instantly available on Hoopla)
- Types of Maps by Jennifer M. Besel
Science and math activities are waiting outside your back door as well. An easy science experiment includes dishes of food and ants, while leaves lend themselves to a sorting activity that reinforces the concept of attributes. We’ve got information on insects, as well as many math books. A few possibilities are listed below, and we can always help you find more to take home.
- Bean Thirteen by Matthew McElligott (this picture book combines math AND bugs!)
- Bugs by Annabelle Lynch
- Sorting through Spring by Lizann Flatt
Be sure to stay tuned for our next Building Literacy video with STEAM activities to do in the kitchen and on the dining room table! For more Building Literacy videos, visit the Deerfield Library YouTube channel.
