Comprehensive STEAM Education Method for Children
Comprehensive STEAM Education Method for Children
Comprehensive STEAM education is a widely applied method due to its high effectiveness and interdisciplinary approach that helps develop skills in the early stages of children's development.
In addition to other modern educational methods, the STEAM method is currently the focus of attention for most parents.
Let's dive deeper into this STEAM method with the NQH Education System and find ways to maximize its benefits and efficient applications for our children.
What is the STEAM method?
The STEAM method is a way of developing skills through creativity, which helps children have more career opportunities in the future. It is an acronym for five main subject areas that children need to build: Science (S), Technology (T), Engineering (E), Mathematics (M), and Art (A).
STEAM provides children with an active, creative, and stimulating way of learning that encourages curiosity about everything around them. This method of learning is different from traditional one-way teaching, where teachers talk and students just listen. Through creativity and hands-on practice, children learn and develop soft skills to become familiar with solving small problems that occur in their daily lives. Teachers only guide and support them. This method of learning encourages children to be more proactive and interested in learning.
By integrating the skills of different subjects, STEAM not only helps children master theory and practice, but also encourages them to explore, create, and invent innovative scientific products. This ignites excitement and positive emotions in children when learning.
At the same time, children are constantly receiving support from their teachers and peers.
Which stage is the STEAM education method suitable for?
Currently, Vietnam is applying the STEAM method to the teaching program at kindergartens across the country. Even colleges and universities have adopted this learning method, demonstrating its wide-ranging creativity.
Children from the age of 2 who can speak well, recognize thinking and imitate the words of preschool teachers can only apply the form of learning through creative practice to create products.
At this stage, the teacher will be a playmate with the child, absolutely not replacing the child, only supporting when needed, helping the child know how to explore the subject in their own way. This learning method is effective and helps children develop comprehensively.
Parents can also apply the STEAM method at home from an early age to familiarize and stimulate their child's curiosity about the outside world. Every object in the family can become a learning tool for this STEAM method.
What skills does the STEAM method help children develop?
The STEAM method helps develop skills in five main subject areas: Science (S), Technology (T), Engineering (E), Mathematics (M), and Art (A). This method encourages active, creative, and stimulating learning that fosters curiosity about the world. By integrating skills from different subjects, STEAM helps children not only master theory and practice, but also innovate and create products. The method also encourages children to become more proactive and interested in learning, while developing soft skills and problem-solving abilities.
Science (S): This subject area helps children understand how things work and the principles behind everyday events. Children learn how to apply this knowledge in real-life situations, such as understanding how rain is created from water vapor rising and how thunder is created to avoid danger.
Technology (T): In this field, children are exposed to advanced and modern technology. From there, they can create high-quality scientific models or products. This is the application that Robotics brings to the STEAM method.
Engineering (E): Teachers guide children on how to produce and operate a product related to daily life. From there, children will know how to create a complete model or assemble simple machines suitable for their age, such as cars, robots, and other devices.
Mathematics (M): Even preschoolers are familiar with Mathematics. Numbers, digits, and the most basic arithmetic operations help children become more interested in this subject. At the same time, it helps build a foundation for children to apply in real life, increasing their reflexes and cognition.
Art (A): This is the distinguishing factor between the STEAM and STEM methods. While the other subject areas focus on human intelligence and intellect, this method emphasizes art. Children are encouraged to freely explore the world through artistic creativity. This makes the learning experience novel and more engaging.
Through this, it can be seen that the STEAM method is truly bringing many benefits, and surely many parents want to learn more to apply it to their beloved children.
The outstanding benefits of STEAM
In addition to building important skills for success in life, children who are exposed to the STEAM method receive the following positive benefits:
Inspiring learning for children
Unlike the old one-way teaching method, where students are completely passive and only absorb one-way knowledge from teachers with a huge amount of knowledge. When children learn according to the STEAM method, they themselves are the active ones who engage with the subject.
This will inspire children and make learning about Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, and Art a joy. This will stimulate children's passion for learning, creativity, and exploration of new things in life.
Effective learning through specific situations
Thanks to practicing directly the knowledge that has been taught, children will learn through specific situations. From there, children learn how to apply theory to practice, helping them remember better and handle situations more sensitively.
For example, children learn how to calculate apples in a basket using addition. From there, children know how to apply it to calculate other types of fruits in their daily lives.
The STEAM method inspires creativity and passion in children, helping to bring out their full potential.
The STEAM method inspires and allows children to learn through artistic creativity. From there, teachers guide children to absorb knowledge about Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics by exploring these subjects themselves.
Therefore, this method stimulates and ignites children's endless potential and fosters their creativity and passion. By observing their children, parents can understand what they enjoy and invest in their education accordingly, helping them choose a suitable career path in the future.
Children can learn while playing with this method.
This approach makes learning much more engaging. Children won't get bored from sitting all day listening to lectures. Instead, they can learn while playing, being creative, and absorbing knowledge.
To facilitate this learning method, teachers should prepare a variety of interactive learning tools, objects, and products. Children will then learn in a fun, voluntary environment, instead of being forced to learn. This learning approach generates positive energy, which children enjoy.
3 easy ways to teach children at home using the STEAM method that parents should know.
To implement the new STEAM teaching method, parents can use three easy ways to teach their children at home with STEAM, as follows:
- Introduce everyday objects and animals: Every day, parents can introduce their child to a few objects, tools, or animals in the house. At the same time, they can explain to the child what the object is made of, what its purpose is, and how it is produced. For example, "this is a pot made of aluminum used for cooking..."
- Play creative art games at home with children using available items in the house: Parents can use paper, cardboard, bottles, and other common items to create practical scientific art products. This stimulates children's practical creativity right at home.
- Play puzzle games: This method creates an environment that stimulates children's thinking and cognition. The STEAM method requires children to have reflexes and the ability to solve problems quickly. Therefore, parents should ask many questions and create curiosity so that children can think and develop their brains in a fun and engaging way.
The trend of developing education for preschool children through the STEAM method.
In Vietnam, more and more private high-end kindergartens are applying this modern educational method. Accordingly, the trend of developing education for preschool children through the STEAM method is undergoing many changes.
Thanks to this educational method, many preschool teachers have learned many important soft skills. These include teamwork, time management, critical thinking and problem-solving, and more effective strategic thinking.
Especially for a preschooler, learning through STEAM helps them be more active in their learning. Children learn through observation and hands-on practice after the teacher demonstrates. This helps children remember better, learn deeper, and understand the essence of the problem.
Without too much explanation, children can still understand and explain many phenomena in life. This is extremely important for developing skills in the future.
Pros and cons of the STEAM education method
Similar to other educational methods, the STEAM method brings both benefits and limitations for learners. Below are some advantages and disadvantages of this method that parents need to consider before applying it to their children.
Pros:
- Has the ability to stimulate the creative potential of children, especially those at the age before kindergarten and preschool.
- Provides a foundation for children to learn many important soft skills in the fields of science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics, helping children have more career opportunities in the future.
- Increases interest and passion for learning, helping children be more proactive when approaching subjects.
- Creates an ideal environment for boys and girls to learn and promotes gender equality.
- Helps children absorb scientific knowledge in a structured way without having to memorize too many theories like before.
- Minimizes the teacher's intervention in the process of accessing knowledge, allowing children to learn comfortably while playing.
Cons:
- There is no evaluation standard for teachers who apply this method, making it difficult to manage effectively.
- It is impossible to completely overcome all the shortcomings of traditional teaching methods.
Note when teaching children using the STEAM method.
To apply the STEAM method in practice, parents need to pay attention to the following points to implement it effectively and avoid negative impacts on their children.
Put questions to encourage children's thinking Parents should avoid using closed-ended questions such as "yes" or "no" and instead use open-ended questions to encourage their children's thinking and reasoning. When children have the opportunity to express their own thoughts, they can be more creative with the knowledge they acquire.
For instance, instead of asking "Is this a light bulb?" parents could ask "What do you know about this light bulb?" or "How is a light bulb produced?" This way, children can explain and answer on their own. Over time, this approach can help improve communication skills, critical thinking, problem-solving abilities, and explanation skills.
Apply real-life experiences
Parents should apply real-life experiences and specific situations for children to handle and create. This is an extremely important factor that determines the success of the STEAM method in practice. If parents allow their children to observe experiments and changes in objects, the child's interest and absorption will be better.
Because this is the characteristic of children at the preschool stage. Children want to observe turning on a light bulb instead of sitting and listening to the theory about the characteristics of the light bulb.
Consider your child as an adult in activities.
At this time, children want to imitate adults, so parents should find an ideal school for children to experience that position.
It could be a teacher, doctor, astronaut, pilot, engineer, etc. so that the child can experience and feel. From there, children will learn many interesting things thanks to the STEAM method.
It can be said that the STEAM method is very useful and increasingly popular in Vietnam. Parents should refer to and apply it to their children.
In addition, parents can also enroll their children in NQH JUNIOR English Center to experience a comprehensive learning environment. Children will learn the language naturally and apply learning methods through skills with games, creative practice, and multi-sensory stimulation (SEE - HEAR - DO - FEEL).
Thanks to this, children's learning ability is improved and developed outstandingly, maximizing their potential.
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