What sparks your curiosity? What sparks the curiosity of your children? I would venture to guess that nature and animals might rank pretty high on the list of interests for you and the children you work with every day. Using animals and nature with children is a wonderful opportunity to teach empathy, conservation and environmental stewardship. Fortunately, Nebraska Extension has an exciting early childhood resource to share with you this year around animals and their habitats. This year, we are thrilled to provide eight guides highlighting habitats such as the tundra, rainforest, and desert.
Nebraska Extension has created this great resource for parents, early childhood professionals, care takers, grandparents, and anyone who loves to read with young children that ties directly with local libraries’ summer reading programs. Summer reading programs are taking place right now and the theme across the state is Tails and Tales. Our STEM Imagination Guides are designed to provide several opportunities to connect with each year’s theme by featuring:
• Familiar storybook suggestions:
The stories that have been selected for each guide are well-known stories and often children's favorites. It is okay if you child has already heard the story prior to taking part in the lesson. Sharing a story multiple times helps children develop language and listening skills.
•Conversation starters:
When a two-way conversation is initiated with children during story time, participation in dialogic reading is encouraged. Open-ended questions are provided in each lesson to foster dialogic reading which has tremendous academic and social-emotional benefits for young children.
• STEM connection experiments:
Children love finding out how things work through fun, hands-on projects. The experiment included in each guide relates to the featured habitat and teaches a variety of STEM concepts that are engaging and educational.
• Sensory explorations:
Sensory play stimulates children’s senses and is important for brain development. During the suggested sensory activities, children use multiple senses which allows them to learn more from their experiences and retain more information.
• Music and movement activities:
Research shows that music ignites all areas of child development and enhances skills for school readiness. Not only is singing songs and playing games fun, but these activities also encourage self-expression and physical activity.
• Creative arts investigations:
When children create pictures of stories that they have read, comprehension improves and often motivates children to want to read and interact with books even more. Art is an early form of communication. Creative art suggestions allow children to express themselves and make meaningful connections with the stories.
• Additional related readings:
Since each of the Imagination Guides focus on a different habitat, children often have additional questions and are interested in learning MORE! Supplemental fiction and nonfiction books are suggested so children can expand their knowledge.
The STEM Imagination Guides can be utilized in a variety of ways. No need to panic if you do not have access to the featured storybook. Consider listening to the story online or sharing the story orally from memory. Each Imagination Guide has a variety of options and can be customized to meet the needs and interests of the children in your care. Incorporate all of the activities or just a few. It is up to you! The shared reading experience and creative play opportunities are sure to create an excitement for animals as well as foster a joy for reading.
All of these resources are free and available for download and print at https://go.unl.edu/imagination. This website also houses the previous year’s resources focusing on fairy tales. This website is like a treasure chest of great literacy and STEM resources right at your fingertips. All Imagination Guides, whether from this year or previous years can be utilized at no cost. Enjoy this year’s habitat exploration!
