Playful STEAM Learning in the Early Years

“This essential guide shows readers developmentally appropriate and equitable approaches to deliver important STEAM skills to young children in ways that are both impactful and fun.” —Julie Dobrow, Tufts University

Decades of research has shown that introducing STEM content like coding and engineering during the foundational early childhood years can lead to many benefits, such as improving children’s number sense, problem-solving skills, and sequencing ability. Unfortunately, the costs of STEM technologies can be a barrier for many early childhood educators. Additionally, many digital tools and apps are not playful or developmentally appropriate for young learners and can be less inclusive of students who have been historically excluded from STEM.

This book addresses these barriers by demonstrating how to leverage an interdisciplinary STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) approach to pique the curiosity of young students through play-based learning. The authors provide evidence-based, hands-on approaches as well as a practical framework to effectively integrate STEAM learning in the early grades (pre-K to 3rd grade). Readers will explore new ways to play alongside their young learners to make powerful STEAM discoveries and foster a lifelong love of learning.

Book Features:

• Provides tips and strategies rooted in existing frameworks and guidelines, as well as the authors’ original research on the cognitive and socioemotional benefits of STEAM experiences.
• Empowers early childhood educators working in any setting (informal, formal, or home settings).
• Describes a new framework for the equitable design and implementation of play-based STEAM learning in early childhood settings.

Amanda Sullivan is a senior researcher at the National Girls Collaborative Project (NGCP) and co-creator of the ScratchJr Coding Cards: Creative Coding Activities. Amanda Strawhacker is the STEAM coordinator at Schechter Boston school in Massachusetts and has contributed to the development of commercially available educational STEAM products.

"With its playful, screen-free STEAM activities and practical frameworks, (this book) empowers educators to transform their classrooms into vibrant hubs of creativity, innovation, and discovery—whether they’re just beginning their STEAM journey or are seasoned experts ready to take their teaching to the next level."
—From the Foreword by Merredith Portsmore, director, Center for Engineering Education and Outreach, Tufts University

“Playful STEAM Learning in the Early Years will become an essential guide for parents, educators, and caregivers, showing them developmentally appropriate and equitable approaches to deliver important STEAM skills to young children in ways that are both impactful and fun. Sullivan and Stawhacker’s new book centers play in delivering evidence-based learning that will prepare young children for the innumerable technological challenges they’ll face in the 21st century. Well-written and thoughtful, this new volume provides answers and strategies for parents and teachers who wonder and worry about the promise and problems of technology in children’s lives.”
—Julie Dobrow, Distinguished Senior Lecturer, Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development, Tufts University

“An essential guide for fostering playful, screen-free STEAM learning, this book offers a thoughtful framework to help educators, including parents, create engaging experiences for children. The Playful STEAM Learning Framework (PSLF) encourages perseverance, creativity, and inclusion, while nurturing a love for learning through play. With practical examples and research-backed insights from formal classrooms and informal learning spaces, this book equips readers with ideas, strategies, and tools to cultivate curiosity, confidence, and critical thinking in young learners—no screens required!”
—Christine M. Cunningham, senior vice president, STEM Learning, Museum of Science, Boston

“This is a wonderful book written by two thoughtful researchers/practitioners who have devoted their academic careers to thinking about and implementing the best possible early learning experiences. With and without screens, with and without technology, this book is about creativity and playful exploration. A timely resource for everyone who cares about the future: our children!”
—Marina Umaschi Bers, Augustus Long Professor of Education, Lynch School of Education and Human Development, Boston College