STEM in the Homeschool - and Top 3 STEM Toys

***DISCLAIMER: This post contains affiliate links and I may receive compensation when you click on a link within. Thank you for supporting our homeschool!***

My favorite aspect of homeschooling is you can gear the lessons to your child's interests and needs. Due to developmental delays and learning disabilities, several of our children are not wired to succeed with a traditional book and workbook education. However, they thrive with a STEM based education. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. A STEM based education focuses on developing critical thinking skills and using your imagination and innovation to solve real world problems. Our goal of homeschooling has never been to do traditional public school at home, but to encourage collaborative education and lifelong learning. I am not as concerned with my children memorizing a bunch of facts, but more interested in their problem solving and critical thinking skills. 

None of my kids have ever come to me and said, "I would really like to read a book on the different types of insulation and their thermal performance." In fact, none of our kids are huge readers. With dyslexia, reading is difficult and stressful. However, as I was reading our Homestead Science curriculum on building materials, one of our boys suggested we design an experiment to test different materials to use for insulation. At the idea, excitement rapidly grew amongst the children and they were all suggesting different materials to test. That, my friends, is the magic and beauty of homeschooling and where learning happens.

It is not everyday that the children come up with their own experiments or ideas. Sometimes I need to provide some suggestions or tools to prompt exploration, experimentation, and ignite their curiosity. We went many years of homeschooling on a frugal budget. Using nature and everyday household items, you can absolutely provide an abundance of STEM activities. Our son used to take apart his brothers old light up shoes to take out the lights and batteries, would break open old bubble blowers to get the gears and motors, and dig through neighbors discarded piles on their curbs to gather odds and ends he could use on projects. Of course, he was pretty much born to tinker. He went to a mother's day out program when he was three or maybe four years old. At the time he was still nonverbal and barely walking, but the director called me to ask if I could check our son's pocket for the door lock. Sure enough, he had managed to take apart their door knob and brought home the locking mechanism. It wasn't much longer that I went to sit down on a chair only to fall to the ground and discover that he had removed all the screws from the chairs. 

Our other kids have not been quite as naturally curious or resourceful, but like skills, they have learned to be resourceful. However, in the interest of protecting my larger appliances and home in general from destruction, we have provided some STEM kits and aids as they have gotten older. Here are my top 3:

1. HACK PACK SUBSCRIPTION (CRUNCH LABS BUILD BOX when they are younger)

These subscription boxes come once every other month with a new robot to build and code. Each robot comes with some pre-loaded codes, so you do not need to know how to code to begin using your robot. However, this Hack Pack has been our greatest hack in teaching our son to not only code, but also to read. Hack Pack coding is a great motivator with built in rewards (seeing your robot perform successfully). The boxes say "Think Like an Engineer" and that is exactly what this subscription box teaches you to do. The number of codes you can program for any one robot are pretty much endless, so it provides hours and hours of learning and entertainment.

2. TECHNIC MOTORS AND GEARS (taking LEGOS to the next level)

These technics motors and gears are designed to be compatible with legos. If your child loved playing with legos when they were little, they will love making their legos mobile. The motors and gears open up a whole new level of learning and exploration, and again, the possibilities are nearly endless. To go along with our Homestead Science curriculum, the kids were making different farm equipment and trying different wheel ratios and configurations to see how they would drive over different obstacles in the house.

3. SNAP CIRCUITS

This is the newest addition to our homeschool supplies, thanks in large part to funding through Arkansas' Educational Freedom Account. If you are a homeschooler in Arkansas, I recommend looking into the funds that may be available to you through the Learns Act. We were able to purchase a few different snap circuit kits and they were instant hits. Again, in conjunction with our Homestead Science course, the boys were creating a system for showing how many animals were in the pen using the LED light up board, an alarm system for when a predator was in the area (simulated by the closing of a trigger switch), and more! The Bric Structures, My Home, and Green Energy extension packs will be used all year long for helping to understand how important electricity is on a homestead and the many ways to use it. I can't wait to see what kind of experiments they will come up with!

For more homeschool inspiration check out the Homeschool Tab. Let's connect on Instagram @pocketful_of_treasures.

***Pocketful of Treasures is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, and affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com***