How to get your kids excited about STEM & STEAM
How to use what your kids already love to get them excited about core subjects like STEM. Miss Alex combines dinosaurs, mythology, fossils, and more.
Every kid has their thing.
Some love taking online fossil classes, while others gravitate toward learning about Greek myths and magical creatures. Naturally, many parents want to support their children's interests. The problem is they don’t always know how to translate a passion for mystical creatures into real-world learning.
But Miss Alex knows. Our Community Guy Fernando recently sat down with one of Outschool's top educators, Miss Alex McCarty, to talk about the connections between dinos, mythology, and STEM learning. Miss Alex shared that there's endless potential for building children’s curiosity, knowledge, and skill by combining science-based education with subjects kids already love.
Miss Alex's approach is all about bringing excitement and passion to the classroom. She shared that she considers her STEM classes "a playground for learning and experimentation" where all students are encouraged to grow.
If your kid just can't get enough of magical creatures, myths, or dinos, you'll love hearing what Miss Alex had to say during our Outschool Live session. Keep reading for a quick recap, or listen to the full recording.
Meet Alexandra McCarty
Known to her Outschool students as Miss Alex, Alexandra McCarty of Shiny Happy Kids is an experienced homeschool parent, educator, and advisor. She shared with Fernando that she understands the struggles of ADHD and neurodiverse students, as she is neurodiverse too. Miss Alex has an excellent reputation in the Outschool parent community because her classes are safe, welcoming spaces for all learners.
Her favorite subjects to teach? Dinos and mythology, of course! Miss Alex uses these interests to engage kids and spark their love for STEM. You might be familiar with STEM or with the related acronym STEAM, which stands for
Science
Technology
Engineering
Art
Math
Miss Alex explained that these are crucial subject areas for today's learners, but they don't always feel accessible. Maybe your child struggles with math or has a hard time understanding engineering concepts.
Miss Alex knows what it feels like when your child struggles—she shared with Fernando that she hated studying science as a child. It wasn't until she was able to connect her love of dinosaurs, mythology, and magical creatures with science that Miss Alex developed a passion for learning and teaching STEAM.
Why does interest-based STEAM learning work?
The core subjects covered by STEAM—especially science and math—can be difficult for kids. Maybe you homeschool and have struggled to get your kids to pay attention to physics lessons. Or your child comes home from school and is discouraged by their geometry homework. Online math tutoring can help, but inspiring your child's passion for STEAM subjects is important too.
Today's workplace demands STEAM knowledge. Parents know that their children must be able to think through problems critically and solve them creatively to succeed. Knowing how crucial STEM-based learning is can put a lot of pressure on parents, but Miss Alex says that staying playful and keeping your expectations open is key to helping your kids.
Miss Alex reminded us that "STEAM is already happening in [kids’] lives." Kids are naturally engaged with the world and want to find solutions to problems. For example, toddlers work hard to figure out chain reactions by building blocks and knocking them over. As teens, they often dream up tech solutions for problems they encounter in daily life.
All of that is STEAM at work in your child's life. Your dino-obsessed child might not be interested in earth science, but they would probably love one of Miss Alex's exciting fossils classes. She let us in on a secret: science learning is always happening in her classes, even if students don't know it.
Miss Alex reaches students by sharing her excitement about things they're excited about, like dinosaurs and mythological creatures such as the Chimera. She wraps learning into subjects that kids are passionate about because she knows it's effective. Many of her younger students don't even know that they're learning STEAM skills because they're doing it through the lens of something they already love.
Unfortunately, there's still inequality in STEM education. Only 28% of STEM-related jobs are held by women, but educators like Miss Alex are working hard to fix that. Her classes use topics that learners of diverse identities are interested in, like fairies and myths.
The very presence of Miss Alex in her classes is also a powerful reminder for female students that women are great at STEAM too.
Putting the "A" in STEAM education
Throughout her conversation with Fernando, Miss Alex reiterated why "art" is such an important part of STEAM. (Hint: It's not just because she teaches drawing classes!) Again, the answer comes down to passion.
Kids love to be creative. Whether it's through brick-building, sculpting, or drawing, Miss Alex encourages her learners to express themselves and solve problems creatively. After all, engineers just don't come up with ideas for amazing new technologies in their heads. They put pencil to paper and use computer programs to draw those ideas out.
Including art in STEAM classes makes them fun for kids and teaches basic design principles. Miss Alex told us that her learners also develop strong communication skills through art.
Whether they're creating mashups in an online dino class or designing a beautiful fairy garden, students in her classes put their knowledge to work through art.
Encouraging your kid’s love of STEAM
You know STEAM education is vital for your kids. Miss Alex wants parents and caregivers to know that bringing their own passion to the table is key. Kids who've taken her classes know that Miss Alex really does love dinosaurs and mythological creatures. That drives their interest and makes the class more enjoyable for all learners.
Does sharing your passions with your kids sound hard? You might start by looking over these simple science experiments and picking a few that you're excited about. When you introduce the activity to your kids, they'll sense your excitement and will be more likely to get into the experiment.
Easy activities like brick-building challenges and art projects are a great opportunity to connect and 'do STEAM' alongside your kids.
Of course, Outschool offers a wide variety of hands-on science options for ages ranging from toddler to teen. If your child is new to STEAM learning, consider signing them up for an introductory online STEM class.
If your child is already passionate about STEAM, consider a full-year course packed with experiments, discussions, and interest-based learning.
Whatever your kid’s passion, you'll find the perfect class on Outschool.
