Beach Reads & Brainstorms: Your Summer STEM Roundup
STEM is heating up this summer! Whether you're looking to dive into fresh ideas, sharpen your practice, or get inspired by fellow educators, there are incredible early STEM professional learning opportunities and just-published articles ready for you. Check out what’s new and noteworthy!
STEM Meets Early Intervention: New 6‑Part Webinar Series
STEMIE, the STEM Innovation for Inclusion in Early Education Center at UNC-Chapel Hill, is hosting a free six-part webinar series designed for early intervention providers, home visitors, and developmental specialists working with children aged 0–3. These engaging, 1-hour sessions explore how everyday routines and play-based interactions offer rich opportunities for infants' and toddlers' STEM learning—grounded in family-centered and culturally responsive approaches.
✨ Participants earn CEUs, gain practical strategies, view real‑life video examples, and walk away with free STEMIE tools to use right away.
Why it matters:
This series bridges early intervention and STEM education, empowering practitioners to weave math, science, engineering, and technology into the routines, conversations, and moments families already share—and to support development across all domains.
Register for the series: https://unc.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_KZa8M16ARu2I0MCGiARMjg#/registration
Summer Math Learning with NAEYC & NCTM
Looking to strengthen your early math practice this summer? Don’t miss this free three-part webinar series from NAEYC and the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM), designed specifically for educators working with children in PreK–2.
Each session centers on positioning young children as doers and thinkers of math, with developmentally appropriate strategies that elevate play, routines, and discourse.
🏫 Session 2: Student-Centered Routines
Tuesday, July 29 | 7–8 PM ET
Reimagine classroom routines as rich opportunities for mathematical thinking.
Presenters: Jennifer S. McCray & Donna M. Johnson
🗣️ Session 3: Mathematical Discourse
Tuesday, August 26 | 7–8 PM ET
Engage in practices that cultivate mathematical conversation and position children as communicators of their thinking.
Presenters: Carrie S. Cutler, Toni Galassini & Susie Katt
✨ All sessions are free, packed with practical examples, and perfect for your summer PD lineup. Scan the QR codes on the flyer to register!
New from The Illinois Mathematics Teacher (Summer 2025):
“Picture Books as Windows, Mirrors, and Sliding Glass Doors to Young Children’s Mathematical Brilliance” by Carrie Cutler, Toni Galassini, and Dawn Woods
This piece explores how culturally diverse picture books—whether reflecting a child's own experience (mirrors), offering a view into others' lives (windows), or allowing immersive entry into new worlds (sliding glass doors)—can serve as powerful springboards for early math exploration .
The authors share concrete strategies for "mathematizing" familiar stories like The Day You Begin, In Our Garden, and All Are Welcome by engaging children in counting, graphing, comparing, shape-spotting, and data discussions. It’s a treasure trove of practical, inclusive ideas that positioning young learners as active mathematical thinkers—perfect for elevating summer read‑aloud practices and infusing math into literacy routines.
Read it here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rtSVus7eHo-UuwIShUb2D5i8urqt5w-O/view
NSTA National Conference on Science Education – Minneapolis 2025
📍 Minneapolis Convention Center | 📅 November 12–15, 2025
Get ready for NSTA’s premier STEM event—brimming with innovative sessions, hands-on workshops, inspiring keynotes, and a bustling exhibit hall. Whether you're a first-time attendee or a seasoned science educator, Minn25 offers something for every grade level—from early childhood through college.
Keynote Speakers: Thought-provoking addresses such as Rooted in Wonder: Identity, Culture, and Inquiry for Every Student (Natalia Benjamin) and The Heart of Education: Why Community Matters (Michael Houston)
Registration alert:
Take advantage of the Super Early Bird rate, available through July 31.
Learn more: https://www.nsta.org/national-conference-science-education-minneapolis-2025
The Summer 2025 issue of Young Children is packed with inspiring, classroom-rooted articles perfect for summer reflection and planning. Explore how early educators are designing meaningful STEM-infused curricula—like supporting inquiry through a preschool frog study, promoting spatial reasoning with pattern blocks, and bringing biliteracy outdoors. This issue also uplifts inclusive practices, from guided play to culturally responsive alphabet learning. Whether you're rocking and rolling with infants or diving deep into preschool projects, there's something here to spark your thinking and support every child’s learning journey.
📰 Read it here: naeyc.org/resources/pubs/yc/summer2025
We are excited to share that our upcoming Preschool STEM Institute is FULL! Thank you to all who are registered, we are so excited!!
Didn’t get to secure your spot? Join the wait list in case any spots open up or submit your interest to hear first about the PSI in 2026!