The S.T.E.A.M. PK-5 Books Program

This program is for PK-5 teachers looking for ways to integrate Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM) in culturally relevant and meaningful ways! Different titles are featured each month for teachers to continually engage with us online to bring back resources for their students to rotate through various books.

PK-5 Teachers!

This program is for PK-5 teachers looking for ways to integrate Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM) in culturally relevant and meaningful ways! Different titles are featured each month for teachers to continually engage with us online to bring back resources for their students to rotate through various books.

Professional Learning Opportunity

Join a group of teachers online to get support in launching the lesson and activities aligned to the the CA Environmental Principles & Concepts.

Receive the Book in English and Spanish (if available)

Book read alouds are also available in English and Spanish (if available) to engage students in different ways.

Students Engage in STEAM Using the Student Activity Sheet

Receive materials needed for up to 30 students to engage in activities that follow the book in class or at home independently.

Open Enrollment until January 29, 2023

Calling all teachers of PK-5 students who love discovering more about the world around them through reading! Come and explore more with us virtually with fun and exciting hands on activities that will highlight Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM)!

Featured Collaboration: Mother of Sharks Educator Webinar

Join the UCI Science Project and UC-CSU ECCLPs for an engaging PK-5 STEAM webinar featuring the captivating book “Mother of Sharks” by Melissa Cristina Marquez!

 

Check out a preview of each STEAM book title below!

Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao

“Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao” is a story that features a funny, fierce, and fearless girl who is determined to make the perfect bao. Have you had bao before? Bao are like steamed, white bread filled with delicious ingredients inside! She loves to make bao with her family and has a hard time making ones that are both delicious and beautiful. Join Amy on her journey to make the perfect bao to learn about patience, learning from your mistakes, and not giving up!

Cece Loves Science

Meet Cece: she is curious about the world and loves to figure out how things work. In this 4-day lesson, students will build their STEAM identities through asking questions, learning about experimental variables, and an introduction to analyzing their own data! There is also an alternate experiment provided based on the materials you have available in your classroom or the student’s home.

Cougar Crossing

“Cougar Crossing” is a true story that follows P-22, the “Hollywood Cougar”, trying to navigate life throughout the city of Los Angeles, California. Use this book to learn more about P-22’s journey leaving his home and finding a new natural habitat in Los Angeles. Read more to find out how this brave cougar has inspired humans to raise awareness.

Counting on Katherine

“Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13” is a true story of Katherine Johnson’s life and how she overcame challenges to be part of and shape the NASA space program. This story shares how Katherine’s determination and love for math and science helped her save the Apollo crew!

Grace and Box

“Grace and Box” is a story about a girl named Grace whose family just bought a new refrigerator that came in a large cardboard box. Instead of letting the box go in the recycling, Grace decides to get creative and use the box in different ways! The story starts with all the imaginative things Grace turns the box into and then shows you how she cares for the box when it starts to break down.

We are so excited for your students to follow Grace with this book and activity sheet as she turns the box into new creations and learns to take care of the box to make it last longer. Get ready to create and innovate with common items around your students classroom or home that would previously have gone to waste. 

How to Solve a Problem

“How To Solve A Problem – The Rise (and Falls) of a Rock-Climbing Champion” is a true story of Ashima Shiraishi, who is the author too! Ashima is a young woman (born in 2001) from New York City. She started climbing rocks in Central Park as a kid and now is known as the best female rock climber in the world! If you’re curious, learn more about Ashima by watching this short video.

We are so excited for your students to learn more about the discipline and care that Ashima takes to solve a problem through this book and activity sheet! Students will use Ashima’s story as inspiration to engineer their own solution of creating a building that will not fall down during an earthquake.

Just Ask!

“Just Ask! Be Different, Be Brave, Be You” is a story that highlights kids with different abilities. Each page introduces a new person and describes their special abilities. After meeting new friends in the book, students will read the question on the page to find similarities and differences between themself and others! As they read about different characters in the book, they’ll be prompted to think about questions they have and be ready to just ask!

We are so excited for your students to learn more about themself and others throughout this book and activity packet. Get ready to learn how we can use our “superpowers” to help people through science and engineering!

Lift

Coming soon!

The Ocean Calls

Face your fears with Dayeon, who explores the open ocean with her grandmother, a Haenyeo (a woman from South Korea who free dives without gear). In this 4-day lesson, students will learn more about nature’s gifts through nature walks and making observations about patterns they see in nature. Students will experience the connections between science and art through engaging experiments and making connections to nature through drawings and poems.

Rise Up And Write It

“Rise up and Write it” is a story about a young girl named Farah Patel, who notices a problem in her neighborhood and decides to bring her friends, family, and community together to do something about it! This story starts with Farah’s question and leads students through a fun adventure where they learn to take action about something they notice too.

We are so excited for your students to learn more about how to rise up and take action starting with this book and activity sheet! They will engineer their own creative solution to solve a problem. 

Rocket Says Clean Up

“Rocket Says Clean Up!” is a story about a young girl named Rocket, who visits her Grammy and Grampy’s home on an island. While spending time with her family at the beach, she notices a big problem! Get ready to learn more about this program and think about ways that we can take action together! 

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind

“The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind” is the true story of William Kamkwamba (one of the authors!). William is a boy from rural Malawi (see image on the right). When he was just 14 years old, William noticed a problem in his community and decided to take action.

William’s actions helped his community without damaging the environment – his action was sustainable! His actions were sustainable because he recycled and reused materials in his community. William also relied on a renewable resource, the wind! Renewable resources do not run out and cause less pollution. 

The Great Kapok Tree

“The Great Kapok Tree” is a story about a young man, who wants to chop down a tree in the rainforest. While he sleeps, he is visited by animals who share with him how the rainforest is important to them.

Students will be engaging in picture walks for Day 1 and Day 2, which means you will flip through the pages and make observations and predictions on what is going to happen in the story.

We are excited for your students to learn more about the importance of the rainforest and inspire them to protect the rainforest by starting with this book and activity sheet! Students will use nature as an inspiration to engineer their very own tree!

We Are The Water Protectors

“We Are Water Protectors” is a story about a young girl who learns the importance of water. When she finds out what is threatening much of the world’s clean water resources, she thinks about all that she has learned from her grandmother and community to rally support to protect it.

We are so excited for your students to learn more about how to protect our water and explore ways to take action starting with this book and activity sheet!

What Do They Do With All That Poo?

This is a story that features a normal part of life in the animal kingdom… yes, you
guessed it: POO! In this 4-day lesson (with an optional Day 5 extension), students will learn about different types of food that animals eat and create a Play-Doh model of their animal’s poop. Students will then apply what they know about the type of food their animal eats and add scientific clues to their Play-Doh models. Get ready to learn about the importance of poop and what scientists do with animal poop!