By promoting a program that encourages adults to create an environment which allows very young children to absorb a love of numbers and their geometric expressions, I am a changemaker.
"Do you work outside of a STEM field but have expertise and a passion to harness the innate curiosity of students?" This question in your Changemakers Welcoming Letter seized me. I am outside the STEM field but have expertise and a passion to harness the innate curiosity of young children. Once "captured" they become life-long learners.
It can be a very simple classroom or a large children's museum; anywhere that:
1. stimulates the senses
2. allows a child to build on what he/she already knows
3. makes it possible for a child to learn across subject matters
4. enables connections and contemplation of interrelated concepts
I feel a fondness and a connection in a space where young children can choose work which engages them and compels them to focus.
I would like for children to grow with an affinity for numbers, observing and connecting with them in ways that will develop a sense of wonder, curiosity, and a keen eye for subtle detail.
"Do you work outside of a STEM field but have expertise and a passion to harness the innate curiosity of students?" This question in your Changemakers Welcoming Letter seized me. I am outside the STEM field but have expertise and a passion to harness the innate curiosity of young children. Once "captured" they become life-long learners.
Observing numbers and ensuing work on the topic began for me as a year-long project for Early Childhood Teacher Certification awarded by the American Montessori Society. Subsequently, I had the opportunity to implement the ideas in my own classroom for two consecutive school years and as a result my confidence in bringing the material to pre-schoolers was validated. It was not only doable, but also exciting to observe the children pick up on the relationships and connections and freeing as all parts lead to the others; I was seldom at a loss, wondering where to go next with the children. As we focused on one number we did not stop our work with other more typical classroom materials. Our attention on one number at a time ran parallel to all other established themes and classroom activities.
My own intrigue with numbers has grown and it is with great pleasure that I’ve been able to assemble my notes to create a platform for teachers, from which to nurture a sense of wonder. I hope that it piques interest in a way that will inspire others, both young and old, and leads to the investigation of secrets yet to be revealed.
A published author of related material for general audiences has said of my work, “I applaud your devotion to education. . . . You’ve collected a really wonderful set of ideas about numbers, and have gathered a full collection of ideas around each of them. The approach is well-rounded and I appreciate seeing the sensory and other explorations of numbers. These should provide a great beginning for discussion and for further research and individual creativity about them, and your students (and other teachers) are fortunate to have you organize these ideas for them. I hope you’re finding success with these rich presentations. . . . overall it’s very powerful. . . . This topic provides very many possibilities for new neural connections, and it’s very healthy. Plato wrote that children should be exposed to natural proportions and harmony in general. . . . keep it tactile and sensory, with minimal, if any, abstract ideas (for the youngsters). Also, art must be involved. This is one of the best ways to do it (plus music/singing is essential).”
