💡 Lesson ideas
The STEM invitation table
One small table, three objects, one question card — inquiry science with zero worksheets.
An 'invitation' is a provocation, not an assignment: interesting materials arranged so a child can't help investigating. Your job is one open question and then silence — count to ten before you speak.
Four invitations to rotate
- Magnets + a tray of mixed objects. Card: 'Which ones will stick?'
- Balance scale + acorns, blocks, cotton balls. Card: 'Can you make it even?'
- Flashlights + transparent, translucent, and solid objects. Card: 'What does light go through?'
- Pipettes + water tinted two colors + an ice-cube tray. Card: 'What can you mix?'
Capture one child quote per day at this table. A week of quotes is a documentation panel; a month is evidence of scientific thinking for any portfolio or QRIS visit.