Storybooks and Equitable STEM Learning in Early Childhood: Moving from Books to Narratives

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Abstract

Storybooks are often cited as a critical resource for supporting learning in early childhood. Research has documented how children’s storybooks can be incorporated into families’ daily routines to foster parent-child interactions and support a range of development and learning goals well beyond early literacy, including learning and engagement related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). However, a sole focus on books discounts the critical role that narrative and storytelling more broadly play for families outside White, middle-class communities.

Recently, a group of early childhood development and learning experts met to discuss the role of storybooks in supporting STEM learning for young children and their families. A major theme from the convening was the importance of thinking about story and narrative more broadly in order to create equitable learning opportunities, especially for families from traditionally underrepresented communities. Inspired by these discussions, this panel will feature a variety of projects that are exploring novel strategies for incorporating story into family STEM learning, including joint parent-child reading with wordless picture books, prompts for children’s narratives after a museum-based tinkering activity, and creative writing and storytelling integrated into out-of-school family science workshops. Each project focuses on a community that has traditionally been marginalized in STEM education, such as Latine families and rural communities. The studies reveal how the story-based strategies connected with families’ cultural knowledge and practices and supported rich STEM engagement and learning.

Sub Unit

• Education, Schooling

Chair

• Scott Pattison, TERC, Inc.

Individual Presentations

• Dime Cuántos: Latine Parents' Math Talk during Wordless Book Sharing - Presenting Author: Gigliana Melzi, New York University; Non-Presenting Author: Viviana Kawas, New York University; Non-Presenting Author: Jessica Huancacuri, New York University; Non-Presenting Author: Margaret Caspe, National Association for Family, School, and Community Engagement

• Latine Families’ Engineering Conversations and Narratives about Tinkering in a Children’s Museum - Presenting Author: Diana I Acosta, University of California - Santa Cruz; Non-Presenting Author: Graciela Solis, Loyola University Chicago; Non-Presenting Author: Perla Blanca Gamez, Loyola University Chicago; Non-Presenting Author: Catherine A. Haden, Loyola University Chicago

• Rural Family STEM Learning through Story Writing - Presenting Author: Debbie Siegel, Institute for Learning Innovation; Non-Presenting Author: Christina Cid, High Desert Museum

• Storybooks and Science Practices in Family Conversations about Astronomy - Presenting Author: Maureen A Callanan, University of California - Santa Cruz; Non-Presenting Author: Gabriela Anguiano, University of California, Santa Cruz; Non-Presenting Author: Jennifer Jipson, California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo; Non-Presenting Author: Elise M Mahaffey, Arizona State University