Full STEAM Ahead

As a homeschool educator, you’re likely familiar with STEM, a term used to group the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and math. Recently, however, there’s been a desire to add the “A” in arts to turn STEM into STEAM and make a conscientious effort to celebrate and emphasize creativity and innovation in the science and technology realms. Check out these top 4 reasons to jump onto the fast-moving STEAM train and make it a focus of your child’s education.

1. STEAM Improves Development in Other Areas
STEAM education encourages outside-the-box thinking, problem solving, and initiative.

“Introducing kids as young as six or seven years old to STEAM can vastly improve their development in crucial areas ranging from rational thinking to everyday social and emotional skills,” explained Krishna Vedati, the CEO and Co-founder at Tynker, a learning website that teaches kids to code.

2. STEAM Helps Your Kids Prepare for the Future
The average advertised salary for entry-level STEAM jobs requiring a BA or higher is $13,824 higher than non-STEM jobs. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics also projects that between 2010–2020, employment in science and technology occupations will grow by 18.7%, compared to 14.3% for all occupations.

3. STEAM Fosters a Love of Learning
It’s no secret that kids are often inclined towards technology. After all, think about how fascinated a toddler can be just by holding your phone. When we can merge something kids love with beneficial learning, everybody wins. Many STEAM activities are capitalizing on this by teaching coding and math through fun games and activities.

4. STEAM Resources Are Everywhere (and Often Free)
Because there is such a big push for STEAM education, there are many resources to teach basic coding all the way up to advanced coding. Check out our list of 4 fun ways for kids to learn to code or view this comprehensive list of free STEAM resources.