Product reviews for 15-Minute STEM

“I was impressed that this book has forty activities in it. At first glance the book is rather unassuming. It's thin and only has 60 pages. Once I opened the book, I knew immediately that this was going to be my “go to” book for many great activities to do with my “work kids.”

Many of the STEM activities that I have pinned on Pinterest or bookmarked on my computer require a lot of materials to accomplish. Our organization does have a budget it needs to stick to, and I honestly don't have the time to drive all over town looking for the materials to complete an activity. I was super pleased to see that the activities in this book don't require a lot of fancy materials, and many of the items needed we already have, I have at home, or I can easily get locally.

Take for example the Tinfoil Cargo Boats activity. It requires tinfoil, coins, water, a bowl or sink and a scale (optional). Who doesn't already have these things around their home?

In the Water Color Carnival activity you need large clear bowls, beakers, a spoon, food coloring, water and a mirror (optional). The beakers might not be as readily available, but I'm sure you can substitute them with measuring cups or something similar.



If you don't have the items needed for each activity, I”m sure you can find almost all of what you need at your local dollar store.

Each activity includes the necessary equipment (as explained above), easy to follow step-by-step instructions, what exactly the activity is going to accomplish (this information is found in the “Investigate” box) and an brief explanation for WHY things happen in the activity.

I am a firm believer that children learn better when learning is fun. With these activities, children are definitely learning, even if it doesn't look that way. Not only that, these activities are fun and would work just as well as a “rainy day” activity for children, without any emphasis on the “why” and “how” of the activity. They don't have to be done to learn something. They can be done just for the fun of it.

As far as the 15 minutes aspect is concerned, yes, these activities don't take that long to set up and implement. I guess it all depends on the children you are working with. Younger children might take a wee bit longer than older children.

I have “dog earred” several pages in this book of activities I want to do with my “work kids.” I am finishing up taking inventory of what we have at school and what I need to pick up from the dollar store (or take in from home). I've been a bit busy lately, and we're currently on winter break, so I haven't had the chance to try any of activities - yet. Even if I did, it's not easy to take photos at school. I don't want to get any of the children in the photos for safety reasons (plus they are not my children, so I am not allowed to distribute their images).



Whether you are a parent, educator, scout leader or even a babysitter, there are plenty of fun activities in this book that make it worth checking it out for yourself.”

Click here to read the review on Kimberly's blog.