From STEM to STEAM

Brain-Compatible Strategies and Lessons That Integrate the Arts
Second Edition
David A. Sousa - International Educational Consultant
Thomas J. Pilecki - Educational Consultant
From STEM to STEAM
February 2018 | 264 pages | Corwin
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ISBN: 9781506336770
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ISBN: 9781506322452
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Description

Art and science both hinge on discovery, and discovery requires thinking out of the box. But how do you lead students to think creatively in STEM education? The answer is STEAM, and A is for the arts.

STEAM—the integration of music, visual arts, and drama into daily STEM instruction—is proven to enhance student achievement in STEM subjects. After all, creative, real-world problem-solving is what working scientists and mathematicians actually do. But how do busy STEM educators weave arts activities into a sometimes inflexible STEM curriculum? 

In this new edition of From STEM to STEAM, the ground-breaking bestseller, the authors provide lessons from the field to detail the way. Authors David Sousa, expert in educational neuroscience, and Tom Pilecki, veteran arts educator, pool  eighty years of expertise to deliver:

  • Research studies in cognitive and social neuroscience, including new findings on how technology is rewiring students’ brains, that demonstrate how arts activities enhance creativity, problem solving, memory systems, motor coordination, and analytical skills—all critical elements to achieving STEM objectives. 
  • Classroom-tested strategies and techniques for integrating the arts into STEM instruction, including sample K-12 lessons plans and planning templates.
  • Tools for building a professional development program designed to helps arts and STEM teachers collaborate to create STEAM lessons. 
  • Sample planning frameworks that provide a smooth transition from STEM to STEAM, including advice on adapting STEAM to meet the individual needs and limitations of a school or district.
  • A list of resources available to teachers in the STEM subjects, in the arts, in arts integration, and for STEAM.

The main objective of both art and science is discovery. Lead your students to make that connection and STEAM ahead to academic success!

Contents

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

INTRODUCTION

  • Why a Second Edition?
  • What’s New?
  • Looking to the Arts
  • How This Book Can Help to Implement STEAM
  • Chapter Contents
  • Who Should Use This Book?
  • What’s Coming?
  • 1. Why STEM Should Become STEAM
  • The Power of the Arts
  • The Arts and STEM Do Have Differences
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 2. What Science Says About the Arts and Creativity
  • Brain Organization
  • Thinking and Learning
  • The Arts, STEM, and Creativity
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 3. Bringing STEAM Into Schools
  • What Is Arts Integration?
  • What Is STEAM?
  • Different Schools and Implementation Formats
  • Implementing the STEAM Initiative
  • The Basic District Plan
  • What We Are Learning
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 4. Guidelines for Creating a STEAM School
  • STEAM Guidelines
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 5. Frequently Asked Questions About Integrating the Arts and STEM
  • What Are the Arts?
  • Addressing Some Common Frequently Asked Questions
  • Arts Perception Worksheet
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 6. Implementing Arts Integration in the Primary Grades (K–4)
  • Importance of Movement
  • Science, Mathematics, and the Arts in the Primary Grades
  • Ideas for Arts-Integrated Lesson Plans (Primary Grades)
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 7. Implementing Arts Integration in the Intermediate Grades (5–8)
  • A Day in the Life of a Middle School Student
  • Teacher-to-Teacher Collaborations
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 8. Implementing Arts Integration in the High School Grades (9–12)
  • STEAM and the Culture of High School
  • Pushing STEAM Along
  • Sample Comparisons of Traditional STEM and Arts-Integrated STEAM Lessons
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 9. Discoveries From the Field
  • About the Original Appetizers
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 10. Putting It All Together
  • Know Your Instructional Intuition
  • General Guidelines for K–12 Lessons
  • Sample K–12 Lessons: Examples of Arts-Related Activities in Science Topics
  • Sample Template for Designing a STEAM Unit Across Grade Levels
  • Professional Development to Maintain STEAM
  • Conclusion
  • Major Points to Ponder

RESOURCES

RESOURCES

APPENDIX A: STEAM LESSON PLAN APPETIZERS IN SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND ENGINEERING

  • The Appetizers

APPENDIX B: STEAM LESSON PLAN APPETIZERS IN MATHEMATICS

  • The Appetizers

REFERENCES

REFERENCES

INDEX

INDEX

Description

Art and science both hinge on discovery, and discovery requires thinking out of the box. But how do you lead students to think creatively in STEM education? The answer is STEAM, and A is for the arts.

STEAM—the integration of music, visual arts, and drama into daily STEM instruction—is proven to enhance student achievement in STEM subjects. After all, creative, real-world problem-solving is what working scientists and mathematicians actually do. But how do busy STEM educators weave arts activities into a sometimes inflexible STEM curriculum? 

In this new edition of From STEM to STEAM, the ground-breaking bestseller, the authors provide lessons from the field to detail the way. Authors David Sousa, expert in educational neuroscience, and Tom Pilecki, veteran arts educator, pool  eighty years of expertise to deliver:

  • Research studies in cognitive and social neuroscience, including new findings on how technology is rewiring students’ brains, that demonstrate how arts activities enhance creativity, problem solving, memory systems, motor coordination, and analytical skills—all critical elements to achieving STEM objectives. 
  • Classroom-tested strategies and techniques for integrating the arts into STEM instruction, including sample K-12 lessons plans and planning templates.
  • Tools for building a professional development program designed to helps arts and STEM teachers collaborate to create STEAM lessons. 
  • Sample planning frameworks that provide a smooth transition from STEM to STEAM, including advice on adapting STEAM to meet the individual needs and limitations of a school or district.
  • A list of resources available to teachers in the STEM subjects, in the arts, in arts integration, and for STEAM.

The main objective of both art and science is discovery. Lead your students to make that connection and STEAM ahead to academic success!

Contents

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

INTRODUCTION

  • Why a Second Edition?
  • What’s New?
  • Looking to the Arts
  • How This Book Can Help to Implement STEAM
  • Chapter Contents
  • Who Should Use This Book?
  • What’s Coming?
  • 1. Why STEM Should Become STEAM
  • The Power of the Arts
  • The Arts and STEM Do Have Differences
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 2. What Science Says About the Arts and Creativity
  • Brain Organization
  • Thinking and Learning
  • The Arts, STEM, and Creativity
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 3. Bringing STEAM Into Schools
  • What Is Arts Integration?
  • What Is STEAM?
  • Different Schools and Implementation Formats
  • Implementing the STEAM Initiative
  • The Basic District Plan
  • What We Are Learning
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 4. Guidelines for Creating a STEAM School
  • STEAM Guidelines
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 5. Frequently Asked Questions About Integrating the Arts and STEM
  • What Are the Arts?
  • Addressing Some Common Frequently Asked Questions
  • Arts Perception Worksheet
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 6. Implementing Arts Integration in the Primary Grades (K–4)
  • Importance of Movement
  • Science, Mathematics, and the Arts in the Primary Grades
  • Ideas for Arts-Integrated Lesson Plans (Primary Grades)
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 7. Implementing Arts Integration in the Intermediate Grades (5–8)
  • A Day in the Life of a Middle School Student
  • Teacher-to-Teacher Collaborations
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 8. Implementing Arts Integration in the High School Grades (9–12)
  • STEAM and the Culture of High School
  • Pushing STEAM Along
  • Sample Comparisons of Traditional STEM and Arts-Integrated STEAM Lessons
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 9. Discoveries From the Field
  • About the Original Appetizers
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 10. Putting It All Together
  • Know Your Instructional Intuition
  • General Guidelines for K–12 Lessons
  • Sample K–12 Lessons: Examples of Arts-Related Activities in Science Topics
  • Sample Template for Designing a STEAM Unit Across Grade Levels
  • Professional Development to Maintain STEAM
  • Conclusion
  • Major Points to Ponder

RESOURCES

RESOURCES

APPENDIX A: STEAM LESSON PLAN APPETIZERS IN SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND ENGINEERING

  • The Appetizers

APPENDIX B: STEAM LESSON PLAN APPETIZERS IN MATHEMATICS

  • The Appetizers

REFERENCES

REFERENCES

INDEX

INDEX

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From STEM to STEAM

Brain-Compatible Strategies and Lessons That Integrate the Arts

David A. Sousa , Thomas J. Pilecki
Cancel Print

February 2018 | 264 pages | Corwin

Format Published Date ISBN Price
Paperback 01/01/2025 9781506322452 $40.95
Lifetime 01/01/2025 9781506336770 $37.00

Art and science both hinge on discovery, and discovery requires thinking out of the box. But how do you lead students to think creatively in STEM education? The answer is STEAM, and A is for the arts.

STEAM—the integration of music, visual arts, and drama into daily STEM instruction—is proven to enhance student achievement in STEM subjects. After all, creative, real-world problem-solving is what working scientists and mathematicians actually do. But how do busy STEM educators weave arts activities into a sometimes inflexible STEM curriculum? 

In this new edition of From STEM to STEAM, the ground-breaking bestseller, the authors provide lessons from the field to detail the way. Authors David Sousa, expert in educational neuroscience, and Tom Pilecki, veteran arts educator, pool  eighty years of expertise to deliver:

  • Research studies in cognitive and social neuroscience, including new findings on how technology is rewiring students’ brains, that demonstrate how arts activities enhance creativity, problem solving, memory systems, motor coordination, and analytical skills—all critical elements to achieving STEM objectives. 
  • Classroom-tested strategies and techniques for integrating the arts into STEM instruction, including sample K-12 lessons plans and planning templates.
  • Tools for building a professional development program designed to helps arts and STEM teachers collaborate to create STEAM lessons. 
  • Sample planning frameworks that provide a smooth transition from STEM to STEAM, including advice on adapting STEAM to meet the individual needs and limitations of a school or district.
  • A list of resources available to teachers in the STEM subjects, in the arts, in arts integration, and for STEAM.

The main objective of both art and science is discovery. Lead your students to make that connection and STEAM ahead to academic success!


Table Of Contents:

  • ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  • ABOUT THE AUTHORS
  • INTRODUCTION
  • Why a Second Edition?
  • What’s New?
  • Looking to the Arts
  • How This Book Can Help to Implement STEAM
  • Chapter Contents
  • Who Should Use This Book?
  • What’s Coming?
  • 1. Why STEM Should Become STEAM
  • The Power of the Arts
  • The Arts and STEM Do Have Differences
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 2. What Science Says About the Arts and Creativity
  • Brain Organization
  • Thinking and Learning
  • The Arts, STEM, and Creativity
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 3. Bringing STEAM Into Schools
  • What Is Arts Integration?
  • What Is STEAM?
  • Different Schools and Implementation Formats
  • Implementing the STEAM Initiative
  • The Basic District Plan
  • What We Are Learning
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 4. Guidelines for Creating a STEAM School
  • STEAM Guidelines
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 5. Frequently Asked Questions About Integrating the Arts and STEM
  • What Are the Arts?
  • Addressing Some Common Frequently Asked Questions
  • Arts Perception Worksheet
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 6. Implementing Arts Integration in the Primary Grades (K–4)
  • Importance of Movement
  • Science, Mathematics, and the Arts in the Primary Grades
  • Ideas for Arts-Integrated Lesson Plans (Primary Grades)
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 7. Implementing Arts Integration in the Intermediate Grades (5–8)
  • A Day in the Life of a Middle School Student
  • Teacher-to-Teacher Collaborations
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 8. Implementing Arts Integration in the High School Grades (9–12)
  • STEAM and the Culture of High School
  • Pushing STEAM Along
  • Sample Comparisons of Traditional STEM and Arts-Integrated STEAM Lessons
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 9. Discoveries From the Field
  • About the Original Appetizers
  • What’s Coming?
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • 10. Putting It All Together
  • Know Your Instructional Intuition
  • General Guidelines for K–12 Lessons
  • Sample K–12 Lessons: Examples of Arts-Related Activities in Science Topics
  • Sample Template for Designing a STEAM Unit Across Grade Levels
  • Professional Development to Maintain STEAM
  • Conclusion
  • Major Points to Ponder
  • RESOURCES
  • APPENDIX A: STEAM LESSON PLAN APPETIZERS IN SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND ENGINEERING
  • The Appetizers
  • APPENDIX B: STEAM LESSON PLAN APPETIZERS IN MATHEMATICS
  • The Appetizers
  • REFERENCES
  • INDEX

Recent Product Reviews:

From STEM to STEAM has been a tremendous help as teachers and teachers-to-be gear up for providing STEM education to their pupils. This well-conceived and well-done publication was immediately chosen as a text to help course participants to improve their crafts. From STEM to STEAM provides a necessary layer of STEM education so that that the affective domain is given the importance it deserves. This is a welcome addition to the professional's bookshelf!
Sister Remigia Kushner, Congregation of Saint Joseph, Director, School Leadership Program, Manhattan College, Riverdale, NY
From STEM to STEAM is the answer to the failure of STEM education in our schools. No one understands better than David Sousa and Tom Pilecki the importance of the arts—music, the visual arts and drama—in making science, technology, engineering and math come alive for teachers and students. This is true integrated STEAM instruction…and it works. I’ve seen the transformation in our schools. Our teachers enjoy the freedom to be creative and in turn more effective! Their students are singing and dancing in math and performing live theater in science. They’re remembering more, understanding more, and achieving more. They’re innovating, too, with new ideas and new applications for what they're learning. They love integrated STEAM learning. I could not be more impressed with the change From STEM to STEAM has brought to our schools. This second edition of From STEM to STEAM contains guidelines for integrating STEAM instruction into the classroom and across the curriculum. It provides the essential guideposts that marked the growth of our teachers as STEAM instructors and our schools as lively, high performing STEAM academies. But think of the guidelines less as targets to be met than as sheet music that brings us back repeatedly to the same melody in a full musical score. Thanks to From STEM to STEAM we’re on key and making great music.
Daniel J. Ferris, Superintendent of Schools, Diocese of Providence, Rhode Island
This book on STEAM is a call to action by two genuine authorities on a matter of critical importance, for two very different reasons. First, in order to motivate K-12 students, we need to reach them where they are—and little kids are inherently interested in the natural world around them. If we motivate them, they will persist and graduate. And if they are motivated by science, we will ultimate have more college graduates with highly marketable skills in STEM fields—areas of great demand in today’s economy. Second, adding the Arts to STEM to create STEAM acknowledges that the arts and science are linked. As the author of several biology textbooks, I rely on art to convey ideas that are very difficult to explain with language only. STEAM is the wave of the future, so BUY THIS BOOK!”
Donald J. Farish, Ph.D., President, Roger Williams University, Bristol, Rhode Island

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