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The integration of Art with Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEAM) has been growing in popularity, however, there are a variety of conceptualizations of what it looks like. This study explores images of STEAM by examining activities created by informal educators. We found that STEAM activities were conceptualized as using one discipline in the service of another, intertwined, or parallel. This provides concrete images of what STEAM can look like in educational settings. 

The integration of computational modeling into instruction in science classrooms is complex in that it requires the synergistic application of students’ developing science and computational thinking knowledge. This is not only difficult for students, but teachers often find it hard to parse the science content from the computational constructs to guide students when they have difficulties. Leveraging past literature that highlights the beneficial impact instructors can have when they immerse themselves in group problem-solving discussions, this paper examines the instructors’ role in facilitating students’ construction of and problem-solving with computational models. We utilize a case study approach to analyze instructor-facilitated, synchronous group discussions during applications of synergistic learning processes to understand how instructors may elicit students’ knowledge, misunderstanding, and difficulties to help guide, prompt, and engage groups in this complex task for more productive integration in K-12 science classrooms. We hope that this will lead to better scaffolding of students' learning, and better support for teachers when they use such curricula in classrooms. 

As new technologies proliferate our world, many well-meaning efforts seek to expand access to and broaden participation in STEM education and careers, yet many of these efforts disregard the fact that science, technology, and design are cultural processes. Building on a growing body of work, we examine how families experience and design together at the intersection of culture and technology. Drawing on Indigenous science and culturally sustaining/revitalizing perspectives, we investigate the ways in which families engage with culture and technology during a plant walk led by Tribal Elders that included a Tribally- designed virtual reality (re)interpretation of the experience. Insights from our findings highlight ways in which one Tribal Nation balanced culture and technology in ways that reclaimed their uses to maintain technological sovereignty and self-determination as designers. 

The science of sound presents a holistic learning opportunity to engage embodied intelligence and lived experience in mutually shared soundscapes where material objects become sites for the pursuit of curiosity and aesthetic beauty. When young people are presented with this view of the realm of science learning and practice, the possibility for alignment and harmony between personal knowing, social relations, and a living environment can emerge. And even more compelling, the possibility for what we describe as harmonized mutual development in a community of learners moves within reach. This paper explores the potential of a curricular and pedagogical design to produce a kind of collective ethic in learning that is often elusive in formal learning environments. 

Math walks are a form of inquiry learning where students can observe and create mathematical meaning from their everyday surroundings. Here we report on a study of 5th and 6th graders in an informal learning setting where they create and present their own math walks covering concepts of ratio, scale, and proportion. The students may have developed more positive attitudes towards math and were able to meaningfully engage with powerful math ideas. 

Pets are beloved family members in many cultures. Companionship with pets motivates and positions humans as inquirers as they find out their pets' experiences with them. With the need to advance science education from dualist notions of the world and the learner as separate entities, our research team conducted a two-week online summer camp to engage teens and their pets in investigations around pets' senses. Following a qualitative analysis of participants' talk and projects at the workshop, we found that teens engaged in science learning practices while investigating aspects of their pets' lives and designing experiences for them. Additionally, participants adopted an ecological and relational approach to science learning that positioned themselves and their pets as subjects. We discuss implications for future work with pets, and for the design of other STEM learning environments that engage perspective-taking, empathy, and care. 

Computational thinking (CT) is ubiquitous in modern science, yet rarely integrated at the elementary school level. Moreover, access to computer science education at the PK-12 level is inequitably distributed. We believe that access to CT must be available earlier and implemented with the support of an equitable pedagogical framework. Our poster will describe our Accessible Computational Thinking (ACT) research project exploring professional development with elementary teachers on integrating computational thinking with Culturally Responsive Teaching practices.