Stem Smart Parenting: A Practical Guide for Nurturing Innovative Thinkers

An invaluable resource for parents wishing to arm their children with the life skills necessary to succeed in a STEM-driven culture.

In today's world of STEM, all children--even those with interests outside of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics--need to develop specific skills in order to flourish in a complex landscape. Parents want to help their kids but are often overwhelmed by all the STEM products that aren't necessarily as valuable as they claim.

In STEM SMART Parenting, educators Alan Zollman, Lisa Hoffman, and Emily K. Suh unpack the research on STEM learning into a reader-friendly, practical guide for parents and caregivers. It introduces activities and resources that help kids of all ages build the necessary STEM mindset, includes no-cost ideas that parents can use with their children to promote STEM thinking, and shows readers how to evaluate which STEM games, toys, and activities actually deliver what they promise.

With real-life examples, daily activities, and key takeaways, this book shows parents how to help their children, from toddlers to teenagers, cultivate critical thinking skills and become intellectual risk takers, prepared for a world where STEM proficiency is essential.

Alan Zollman, PhD, is professor of mathematics education, secondary mathematics education coordinator, and Growing Tomorrow's STEM Teachers grants project director, and principal investigator at Indiana University Southeast. His research is focused on STEM education curriculum development.

Lisa Hoffman, PhD, is professor of education and administrator at Indiana University Southeast. Her research focuses on STEM teacher professional development and multilingual family engagement in STEM education.

Emily K. Suh, PhD, is associate professor of postsecondary student success in learning, literacy, and mathematics and integrated reading and writing program coordinator at Texas State University. Her research focus is in literacy and language development practices, integrated student support services, and teaching strategies for collegiate, adult, and elementary levels.