STEM education resources for students, families, & educators
STEM education is the key to our future
Whether it's in science, technology, engineering, or math, job opportunities in STEM fields are growing every day. Employers need both the analytical rigor the fields demand—and the practical, problem-solving approaches intrinsic to those disciplines.
The opportunities are waiting. Prepare yourself by diving into these STEM learning resources resources and perspectives and find the inspiration to bring STEM into your daily life. STEM learning is foundational to what we do every day. After all, it's engineers, tech innovators, and other STEM career professionals who make Lenovo … Lenovo.
What is STEM? Why is STEM education important?
While you may have heard of the term STEM, unless you're in the education field, you might not be fully aware of what it means or why STEM education is so important. STEM is an acronym for science, technology, engineering, and math—academic subjects that focus on addressing complex problems and devising practical solutions. It's a mindset that helps us tackle challenges ranging from business innovation to global issues like climate change.
The growing popularity of the STEM acronym over the past several years has led to several variations on the term to include additional academic subjects. You may have heard the term STEAM, which adds the arts. Educators and business leaders have found that the creativity and out-of-the-box thinking fostered by an arts curriculum are also important to the evolving needs of the future workforce.
STEM equips you for a constantly changing workforce
Whichever acronym you use, the message is the same: Focusing on STEM fields is great preparation for the in-demand careers of the future. STEM is about more than just gaining knowledge. It's also where some of the best new jobs and careers are expected to appear. Just consider all the reasons people study and teach STEM, and the many thousands (or millions) of new jobs that could emerge in each category.
Learn STEM for career opportunities:
Trying to predict employment trends of the future? A STEM-based education gives you the skills to adapt to a rapidly changing world.
Learn STEM to change the world:
Fight climate change? Discover new food sources? Visit Mars and beyond? Sure … but not without a new generation of experts in the core STEM subjects.
Learn STEM to help people:
Physicians and physical therapists. Food scientists and meteorologists. The list goes on. One way or another, STEM skills are becoming more and more integral in a growing and surprising number of careers.
And remember: the path from studying STEM to changing the world isn't always a direct one. You can start in one field and deliver STEM-based solutions in another.
Just look at these famous examples:
Albert Einstein worked in a patent office before becoming one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time.
Hedy Lamar was a famous actress years before she pioneered the technology that would one day form the basis for WiFi, GPS, and Bluetooth communication systems.
Angela Merkel obtained a doctorate in quantum chemistry years before serving as Chancellor of Germany.
Katherine Johnson was a teacher before being hired by NASA to develop the orbital calculations for the first crewed U.S. spaceflights.
Whether direct or indirect, the 21st century focus on STEM education will lead to new jobs and careers for millions of people around the globe.
STEM Is For Everyone
Do you feel like careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math aren't for you? Watch this video to learn about a STEM career that (spoiler alert) may already be your dream job.
STEM jobs: STEM career success stories
Want proof that studying STEM can lead to real jobs and rewarding careers? We've collected a library of articles and videos where real people describe their accomplishments and how STEM learning helped lift them to success.
Women Blaze Trails
Creating pathways for panthers (video): Conservationist Tori Linder advocates protecting Florida wildlife corridors and the animals that rely on them.
Helping monkeys cross the road (video): Dr. Carolina Pinto helps animals in Costa Rica follow arboreal bridges to new, more diversified living areas.
Bridging tradition & science (video): Chemical biologist Dr. Rosa Vásquez Espinoza focuses her work on extreme environments, studying the mysterious Boiling River and Amazonian Stingless Bees.
STEM projects for home & classroom
Learning by doing is key for STEM education. Use these STEM project ideas to start learning STEM skills or at least beginning to understand the importance of STEM subjects. Follow these tips to promote STEM education at home.
STEM concepts you can introduce at home
Spark conversations around STEM learning during after-school hours while doing activities you take part in regularly.
Build STEM skills into after-school activities: Integrating STEM activities into your after-school time can take many forms, but there are a few best practices to consider.
Use AR experiences to support student writers: Inspire your children as writers and connect writing and science with an augmented reality experience.
STEM concepts you can introduce at home: You don't need an in-house laboratory or fancy equipment to spark your kids' interest in STEM learning. Spark conversations during after-school hours during activities you take part in regularly.
STEM projects from Lenovo's brightest minds
Who better to design at-home STEM learning projects than a bunch of fun-loving engineers and techies? Check out these creative, engaging activities that make STEM education fun. Try these hands-on, at-home STEM projects:
Create your own kinetic sculpture (video): Easy, step-by-step instructions for all ages from a Lenovo Senior Industrial Designer.
Build a mini greenhouse in a plastic bottle (video): A simple STEM activity that combines botany, sustainability, and recycling!
Launch your own water-powered mini rocket (video): A fun activity for older kids to learn about reaction force.
STEM hacks for classroom educators
Here are some ready-made STEM lesson plans—by educators, for educators. Each lesson includes age group, supply lists, and videos.
What is the electromagnetic spectrum? (video): Use a prism in sunlight to learn that light has frequencies and wavelengths that determine the colors of light we see.
Measure water quality to understand human impact (video): Study and assess the quality of water from a simulated watershed and then from your own community.
Building machines that emulate human (video): Build robotic models from cardboard and straws to understand the anatomy and biomechanics of the human hand.
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