Ekuwah Mends Moses 🇬🇭 🇺🇸

Did the 1st graders build the entire marble run in 40 minutes? Yes & no

They folded two ramps & two supports. The remaining pieces were thoughtfully sourced from our “remix” bins (repurposed materials from upper grades).

Strategic reuse saves time & expands creative capacity!
#stem #EduSky #steam

This cardboard marble run was independently designed, built, and tested by a 2nd grader in just 40 minutes.

When young learners are given time, materials, and trust, they engineer far beyond expectations.
#STEM #STEAM #EduSky

Photo of Page 72 of the book STEAM Makers by Dr. Jacie Maslyk

Photo of the sustainability cart with more than a dozen cereal boxes

Our Sustainability Cart, featured by @jaciemaslyk.bsky.social in the 2nd edition of #STEAMMakers, remains prominently placed in our main hallway.

With a call-to-action from Oscar the Grouch, our community is actively donating cereal boxes for an upcoming engineering design challenge!
#stem

“Next year, I want to build a water slide with a pool at the end.” – 4th grader (EOY Reflection)

Students estimated how many long & short pool noodle segments their water slide would require. They tested, conducted a final count, & wrote reflections.

📸: 2nd & 3rd grade teams

#STEM

Most students showed up with Valentine’s treats today. One 4th grader showed up with a motorized vehicle she engineered and couldn’t wait to demonstrate. That’s the kind of excitement #STEM learning ignites! 🚗 #EduSky #STEAM

Dozens of student reflections expressed authentic engineering curiosity last week! After building wind-powered cars from cardboard, many wondered what it would be like to design one using LEGO instead. That’s transfer, iteration, and material inquiry in action! Lessons learned!
#STEM #EduSky #lego

A 3rd grade teacher arrived five minutes early and led an impromptu sail-car race! Her students had completed their diagrams and written reflections and were freely testing designs. 🤝 #commUNITY #STEM

📸: “We love engineering.” - 4th grader

#EduSky

Thank you to the City of North Las Vegas for supporting hands-on learning through the Education Micro-Grant, which made it possible to purchase Makedo Fold-Rollers for my students. This funding gave students high-quality tools to design, build, and problem-solve with confidence.

Cardboard & @Makedo Race Track

(⏰ 30 min)
•Build boundaries
•Lift the track up to an inclined plane to provide a gentle downhill slope
•Build a start mechanism to ensure cars start together
•Place a finish line
🔁 Test & improve

✏️ Diagram & reflection

Happy FriYAY!! 🎉
Celebrate the “small” wins with your students. Each one represents “BIG” effort, progress, and learning in action.

📸: 1st grader

#STEM #LEGO #EduSky

New year, new STEM opportunities!

These LEGO DUPLO base plates became a ✨NEW✨ magnetic whiteboard build space! One student built a house, another a bridge, and soon someone may design a marble run.

🎯 Low-cost used materials.
🎯 High-impact open-ended learning.

📸: Kinder

#STEM #LEGO #EduSky

A 5th grader building a paper 3-D model of a Corvette and Mercedes G-Wagon

Me (hallway duty): Happy New Year! I’m so glad to see you!

5th grader: Over the break, I knew my class was coming back to you today! I couldn’t wait! I love engineering!
.
.
.
(in class)
I finished making the Mercedes G-Wagon. Can I also make the Corvette?

Me: 🥰🤗😍🙌🏾

#STEM #STEAM #EduSky

Thank you so much for the support and encouragement!

Good morning #EduSky

Congratulations Ekuwah for an awesome Educator spotlight!
Check out the podcast here: ▶️ youtu.be/Le_ruIRW7qg?...

"Conversations with educators disrupting the status quo so students can thrive. The Fierce Urgency of NOW is a weekly call to action." #podcast

“Let your star shine brightly today!”

✨ Inspired by our daily announcements, students applied engineering principles to construct 3-D cardboard stars using the notch/slot technique.

A creative challenge to end the semester with a unique little sparkle as winter break begins!

#STEM #EduSky

YouTube video by Ekuwah Mends Moses, Author Cardboard Gingerbread Houses #STEAM #STEM

How it started:
“Next year, I want to make a mini cardboard house to take home…” - 4th Grader (EOY ✏️Reflection)

How it went:
Students designed & built a cardboard gingerbread house!

#STEM learning powered by student voice, problem-solving, and purposeful reuse. 🎨 ♻️

#STEAM #EduSky

3-D Cardboard Star made by a 4th grader

3-D Cardboard Star made by a 4th grader

3-D Cardboard Star made by a 4th grader

3-D Cardboard Star made by a 4th grader

During this 6-day rotation, students are applying principles of geometry, structural integrity, and material reuse to create 3-D star ornaments using the notch/slot cardboard attachment method.

⭐️Every star reflects a unique design built from random scrap materials. #STEM #STEAM #EduSky

Listen! I had so many K–1 students happily volunteer to help wash, rinse, and dry the tables today!

Cleaning up is a natural part of STEM thinking: teamwork, responsibility, and making our learning space better for everyone! 💦 🧽 #STEM #STEAM #EduSky

Are those cardboard purse ornaments made from scraps? YES!

I’m grateful for the way first graders teach us to see possibilities with basic leftover materials!
#STEM #EduSky #STEAM

Our learning community just got brighter with a holiday upgrade!

The LEGO®-bag stars I made now shine beside photos of rocket building, ✏️ student reflections, and sketched diagrams on our “Engineering Wall of Fame.”

I’m proud of every shining mind growing in this #STEM space! #EduSky #STEAM

Behind the scenes:
My entire 50-minute prep was spent cleaning & refilling glue jars. Thick, slow, but it means more durable take-home design challenges, proud students, and learning that sticks! #STEM #STEAM #EduSky

“Look what I made for my teacher!”

This morning, a 5th grader proudly showed me a paper towel rose she spent hours creating, & I asked her to teach me how to make it.

Her beautiful gift shows how school-home connections & everyday materials support authentic STEM learning. 🌹♻️

Pieces of cardboard cut in various sizes

While it may look like “just cardboard,” these materials help 700+ students build confidence, apply STEM concepts, and explore their capacity to innovate.

Educators…
Your weekend prep may go unseen, but the curiosity you spark is impossible to miss.

#STEM #STEAM

Snowman ornament made with scrap materials and cardboard

Ornament named Larry

I gave my Kindergartners & first graders the choice of creating an ornament using cardboard and a bin of scrap materials. The open-ended design challenge led to an amazing range of creativity!

One student made a snowman… another made Larry!
#STEM #STEAM #EduSky

YouTube video by National Life Group's LifeChanger of the Year LifeChanger Perspectives: A Conversation with our Grand Prize Winners

Inspired after connecting with a fellow NLG LifeChanger winner who’s showing students how to design, build, and engineer real change today! #STEM #LCOY #STEAM #EduSky

In their reflective writings, a countless number of students asked for a cardboard rocket. One called it a “standing cardboard rocket,” and another wanted Makedo screws, so we built one. Most teams of two didn’t finish in 30 minutes, but the learning is always the win! 🚀
#STEM #STEAM #EduSky

Great quote!! Thank you for thinking of me!

From bargain bags to classroom holiday decor…

Found LEGO paper bags for $2, took off the handles, glued seven together, and made these adorable paper bag stars.

Can’t wait to hang them on my #STEM classroom doors tomorrow!

#STEAM #EduSky

“I’ll be the teacher. Repeat after me: Y-O-U…” - Kindergartener

Some students chant the letters on the eye chart.

While others students read the words and notice the message.

“You can’t do things differently until you see things differently.”

#STEM #EduSky #STEAM

LEGO Rockets
1. Build a fuselage that is tall & sturdy using at least 10+ bricks.
2. Attach a nose cone.
3. Create stabilizing fins (at least 3) to keep the rocket straight.
4. The rocket must stand on the launch pad without tipping over.
5. Sketch a diagram
6. Write a reflection
#STEM #LEGO #EduSky