For Educators

Teachers and group leaders, you have more influence on the career and course decisions of young girls than you can imagine.

Your reactions and comments on their interests, their classwork, and their products make all the difference in their future careers. Plan what you say, and watch what you do. 

Download the GEMS Club Handbook.

Talking with girls about GEMS handout

How teachers can encourage girls in STEM

 Suggestions:

  • Show no fear. Start with STEM activities you like to do so that they see and feel your excitement.
  • Don’t be afraid to fail. If the experiment you all try does not end with the expected results, work together to analyze the results. This attitude shows girls that they do not have to know everything to try STEM.
  • Move out of your comfort zone. Learn something new and share it with the girls.
  • Expose them to other professions through guests, volunteers, mentors and videos. Let STEM careers cross their radar over and over.
  • Fill the environment with good role models and make it welcoming. There are tons of resources for this from NCWITEngineer Girl, the National Women’s History Project, to name just a few. Remember, you are combating years of television watching as you try to change each girl’s self image. 

Science Resources for Educators

BioEd Online — Science teacher resources from Baylor 

PBS’ Design Squad — hands-on STEM activities, especially good for younger children

The Molecularium — understanding nanoscale atoms and molecules

Steve Spangler Experiments — great experiments for all ages

Technical Education Research Center — research to improve science teaching

Teacher Source — products and lessons by teachers for teachers

Association of Physics Teachers — links, resources and information for physics lessons

Cool Science — lessons and collaboration for teaching all areas of STEM

Try Nano — news and information about nanotechnology

National Association of Rocketry — great information to encourage girls in rocketry

KidWind — teaching the world about wind and wind power

Small Science Zines — let your girls contribute their knowledge and creativity to this site

Understanding Science — How science really works from Berkeley

You Be the Chemist — so many lessons and activities here — an inspiring site

Solve Puzzles for Science — folding proteins and more–crowd-sourcing scientific mysteries

Great Science for Girls — Tools for evaluating your club and its impact on girls in science

Learn About Sound–Acoustical Society —  help your girls explore sound and careers

American Association of Chemistry Teachers — activities and resources for K-12

XPLORLABS –understanding power and more

ZOOM — Videos and activities from PBS Learning Media

NIH Science Curriculum Supplements — explore the science behind many health topics

STEM2D–exceptional resources from the Smithsonian Institution designed to encourage girls in STEM

General Resources for Educators

A checklist for gender-fair teaching from NAPE

Teaching Tips to share with your colleagues or CLT from GEMS leaders

AAUW research on equity in schools and workplaces

Myra Sadker Foundation — promoting equity in and beyond schools

NSF Classroom Resources for all branches of STEM

PBS STEM Education Resources —  bringing the world to your classroom

Girls Love STEᴀM — A source for STEM & STEᴀM children’s books & websites.

STEM Ecosystems — general resources on STEM education

littleBits White Paper on STEM in Elementary School

STEM Teaching Tools — research and tools for improving the teaching of STEM

STEM Read –-Lesson plans, podcasts and resources connecting STEM with English/Language Arts. This site is very “school” oriented but has great activities that can be used in an after school setting.

STEM Pathways — 4-H has great resources for exploring careers and facets in STEM

STEM Learning — curriculum resources from the UK to support teaching and learning

ITEEA Open Access Resources for Teachers — free resources from the International Technology Educators Association (Elementary, Middle, High)

Math Resources for Educators

Math Activities Linked to Math Standards—let your out-of-school time program help your girls in classroom math.

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics — multiple avenues to encourage math exploration

MIT Blossoms — math resources from the masters

Math Counts — competitions for middle schoolers to build confidence and improve attitudes

Project Euler — challenges and problem sets for the adventurous

Museum of Math — fun puzzles and experiences from this new museum

CSandMath — making sense of math while building career skills in computer science

Youcubed — building a mindset of success in math

Strategies for supporting females in STEM— Lynda Weist, University of Nevada

“I want my daughter to see the possibilities in math and science beyond what she learns in the classroom.”

Parent, 2004

Engineering Resources for Educators

Purdue University’s EPICS resources — preparing for the future while improving communities today

Nanoscale Network  — developing an understanding of nanotechnology

Try Engineering  — resources for students and teachers

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics  — resources for aerospace education

Model and Materials Lessons — great ideas for clubs

Engineering Design-Based Science — housed by Auburn University

STEM by Design — Resources from MiddleWeb

Technology Resources for Educators

Intel’s Idea Showcase–Ideas for integrating technology into the core curriculum. Short and long lessons.

Ready to Code -– Extensive resources on embedding computer science into your program

Be sure to review the resources for teaching programming on the Computer Science page.

Exploring Computer Science — high school level curriculum and teacher professional development

Computer Science Unplugged  — teaching the fundamentals of Computer Science without screens

Computational Thinking — the building blocks of computer science

Computer Science Teachers Association — news and resources for teaching Computer Science

Pair Programming — one of the best approaches to teaching Computer Science

Hour of Code — teach yourself! And then help the girls to learn.

Try Computing from IEEE–lessons, activities and explanations for the budding computer scientist

Hacking STEM  from Microsoft–a collection of collaborative projects using everyday toys and tools