🔬 Day 1 STEM Quest

STEM Quest — Day 1

Count · Explore · Code · Play

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Today’s path

Pick one so timers match real life

Core co-play: pick Science or Logic (not both).

Core timers ≈ Math 7 + one co-play 3–5 + Wally 3 ≈ 13–15 min (setup extra).

📦 Materials

30-sec grab · by track

Skip food floaties if Wally is grabbing. Prefer spoon, cork/cap, LEGO, crayon, key.

Junie · Math

Counting & number sense · parent-led Grade 1 vibe

~7 min core
1

Count the collection

~2 min · one-to-one
2:00
Say / Do

Pile of 5–8 counters. Touch each as you count.

  • “One finger, one counter.”
  • “How many? Show me with fingers.”
  • Mix up — count again. Same number?
Watch for
Skipping or double-counting. Prompt: “Touch and say one number for each.”
If Easy
Try 12–15. Stay within 20.
If Shaky
Stay at 5–6. You point; she says the number.
2

Ten-frame fill

~3 min · build 5 & 10
3:00
Say / Do

Draw a ten-frame (2×5) or use the picture. No worksheets — just see and count.

  • “Make 5. Fill the top row — how many empty boxes?”
  • “Make 7. Point to the empties — count them.”
  • “Make 10 — full frame! High five.”
Ten-frame model (fill with counters)

Example: 5 on top — “how many empty?”

Watch for
Random filling. Model left→right, top then bottom. Seeing empties = number sense.
If Easy
Try 8, then “show full without counting every dot.”
If Shaky
Only make-5 and make-10. You place; she counts.
3

More, fewer, same

~2 min · compare
2:00
Say / Do

Two groups side by side.

  • “Which has more? Which has fewer?”
  • “Line them up in pairs — leftovers tell who wins.”
  • “Make two groups that are the same.”
Try these pairs
4 vs 7 6 vs 6 9 vs 5
Watch for
Guessing by spread. Prompt lining up 1:1 or recounting.
If Easy
Do all three pairs fast; celebrate “same.”
If Shaky
Only 4 vs 7, then 6 vs 6.
4

Count within 20 Stretch · optional

~2 min · only if 1–3 felt Easy
2:00
Say / Do

Put out 14–18 counters (or two ten-frames).

  • “Count them all. Whisper teens if you want.”
  • “Stop at 10 — how many left? Count on from 10.”
  • Optional: hide 2 — “How many now? How many hiding?”
Watch for
Stuck after 10. Model “ten… eleven” slowly. Stop before frustration.
If Easy
Try the hide-2 game once.
If Shaky
Skip this stretch — come back next STEM night.

Science · Both

Observe → predict → try → explain pick 3

~5 min
5:00
Safety first
Plastic bowl, room-temp water only. No heat, no chemicals, no glass if kids are grabby. Adult pours. Towel ready. Keep objects too big to swallow.
Say / Do — Sink or Float

Pick 3 objects first, then start the timer.

  • Observe: heavy, light, hollow, solid?
  • Predict: each says sink or float (two piles OK).
  • Try: gentle place, one at a time.
  • Explain: “Were we right? What do you notice?” Wonder is enough.
Good household objects (pick 3)
Spoon Cork / bottle cap Crayon LEGO brick Key
Watch for
High drops (splashes). Model gentle placement. Celebrate “wrong” predictions!

Logic · Unplugged

Pick one · sequencing or if–then

~3 min
3:00
Say / Do — Robot parent

You are the robot. Kids give 3–4 steps to walk to a toy.

  • Moves: forward, turn left, turn right, pick up.
  • Do exactly what they say — then debug: “Which step do we change?”
Forward→ Forward→ Turn L→ Pick up
Say / Do — If–then (small-space alternate)

“If I clap twice, you hop. If I stomp, you freeze. If I whisper ‘go,’ you tiptoe.” Play 3–4 rounds.

Wally · Play STEM

Parallel beside math · or micro cool-down preschool

~3 min burst
3:00

🧱 Cup tower + sort

Do this beside Junie’s math, or as a tiny cool-down — not a fifth full lesson.

Stack: Nesting cups or blocks — “How tall before it tips?” Celebrate the crash; rebuild.

Sort: Dump a mixed handful (big/small or color). “Can you make two piles?”

Pour: Only if you skipped Sink/Float today (tray/sink, adult pours).

Stop at the first happy burst — never push to 5. Bits too big to swallow.

How did it go?

Tap one — get a next-session hint

Check off Core work (Math 1–3 + Science or Logic) to unlock the streak badge.
🏅
Streak badge: STEM Day 1 Quest unlocked. See you next STEM session!