In this STEM Hour, Blake Stewart — co-founder of paediatric early childhood intervention clinic Necessity Kids — and Jade Organ, a senior member of their Early Intervention Team, discuss the role of play-based exploration and STEM inquiry. They share their insights into how STEM inquiry can be used to support children’s development as they expand their motor skills, speech, cognitive development, and social and emotional skills.

STEM trailblazer Corey Tutt OAM, founder of DeadlyScience and NSW Young Australian of the Year 2020 shares his knowledge about the benefits of combining Indigenous and Western science knowledge, ideas for how educators can celebrate the achievements of Australia’s first scientists, and insights into what our future scientists might discover.

Corey also explains the story behind his own STEM education and the experiences that inevitably led him to founding DeadlyScience.

Children can conduct scientific research just like adult scientists. Erin Roger from the Australian Citizen Science Association, Nadiah Roslan from the Australian Museum and environmental educator Maria Dunne provide us with hands-on ideas for citizen science projects suitable for our age group.

Celebrating these fascinating and useful creatures, Kelly Lees from the NSW Department of Primary Industries shares astonishing facts about bees, primary school teacher Vanessa Ryan-Rendall introduces her children’s book Bee Detectives and educators Claudia Brewin and Emilia Borrillo speak about their school’s award-winning project ‘The wonder of bees’.

“Why is it ok to eat cows but not whales?” Clarissa Seeto-Regueira, centre director, Benjamin Kilby, teacher and philosopher, and Jessica Danaher, dietitian and researcher, discuss how philosophical inquiry can be implemented in early childhood education and share ideas for critical reflection on the food we eat.

Dr David Taggart, associate professor of wildlife biology and conservation, Elly Hampton, early childhood educator, Kylie Soanes, conservation biologist, Rachel Iglesias, veterinary officer, and Erin Hahn, postdoctoral research fellow at CSIRO, share why our fauna is in danger and what we, our children and the entire Australian society can and must do to protect our wildlife.

Are we teaching our children to express themselves and to participate as active citizens? Sara Judge, First Nations content producer at the Australian Museum, Dr Jennifer Matthews, marine biologist, and Skye Ferber, kinder lead educator, discuss children’s right to actively participate in critical matters such as.

This webinar focuses on embedding Indigenous perspectives into education and care settings. Michelle Hamilton from Gowrie NSW, a proud Wiradjuri woman with over 30 years of experience in early childhood education, shares how to develop cultural competence and foster a sense of belonging for Indigenous and non-Indigenous children and families.

Researcher Fiona Boylan and practitioner Cayley Boylan provide thought-provoking ideas on how to support the development of a growth mindset. Our panel discusses how you can support children in developing the skills to transition to school and lead a fulfilled life as well as the role of STEM inquiry in this.

Inclusive early childhood settings provide the best start to life for all children, and inquiry-based practices are beneficial for addressing all children’s individual needs. Our panel provides ideas for cultivating an inclusive environment through inquiry-based STEM learning and how to cater to children’s diverse needs while fostering individual skills and abilities.

Mathematical concepts are everywhere around us, from sharing a pizza to spotting patterns in a musical composition. In this webinar, our panel helps you broaden your mathematical horizon, evaluate your own relationship with maths and provides you with a hands-on approach for fostering children’s mathematical thinking.