You've spent the first part of your teaching career as a general education teacher, and now you are stepping into the elementary STEM space. It's equal parts exciting, but also overwhelming.

What types of supports are out there to support you in this new-to-you role?

Well, you are definitely going to enjoy today's interview!

I am chatting with CEO of SmartLab, Dr. Jennifer Berry. The company's philosophy on how they support teachers and students is definitely one that I agree with and goes further than just teaching STEM lessons.

Dr. Berry’s background and deep leadership experience in K-12 education, plus her commitment to growing mission-oriented teams, make her the ideal leader to navigate the company’s next chapter of growth. She joins a leadership team already transforming how students experience and consume innovative career-connected curriculum with hands-on, STEM-infused learning,” stated Franklin Staley, Managing Director of Exeter Street Capital Partners and Chairman of CLS.

• Connect with SmartLab on LinkedIn
• Connect with Dr. Berry on LinkedIn
• Check out SmartLab's website
• Get Started Here! November 7, 2025- SmartLab STEM Identity Day

Head to the show notes for a full transcript of this episode, pictures, and all the links: https://naomimeredith.com/episode205

Download my Free K-5 STEM & Teach Year-Long Plan

Leave a voice message HERE for the podcast with your questions and comments!

TpT Shop: Naomi Meredith | naomimeredith.com/tptshop

Course: STEM Teacher 101

Workshops:

• K-2 STEM Planning
• 3-5 STEM Planning
• K-5 STEM Planning Bundle
• Stellar School-Wide News
• STEM Career Day

1:1 STEM Coaching Support: naomimeredith.com/coaching

Check out more inspiration on her website: naomimeredith.com

Connect with her on Instagram: @naomimeredith_

YouTube Channel: Naomi Meredith

Facebook Group: The Elementary STEM Coach Community | Technology & STEM for K-6 Teachers

Check out my other podcast for kids: The STEM Career Quest

Have you been on the fence about starting video school-wide news? Maybe you think you don’t have the right equipment, you need to go live each day, or that it’s too complicated. Whatever your hang-ups are about getting started, I was there too. However, I still got this started at my school, and it was such a success!

But don’t just take it from me. 

In this guest interview, I am chatting with elementary teacher Rebecca Zide, who successfully implemented video school-wide news at her school with the help of my on-demand workshop. 

She shares all her successes and learning moments while implementing these announcements at her school. I know you’ll find her stories inspiring and motivating to help you want to try this with your students! 

• Need more help getting started? Check out my news workshop here!

• Watch one of Rebecca’s news episodes in action (shared with permission)

• Check out THIS local news story that was created about Rebecca’s news program

Head to the show notes for a full transcript of this episode, pictures, and all the links: https://naomimeredith.com/episode204

Download my Free K-5 STEM & Teach Year-Long Plan

Leave a voice message HERE for the podcast with your questions and comments!

TpT Shop: Naomi Meredith | naomimeredith.com/tptshop

Course: STEM Teacher 101

Workshops:

• K-2 STEM Planning
• 3-5 STEM Planning
• K-5 STEM Planning Bundle
• Stellar School-Wide News
• STEM Career Day

1:1 STEM Coaching Support: naomimeredith.com/coaching

Check out more inspiration on her website: naomimeredith.com

Connect with her on Instagram: @naomimeredith_

YouTube Channel: Naomi Meredith

Facebook Group: The Elementary STEM Coach Community | Technology & STEM for K-6 Teachers

Check out my other podcast for kids: The STEM Career Quest

If you wanted to dedicate a week to teaching students what each letter of STEM was, where do you even begin? You want the lessons to be simple enough to last for one class session, but still engaging.

This is Part 2 of a 2 part series where I will be giving you a week of lesson plans for Kinder-2nd grades on how to teach each letter of STEM in a week.

Grab the free PDF with the lesson plans here: https://naomimeredith.com/weekofstemplans

Head to the show notes for a full transcript of this episode, pictures, and all the links: https://naomimeredith.com/episode203

Download my Free K-5 STEM & Teach Year-Long Plan

Leave a voice message HERE for the podcast with your questions and comments!

TpT Shop: Naomi Meredith | naomimeredith.com/tptshop

Course: STEM Teacher 101

Workshops:

• K-2 STEM Planning
• 3-5 STEM Planning
• K-5 STEM Planning Bundle
• Stellar School-Wide News
• STEM Career Day

STEM Teacher Book Club: naomimeredith.com/stemteacherbookshelf

1:1 STEM Coaching Support: naomimeredith.com/coaching

Check out more inspiration on her website: naomimeredith.com

Connect with her on Instagram: @naomimeredith_

YouTube Channel: Naomi Meredith

Facebook Group: The Elementary STEM Coach Community | Technology & STEM for K-6 Teachers

Check out my other podcast for kids: The STEM Career Quest

If you wanted to dedicate a week to teaching students what each letter of STEM was, where do you even begin? You want the lessons to be simple enough to last for one class session, but still engaging.

This is Part 1 of a 2 part series where I will be giving you a week of lesson plans for 3rd-5th grades on how to teach each letter of STEM in a week.

Grab the free PDF with the lesson plans here: https://naomimeredith.com/weekofstemplans

Head to the show notes for a full transcript of this episode, pictures, and all the links: https://naomimeredith.com/episode202

Download my Free K-5 STEM & Teach Year-Long Plan

Leave a voice message HERE for the podcast with your questions and comments!

TpT Shop: Naomi Meredith | naomimeredith.com/tptshop

Course: STEM Teacher 101

Workshops:

• K-2 STEM Planning
• 3-5 STEM Planning
• K-5 STEM Planning Bundle
• Stellar School-Wide News
• STEM Career Day

1:1 STEM Coaching Support: naomimeredith.com/coaching

Check out more inspiration on her website: naomimeredith.com

Connect with her on Instagram: @naomimeredith_

YouTube Channel: Naomi Meredith

Facebook Group: The Elementary STEM Coach Community | Technology & STEM for K-6 Teachers

Check out my other podcast for kids: The STEM Career Quest

As you are setting up your STEM classroom, what are things you can decorate with but still connect with what you are teaching? A word wall, or vocabulary wall, can be a great asset to your units to help students make connections across content themes. I'll be sharing practical ways you can set up a word wall that you can use throughout the school year and with all grade levels, K-5.

Resources Mentioned:

• STEM & Technology Alphabet Posters

Head to the show notes for a full transcript of this episode, pictures, and all the links: https://naomimeredith.com/episode201

Download my Free K-5 STEM & Teach Year-Long Plan

Leave a voice message HERE for the podcast with your questions and comments!

TpT Shop: Naomi Meredith | naomimeredith.com/tptshop

Course: STEM Teacher 101

Workshops:

• K-2 STEM Planning
• 3-5 STEM Planning
• K-5 STEM Planning Bundle
• Stellar School-Wide News
• STEM Career Day

1:1 STEM Coaching Support: naomimeredith.com/coaching

Check out more inspiration on her website: naomimeredith.com

Connect with her on Instagram: @naomimeredith_

YouTube Channel: Naomi Meredith

Facebook Group: The Elementary STEM Coach Community | Technology & STEM for K-6 Teachers

Check out my other podcast for kids: The STEM Career Quest

If you were to ask your students what the word "STEM" actually means, could they answer you correctly? And if they do know that "STEM" represents Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math, do they know what THAT means?

In this episode, I'll be sharing practical and easy ways you can explain what STEM means to your students that doesn't take a lot of time, but will still build a foundation for all your STEM lessons to come!

Resources mentioned:

• YouTube Video Series for Kids: What does STEM mean?
• STEM/STEAM Definition Posters
• STEM Get to Know You Slides

Head to the show notes for a full transcript of this episode, pictures, and all the links: https://naomimeredith.com/episode200

Download my Free K-5 STEM & Teach Year-Long Plan

Leave a voice message HERE for the podcast with your questions and comments!

TpT Shop: Naomi Meredith | naomimeredith.com/tptshop

Course: STEM Teacher 101

Workshops:

• K-2 STEM Planning
• 3-5 STEM Planning
• K-5 STEM Planning Bundle
• Stellar School-Wide News
• STEM Career Day

1:1 STEM Coaching Support: naomimeredith.com/coaching

Check out more inspiration on her website: naomimeredith.com

Connect with her on Instagram: @naomimeredith_

YouTube Channel: Naomi Meredith

Facebook Group: The Elementary STEM Coach Community | Technology & STEM for K-6 Teachers

Check out my other podcast for kids: The STEM Career Quest

If you have a low or no budget going into your STEM classroom but are wondering what lessons to teach kids, my go-to is Makerspace lessons. 

There is some prep work to gather supplies to make it happen, but it’s one of the best ways to have hands-on lessons in your classroom that are still engaging. 

I’ll be sharing my top three favorite themes when teaching Makerspace to students in K-5. These are units where every grade level has its own lesson to jump into, along with what you can do if you only see kids once a week.

Resources Mentioned:

• Easy 1-Day Makerspace Challenges 
• STEM Survival Camp K-5 Lessons
• Earth’s Engineer’s K-5 Lessons
• STEM-usement Park K-5 Lessons

Head to the show notes for a full transcript of this episode, pictures, and all the links: https://naomimeredith.com/episode199

Download my Free K-5 STEM & Teach Year-Long Plan

Leave a voice message HERE for the podcast with your questions and comments!

TpT Shop: Naomi Meredith | naomimeredith.com/tptshop

Course: STEM Teacher 101

Workshops:

• K-2 STEM Planning
• 3-5 STEM Planning
• K-5 STEM Planning Bundle
• Stellar School-Wide News
• STEM Career Day

1:1 STEM Coaching Support: naomimeredith.com/coaching

Check out more inspiration on her website: naomimeredith.com

Connect with her on Instagram: @naomimeredith_

YouTube Channel: Naomi Meredith

Facebook Group: The Elementary STEM Coach Community | Technology & STEM for K-6 Teachers

Check out my other podcast for kids: The STEM Career Quest

We are back at it with some fun interviews this summer! I took a little break from interviewing, but missed it, and I had so much fun with who I talked with for today’s interview. 

I chatted with Kara Houston, who is a proud member of SelfCAD. If you haven’t heard of SelfCAD before, it is a cloud-based CAD modeling (or computer-aided design) that allows students to model, sculpt, slice, and print online. You might know this most for 3D printing as you get started, but they have other forms of creation inside the platform that you should check out. 

Kara is passionate about what she does, and she loves that through her job, she can have a part in the future of STEM by bringing their ideas to life. 

This episode will help give you ideas on various ways you can start implementing 3D modeling in your classroom! 

Check out SelfCAD: selfcad.com 

Connect with Kara Houston on LinkedIn HERE

Head to the show notes for a full transcript of this episode, pictures, and all the links: https://naomimeredith.com/episode198

Download my Free K-5 STEM & Teach Year-Long Plan

Leave a voice message HERE for the podcast with your questions and comments!

TpT Shop: Naomi Meredith | naomimeredith.com/tptshop

Course: STEM Teacher 101

Workshops:

• K-2 STEM Planning
• 3-5 STEM Planning
• K-5 STEM Planning Bundle
• Stellar School-Wide News
• STEM Career Day

1:1 STEM Coaching Support: naomimeredith.com/coaching

Check out more inspiration on her website: naomimeredith.com

Connect with her on Instagram: @naomimeredith_

YouTube Channel: Naomi Meredith

Facebook Group: The Elementary STEM Coach Community | Technology & STEM for K-6 Teachers

Check out my other podcast for kids: The STEM Career Quest

If you're in back-to-school mode and starting to set up your classroom, this quick tip will help you think through how to organize your Makerspace or STEM supplies for the year.

In this mini-episode is a clip from Episode 150, and I’m sharing how I set up my supplies to stay organized all year long, without constantly resetting things for every lesson. Whether you have a full Makerspace or just a few bins of supplies, these simple strategies can help make your space more functional and your students more independent.

Resources Mentioned: 

• STEM Teacher 101 Course [get $30 off using this code: PODCASTBFF ]
• Hot Glue Gun Safety Poster
• 13 x 13, Large, Collapsible Cubes for Storing Projects
• STEM Class Project Labels [to add to big fabric boxes]

Some items are linked to my Amazon Affiliate account. When you purchase through my link, there is no added cost to you, but I receive a small commission in return.

Head to the show notes for a full transcript of this episode, pictures, and all the links: https://naomimeredith.com/episode197

Download my Free K-5 STEM & Teach Year-Long Plan

Leave a voice message HERE for the podcast with your questions and comments!

TpT Shop: Naomi Meredith | naomimeredith.com/tptshop

Course: STEM Teacher 101

Workshops:

• K-2 STEM Planning
• 3-5 STEM Planning
• K-5 STEM Planning Bundle
• Stellar School-Wide News
• STEM Career Day

1:1 STEM Coaching Support: naomimeredith.com/coaching

Check out more inspiration on her website: naomimeredith.com

Connect with her on Instagram: @naomimeredith_

YouTube Channel: Naomi Meredith

Facebook Group: The Elementary STEM Coach Community | Technology & STEM for K-6 Teachers

Check out my other podcast for kids: The STEM Career Quest

If you're in back-to-school mode and starting to set up your classroom, this quick tip will help you think through how to organize your Makerspace or STEM supplies for the year.

In this mini-episode is a clip from Episode 150, and I’m sharing how I set up my supplies to stay organized all year long—without constantly resetting things for every lesson. Whether you have a full Makerspace or just a few bins of supplies, these simple strategies can help make your space more functional and your students more independent.

Resources Mentioned: 

• STEM Teacher 101 Course [get $30 off using this code: PODCASTBFF ]
• Words & Pictures- Editable Makerspace Supply Labels
• Sticky Business Card Pouches [to use with labels]
• Makerspace Donation Letter [editable]
• Sterilite 3 Tiered Paper Drawers [for sorting markers]
• Free, Editable Paper Drawer Label Template
• Small Metal Buckets with Handles for Crayon Storage
• 13 x 13, Large, Collapsible Cubes for Storing Projects
• STEM Class Project Labels [to add to big fabric boxes]

Some items are linked to my Amazon Affiliate account. When you purchase through my link, there is no added cost to you, but I receive a small commission in return.

Head to the show notes for a full transcript of this episode, pictures, and all the links: https://naomimeredith.com/episode196

Download my Free K-5 STEM & Teach Year-Long Plan

Leave a voice message HERE for the podcast with your questions and comments!

TpT Shop: Naomi Meredith | naomimeredith.com/tptshop

Course: STEM Teacher 101

Workshops:

• K-2 STEM Planning
• 3-5 STEM Planning
• K-5 STEM Planning Bundle
• Stellar School-Wide News
• STEM Career Day

1:1 STEM Coaching Support: naomimeredith.com/coaching

Check out more inspiration on her website: naomimeredith.com

Connect with her on Instagram: @naomimeredith_

YouTube Channel: Naomi Meredith

Facebook Group: The Elementary STEM Coach Community | Technology & STEM for K-6 Teachers

Check out my other podcast for kids: The STEM Career Quest