STEAM Made Simple

STEAM Made Simple Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from STEAM Made Simple, Education Website, Naperville, IL.

Danielle, M.Ed. | Hands-On Learning | STEAM Play
Certified Teacher & Learning Behavior Specialist

Resources 👉🏼 https://stan.store/steammadesimple
FREE Community 👉🏼 https://www.facebook.com/groups/thesteammadesimplepreschool

09/05/2026

Comment “PRESCHOOL” below if you’re not already in The STEAM Made Simple Preschool Program!

This week is week 2. Unit is feelings and emotions and the focus sound is /o/. On Monday’s of every unit we introduce a new sound and I like to have a bunch of different ways to practice!

All links are clickable and easy to find in the program and are also in my Amazon storefront!

P.s. my stubborn little guy likes the sound of his own voice better than mine so wanted me to re-record “o - octopus - /o/“ but using his voice 😂😂😂😂

09/04/2026

Before you assume your preschooler “wasn’t interested”… watch what they do next. 👀

I gave my son glue, his name, and scraps of paper. The activity was simple: glue the pieces onto the letters of his name.

Except he had other plans. 😂

He grabbed the glue, found another piece of paper, started collecting materials and decided to make his own creation.

And I let him.

my mom brain was annoyed for a sec that he “quit” my activity.

My teacher brain was watching his wheels turn.

He took something I introduced and thought, Wait… what else can I do with this?

And here’s the part I wish more parents knew:

Most of the time, when kids take an activity in a completely different direction, they’re STILL practicing the skill you wanted them to practice… and then some.

He was still squeezing the glue bottle → hand strength + fine motor control.

Still picking up and placing small materials → pincer grasp + hand-eye coordination.

But now he was ALSO planning, making decisions, experimenting, problem-solving, creating and following through on an idea that came entirely from his own brain.

He didn’t stop learning.

He took the learning further.

Same thing when you make a masking-tape road and they decide to start building their own.

Or you put out blocks for a specific building challenge and suddenly they’re constructing something completely different.

Or the counting bears you set out for math suddenly have names, families, houses and an entire complicated backstory. 😂

It can feel like:

Cool. So I spent 20 minutes setting that up for absolutely no reason.

But I want you to start looking at it differently.

Your activity may have been the invitation. Their idea is where the learning went next.

Because following directions is a skill.

But so is having an idea no one gave you.

So is figuring out how to make it work.

So is changing your plan when it doesn’t.

And THOSE are the skills I really don’t want us accidentally shutting down because we’re too focused on getting preschoolers to complete an activity exactly the way we pictured it.

Haven’t grabbed your open & go STEAM preschool yet?? 👉🏼 comment “preschoo

09/03/2026

I genuinely don’t know why we expect a 4-year-old to go from running around → “okay sit down and focus” with zero transition. 😂

Before I teach, we spend TWO MINUTES doing something intentional like this.

It looks like Copycat.

But he’s practicing:
→ attention + visual tracking
→ inhibitory control
→ working memory
→ motor planning
→ body awareness
→ coordination
→ self-regulation

Basically, I’m asking his brain to practice the exact skills I’m about to need from him when we learn.

So literally try this ONE time.

Before your next preschool lesson, stand face-to-face. Tell them, “You’re my mirror.” Move slowly and have them copy you.

Two minutes. That’s it.

Then start your lesson and come back and tell me if you notice a difference. 👀

And if you’re done guessing, Googling, and piecing preschool together yourself.. I already did that part for you.

I created The STEAM Made Simple Preschool for moms who want to give their child an educational advantage WITHOUT turning their home into a classroom or spending their nights figuring out what to teach next.

The brain warm-ups. The phonics. The math. The STEAM. The books. The questions to ask. The exact progression.

It’s all mapped out. You just get to do it with them.

Comment PRESCHOOL and I’ll send you everything. ❤️

I think we’ve accidentally made preschool into a race.How high can they count?How many numbers can they recognize?Can th...
09/03/2026

I think we’ve accidentally made preschool into a race.

How high can they count?
How many numbers can they recognize?
Can they start kindergarten work yet?

But being able to do something impressive doesn’t always mean a child understands what’s underneath it.

And when a preschooler IS ahead? I don’t want to rush them to the next grade level.

I want to take them deeper.

More problem solving. More experimenting. More “how did you figure that out?” More chances to actually THINK.

Because the goal isn’t to have the 4-year-old doing the hardest worksheet.

It’s to build the kid who knows what to do when the answer isn’t obvious.

THAT is the kind of head start I care about.

And it’s exactly why I created The STEAM Made Simple Preschool. Strong academics without turning childhood into a race to kindergarten.

Comment PRESCHOOL and I’ll send you the details. 🤍

09/02/2026

If your preschool math is mostly counting and number tracing, we need to talk. 👇🏼

⚠️Counting to 100 does not mean your child understands quantity.

⚠️Tracing numbers does not build number sense.
And number sense is what predicts long-term math success.

When I taught older students, the kids who struggled with multiplication, fractions, and problem-solving had one thing in common:

⚠️They never built quantity understanding early.

They memorized.
They didn’t internalize.

In STEAM Made Simple Preschool, math is not worksheets.

It’s:
✅filling five-frames on the floor
✅comparing real objects
✅building and measuring
✅predicting and testing
✅seeing numbers as amounts, not symbols

Symbols come last.
Meaning comes first.

That’s why kids in this program don’t just “do math.” They understand it.

If your child can count but freezes when asked “which is more?” that’s a foundation issue.

And foundations are built in preschool.
Comment “PRESCHOOL” if you’re ready to build it right.

This is just episode 6 where we talk about number magnitude so make sure to FOLLOW for test 7 or to rewatch episodes 1-6!

AND if you haven’t seen the others make sure to check them out!

09/02/2026

This episode is a little kick in the pants for the girlies who bought The STEAM Made Simple Preschool Curriculum and are still “getting ready” to start. 😂❤️

You do not need the perfect Monday, the perfect setup, or one more week to prepare.

You already have the plan. You just have to start using it.

And if you haven’t bought it yet because you’re overwhelmed by where to even begin, comment “PRESCHOOL” to snag it or just listen to the podcast episode and get some good brain nuggets in there.

🎧 i mean this with love but pls go listen to this episode of Think Like a Kid before you spend another week “getting ready.” Comment “PODCAST” below !

🤍

Save this one for the next big feeling. 🤍I don’t expect my four-year-old to be perfectly regulated.He’s four.We’re pract...
09/01/2026

Save this one for the next big feeling. 🤍

I don’t expect my four-year-old to be perfectly regulated.

He’s four.
We’re practicing.

And that’s really what preschool is to me: not expecting kindergarten skills early…

But building the foundations they’ll eventually grow from.
Academically, socially, emotionally, physically.

That’s the philosophy behind all 36 weeks of The STEAM Made Simple Preschool.

Comment PRESCHOOL and I’ll send you the plan.

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Naperville, IL
60540, 60563-60565, AND PO BOX ONLY CODES 60566-60567

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