STEM Story Station

After months of preparation and planning, the Sam Houston STEM Story Station was revealed on Friday, August 23, following a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Sam Houston STEM teachers and staff joined Sam Houston STEM PTO Board Members as well as community members in debuting the new book vending room.

The STEM Story Station was designed to provide an interactive experience that significantly enhances learning opportunities for Sam Houston Elementary students by allowing them to choose new books they can keep and take home. According to Sam Houston Principal Jordyn Livingston, the STEM Story Station “provides an innovative and engaging way to promote reading and literacy.” Unlike ordinary book vending machines, the STEM Story Station is an entire room that allows students to fully embrace a bookstore type setting while allowing them the freedom to select a book that interests them.

Planning for the STEM Story Station began in the fall of 2023 when Principal Livingston and then Assistant Principal Emily Wood presented the idea to the Sam Houston PTO Board. “As the concept developed into a book station room, we were able to better align this with our STEM curriculum and experiences,” stated Mrs. Livingston. The Sam Houston STEM PTO funded the project with funds raised by students and families throughout the 2023-2024 school year. Mrs. Livingston explained that Patterson, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram of Marshall generously donated both books and bookmarks for the Station. Local artist Jill Davis and local business ML Decorations also helped with the design and features of the room.

The STEM Story Station will be used as part of a reward system, allowing students to earn tokens and cash them in for books. “Students will have the opportunity to earn tokens for good behavior, academic achievements, or participation in activities, as well as birthdays and academic growth celebrations,” explained Mrs. Livingston. “Redeeming these tokens for books provides a tangible incentive, motivating students to engage more in school.”

The Stem Story Station is not like an ordinary bookstore. Instead, the design was completed with an interactive space in mind where students engage with STEM concepts while choosing their books. Mrs. Livingston explained that this interactive learning could include breaking codes, answering STEM-related questions, or solving puzzles to experience being inside the vending station and unlocking the love of reading awaiting them on the bookshelves lining the walls.

While in the STEM Story Station, students will have the opportunity to improve their problem-solving skills by solving a problem or completing a task that teaches coding logic, basic engineering principles of the design process, or scientific methods, making the experience both educational and rewarding. Students will also encounter opportunities that foster their creativity and innovation by creating their own projects or designs based on what they learn from reading books. “We plan to fill the back wall of the vending station with photos and projects from all of the experiences our students receive in the STEM Vending Station,” stated Mrs. Livingston. “We also hope this inspires some of our students to become authors, publishers, editors, illustrators, and much more.” Future plans for the STEM Vending Station include student author meet and greets.

The design and development process for the STEM Story Station culminated over the Summer while students were on break. “We wanted the reveal to be unique and create excitement, and from there, our Summer Reading Challenge was created.” Students who participated in Sam Houston STEM’s reading challenge were the first to enter and explore the STEM Story Station following the ribbon cutting.