Merge Ambassador Spotlight: Shannon McClintock-Miller and using Merge Cubes with Pre-K Students with Success

Shannon McClintock Miller, PreK-12 Teacher Librarian at Van Meter School, Speaker, Consultant, and Author, has been using Merge Cubes with her Pre-K-12th grade students for years. Shannon is an expert at integrating creation, technology, reading, and noise into her library, and shares how STEM learning with Merge can begin in early childhood and continue through high school with success. 

Merging Fun with Learning for the Littles

Recently, Shannon used the Merge Cube and Merge Explorer app with her pre-K 4 students to explore bee pollination and frog lifecycles. This hands-on approach brought these complex topics to life for her youngest learners, setting the stage for a lifelong interest in natural science. 

According to Shannon, "It’s just so much fun and impactful to use with the littles."

When the students are using Merge EDU and their Merge Cubes, you can hear excitement, fun, and vocabulary words like “nectar” and “pollen” coming from these very engaged 4 year olds.

Boosting Engagement

K-12 educators at various grade levels have reported that using Merge with their students makes science learning more engaging. When a student can see the concepts and hold them in their hand, they are no longer imagining something abstract. Instead, they understand the phenomena concretely  in front of them, and will have a stronger memory of what they learned later on.  

Merge provides an interactive learning experience that traditional textbooks can’t compete with. This hands-on approach allows students to grasp complex scientific concepts more easily, fostering a deeper understanding and appreciation for the topic.

Bringing Sonia’s Digital World to Life With Novel Effect and Merge EDU

When students can read a story, hear soundscapes with Novel Effect, and interact with relevant content from the story using Merge, multiple senses are activated, and student engagement and learning leap to new heights!

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From PreK to High School

Shannon's work demonstrates the versatility of Merge tools, showing that they can be successfully implemented at all grade levels, from preschool to high school. By allowing students to explore STEM concepts in a hands-on,  interactive and visual way, Merge EDU can help bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical understanding. This makes it a valuable tool for educators aiming to nurture curiosity and critical thinking in their students of all ages. To learn more about Shannon, visit her website here.

Would you like to experience how integrating Merge EDU in your classroom or library brings learning to life? Sign up for a free trial at trymerge.com and print a Merge Paper Cube at mergecube.com/paper.