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Happy Father’s Day STEM Sparkers! Every June in the US, we thank the dads in our lives who made a positive impact in our lives. For me, my dad is the person who taught me optimism and kindness. A friend once told me that his smile is infectious, and I couldn’t have agreed more. He’s also an engineer, and although it’s kind of a stereotype, engineers aren’t usually known for their optimism. He also taught me that failure in engineering school is more common than I thought, a

Happy blog-i-versary STEM Sparkers! Two years ago, I started STEM Spark, and with the help of my son, Jack, we've had lots of fun...

Apologies for no post last week. I’ve been wrestling with how to breach a topic that I think others may need to hear which is: we’re not...

STEM Spark friends and family, you may recall that a little over a year ago, I went about indie publishing my book Annie Aardvark: Adding...

So the second book in the Annie Aardvark series, Adding Ants, is officially released on Amazon ! I really wanted to make an ant pun, but I c an't think of one (yeah that was bad, even I admit)! I wanted to take a moment to thank the lovely bloggers and vloggers who have shared reviews of the book, which you find their reviews here , here , there and here . Also, a huge thank you again to everyone who supported the Kickstarter campaign for the book! I hope you are enjoyi

I had a scary dream, but with a happy ending, the other night. My family and I were flying somewhere overseas (the destination I forget, but it's not relevant to the story). We're on a 747, so it's commercial flight with 300 something passengers. All of sudden, we have to make a crash landing on the sea. Luckily, our pilots manage to land use on the ocean with minimal damage. Passengers have bumps and scraps, but no major injures. And no deaths (woo subconscious for makin

I don't know what the aardvark I'm thinking tackling a Kickstarter campaign on top of caring for my family, working an engineering job, and having just launched a new blog! I do currently have a cold, so my head is a bit stuffy, and maybe that's why I'm not thinking so straight. And although I may not be thinking so straight, I'm so excited for this Kickstarter campaign! Because it's a Kickstarter campaign for my next book, Annie Aardvark: Adding Ants ! HERE'S THE LINK TO

Okay, this STEM product review of magnetic building blocks (or as I call them, magnetic tiles) is the first product review here on STEM Spark, and quite frankly my first written review for the internets to read (yes, I know the proper name is Internet, but internets is kind of fun to say) . Generally, when people ask me if I like a toy or product, I respond with a "yeah, I like it", or "meh, it was okay", or "I didn't really like it". I haven't typically elaborated on why I

I believe there really is no age limitation when it comes to science experiments. You just have to put a little more thought into what would be safe for babies and toddlers. That’s why I really liked the rainbow explosion science experiment when a friend shared it with me; I was really excited to do baby’s first science experiment with my then 18 month old son! It's a good twist on the classic baking soda and vinegar science experiment. I explained to my son how the vinegar

Hello! Welcome to my new blog, STEM Spark! Thank you for virtually being a part of the launch for STEM Spark! I'm Suzie Olsen, engineer, author/writer, mother (of humans, not dragons), wife, lover of pun jokes, and so on. While I'm not new to the blog-o-sphere (https://momeezee.blogspot.com/), this blog is a new platform for me to focus on everything in my life that is science, technology, engineering, and math. Hence the STEM part in STEM Spark. I'll be writing about wh

With Arizona teachers walking out tomorrow, which I totally support!, you might find your kid at home and looking for something to do. Or maybe you're in a state where there is no walk out, but you'll need something to do this weekend. Enter Edible Starburst Slime-- the science experiment is sure to give your kids a sugar high and then a sugar crash, so let's call it a win? YOU'LL NEED: Starbursts Powdered Sugar Double Boiler Pot Non-Stick Cooking Mat if you have one Parent

Do you love math? Then count and color with Annie Aardvark in this free coloring sheet! Just click on Annie Aardvark below. #STEM #Free #womeninSTEM