A Mini Interview with Super Cool Nerd Mama
Recently, I had a chance to talk with Super Cool Nerd Mama about her recent projects. Here is her bio, and below is our conversation! Enjoy!
Super Cool Nerd Mama’s Bio: I'm a homeschool mama who believes in mixing it up with several subjects and learning styles blending together into our lessons. That dynamic is reflected in the resources and plans that I share online. Swing by my site (supercoolnerdmama.com) and shop (https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Super-Cool-Nerd-Mama) to check out the fun!
Artful and Educational: Welcome, and thank you for taking the time to talk to me! I was looking at some of your work and appreciate how thoughtful and creative your ideas are. Tell us a little bit about yourself, who you are, and what you do! What are some projects you are working on right now or have recently completed?
Super Cool Nerd Mama: I love talking about my work so really it should be me thanking you for this opportunity :)
The fact that you used the word "creative" makes me so happy. That is one of the top three words that I would use to describe who I am and what I do in life. Right along with "scientific" and "contemplative". Actually...now that I think about it I think you pegged two of my words. That's really something!
Adjectives and all aside, I spend much of my time guiding child's studies and lesson planning. We like hands-on projects, videos by scientists, coding, math puzzles, journalling, and reading books about our school topics.
There is a tremendous amount of trickle down from my home classroom to the resources I make available online. Some of our fun is in each one. One of our current favorites is the bug anatomy craft series. What kid isn't wild about bugs, bite-sized facts, and simple crafts?
Another trickle down is a super exciting revamp I'm planning for my website (supercoolnermama.com)--I want to make it into an archive of lesson plan ideas. We've done so many cool lessons and it seems a shame not to share.
AE: I’m glad to have a chance to chat with you, because you have a great sense of how to keep the activities fun and engaging. It makes me wonder—are some of the activities born organically out of play-time with your child? It’s always interesting to hear how people come up with their ideas, and I’m curious about how, for example, the bug anatomy craft came to be. It has to start with the child’s interest, first and foremost, right? My sense is that it starts with a spark of interest, and a caring adult who sees that the child is excited about a topic, then you can build from there and see what comes up. What is your process for developing new resources to use with your child and to share with others?
SCNM: Inspiration is a funny thing, isn't it? It can come from literally anywhere!
In the case of the bug anatomy activities, it came from my child and I talking about what it would be like to have a pet spider. We did some research and discovered that there were aspects to having a spider friend that were very fun (toe claws! a big fuzzy bug*! they apparently have distinct personalities!) and others that weren't so great (they eat other animals and have chelicerae**). As a result I made us a fun (non-biting) toy spider. That then gained a worksheet to review the things we had learned...and quickly spiraled right into a resource for others to enjoy too. After playing with that we haaaaaddd to learn about other invertebrates. I'm sure that you can see where this is going.... We now have cardstock ladybugs, flies, ants, butterflies, and of course spiders in our home (https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Parts-of-a-Bug-Handout-and-Craft-Bundle-9227002).
That's pretty much my process. Of course, not everything that I make for my child ends up in the shop. It has to be a good fit for my brand as well. Conversely, not everything that strikes me as something that the shop needs ends up into our lesson plans.
*technically not a bug which is a type of insect, but instead an arachnid
**biting mouthparts
AE: Thank you so much, Super Cool Nerd Mama, for taking the time to chat with me! Looking forward to seeing what you do next!