Dr. Peter Kalenda, Assistant Professor in the Ella Cline Shear School of Education at SUNY Geneseo, has published a curriculum guide through Knight Scholar that transforms the popular Picture-Perfect STEM book series into an accessible Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)-aligned resource for elementary educators. The "Picture Perfect STEM: NGSS Science Standards Alignment Guide" & book series represent a significant contribution to elementary STEM education, offering teachers a research-based approach that integrates high-quality children's literature with hands-on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics instruction for grades K-5.
Working in collaboration with the original Picture-Perfect STEM authors Emily Morgan and Karen Ansberry, Dr. Kalenda developed this guide to support pre-service teachers and practicing educators in planning effective, inquiry-based STEM lessons. The comprehensive resource aligns all lessons from the eight-book Picture-Perfect STEM series with NGSS standards and provides embedded links to Milne Library ebooks for easy access. Each lesson follows the constructivist 5E instructional model (Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate), incorporates two children's storybooks, includes STEM at-home connections, and concludes with performance assessments. What began as a tool to support Geneseo students with lesson planning has now gained national recognition—the original authors currently distribute Dr. Kalenda's guide at their National Science Teaching Association (NSTA) professional development workshops as their official NGSS alignment resource.
The curriculum guide addresses a critical need in elementary education by making NGSS-aligned curriculum accessible. The curriculum guide is freely available to Geneseo students, practicing teachers, and homeschool parents seeking to supplement their STEM curriculum.