Sticking Together During Distance Learning

As school districts all over the country decide on how and where to teach this fall, one thing is clear – almost all proposals include distance learning plans. In some areas of the country, this will only be a back-up option.

But for many places, where COVID-19 cases are still high, students (and parents) will be forced to look at a new school year through the four sides of their computer instead of inside four classroom walls.

Many districts plan to offer basic lesson plans in the traditional STEM subjects, which cover science, technology, engineering, and math concepts. Some may even be able to go further to create a STEAM curriculum by adding an arts component.

No matter where you live, it seems clear that parents everywhere may need a way to supplement the virtual learning experience – and there’s a fun, collaborative activity called StickTogether® that offers just that.

StickTogether kits are all-inclusive mosaic sticker puzzle posters that work like paint-by-numbers, but with stickers! Match the sticker to a color-coded key and stick it on to the corresponding letter on the grid. Then watch a picture come to life! (We recommend that you don’t let your child know what the final image will be. It will pique their curiosity and spur them on to keep going to discover what will emerge.)

Here are five ways StickTogether can make your home learning center more successful:

Spark an Artist

Kids love to create new things. While they’re at school, they may have an art room or cubby stocked with supplies for the class.

But at home, a craft project can require multiple, pricey trips to the store to get supplies that will be used once and then dry up or be put in a closet and forgotten.

StickTogether is different. Each kit comes complete with everything you’ll need from start to finish – and it is shipped to your home.

In addition to being a mosaic, aspiring artists can be inspired by one of our masterpiece puzzles created by Vincent Van Gogh, Leonardo Da Vinci, or Edward Munch. They can be an artist, while creating a piece by an artist. Those dinner conversations will be much more interesting than the latest social trend by a social media influencer.  

Make Math Fun

Even though each picture is colorful and creative, this isn’t just an arts and crafts activity. There are plenty of ways to incorporate math concepts into these puzzles. Have your student unfold each poster and measure how big it is. Don’t have a ruler? Each sticker is ½-inch. Have them figure out how many it will take to go across and up. (Standard puzzles are 74 x 54 stickers!)

It will take 3,996 individual stickers for the picture to come to life. Divide them up. Talk about how pixels work to create images. Figure out how many stickers represent each letter. The possibilities are limitless.

Extra Credit

Is your child completing all their assignments before lunch?

Or maybe they need a break from the intense study time to think about what they have just learned, but to process it differently.

Offer them “extra credit” to work on a StickTogether that relates to one of their lessons.

Many images relate to school curricula, whether it’s reading, creativity or animals. The puzzles are a way to jump-start their imaginations and reinforce lessons already learned in a tactile way.

Make Rewards Stick

Some kids are motivated by rewards. Is your learner one of them?

Use “sticker time” as an incentive for finishing assignments. After each milestone is completed, let them put up more. The more stickers that go up, the more they will want to put up to see what the final picture will be.

Unwind

Unlike traditional puzzles that can be frustrating, StickTogether’s ease of use can relieve stress for kids of any age or ability. And because so many students are already anxious about missing in-person classes and not seeing their friends, this hands-on, creative activity can be done with siblings, parents or solo.

But don’t take our word for it: StickTogether was named one of the best products in the 2020 National Parenting Product Awards.

Even better, StickTogether gives back to the community. A portion of every sale of their “Thank You” poster dedicated to essential workers is donated to World Central Kitchen to help those most in need right now.

We would love to know how you are using StickTogether in your virtual classrooms. Send us pictures or stories of your StickTogether adventures on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest.

We’re all in this together, so Let’s StickTogether!