Even the most basic matters of education now seem to carry with them confusion and controversy. But one of the bedrock-solid concepts to have gained attention and clarity through recent decades is the value of a focus on STEM—that’s Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. It may have gotten short shrift at some times and places, but people with lifetimes of learning and teaching, after watching education trends ebb and flow, know that STEM training has stood the test of time. It’s a great way to introduce kids to reasoning and provide other preparations for later life—and it’s definitely not just for raising nerds and geeks.
Three education researchers (two from greater Kentuckiana) have combined their advocacy for STEM with lessons learned from both everyday-grounded experience and academic understanding and channeled the results into the new book “STEM SMART Parenting.” Though there are two mnemonic acronyms in the title, this is a practical guide rather than a programmatic how-to.
SMART, by the way, stands for Struggle Can Be Productive; Mistakes Are Learning Opportunities; All Topics and All People Are Connected to STEM; Risk-Taking Should Be Rewarded; and Think Critically. Individual book chapters dive into discussion and suggestions, including no-cost and low-cost supportive activities. Pointing out the joy of facing challenges and perils in perfectionism may not be innovative ideas, but there’s a very relatable style to how this trio gently but clearly steers family interactions away from “helicopter parenting” or the new-classic “lawnmower parenting.”
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Personal recollections (the authors’ families include 11 children) are sidelights that make for relatable following. One substantial chapter identifies toys, games, etc., that spur learning. The recommendations skew toward descriptive types more often than brand names—providing lasting utility.
In advance of the upcoming author discussion at Carmichael’s on Frankfort, LEO got in a couple of quick email questions with co-author Lisa Hoffman, who emphasizes that the skills this book intends to bring out “are for poets and politicians as much as for programmers.”
LEO: How did you three authors decide to include examples from your own (remarkably rich) familial and professional experiences?
Lisa Hoffman: As researchers, we usually publish articles in academic journals that live behind paywalls. But we’re also parents, and we find this research really useful ourselves. So we wanted to inform and empower other parents and caregivers in a conversational style and an accessible format. With 11 children among us, we are also keenly aware that the people most invested in their children’s development often have the least time to read about it!
LEO: Your book’s early chapters seem to skew toward avoiding or breaking less-desirable parenting traits.
LH: Sometimes adults can help by doing less rather than more. Lawnmower parenting is the tendency of adults to remove obstacles from a child’s path so they won’t have to struggle or fail. After all, no one likes seeing a child disappointed, and frankly, it’s more efficient to do things ourselves. It’s easy to focus on what is comfortable for the adult rather than what is beneficial for the child. But struggle can be productive, and kids need to learn to persevere through difficulty.
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LEO: What kind of resourcing or parental preparation is needed to nurture skills and learning as you’ve set out here?
LH: Parents don’t need more tasks piled on their plates! Caregivers already feel enough pressure in raising kids with limited resources of both funds and time. Supporting STEM SMART skills doesn’t require adults to have deep pockets or provide special classes. These are life skills that can be integrated into everyday life.
Saturday, Apr. 19
2 p.m.
2720 Frankfort Ave.
This article appears in Mar 28 – Apr 3, 2025.
