Welcome to StartSTEM
Where Digital Play Begins
When I walk into an early years setting, I still see the same bright eyes, curious fingers and many “why” questions I did when I first started working in the Early Years.
What continues to change is the world children are growing up in, one powered by evolving technology, often leaving early years education behind.
StartSTEM was born out of a simple belief: children deserve to be creators of technology, not just passive consumers of it.
Why StartSTEM?
For years, I’ve watched Early Years educators juggle paperwork, observations, and development goals while trying to provide children with meaningful learning experiences. Yet the moment technology enters the conversation, anxiety creeps in:
“They’re too young”
“We don’t have the training.”
“We don’t have the money for that.”
Meanwhile, children are already navigating digital spaces through play at home and in Early Years settings. Researchers remind us that early engagement with digital tools can strengthen problem-solving, collaboration, and creativity when guided well (Marsh et al., 2018; Bers, 2020).
Technology isn’t the future: it’s already part of today’s learning environment. StartSTEM exists to bridge that gap; to bring confidence, creativity and cultural relevance to how we use technology with children under 7.
What you’ll find here
This Substack will explore practical, realistic, and ethical ways to integrate technology into early learning.
Digital play and how it builds curiosity
AI tools that help nursery and teaching staff
Culturally responsive STEM activities
Insights from my MA in Education and Technology at UCL
Honest reflections from classrooms and leadership roles
I’ll share what works and what doesn’t as well as what’s next. All linking research to the early years.
My journey so far
I began my career surrounded by paint-splattered aprons, Lego, cornflour, playdough and lots of books like The Gruffalo (a personal favourite). I’ve been a nursery educator, deputy manager, teaching assistant and now an EdTech Consultant for the Early Years. Along the way, I realised that curiosity and innovation thrive when we as adults model them, which means embracing new tools, not avoiding them.
As a postgraduate student in Education and Technology, I’m merging those experiences to help educators and parents navigate AI, data and tech integration with the same confidence they bring to story time and sensory play. Digital participation and competence are shaped by wider social and cultural forms of capital, influencing how children access and engage with technology (Sefton-Green et al., 2009).
What I believe
Technology should amplify, not replace human connection in early learning (Livingstone and Blum-Ross, 2020).
Children’s creativity is our greatest renewable resource.
Every nursery can become a micro-lab for innovation.
Technology can enhance children’s creativity.
If you want to know more, then you’re in the right place.
What’s next?
In the next issue, I’ll explore what online safety really looks like in Early Years settings, moving beyond fear, screen bans and tick-box policies to practical strategies that protect children while supporting digital play.
Subscribe
Subscribe, share this post with another educator or reply to ask me any questions you have about technology in your setting. Let’s continue to build a community of early years professionals who see tech not as a threat, but as a tool for imagination and inclusion.
Welcome to StartSTEM!
References
Bers, M.U. (2020) Coding as a Playground: Programming and Computational Thinking in the Early Childhood Classroom. 2nd edn. New York: Routledge.
Livingstone, S. and Blum-Ross, A. (2020) Parenting for a Digital Future: How Hopes and Fears About Technology Shape Children’s Lives. Oxford: Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190874698.001.0001
Marsh, J., Plowman, L., Yamada-Rice, D., Bishop, J. and Scott, F. (2016) ‘Digital play: a new classification’, Early Years, 36(3), pp. 242–253. https://doi.org/10.1080/09575146.2016.1167675
Sefton-Green, J., Nixon, H. and Erstad, O. (2009) ‘Reviewing approaches and perspectives on “digital literacy”’, Pedagogies: An International Journal, 4(2), pp. 107–125. https://doi.org/10.1080/15544800902741556