About the STEMLinguia Project

STEMLinguia (Project No. 2024-2-BE02-KA210-SCH-000295414) is an Erasmus+ KA210-SCH Small-scale Partnership in School Education that brings together educational institutions from Belgium, Türkiye, Portugal and Bulgaria. Coordinated by Vrije Basisschool Veertjesplein in Belgium, the project is implemented in partnership with the Denizli Provincial Directorate of National Education (Türkiye), Agrupamento de Escolas Dr. António Augusto Louro (Portugal), and SoftUni Buditel (Bulgaria). Through this transnational partnership, STEMLinguia aims to strengthen teachers’ professional competencies and promote an interdisciplinary approach that connects STEM education, language learning, digital competencies and inclusive educational practices. The project places particularo emphasis on developing practical and adaptable learning materials that support meaningful participation in STEM learning across linguistically and culturally diverse classrooms.

Introduction

This Teachers’ Guide has been developed to help teachers understand the pedagogical reasoning behind the different components of the STEMLinguia lesson plans and to translate these principles into classroom practice. At the same time, it is designed as a professional development resource for teachers, supporting them in strengthening their competencies in interdisciplinary STEM education, languagesensitive teaching, multilingual and inclusive pedagogies, and the meaningful use of digital technologies. 

The following sections therefore explain not only what each component of the STEMLinguia lesson plans contains, but also why it is included, how it contributes to STEM and language learning, and how teachers can use it effectively in multilingual and diverse classrooms. By understanding the pedagogical rationale behind each component, teachers can move beyond simply implementing a prepared lesson plan and develop the confidence and knowledge needed to design, adapt and evaluate similar interdisciplinary learning experiences themselves. 

The lesson plans should not be regarded as rigid scripts. Teachers are encouraged to adapt the level of linguistic support, stories, vocabulary activities, digital resources, group organisation and degree of technical challenge according to the age, prior knowledge, learning needs and linguistic composition of their own classes. This process of adaptation is also an important aspect of teachers’ professional learning, as it encourages teachers to reflect on how STEM content, language development, inclusion and classroom diversity can be addressed within the same learning experience.

Digital technology and AI can further support this adaptation. Teachers can translate stories into additional home languages, develop visual digital books, generate supplementary language support and adapt materials to their classroom context. However, these tools should always remain under the pedagogical guidance of the teacher. The aim is not simply to introduce more technology into STEM lessons, but to enable teachers to make informed decisions about when and how digital and AIsupported tools can improve access, participation, communication and learning. 

Ultimately, STEMLinguia seeks to move beyond teaching STEM and languages as separate domains. It proposes an interdisciplinary learning environment in which pupils can use language to learn STEM, use STEM to develop language, and use their multilingual repertoires to connect the two. At the same time, it encourages teachers to develop a more integrated way of thinking about STEM, language, digital competence and inclusion, thereby strengthening their own professional capacity to respond to increasingly diverse classrooms.

In this approach, multilingualism is not an additional feature of the lesson. It becomes part of the learning process itself—supporting understanding, communication, collaboration, participation and inclusion. Likewise, teachers are not simply implementers of STEMLinguia lesson plans; they are encouraged to become reflective practitioners and designers of inclusive, language-rich and interdisciplinary STEM learning environments.

Differentiation

Each STEMLinguia lesson plan includes a Differentiation section, highlighted in red to make it easily identifiable for teachers. This section reflects the project’s commitment to inclusive education and recognises that pupils may differ in their prior knowledge, language proficiency, learning needs, pace of learning and level of confidence in STEM activities.

The purpose of differentiation is to help teachers adapt the same learning experience so that all pupils can participate meaningfully without changing the core learning objectives of the lesson. Suggested adaptations may include additional visual or linguistic support, simplified instructions, multilingual vocabulary support, peer collaboration, different levels of teacher guidance, alternative ways of completing or presenting a task, and additional challenges for pupils who are ready to progress further.

Differentiation is particularly important regarding multilingualism. A pupil’s developing proficiency in the language of instruction should not be interpreted as limited ability to understand STEM concepts or solve problems. Teachers are therefore encouraged to provide appropriate language scaffolding/support and to allow pupils to draw on their full multilingual repertoire when this supports understanding, communication and participation.

The differentiation suggestions in the lesson plans should not be regarded as fixed instructions. They provide practical starting points that teachers can adapt according to the age, prior knowledge, linguistic background and individual learning needs of their pupils in various contexts In this way, differentiation supports one of the central principles of STEMLinguia: all pupils should have meaningful opportunities to participate, explore, communicate, create and succeed in STEM learning.

Structure of the STEMLinguia Lesson Plans 

Each STEMLinguia lesson plan consists of four main components: the Lesson Plan, the Multilingual Story, the Multilingual Word List, and the Evaluation Form. These four components are designed to complement one another and create an integrated learning experience in which STEM learning, language development, multilingualism, and reflection are addressed together. 

1. Lesson Plan 

The Lesson Plan provides teachers with detailed guidance for implementing the activity in the classroom. It explains the purpose of the activity, the intended learning outcomes, the materials required, and the different stages of the learning process. Rather than functioning simply as a set of instructions, it helps teachers understand the pedagogical purpose behind the activity and supports them in guiding pupils through the STEM learning process in a structured and meaningful way. 

2. Multilingual Story 

The Multilingual Story provides a meaningful cognitive and linguistic context for the STEM activity. Each story introduces a problem situation related to the STEM challenge, helping pupils understand why the problem matters and motivating them to search for possible solutions. In this way, the story acts as a bridge between the problem and the hands-on STEM task that follows. The stories also have an important language-learning function. Key vocabulary related to the STEM activity is embedded within a meaningful narrative rather than presented as isolated terminology. This is particularly valuable for pupils whose proficiency in the language of instruction is still developing, as it gives them an opportunity to encounter essential concepts and vocabulary in context before beginning the activity. Through listening to and/or reading the story, pupils can develop their listening and reading comprehension skills while simultaneously building the linguistic resources they need to participate more confidently in the STEM task. The multilingual versions further allow teachers to draw on pupils’ home languages as learning resources, supporting comprehension, participation and inclusion in linguistically diverse classrooms.

3. Multilingual Word List

The Multilingual Word List focuses on key vocabulary selected because of its relevance to the conceptual content of each STEM activity. These words represent important objects, processes, actions and concepts that pupils need in order to understand and discuss the task. 

Providing these terms in multiple languages makes the vocabulary more accessible in multilingual classrooms and enables teachers to create connections between the language of instruction and pupils’ other languages. The word list can be used before, during and after the activity—for example, to introduce key concepts, support classroom interaction, scaffold group discussions or consolidate new learning. In this way, vocabulary learning becomes an integral part of STEM learning rather than a separate language exercise.

4. Evaluation Form

The Evaluation Form supports assessment as part of the learning process. Depending on the activity, it can be used for teacher assessment, self-assessment and/or group assessment. It encourages pupils not only to consider whether they successfully completed the STEM task, but also to reflect on how they worked, communicated, collaborated and approached problems. 

By identifying what went well and what could be improved, pupils become more aware of their strengths and areas for further development. The evaluation process therefore goes beyond measuring the final product; it supports reflection, responsibility and continuous improvement. For teachers, the forms can also provide useful information about pupils’ understanding, participation, collaboration and learning needs. 

Taken together, these four components reflect the central philosophy of STEMLinguia: STEM learning and language learning should not be treated as separate processes. The STEM challenge provides a meaningful reason to communicate and use language, while stories, multilingual vocabulary support and reflection make STEM concepts more accessible. Through this integrated structure, pupils are supported not only in doing STEM, but also in understanding, discussing, explaining and reflecting on STEM through language and across languages.

5. Multilingual Stories – Audio Recordings

Audio recordings of the multilingual stories were developed to make the STEMLinguia learning materials more accessible and inclusive for pupils with diverse linguistic backgrounds. The stories accompanying the STEM lesson plans were made available in audio format in the project languages, allowing pupils to listen to the story before or during the STEM activity. The recordings support listening comprehension, pronunciation, vocabulary development, and understanding of the STEM-related problem presented in each story. They are particularly valuable for younger learners, pupils who are still developing reading skills, and multilingual learners who may benefit from hearing the story in their home language. By combining written stories with audio versions, STEMLinguia provides teachers with an additional digital resource that can be used flexibly in the classroom and supports the project’s integrated approach to STEM learning, language development, multilingualism, and inclusion. The multilingual stories, audio recordings, lesson plans, and other educational resources developed within the project are available through the STEMLinguia project website.

Visit the STEMLinguia Project Website

https://sites.google.com/view/stemlinguiaproject/homepage