Literacy strategies for STEM education: How to support reading and writing in science and math

Summary: Literacy skills are an important part of learning in STEM. Many students, especially those who learn and think differently, can struggle with STEM texts and writing assignments. As an educator, you can help by teaching literacy strategies. 

One helpful approach is Universal Design for Learning (UDL). UDL encourages giving students different ways to learn and to share their knowledge. In STEM, this might include using read-aloud tools, videos, drawings, or digital projects. 

You can also support literacy in STEM. Try pre-teaching vocabulary, using graphic organizers, and teaching text structures. These strategies can help students make sense of tough STEM texts. Using sentence starters, keeping science journals, and doing quick writes can help students explain their ideas. When you include reading, writing, and UDL in STEM, learning becomes easier. These tools help all students think, solve problems, and share ideas like scientists and engineers.

STEM doesn’t just rely on math and science skills. To thrive in a STEM classroom, students need to use reading and writing skills, too. For students who struggle with literacy, this can make STEM especially challenging. 

Teaching literacy strategies as part of the STEM curriculum can support all students in STEM. As an educator, you can teach students to think, read, and write like scientists, engineers, and mathematicians. Here’s how to get started.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an evidence-based teaching practice that removes barriers to learning. With UDL, you offer multiple ways for students to engage with lessons, learn information, and show what they know. These built-in supports are available to everyone. That makes learning accessible to all students.

When you use UDL to plan your STEM lesson, you can incorporate literacy support from the start. You can offer students multiple means of learning and sharing STEM content, not just traditional texts and writing.¹ 

For example, a student who struggles with reading can use read-aloud tools or videos to learn new content. A student who struggles with writing might choose to show their understanding through drawings, an oral report, or a digital project. 

When you offer choices that include multimedia elements, you can help all students understand STEM concepts. They can share their thoughts and build critical-thinking skills in ways that work best for them.²

UDL can help you present information to students in ways other than text. But it’s still important to teach students how to understand scientific texts. These texts often use complex vocabulary and require readers to move between words, charts, graphs, and captions.³ They can be an essential way to expose students to new concepts and experiences. 

These kinds of texts aren’t just in traditional textbooks. Students can read both print and digital texts — newspapers, magazine articles, or any other content.

Here are four ways you can support students with reading in STEM. 

1. Pre-teach vocabulary.

Explicitly teach STEM terms before a lesson. Provide students with easy-to-understand definitions. Then, use real-life examples and pictures to make the meanings clear. Add them to a word wall and continue to practice the words with engaging activities. 

2. Use graphic organizers.

Help students make sense of STEM texts with graphic organizers for reading, like flowcharts and cause-and-effect maps. These visual tools help students break down texts and keep track of their thoughts as they read. Students can use the organizers to label important parts, point out patterns, or write short summaries. 

3. Break it down.

Understanding complex word problems or lab directions can be tough. For many students, especially students with ADHD, it’s easier to understand a smaller number of tasks grouped together rather than all of the parts at once. Show students how to find key details, restate them in their own words, and group like items together before starting a complex set of tasks. Offer checklists to use during the activity. These supports can help with focus, comprehension, and cognitive load. 

4. Teach text structures.

Explicitly teaching text structures in STEM can help students with reading comprehension. Explain and model common structures like sequence, cause and effect, compare and contrast, and problem and solution.⁴ Try creating a backwards outline of a text to help students analyze its structure. When kids recognize text structures as they read, it’s easier for them to understand the author’s purpose. That can make challenging concepts more accessible. 

Writing can help students organize their thoughts and explain their thinking. But writing in STEM can be challenging, especially for students who have trouble with written expression or focus. The formats may be unfamiliar. The vocabulary is complex. And the concepts are hard to express. 

Here are five strategies for supporting students when they write in STEM. 

1. Sentence starters, templates, and graphic organizers

Sentence starters like “The data shows that…” or “I predict that…” can help students know how to start scientific writing. Graphic organizers for writing can help students organize their thoughts and plan out what to write. You can also give students clear templates for writing lab reports and other STEM-specific formats. 

2. Science notebooks and reflective journals

Give students space to write notes, ask questions, problem-solve, and think about what they learn. These notebooks let students work through new concepts without worrying about mistakes in their writing. They also give students a source to go back to as they work through problems. Remember to use UDL to offer different options. Some students may want to sketch their thinking, record voice notes, or use text-to-speech when writing. 

3. Writing-to-learn strategies

Quick writing tasks — like “quick writes” or exit tickets — help students show what they know. With these writing tasks, the goal is to share ideas, not to get the writing perfect. These quick checks also help you assess what kids understand. Keep UDL in mind by offering options for writing, like digital tools. 

4. Peer review and collaborative writing 

When students give and get feedback on writing, they improve their communication and critical-thinking skills.⁵ Working together on writing, like for a group lab report, builds teamwork and mirrors real STEM work. Using checklists or rubrics helps students give kind, useful feedback and make strong revisions. 

5. Multimodal writing

Today’s scientific writing often combines traditional texts with pictures and digital tools. Teach students not only how to read these text structures, but how to create them. Have students add notes to diagrams, label models, or write brief explanations alongside data or simulations. These tasks teach students to explain ideas clearly in different ways. They also build real-world skills used by scientists and engineers.

Literacy skills are key to success in every STEM subject. They’re necessary for accessing information, conducting research, and explaining solutions. But you don’t need to change your entire lesson to incorporate literacy skills. Simple strategies like teaching key words before a lesson, using quick writes, and offering graphic organizers can help students build these skills. These strategies can give all students the tools they need to thrive in STEM.