Facilitator guide — download PDF
Session plans, mixed-age choices, the worked starter challenge, setup and reset.
1 copy. Color, duplex long-edge; bind or keep in the teacher folder.
Mixed-age camp & afterschool · Edition 3
One kit. Five sessions.
Every learner belongs.
Your facilitator starting point for the mixed-age CardSTEM kit. Use the same activity at every table, with ways to point, count, draw, write or explain.
- Ages 5–12
- Up to 25 learners
- 5 teams of 5
- 5 sessions · 60 minutes each
- No cutting
Use the program email and operator code on your handoff sheet. Keep the same email and code to reconnect on another device. Children do not need accounts. Already unlocked? Open the guide or any PDF below.
Ready for the first session
Plan one lead and two helpers for 25 mixed-age learners, following your site's staffing requirements. Confirm your activity time, tables and a safe space for movement or a seated alternative.
Open the guide
Read page 1, then the Session 1 plan on page 2. Allow 60 minutes. For a 45-minute block, use the shorter timing on page 1 and omit optional extensions.
Set five tables
Match each table's card container, paper pouch and supply pouch. Pull the inner 20-card analysis bag. Keep the sixth card pool and paper/tool sets with the facilitator as BACKUP.
Put out the active pages
Give each learner their packet, open to page 1. Use team pages 1 and 4–5, plus tools pages 1–2. Team page 5 is optional. Keep the rest of the pages together for later sessions.
Give everyone a turn. Rotate sorter, counter, recorder, checker and reporter. Read prompts aloud and accept pointing, drawing or dictation. Choose options by readiness; every learner does not need to complete every page.
Your five-session plan
Run one session at each afterschool meeting or spread the sequence across camp activity blocks. Include short movement or quiet breaks. For a single visit, start with Session 1; the guide explains how to welcome a new learner at any later session.
Notice, sort and explain
Name visible features, sort the cards and explain a count. Model the three card categories shown in the guide.
Guide p. 2 · Learner p. 1 · Team pp. 1, 4–5 · Tools pp. 1–2
Count, compare and describe ratios
Compare two groups. Offer fractions and percentages as a stretch, using the same cards and counts.
Guide p. 3 · Learner pp. 1–2 · Team pp. 6–7 · Tools pp. 1, 4
Predict, test and revise
Predict what you will draw, return and mix after each draw, then compare the prediction with the results.
Guide p. 4 · Team pp. 2, 8 · Counters and drawing paper
Create, test and make it fair
Make an original ally, test a shared challenge and change one rule. Exchange feedback around all five tables.
Guide pp. 5, 7 · Learner pp. 3–4 · Team pp. 9–11
Share learning and celebrate
Play equal turns, graph individual scores from one round and share evidence of learning. Finish with spoken praise and certificates.
Guide pp. 6–7 · Learner pp. 5–6 · Team pp. 3, 12 · Certificates
The five files in your kit
These Edition 3 PDFs match your mixed-age kit. Keep an offline copy on the program computer. The quantities below are copies of each complete PDF for one full kit, including spares.
Learner packet — download PDF
Count and compare, original ally design, and reflection.
27 copies: 25 learners + 2 spares. B&W, duplex long-edge; collate and staple each packet at the upper left.
Team activity packet — download PDF
Graphs, inventory, ratios, predictions, challenge design and feedback.
6 copies: 5 teams + 1 spare. B&W, single-sided; keep each complete set unbound and in order.
Reusable table tools — download PDF
Sorting mat, card anatomy, fair-play rubric, whole-page number board and reset reference.
6 copies: 5 teams + 1 spare. Color, single-sided on sturdy stock. Page 1 landscape; pages 2–5 portrait. Keep every page whole.
Completion certificate — download PDF
Fill in names when attendance is confirmed.
27 copies: 25 learners + 2 spares. Color, single-sided, landscape on sturdy stock.
Print US Letter at 100% / Actual size. Preserve each PDF's page orientations. Use no booklet layout or cutting. Reprint used or damaged materials as needed; a new cohort does not need new reusable tools.
Open the mixed-age kit resource indexFinish ready for the next session
Reset each card pool
- Return 50 cards to each table container: 30 / 10 / 10 in the three categories named in the guide.
- Inside those 50, restore the analysis bag to 20 cards: 12 / 4 / 4. The loose cards left outside the bag are 18 / 6 / 6.
- Replace a missing card by category from BACKUP and record the shortage before the next probability activity.
Five working pools and one backup contain 300 cards altogether. Cards stay with the program; these are shared learning materials.
Save the work and supplies
- Save named learner work and team records in the matching session folder.
- Return pencils, counters and whole-page tools. Keep the sorting mat unmarked.
- Place the next session's pages on top. Keep unused packets and certificates as spares.
- Use pencil tally marks if counters run short. Share learning and note what to adjust on the guide's feedback page.
Check the supplies included with one complete kit
- Five numbered table units and one backup card/paper unit; 300 cards, six team packets and six reusable tool sets.
- One guide, 27 learner packets, 27 certificates, five session folders, teacher and spare-sheet folders, plus the operator handoff sheet.
- 30 pencils, six erasers, two sharpeners, five coloring sets, 100 counters, five calculators and five sticky-note pads.
- 10 blank index cards, two tape rolls, one timer, one washable marker set and one letter-size drawing pad.
The sixth card and paper set is a spare, not a sixth active table. Keep it with the facilitator. Your site provides suitable tables, space and staff.
Need a hand?
Keep your operator code and program email with the kit. If a download will not open, use kit access to reconnect with the same details.
For help or a replacement file, contact support@cardstem.academy. Include the kit name and edition; keep the access code private.