STEM or STEAM or STREAM? Integrated or interdisciplinary?

There is a growing interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education in the early years. We discuss two tendencies in this movement. The first is the addition of one or more domains, resulting in the acroynm STEAM (adding “Arts”) or STREAM (adding “Reading” as well). The second is the notion that the best approach to STEAM is fully integrating these and all other domains. We present arguments and evidence that these tendencies appear positive but may inadvertently negatively impact the critical increase of STEM in early education. We provide examples of an alternative approach that maintains the positive aspects of these tendencies and avoids the possible negatives.