PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — From learning to code to programming robots, the program Engineering For Kids is providing students with hands-on summer activities in science, technology, engineering and math.
The program offers a variety of weekly STEM activities for kids ages four to 14, both in-person and virtually.
“It’s interactive and it’s engaging… Engineering for Kids brings the fun side of STEM to kids,” Portland Metro program director Xiaomei Wang said. “Here we do a lot of computer-based classes. For example, we use Minecraft as a platform to teach kids coding… we also have traditional engineering programs like mechanical engineering, chemical engineering.”
At XStream Learning Center this week, students were crafting blimps and parachutes to learn about aerospace engineering. The center is one of dozen Portland locations offering the summer program.
Wang says the goal of the program is to inspire the next generation of innovators by giving students access to interactive STEM activities.
“I have an 8-year-old daughter so I know personally how important it is to gain STEM literacy as well as critical and creative thinking problem solving, social skills,” Wang added.
A survey of major U.S. corporation CEOs shows that about 60-percent of job openings require basic stem literacy.
“We believe that still is going to be the trend, so engineering for kids believes we can bring those skills to kids through very fun, interactive, and engaging programs,” Wang said.
Wang says the program helps to provide kids with the tools they need to succeed beyond classroom walls.
The summer program runs through the end of August. For more information or to find out how to enroll, visit the Engineering For Kids website.