Think Together is grateful for our corporate and foundation partners like The Boeing Company for their generous support of our STEM, coding and robotics programs.
Even prior to COVID-19, Think Together students were thriving with the addition of STEM lessons and our robotics clubs. Site staff, parents and students realized they always had the skill to code and do STEM; they just needed the resources, tools, and encouragement to discover it.
In Think Together’s programs, Southeast Los Angeles Region, which includes Compton, Lynwood and Bellflower school districts, one of our middle school site coordinators noticed that their STEM students have had a relatively smooth transition to distance learning compared to their peers.
“The most interesting thing I have observed among our students as they participate in our program in this environment is the quick adaptability they possess. Our students went from turning in and completing assignments in person and on paper to completing the majority of their studies virtually. This is not an easy transition, but given that this generation has indulged in technology, our students seemed to have no issue with this transition.”
These sites serve some of Think Together’s most under-resourced communities and help students pave a path toward college and career with the help of coding and the digital environment the students had already been exposed to.
Knowledge from STEM courses is becoming increasingly more vital for careers out of college. Science, technology, engineering, and math concepts are critical, but so are the traits developed like ingenuity, creativity, problem-solving, resilience, teamwork, the willingness to take risks and understanding how you got from point A to point B.
In Think Together programs, students are exposed to introductory coding, robotics, and logic. In the 2020-21 virtual school environment, students have primarily been using SCRATCH and VidCode. SCRATCH provides students with simulations where students use different steps and commands to complete their objectives, whereas VidCode allows students to practice writing code using JavaScript coding language.
With practice, many students began to transition from videogame players to game makers.
Additionally, The Boeing Company’s partnership supports hands-on personal Lego kits to our Think Together students in grades 4-12. These kits can be distributed for distance learning or used for in-person programming. These provide versatile, tactile and creative solutions for playful learning experiences and rapid prototyping.
Think Together is excited to give our students exposure to skills and enrichment activities that spark interest to pursue college and future careers. Thank you to The Boeing Company for bringing these robust STEM learning experiences to our kids.
