ENGAGING ENVIRONMENT
Where Innovation Thrives by Kathy Rukes ’99
Imagine a classroom in which students research relevant issues and collaborate together to find real-life solutions; a classroom in which hands-on experiences pave the pathway to future careers; and a classroom in which students develop the skills, knowledge, confidence, and motivation to thrive in the world ahead of them. At Wichita Collegiate Middle School, students don’t have to imagine it … they get to experience it everyday. The Lammers Innovation Lab, often referred to simply as the iLab, provides a unique maker-space that is fully outfitted with state-of-theart technology -- from table saws and routers to a 3D printer and sound mixers -- providing students the tools to bring their solutions to life. The educator at the helm of our Middle School iLab is Mr. Joe Gehrer ’02. Teaching several classes in the space, including Vexlab, ScratchLab, WoodLab, and Tinkerlab, Mr. Gehrer seeks to provide students the opportunity to push outside their comfort zone and step into the mindset of critical thinkers, problem solvers, and innovators.
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HANDS-ON EXPERIENCES THAT BRING LEARNING TO LIFE
If you have spent time with a child that loves LEGO, you can probably appreciate the visible excitement you might see in a classroom full of twelve year-olds staring at a table of robotics parts. As you watch their eyes dart from gears to wheels, you can see their minds turning with the possibilities of what they may create. VexLab, a hands-on approach to the design process through robotics, provides students the opportunity to design and build robots with the end goal of playing a sport-like game. As an introduction to engineering problem solving, students try various robot configurations and evaluate the limitations of their coding and building skills by assessing what worked well and what could be improved. In the end, they will have the chance to not only take ownership of the machine they create, but watch it come to life by applying the coding they learn in the process. Scratching a similar creative itch within our young students, ScratchLab utilizes a visual programming language for students to code their own stories, animations, and games. Students use hands-on programming skills to explore and discover
Sixth grader Lucy learns how to use a power tool in her WoodLab class. the world of computer science. “It’s fun looking at the different coding blocks and trying to problem solve what makes the most sense to use,” shared 7th grader Jackson Rukes when asked what he likes most about his class. He went on to say, “Plus, most of us will probably have a job in the future that uses a lot of technology. It’s great that we get to spend time coding now.” Beyond introducing students to coding, Scratch programming can be used across all core subjects to
