Waiakea Elementary students will have the chance to experiment with robots and coding thanks to a recent $15,000 donation from the POWER Foundation.
The grant, awarded to eight schools throughout the nation during its first phase, will provide classrooms with sets of Dot and Dash robots for grades PK-5 to help promote coding and programming skills.
Complete with sensors, two wheels for movements, and other accessories, the Dot and Dash robots are intended to teach students about coding using Block programming and Apple Swift technologies.
“These programs offer students opportunities to learn coding in a kid-friendly environment, with hands-on learning experiences,” said Dustin Morita, a teacher at Waiakea Elementary who applied for the grant. “We hope to inspire students to join robotics in the upper-grade levels and hopefully resurrect our club.”
The grant is designed to help expand STEM education programs — science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
“By helping teachers get the tools and resources they need, our grants can ignite a lifelong passion for STEM subjects that will stick with students well beyond elementary school,” said POWER Foundation Board Director Janet Metzger, who led the initiative. “Planting that seed with the next generation is really important to us.”
The POWER Foundation is the nonprofit arm of a global engineering consulting firm with an office in Hilo that supports equity in education through STEM programs and by creating opportunities for students in rural or remote areas.