OSGOOD, IN — A total of 32 students from all over Ripley County participated in Future Ready Robotics Camp, conducted by Genesis: Pathways to Success, last week (July 13-15) at Jac-Cen-Del High School in Osgood. This camp, an initiative of Genesis’ A Summer of STREAM (Science, Technology, Reading, Engineering, Art, & Mathematics), brought forth engineering advancement within youth education.
Within three days, students were able to acquire knowledge about coding, creative design, and engineering concepts through an experiential learning approach. Soft skills, such as critical thinking, problem-solving, creativity, and collaboration, were further developed as they were the key underlying facets within every task the students completed.
Amelia Comer, the Robotics Teacher at Jac-Cen-Del High School, said, “It’s not just about building robots. The biggest takeaway is problem-solving skills that will follow them throughout their entire lives.”
Comer added, “The kids leave with this new talent of having any problem being set in front of them and having the capability to be able to work through it to find a solution.”
Robotics knowledge was consistently built upon, with each day becoming more in-depth and challenging. It started with the basic parts and mechanics of building a robot, which then led to utilizing coding skills to practice autonomous coding and the construction of a team-built robot.
These robots were put into competitions to trial the students through the VEX IQ 2022-2023 Challenge: Slapshot. The goal of the challenge is for students to build a robot that is capable of dodging obstacles, pushing pucks into an endzone goal, and completing it all within 60 seconds. This year’s competition was designed to develop critical thinking skills and build a learning environment consisting of team building and friendly competition.
Wil Wheeler, a 6th-grade student at Milan Middle School and participant at Future Ready Robotics Camp, said, “The most fun part about the competition is getting to put my skills to the test and be the best Camp Robotics kid. I’ve really enjoyed this camp!”
Genesis: Pathways to Success would like to thank Jac-Cen-Del High School for hosting the event, as well as the Versailles McDonalds for sponsoring lunch for one day of Robotics Camp.
To learn more information about this summer camp or if you have any questions, please contact Clarice Patterson by emailing [email protected], calling (812) 933-1098, visiting genesisp2s.org, or stopping by the office at 13 E. George Street, Suite B, in Batesville.
(Genesis: Pathways To Success press release)
