The Camp Verde Community Library has partnered with The Science Vortex to launch a weekly STEM+art hands-on activity for kids.
STEM is a curriculum based on educating in four disciplines: Science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Some educators have added “A” for art, into the format.
The library held its first STEM+(A) hour Sept. 1, during which kids built catapults out of wooden ice popsicle sticks and used them to make splatter paint art.
Each Wednesday at 4 p.m. a different STEM+(A) activity will be available to children age 8 to 12 in the community for free. The activities are designed to engage children in a creative learning environment to help them develop critical thinking, creativity and problem-solving skills, Children’s Librarian Leticia Ancira said.
“The program activities will consist of hands-on experiences focusing on science, technology, engineering, math and art — STEM+(A). The activities are designed to inspire children in diverse communities in Camp Verde in STEM+(A) fields and provide the opportunity to explore, tinker, create and experiment,” she said.
Ancira and Laurie Altringer, founder and director of Science Vortex, will be taking turns leading the classes going forward. Altringer said the partnership between her business and the library was sparked by their mutual connection to the Verde Valley Loves STEM Team, which recently received grant funding from the Verde Valley STREAM Council, Rural Activation and Innovation Network and National Science Foundation to expand STEM opportunities in the community.
That funding is what makes the weekly STEAM activity at the library possible as well as several other events such as the St. Patrick’s Day STEAM celebration, Dark Sky Star Parties, and more.
It will also contribute toward a mobile STEM lab that the library will be working on in the near future. Through their partnership, they’ve also been able to provide STEAM kits that are available for kids to check out from the library thanks to funding from the Arizona Community Foundation of Sedona and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
Bethany Brady, whose family regularly checks out the STEAM kits through the library, brought her 8- and 12-year-old sons to last week’s event.
“I think they’re great. It gets them interacting with different things that they may not do otherwise, and they really like it,” she said.
Ancira said the idea behind offering free STEAM activities is to provide equal access to that type of learning to all kids. This program is particularly trying to reach Latinx and Yavapai-Apache children.
“The library wanted to provide free access for the Spanish-speaking and the Yavapai-Apache families to informal hands-on activities in STEM+(A) concepts that are culturally relevant in diverse communities,” she said. “Providing the opportunity to as many children as possible to explore STEM+(A) subjects helps the library to gain an increased understanding of the diverse communities when designing future STEM+(A) activities and programs.”
STEM+art education for kids not only encourages children to be excited to learn about science, technology, engineering and mathematics through art, but it also helps them gain skills and knowledge for future academic and career success.
“Job preparedness does not start in high school or college; in fact, children cultivate much of their intellect and skills in their early years, so providing opportunities to hone important 21st century skills like collaborating, communicating and critical thinking are invaluable,” Altringer said. “The informal STEAM experiences they have outside of school can provide background knowledge that increases their engagement and interest in math and science at school.”
The program will take place in two 12-week sessions, one this fall and another after the holidays in winter of 2022. For more information about the STEAM activities, call Ancira at 554-8397.
