LITTLE Scholars Redland Bay is the Queensland winner of the 2018 Little Scientists Early STEM Award.
Announcing the achievement, federal MP Andrew Laming said it was a real tribute to the hardworking staff and quality of early education in the Redlands.
“Critical thinking and problem-solving are more important than ever, not only in developing young minds but in building resilience,” Mr Laming said.
“However the thing that often gets forgotten is that STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) can also be a lot of fun.”
Little Scholars Redland Bay director Nina Lorenzato said the winning project, a model-sized playground, was sparked by an excursion to a local park.
“While they were there, the children started getting inquisitive,” Ms Lorenzato said.
“For example, a couple of kids were on the see-saw and they were asking questions about gravity and how come it goes higher or lower depending on how big or small someone is.
“It was the same with the swings (where they asked) ‘how can I go faster than my friend?.
“When they got back to class, our early childhood teacher Rachelle (Marjanovic), who is really into STEM, said, ‘Well, why don’t we research it?’”
The resulting replica playground was created from recycled materials by more than 40 sets of four and five-year-old hands, based on photographs the children had taken.
Little Scientists Australia project director Sibylle Seidler said she was delighted to present the award to Little Scholars Redland Bay for their successful work in integrating STEM experiences in everyday learning.
“The depth is obvious in the design, engineering, physics, 3D and 2D models and drawings, as well as technology in the form of a stop motion movie and photography,” Ms Seidler said.
The Little Scientists awards are supported and funded by the Department of Education and Training, through the federal government’s National Innovation and Science Agenda.
