Greater Spokane Inc.: Innovation Gives Opportunities To Build On Smart And Resilient Kids

Press release from Greater Spokane Inc.:

November 18, 2021

By Kimberly Taylor, Engineering and Robotics Teacher, Sacajawea Middle School and Seattle University

When I
stand in my classroom gazing at all the eyes looking at me, I have come to an
unyielding realization. Our kids are the answer to our collective future. They
come to school with more street smarts, resiliency, hardships, tenacity, and
mental health issues than most generations before them. Their personal
experiences and discernment of the world must always be considered. So, as a
teacher, my focus has been to look ahead for the next “REAL WORLD” challenge.
This almost guarantees and legitimizes the time and effort each student will
put into a final project. Kids want to make a difference in the world they live
in, just ask them.

Five years
ago, I recognized there was a missed opportunity with our eighth-grade
students. Through support from the district, I created a new class called
Advanced Engineering that focused on community service projects. This class
would take a group of 60 students through an arduous engineering journey. The
beginning addressed real problems around us. We started by interviewing all the
staff (collecting data). We then went into the community with a mindset that eighth-grade
students can not only solve baffling dilemmas, but could engineer one-of-a-kind
inventions that solved problems. We were on our way.

I’ve always referred to myself as a learner more than a teacher. On every occasion that I introduce a new potentially unsolvable problem I specifically say, “I am not sure how we are going to solve this problem.” I am sincere, and students can tell when I’m nervous feeling like I have bitten off more than I can chew. This emphasizes the challenge placed before us. All students learn how to use all the resources they have in class. They begin by sketching out ideas, materials, and measurements in an engineering journal and then meet as a think tank to share ideas, look for weaknesses, and create groups based on similar ideas. Then, they use Autodesk Inventor to virtually create their ideas in three dimensions. From this point, they decide which tools are needed to create their working prototype. Having a woodshop, soldering stations, painting room, laser cutters, and 3-D printers available gives students the opportunity to find what they need to begin their builds.

Why is
this class so important? Students learn all the 21st-century skills
used in industry today. They learn how to successfully determine which tools
they need for a job, how to correctly use the tool, and teach others how to use
it. They’re immersed in geometry, material sciences, English, precise
measurement, and research. Students get an opportunity to work with different
organizations and companies that have rigid requirements and time constraints. These
connections give them a glimpse into what a real job is like; However, the most
important thing to me is them getting an opportunity to work with children and
adults who have a real life-threatening or severe disability. Their focus is
off themselves and instead on a situation they can solve. We have worked with
the Los Angeles FBI, Seattle, and Spokane Bomb Squads. La Joya Child and Family
Development, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Shriners Hospital, Children’s
Hospitals, Friendchips, and other Nonprofit organizations.

If your business or organization would like to get involved, contact Kimberly Taylor at kimta@spokaneschools.org.

Thank you to our partner for this project, The Spokane Journal of Business. View the full GSI Connect Magazine here.

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This press release was produced by Greater Spokane Inc.. The views expressed here are the author’s own.