Robotics Camp in Santa Ynez Provides Engineering Education to Children
25 children from the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indian Reservation are learning while having fun building robots.
The children are part of a summer program put on by the reservation’s learning center. For five days, the kids are learning what it takes to make robots.
“What we’re doing is we’re really nurturing the next generation of scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians,” said Niki Sandoval, an education director for the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indian Reservation.
It’s part of a STEM learning program and is funded by the Santa Ynez Robotics Engineering Foundation.
“It’s project based hands on learning. So it engages students as young as 7 in the work of building their own robot. So it’s not only planning, it’s creativity. It’s looks fun, and it is, but it’s actually learning about engineering, math and science,” said Sandoval.
The children are proud of what they have created. Some children added fancy lights to their robots while others added claws to grab objects.
“I really like the lights on the back because you can make cool colors and different patterns,” said 11-year-old Olivia Wyatt.
The students will showcase their final creations on Friday.