Give STL Day and Micro:Bit Takeaway

Our world is so much different today, on the eve of Give STL Day 2020, compared to this same day in 2019. We are encouraged and sustained by being part of the STEM community, and every day serving a mission to build world-changing young people. When the world changes around them, and circumstances seem out of control, these same young people have a little extra courage that comes from knowing how problems are solved, and a little extra heart from knowing they can be part of the solution.

Against this backdrop of world change, the journey of our own little non-profit seems undramatic, but we are very proud of our few accomplishments during the past robotics season. We led the inaugural STEM Lane at the World Wide Technologies Raceway, ran the first Cub Scout edition of Scout Botics, put on several FTC double meets and Botting Practices, and for the first time, we started a robotics team from scratch: the Delmar Robotics Engineers At MADE, in partnership with MADE STL and The Magic House, MADE For Kids. We call it DRE@M for short.

As part of our partnership with The Magic House, MADE For Kids, and with sponsorship from Watlow, we are endeavoring to add a Watlow Electric Life Workshop, where high school students from DRE@M will help young visitors bring their creations to life with the help of programmable microcontrollers like the BBC Micro:Bit. And during this time of alternative learning, where families are struggling to engage students in home-based learning, the Micro:Bit fits in perfectly. But only for families lucky enough to have the Micro:Bit and related materials at home.

Our fund raising this Give STL Day will be used to create Micro:Bit based kits that can be delivered to families, so they can bring a little Electric Life to their Magic At Home creations. Please visit Give STL Day and support the non-profits you care about.