Scientists in School continues to inspire inquisitive young minds
Cindy Adams still marvels at the impact Scientists in School continues to have on young minds across Ontario.
Whether it’s being thanked by an adult who was inspired as a youth to enter an engineering field or running into a parent and child buying supplies to continue explorations that began in a workshop, the Executive Director of Scientists in School always gets a nice lift from the stories.
“I constantly run into young people in their 20s who tell me how much they were impacted by our classroom workshops when they were younger,” said Adams. “Their personal stories are pretty inspirational.”
Since 1989, Canada’s leading non-profit science education charity has reached more than 8 million students from kindergarten to Grade 8 through its half-day classroom workshops. OPG has been a partner of Scientists in School since 1993, supporting classroom workshops held in its host communities and helping to foster future leaders in the energy sector and elsewhere.
“OPG has been a valuable and exemplary partner that is deeply invested and knowledgeable of their communities,” Adams said. “The company has been a connector and catalyst for helping us to reach tens of thousands of students.”
Annually, about 640,000 children and youth across Ontario experience an engaging half-day workshop, where the kids become the scientists and are guided in hands-on experiments by visiting science and engineering professionals from the community. Over 50 workshop topics are offered, with titles like “Electricity – Get Charged” and “Gearing up: Fun with Pulleys and Gears”.
“The energy in the classroom during a workshop is just wonderful. You hear comments like, ‘I feel so smart,’ as students work on an electrical circuit board for example.”Cindy Adams, Executive Director of Scientists in School
“The energy in the classroom during a workshop is just wonderful,” Adams said. “You hear comments like, ‘I feel so smart,’ as students work on an electrical circuit board for example. It’s very much about empowering students to make the discovery themselves.”
From the day it began 29 years ago as a community initiative in Durham Region based out of its founders’ homes, Scientists in School’s mission for kids has been to spark a life-long interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and the environment.
The real-world science aims to teach students the skills they’ll need in tomorrow’s workplace. But, more than that, it’s about opening their minds and eyes to develop critical thinking and evidence-based reasoning, Adams said.
“It’s very much about students asking the questions and exploring without being afraid to make mistakes,” she said. “In science, there are no mistakes, only discoveries.”
For more information on the program, visit https://www.scientistsinschool.ca.
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