STEM Sprouts Program to Offer Unique Learning for Little Ones

Can you imagine learning about aviation not to mention your ABCs this way? Some lucky preschoolers in Florida are having this opportunity through the STEM Sprouts program at the Aerospace Center for Excellence at the Florida Air Museum in Lakeland.

"We have had story time at the museum for two years now, and this program is an outgrowth of story time and part of our philosophy of cradle to cockpit, where we get preschoolers interested in aviation," said Jennilyn Crump, youth program coordinator for the Aerospace Center for Excellence.

According to Crump, the program, designed for ages 3 to 5, is an age-appropriate way to get children interested in aviation.

"At this age they are like sponges and interested in anything that moves, like cars, trains, and airplanes,” Crump said. “We're going to get them excited about airplanes and aviation and build on that."

The class is open to 15 children and their caregivers. It is described as hands-on, skill-based learning that uses playtime to educate.

"Each class will last a little more than an hour and will consist of 30 minutes of circle or learning time and 30 minutes of center time,” Crump said. “The center time will consist of math, literacy, art, and other miscellaneous activities that are related to the ‘word of the day.’ [An example would be] ‘aerodynamics.’"

The children will learn that aerodynamics is the study of air and how things move through it, and since water behaves like air, there will bea tub of water to demonstrate how certain objects passing through the water behave differently.

The class activity could be teaching directions, using small gliders and an airplane-letter match, passport stamps, or a cloud-letter search and identifying different letters.

And because these are small children, expect there will be singing and dancing to add to the fun.

"Our hope is that if this class is successful, next year we will be able to build classes to support higher grade levels up through at least fifth grade," said Crump.

The program debuts in September and will be held for 26 weeks on Mondays from 9 a.m. to 10:15 a.m. ET.

According to Crump, aviation will be a springboard to other STEM topics.

"For example, when we get to the letter ‘S,’ we will talk about seaplanes and use that to explore the science of ponds and aquatic life," she said.

The goals of the program are to foster a love of learning in the children, lay a foundation of STEM knowledge to prepare them for school, and hopefully provide a lifelong relationship with aviation.

The education center plans on building on the STEM Sprouts to create more age-appropriate programs for elementary and perhaps even middle school students.

The STEM Sprouts program can only accommodate 15 children and their caregivers, so preregistration is required. If there is enough demand, a second class may be added. Each class costs $10. Registration opens August 1.

For more information, email Crump at jcrump@flysnf.org.