Terre Haute, Ind – Summer is about to get a lot more interesting for children in Vigo County. This week, members of the Terre Haute Children’s Museum staff will be at Terre Haute North, Terre Haute South and West Vigo Elementary passing out free STEM Play Packs to all families during the grab-and-go Summer Food Program.
Thanks to a generous donation from the COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund sponsored by the United Way of the Wabash Valley and the Wabash Valley Community Foundation, 1,000 STEM Play Packs have been created. The play packs include five open-ended toys that encourage scientific inquiry for children PreK-6th grade. The toys include a Frisbee, bubbles, a deck of cards, a jump rope and dice. Each play pack also comes with a set of instruction cards with science questions and ideas on how to do experiments with the toys.
The museum’s mission: to enrich our children’s lives through the exploration of science and technology has never been more relevant as our whole community turns to science to guide us through this pandemic. While the museum is temporarily closed, we strongly advocate for playful learning. “Play is an essential activity for children – for their brain development, social skills, and connections with loved ones. It also happens to be a great stress reliever, which is all the more important while families are facing new challenges during this pandemic,” said American Academy of Pediatricians President Sally Goza, MD, FAAP.
The value of combining STEM and play is documented by the National Center of Education Statistics study on 7,750 children from kindergarten to the end of eighth grade. Researchersfound that the amount of general worldly knowledge in kindergarteners was a strong indicator of their science achievements and knowledge in later grades. One of the primary ways to acquaint a child with the underlying foundational concepts of STEM subjects is by playing. It exercises problem-solving and creativity, two characteristics that are crucial in STEM.
STEM Play Packs will be available during the grab-and-go Summer Food Program at the following locations:
- Wednesday, June 10 from 11 a.m. to noon at North Vigo High School
- Wednesday, June 10 from 11 a.m. to noon at South Vigo High School
- Friday, June 12 from 11 a.m. to noon at West Vigo Elementary