Weekly Media Roundup  April 15, 2015

Students Showcase Robotic Creations for Medical Use (Bristol Press, Connecticut)

At this year’s Bristol Middle School Robotics Challenge, themed “Med-Bots: Robot Transfer, Transport and Transplant,” teams of fifth through eighth graders in afterschool robotics clubs programmed robots to perform heart transplant surgery, guide an ambulance to pick up a patient, and move patients in a hospital to the appropriate departments. The students worked through trial and error to guide their robots through mazes and to perform surgery simulations. Although they didn’t always succeed the first time, that’s not necessarily a bad thing, according to Northeast Middle School technology teacher Vince Jennetta. “In engineering terms failure is an important thing, but how you work through it – that’s how you get the grit and determination,” he told the Bristol Press.

Circle de Luz Helps Latina Girls Aim Toward College (Charlotte Observer, North Carolina)

Circle de Luz, a mentoring program in Charlotte, is trying to reverse the trend of Latina high school dropouts. Each year, the program selects a group of middle school girls who need assistance and continues mentoring them throughout high school with monthly in-school and afterschool programs. The activities include art and educational enrichment, as well as life skills like cooking, financial literacy and health and wellness. Circle de Luz also aims to inspire Latina students to head to college by pairing the girls with adult mentors who guide them the application process. Program manager Mary Kathryn Elkins told the Charlotte Observer that it is a six-year process that begins with “teaching (the girls) what college is and then having them believe it can be part of their future.”

Education Program Spreads Love of Music (Visalia Times-Delta, California)

A 12-week afterschool program is teaching violin to 25 second graders at Woodville School – very slowly. It wasn’t until week four that the students even got to hold an actual violin. They had been spending nearly two hours every day learning rhythm with clapping and egg shakers, singing to learn notes, and exploring the parts of the violin on blue “paper violins.” The Tulare County Symphony HEARTstrings afterschool program aims to reach rural children who rarely get a chance to play music. “The goal is not merely musical skills, but life skills,” Tulare County Symphony music director Bruce Kiesling told the Visalia Times-Delta.

Chess Club Benefits Students (Philadelphia Daily News, Pennsylvania)

When science and math teacher Jason Bui started the Minor Threats chess club, he – and the students who joined – had no idea that chess would have such an impact on their minds, their attitudes and their families. Bui said the members have gained increased focus, enhanced confidence and mended temperaments, and many of them have improved their academic performance. Chess teaches the kids to handle defeat and find solutions to problems. “[Chess] helped me to interact more at school,” 11-year-old Tahvon, who described himself as “not the nicest person” before he joined the club, told the Philadelphia Daily News. “I’m still a little to myself, but I’m getting better with it. Chess is helping me more.”