This article from IOR Board member Lisa-Jayne Cook explains how she is working with the STEMazing program to make a real impact with young people

STEMazing Inspiration Academy

The STEMazing Inspiration Academy program supports women in STEM careers to deliver a six week program into schools, aimed at pupils aged between 5-9 years.  The program is delivered free to both the STEMazing Women and the participating Schools.  The activities and experiments led by STEM Role models aim to promote children's curiosity, creativity and courage.   

During this weeks experiment the STEMazing Kids learned about Newton’s Law’s of motion.  We used paper to construct a rocket and a booster, then we used our own breath to launch the rockets into space, but of course, not without the famous countdown….. 3,2,1 BLAST OFF!

Lisa-Jayne is working with three other ladies to run a total of six classes per week at Holbrook and Bedenham Federation in Gosport, Hampshire.  The school reported that the first week of classes were well received.  Mrs Landon, year 3/4 teacher,  said “We all had a great time.  The STEMazing team certainly held the interest of the children throughout the experiment.  We were sending rockets into the air for the rest of the afternoon”.

Lisa-Jayne said “I cannot wait to get stuck into our next class.  I’ve never been responsible for holding the attention of twenty-five 7-8 year olds before, and the thought of doing so was quite daunting.  But I can safely say now, I thoroughly enjoyed the classes.  It’s wonderful to see so many children engaged with STEM, and is even better to hear their cheers and laughter as we completed the experiment”. 

If you are interested in finding out more about how you can get involved download the IOR’s free Education Guidance notes at ior.org.uk on working with schools, joining the STEM ambassador programme and check out the STEMazing website at https://www.stemazingltd.com/inspiration-academy