Outreach Camps
Exploring STEM Off Campus: St. Mary’s First Nation Outreach Camps
Worlds UNBound Outreach team joined forces with Chief Harold Sappier Memorial Elementary School (CHSMES) over the past two weeks. Most of our time was spent with grades 3-4 in an outdoor classroom, with some activities taking place at CHSMES. Themes included digital literacy, engineering in nature, space, and environmental protection. The outdoor setting added meaning to each activity; students explored STEM concepts through hands-on challenges while building connections to nature and each other. From building nests to launching balloon rockets, each day offered opportunities for creativity, curiosity, and collaboration.
Students learned about technology by using tools like Snap Circuits, Osmo, Cubelets, Spheros, and Ozobots. These activities introduced ideas like how circuits work and how to give robots simple instructions. Students built fun robots with Cubelets and created colorful paths for Ozobots to follow. With Spheros, they practiced coding by making the robots move through challenges and games.
Many projects focused on building with natural materials. Students made bird nests using sticks and grass, built forts and bridges, and tested boats to see which floated best. A greenhouse challenge helped students think about how plants grow and how to build shelters for them. These activities showed how to solve problems by designing and building things using what is found in nature.
Space activities helped students explore stars, planets, and science in space. They made constellation viewers to learn star patterns and mixed galaxy slime to talk about how galaxies form. In the balloon rocket experiment, they learned how rockets move using air pressure and force. Each activity helped explain big space ideas in a fun, hands-on way.
Students tried experiments to learn how to care for the Earth. They tested ways to clean up oil spills, explored how animals hide with a camouflage challenge, and learned about friction with the penguin glide test. A water filter challenge showed how to make dirty water clean, and a snow avalanche experiment used “elephant’s toothpaste” to show a fast reaction. These activities helped students understand nature and how science can protect it.
Outreach Camp Specialist, Hydro, had an amazing time supporting learning and exploration at CHSMES, alongside GABA and Beaker. Some of Hydro’s favourite moments from the camp included building animal habitats with natural materials, learning about electricity through Snap Circuits, creating very effective water filters, and heading out on a fun and educational field trip to Killarney Lake with the whole group!
Campers grew in their ability to think like engineers and scientists, testing ideas, solving problems, and working together with excitement and focus. As camp leaders, it was inspiring to see how learning on the land made STEM come alive in new ways, especially when activities were rooted in respect for nature and community knowledge. Integrating Indigenous ways of knowing and being into the program helped create deeper connections between the students, the land, and the learning itself, making this outreach experience especially meaningful.
A heartfelt thank you to the CHSMES students, staff, and community for their warmth, enthusiasm, and openness!
- Hydro
