Bridgewood showcases Lego builds

CORNWALL, Ontario – Grade 2 and Grade 4 students at Bridgewood Public School in Cornwall had a chance to have some fun and learn about eco-friendly design recently through the Lego Fusion Boomtown Build program.

The Lego Boomtown Build challenges students to build an eco-friendly community, while also teaching them some of the principles of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

For the past 15 weeks, students were guided by a Lego Fusion instructor who helped them develop their ideas which required them to design structures, program electronic elements and build structures that were durable.

Ideas that the students came up with included a solar powered office building, a police station with an elevator for inmates, and a hotel with a science station.

“When you ask kids to think about being eco-friendly, they come up with ideas that adults wouldn’t. A project like this really brings excitement to learning, but there is a trickle-down effect too. For example, their classroom teachers have noticed that the students involved in this are becoming more confident using scientific words. Sustainable and durable are sophisticated words for students of this age,” said Jennifer Perry, principal at Bridgewood Public School. “Now that we are part of the program, we can continue for as long as we want. We are excited to role this out with our Grade 1 to Grade 3 students next year and continue it with our juniors as well. Projects like this are very easy to incorporate into the curriculum.”