Get Engineering at St James’ School

EXCITING times ahead for the youngest members of St James’ Primary School as the school is set to embark on a fantastic new adventure with the FIRST® LEGO® League Discovery programme.

The school on Paringdon Road has managed to secure funding from the Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET) to take part in an innovative programme which introduces science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) to children in the early years through fun, exciting hands-on learning.

The programme has been developed by FIRST® LEGO® League, which was founded back in 1998 to inspire teams to research, build, and experiment, using LEGO® technology.

They applied for the grant back in September and were thrilled to hear that they had been selected to take part. Mrs Alston, the EYFS teacher, said “It is an amazing opportunity for our children to develop the early foundations of working scientifically, exploring ideas methodically and learning the basic principles of engineering and mathematics through play.”

This new programme has been developed to help children understand the basics of STEM and apply their skills in an exciting competition while at the same time building good habits of learning, confidence, and teamwork skills along the way.

Being part of this programme means that St James’ will also receive over £1,000 worth of LEGO® DUPLO® resources. In addition, they have committed to providing additional funding in order to roll out this programme into Year 1, allowing more children to develop these key skills in their early school life. The resources are due to arrive this week and the teachers are planning a big launch into the programme in January.

Further information on the program can be found by following the link on the Reception class page of the school’s website: https://stjamescofeprimaryschool.co.uk