On Friday, February 1, 2019, employees of Columbia Vehicle Group in Reedsburg, WI visited Mrs. Stacy Stecker’s 2nd grade classroom at Pineview Elementary with a very special delivery! As a result of the funds raised through their Community Christmas Raffle Fundraiser, the employees of Columbia Vehicle Group were able to deliver enough robots so that all Mrs. Stecker’s students can now work with STEM robots in pairs and simultaneously (something previously impossible with just 2 classroom robots!). Along with the robots, the employees of Columbia Vehicle Group also provided Mrs. Stecker’s students with robot accessories such as xylophones and catapults!
According to Mrs. Stecker, with the robots and accessories, her students will learn to write code and then quickly see the results of those programs in the robots’ actions! Students will then have the skills to transition into more challenging aspects of coding, such as writing programs that are within specific parameters in order to solve a problem.
One reason Mrs. Stecker became a teacher was to inspire students to “”Be Brave and Try!” Her hope is that not only will her students benefit from the robots, but that many other students at Pineview Elementary will be able to use the robots too! She and her students are excited to “try all sorts of different things to find out how we can all become great engineers!”
Mrs. Stecker feels that the benefits of coding go beyond simply making a robot react, and that working with the robots will have a lasting impact on students for many years to come. “Students’ brains, at this age, are better able to learn new languages and coding is a language that they can learn now for future use. The amazing thing about these robots is that the apps available make it so easy for students to learn complex coding languages. I hope that they will begin to build that coding language so that they are unafraid to try careers that may include robotics, engineering and technology.”
Mrs. Stecker has been using technology, including iPads and STEM Robots, for 5 years, and feels that using technology in the classroom is not only rewarding for her students, but also allows students “to problem solve and be creative, while promoting teamwork and communication. But most of all, it instills persistence.” Everyone at Columbia Vehicle Group hopes that the persistence and creativity students learn will help and encourage them for years to come, and maybe even inspire some of them to come design and build the next generation of electric work vehicles with us here at Columbia!
More About Columbia:
Based in Reedsburg, Wisconsin, Columbia is a premier electric vehicle manufacturer whose history dates back to 1946. Columbia has one of the most expansive electric vehicle product line-ups in the world, producing electric vehicles for private use as well as commercial and industrial applications that include models that move from 1 to 24 people, carry up to 6,000 pounds of payload, tow up to 16,000 pounds and travel up to 25 miles per hour. To learn more about Columbia, visit http://columbiavehicles.com/.
Columbia Vehicle Group, Inc. is a member of the Nordic Group of Companies, Ltd. Nordic Group (headquartered in Baraboo, Wisconsin) is a privately-held holding company consisting of subsidiaries with 22 facilities, and 24 marketing units around the world with over 2,400 associates. Nordic Group member companies manufacture and distribute plastic, seating and transportation products worldwide for industrial, commercial and consumer markets. For more information, visit www.nordicgroup.com.
More About Reedsburg School District:
Our mission is to prepare our students for the future, instill a sense of respect and a passion for learning. For more information please visit https://www.rsd.k12.wi.us/
