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"Building Life-Long Passions"
A second week of the “Hackers and Makers” camp is scheduled for June 28 to July 1. More information about Hackers and Makers, including a list of classes, can be found at Hanes.
For more pictures, go to Your Permanent Record.
By Kim Underwood
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools
JUNE 23, 2021 – This fall, Michael Woodley will be in the fourth grade at Ward Elementary. On the morning of Wednesday June 23, Michael was busy turning technology scraps into a robot for his class at the “Hackers and Makers” camp at Hanes Magnet Middle.
Asked how he came to be there, he said, “My mom thought it would be fun.”
He had soon discovered that she was absolutely right.
“I love this,” he said.
To come up with some of the parts he was using for the “Upcycling: ScrapBots” class that teacher Maria Colamarina was leading, Michael had taken apart a computer from way back in 2003.
“I had to unscrew like 50 screws,” he said.
Next to him, Rayne Holland, who will be in the fourth grade at Bolton Elementary, was making a robot. Given what she was using to make him, she thought Scrap would be just the name for him.
She, too, was there at the encouragement of her mother.
“My mom thought it would be fun for me to come here because I like to build things and take things apart.”
She, too, was having big fun. And not just making a robot out of technology scraps. The day before she had made turquoise-colored slime.
This is the third year that David Draper, who teaches at Hanes and serves as Camp Director, and others have organized “Hackers and Makers.” The camp has a section for rising fourth and fifth-graders and another section for students in grades 6 through 9.
At this week’s camp, 37 elementary students are participating along with 87 middle school students and rising ninth-graders.
It’s been satisfying to see, said Draper and Principal Robin Willard, that the camp has drawn a diverse group of students from throughout the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County school system, along with students from charter schools and students who are home schooled.
They have also enjoyed seeing how much fun teachers are having.
Many learning adventures await participants. They can make and fire rockets, create Lego robots, create virtual realities, design solar-powered race cars, and much more.
Student Henry Lee just finished up fifth grade at Kernersville Elementary. He will be in the sixth grade at Hanes this fall, and, while learning more about coding and engineering – subjects that enjoys – he thought that coming to the camp would offer the bonus of getting a better sense of the school he will be attending.
Asked what he thought of the camp so far, Henry said, “A lot of fun!”
This will also be Kendall Johnson’s first year at Hanes. She will be in seventh grade. Along with the opportunity to get to know Hanes a bit, she said, “It sounded like a really fun camp.”
It has indeed been fun. Her favorite class so far has been the one in which they build and race sprint cars.
Classes don’t start until 8 a.m. but anyone who pops in at 5 a.m. will likely find Draper already there making sure that everything is ready once parents start dropping off students at 7:30 a.m.
For Draper, the purpose of the camp is straightforward.
“I hope to build life-long passions,” he said.
Natalie Norman, who also teaches at Hanes, arrives early as well, and, early on Wednesday morning, she and Draper worked a bit on the platform used to launch rockets.
Once 7:30 rolled around, Meghna Ostasiewski, who teaches science at West Forsyth High, was one of the parents dropping off a child. Her son Janak will be in the fifth grade at Meadowlark Elementary.
He was interested in attending, and she is glad he was.
“I hope he gets to meet more people and gets to use his brain in a different way,” Ostasiewski said.
Maria Colamarina teaches art at both Hanes and Mount Tabor High, and this the first year that she has taught at the camp.
“This is all about digging deeper into science and the arts,” she said.
One of her goals as a teacher is help students learn to feel comfortable making their own choices when creating.
“I want them to trust their instincts,” Colamarina said.
It’s also the first year that, Gregory Downing, who teaches science at East Forsyth Middle, has participated in the camp.
If he wasn’t at “Hackers and Makers,” Downing said, he would probably be home working in his woodworking shop. He was there because he was eager to support and encourage students in their impulses to learn on their own.
Beau Gardner, a technology teacher at Kernersville Middle, wants to help students hone their problem-solving skills while introducing them to paths of knowledge that could lead to satisfying careers one day.
Belinda Wilson teaches technology at Jefferson Middle. In her “Virtual Reality” class, students were creating their own virtual realities. Before they started, she had taken them on a journey through everything that goes into the creation of an imaginary reality.
“I want them to have fun while they are learning,” Wilson said.
Sixth-grader Melchizedek “Mel” Friday had already created two worlds. In one, everyone is dancing around to celebrate someone doing really well in a game. In the other, an airplane is flying over such animals as birds and monkeys and a sleeping bear.
He, too, said he was enjoying himself.
Along with teachers at Hanes, teachers from other schools participate. Teachers teaching in the camp, include:
Margaret Wicker - Hanes Magnet School
Natalie Norman - Hanes Magnet School
Belinda Wilson - Jefferson Middle School
John Boyd - Hanes Magnet School
Gregory Downing - East Forsyth Middle School
Taylor Pullen - Hanes Magnet School
Dez Balsamo - Hanes Magnet School
Beau Gardner - Kernersville Middle School
Melissa Anderson - Hanes Magnet School
Adam Cross - Hanes Magnet School
Jerrica Scott - Virtual Academy
Maria Colamarino - Hanes Magnet School
Stephanie Anderson - Hanes Magnet School
Those on hand to make sure everything goes smoothly at Hanes include Principal Robin Willard, Belinda Brown, the Financial Secretary, and Kirsti Williams, the Data Manager.