On Saturday, February 20th MORT held a virtual meeting with The Prison Ministry Kids Program. The event had an attendance of 18 children consisting of an age range of 5-11 yrs old. Our MORT members Lisbeth Almonte, Izzie Alvarez, and Moesha Malik volunteered in the program to bring the MORT experience to the children by leading a meeting that started at 12:30pm that was jam packed with STEAM related activities.
To introduce the children to MORT, Moesha gave a presentation regarding what the sub teams do during the build season and how competition season usually runs. The presentation gave the children a chance to see videos of our competition robot in action along with our outreach work. Also, we showed the children that a robotics team is more than just crafting a robot by explaining our community and STEAM impact. Our Beta team’s competition robot was also presented along with their progress during the season.
During the event, each child was given a lego kit to either build an aeroplane or helicopter with help from the MORT members. Our team members showed the children how robots and lego-building share the same values of innovation. After the presentation, many of the children asked the MORT members how they could become part of an FLL team near them. Currently, the MORT team is working with the kids to connect them to nearby FLL teams for them to participate in the next robotics season.
“Seeing the smiles on the kids’ faces while opening up their lego kits and coloring books gives us a reason to continue our outreach events and volunteering services for children, “ explained Moesha Malik (media lead).
Our MORT members also explained how they learned how significant the robotics program in our high school is because it has provided a plethora of opportunities for all MORT members. It has opened doors for us to work towards creating a competition robot, but has also challenged us to spread the word of STEAM across state borders.We hope to continue spreading our passion for robotics and STEAM.