This weekend, on 22 and 23 May, at the Forest Days organised by “Latvijas valsts meži” in Tērvete Nature Park, the “STEAM Hub” initiative will continue its journey towards a wider audience, inviting children and families to get to know science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics through hands-on experience and engaging activities.
“STEAM Hub” brings together companies and organisations that believe Latvia's future growth rests on people who create, explore and develop new ideas. The aim of the initiative is to build an environment where children and young people can discover, through experience, their interest in STEAM fields and the professions of the future. “STEAM Hub” was first presented last year during the XIII Latvian School Youth Song and Dance Festival, while this year the initiative is expanding its work to public events.
At Forest Days in Tērvete, “STEAM Hub” will become a place to experiment, ask questions, build, think and discover that science and technology can be the start of an exciting adventure. The creators of the “STEAM Hub” initiative stress that family and shared experience play a significant part in children's interests and career choices, which is why the activities at Forest Days have been designed for children and parents to take part in together.
Ingmārs Pūķis, Vice President of “LMT grupa”, a co-founder of the initiative, stresses:
“In our view, Latvia's development is built on quality education and inquisitive young people. Our aim is to show that mathematics and logical thinking can be an exciting challenge rather than just a school subject. In the age of technology, it is precisely these skills that become the foundation for future opportunities. Since such knowledge is useful to everyone, we hope this initiative will inspire children and young people to understand STEAM fields in far greater depth.”
Each of the platform's partners has prepared a unique programme that lets science be explored through elements of play. In the “LMT grupa” activities, children and families will be able to test their mathematics and logical thinking skills by solving tasks of varying difficulty and trying to crack code systems.
AS “Latvijas Finieris”, meanwhile, will invite visitors to get to know robotics in practice – in the robot battle arena they will be able to try out robots built by school pupils and university students, as well as take part in building simpler robots. In this activity, children and young people will encounter laser cutting, 3D printing, electronics and programming as a creative and exciting process.
Gunita Meiere, Member of the Board of “Latvijas Finieris”:
“Today the forest sector is a technologically advanced, innovative and knowledge-based industry. It matters to us to show children and young people the future of the bioeconomy and of wood use – it will involve ever more science, engineering and creative solutions.”
The association “Latvijas Koks”, meanwhile, will offer bioeconomy activities and experiments that help make sense of the importance of wood and renewable resources. Visitors will be able to play the digital game “Koksne”, study the strength of structures, and learn about the principles of using solar energy at the “Inovāciju grils”.
Sigita Alksne, Member of the Board of the “Latvijas Koks” association:
“We want to show that technology, engineering and the process of creating are not something complicated or out of reach. It is precisely hands-on experience that helps children see how exciting the world of STEAM can be and how much they can create in it themselves. Experimenting, creating and innovating are natural skills for children. Our task is to help them recognise and strengthen that ability, so that it becomes part of the way they naturally think and act. That is a foundation to draw on later, in the next stages of education and in the workplace, with confidence, courage and a desire to look for new solutions.”