Rosen JCC opens STEAM lab

Rella Bindell helped Antonella Romero, a Rosen JCC Early Childhood Learning Center pre-kindergartner, mix her ingredients so she could make snow. 

Bindell, a volunteer in Rosen JCC’s new STEAM lab, was in awe seeing the children learning about the arctic through lessons in science, math, art and more. 

“New technologies are coming up that these kids are learning for the future, and this is so important for this generation,” Bindell said. 

While one group of students was making snow, another was at the sensory station, feeling the cold of the arctic through ice mounds and learning about the animals living in the arctic by playing with small animal toys in the arctic scene. 

Art and science were infused into the lesson as students created snowflakes using epsom salt, water and glue. Math was used when determining how to make arctic shapes using rubber bands on a peg board. Technology helped students feel like they were in the arctic as they heard the breeze of the wintry winds. 

Rosen JCC CEO Ofira Bondorowsky said the center’s new STEAM lab enhances the educational opportunities for children in an engaging manner. The STEAM lab is about finding new ways for children to experience and explore to make educational connections more effectively, she said.

As much as the future is focused on STEM, Bondorowsky said arts is an integral part to a child’s education.

“A lot of people are still talking about STEM education without the ‘A’, and I’m a big believer that the arts is critical, because it really serves as a conduit,” she said. “It binds all the other pieces. It’s where imagination and creativity get to really bring science, technology and math to children through their play in a meaningful way. Art connects it all.”

In addition to preschool students, after-school enrichment students and summer camp students also will use the lab. 

Community volunteers such as Bindell come in to help the children with their lessons. 

Bindell has been a part of the Rosen JCC community for 30 years and continues to volunteer a couple times per week because of her love of children. 

“The young people are learning from the wisdom we’re teaching, but as a senior, I’m also learning from them,” Bindell said. “This brings me absolute joy. When they discover something and you see how happy and excited they are, you can feel it.”

Photo by Liz Ramos

A community effort

Bondorowsky said being able to have community volunteers work with the students in the STEAM lab is the “icing on the cake.”

“The most important thing I can do is to think community centric,” Bondorowsky said. “How can I bring people together? How can I bring the community together? If I was leading the preschool as a stand-alone preschool, it might look different. I might be leading it differently. I might be planning for it differently but because it’s situated in a community center, I try to lead it with a community centric approach.”

Bondorowsky said she looks for opportunities that will benefit not only the children but also the adults in the community, with the hopes that the Rosen JCC can fill gaps in services that are unmet in the community, including programming for seniors. The STEAM lab was a prime opportunity. 

“It was an optimal time in my mind at the STEAM lab to experiment with how I can not only improve the educational experience of the children that attend our program but also simultaneously try to fill a need, try to fill that gap in support and services for seniors,” she said. “It was kind of an interesting way to bring the two generations together. It’s serving a dual purpose.”

Full-STEAM ahead

In the spring, preschoolers will start learning about hydroponics, which is growing plants using a water-based nutrient solution rather than soil. Bondorowsky said each student will have a plant to grow and track hydroponically. 

Next up will be learning about aquaponics, which is a sustainable farming method combining aquaculture and hydroponics to grow plants and fish together in a system. 

“I think the kids will really enjoy seeing and learning about the symbiotic relationship between plants and animals, and I think that’s where aquaponics really helps to kind of tie that together,” Bondorowsky said. 

Just outside the STEAM lab opens a new world of opportunities. Bondorowsky said the next phase of the STEAM lab is an outdoor classroom. 

Bondorowsky said she’s looking into possibly developing a community garden outside for the children. The garden would tie in hydroponic planting techniques with traditional growth and planting techniques. 

“I think any time you engage children in growing their own food and they make those connections, they’re probably more likely to eat it,” she said.