Beebots, Metal Detectors, and More: Exwick Heights Boosts Early Years STEM Learning

Exwick Heights Primary School is thrilled to announce the successful receipt of a £15,000 STEM grant from Howmet Aerospace, aimed at enhancing their Early Years provision and inspiring a lifelong love for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) from the very start of children's educational journeys.

Thanks to this generous funding, the school has been able to purchase innovative resources, including programmable devices like Beebots (award winning programmable floor robots) to support early coding skills, alongside exciting science tools such as metal detectors, torches, and a darkened exploration area.  These new resources will play a vital role in nurturing essential skills like problem-solving, creativity, and logical reasoning, all of which are crucial in preparing children for a digital future.

A special thank you goes to Jack V’s dad (Year 4) for his invaluable support in bringing this project to life, and to Ms. Lloyd-Seetim for her hard work in putting together the successful proposal.  Staff at the school are excited to see these resources come to life in the classroom and look forward to the learning opportunities they will provide for pupils.

At Exwick Heights, which is part of the Ted Wragg Trust, the science curriculum is designed to give children an understanding of the world around them from the moment they join the school community.  Children are natural scientists and so the school has adopted a curriculum which ensures that scientific enquiry skills are embedded in each unit.  This helps children to ask and answer questions about the world around them and recognise how and why science plays an important part in our world. 

Mrs Gemma Wills, Headteacher at Exwick Heights Primary School said: "We are incredibly grateful to Howmet Aerospace for their support in bringing this transformative STEM grant to Exwick Heights.  These resources will not only help our young learners develop crucial skills but will also ignite their passion for science and technology, setting them on a path toward a bright future in an increasingly digital world."

Moira Marder, CEO of the Ted Wragg Trust said: "STEM education is at the heart of developing critical thinking skills in children, and this brilliant grant will allow Exwick Heights to provide the tools and resources that will inspire and engage even the youngest learners.”