A little over a year ago, three Brighton area students — Josephine Morley, Chelsea Weber, and Ashlyn Wood — approached the Brighton District Library about collaborating on a project that would benefit the Youth Services Department. They were scouts from troop 40545 and were eagerly looking for the perfect project to work on to secure their Silver Award, the highest recognition received as a Girl Scout Cadette. They also wanted to do something to give back to their community. It was decided that they would add content to the Youth Department’s newly established STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) Center.
“We were eager to help the girls in their endeavor, plus adding materials toward our newly created STEAM Center was beneficial for the department,” said Carla Sharp, head of the youth department. “Working with local youth who are patrons of the library was a win for both the library and the girls who were pursuing their goals.”
Under the direction of Sharp and Youth Librarian Stephanie Williams, the scouts spent 11 months and 50 hours each prototyping and building two new STEAM kits. Now completed, one kit is based on art, which allows kids to get imaginative by creating their own comic book. The other is a car kit where kids can explore the concepts of weight, movement, and speed.
The three decided to choose a project involving STEAM because all have been impacted by the program in positive ways. They visit the library frequently, so it was a natural choice for them work with it, while also giving back.
These unique kits will be housed in the children’s STEAM Center, and will be available for active use and enjoyment once the Library is open for hands on programming.
