Rise and Shine Kindergarten’s Orbit STEM hub
Orbit hub from Rise & Shine Kindergarten™ shaping the future of STEM from the early years.
The exciting Orbit hub is a pioneering STEM hub located in Sydney’s inner west.
When asked to share the inspiration behind the space, Rise & Shine Kindergarten™ explained that the concept of the Orbit hub was inspired by the Smart Start element in their Shine Advantage™ curriculum. Smart Start focuses on the cognitive development of children through fun and interactive learning experiences which revolve around early literacy and numeracy, STEM and problem-solving.
Research supported by the National Science Foundation concludes that young children benefit from learning STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) because these disciplines play a fundamental role in setting the foundations for future learning.
“Inquiry-based STEM education in the early years is a collaborative process, which encourages children to raise questions and explore their interests. In a playful way, children are familiarised with scientific processes and learn to think scientifically. Early STEM education does not teach facts but ignites children’s inquisitive minds,” Jennifer Weston, Head of Operations, Rise & Shine Education explains.
“In addition to the learning benefits of this unique space, we also reflected during the recent lockdowns how much children were missing out with inspiring spaces such as science centres and museums closed so we created our own space that combines all the amazing experiences from such places and is safely accessible for children enrolled in Rise & Shine Kindergarten centres at all times,” Ms Weston added.
Since the space opened in November 2021, children from Rise & Shine Kindergarten services have been travelling to Orbit regularly via Rise & Shine Kindergarten’s private bus and have been excited and inspired by their visits. Some of the children share their thoughts on the hub:
“Orbit is like a museum. I really want to go again,” Isabella, 5-years-old.
“I love the sand. We can change the world,” Leon, 4-years-old.
“I love the construction, the Lego table, the lizard, there’s dinosaurs we can play with. When I go there I feel really good and happy,” Joshua, 5-years-old.
“ I really like the draw table. I like it when I draw a dinosaur and it hatches alive on the TV’,’ Hannah, 5-years-old.
Orbit is not only exciting for the children at Rise & Shine, but it also opens up new opportunities for crew unlike anything else in the industry. To equip educators with the STEM knowledge and tools to utilise Orbit, Rise & Shine have partnered with Little Scientists who will deliver STEM specific professional development.
“At Little Scientists, we are very excited about collaborating closely and long term with all the educators, educational leaders and centre directors across all Rise and Shine services – supporting them to spot the STEM in the everyday and flexing their STEM muscles. When that learning is combined with state-of-the-art learning facilities such as Orbit it’s a delight, and many generations of children will benefit from this investment in both the educator’s and children’s future,” Sibylle Siedler, Project Director, Little Scientists said.
“We have big plans for Orbit in 2022 and beyond,” Managing Director Edward Zaki explained.
“We also plan to offer free STEM professional development opportunities from Orbit for educators and will open Orbit for tours for any educators who may be interested in viewing the space and will be open to the public throughout the year for open days and an official launch event,” Mr Zaki shares.
For more information, or to keep up to date with the latest Orbit events in 2022 follow Rise & Shine Kindergarten on their Facebook page here.
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