Engineer Your Vision's Summer Workshop Program Thrives

This week comes to close the Engineer Your Vision Summer Workshop Program. This year, the EYV team were able to hold workshops in over half a dozen primary schools ranging from areas across London. Students received a basic education on the fundamental principles of engineering, analysing case studies in modern day and reflecting upon them, before moving onto a fun, hands-on initiative:

At Heber Primary School and Westbridge Academy, workshops focused on boat-building concepts. Students were guided through very basic ideas related to buoyancy, stability, and materials before designing and constructing their own scaled boats. These sessions sparked enthusiasm and curiosity, with students actively testing their designs, making adjustments, and discussing why certain designs performed better than others. The hands-on nature of the workshops helped translate abstract ideas into tangible understanding.

Students at Angel Oak Academy were introduced to the classic spaghetti bridge workshop. Having started with an 'Introduction to Engineering' presentation students moved onto working in small groups and exploring the difficulties of civil and structural engineering through making bridges out of uncooked spaghetti. A fun way of learning about loads, forces and structural strengths also presented them an opportunity to learn how to work in teams and collaborate- two key features of being an engineer!

Across all sessions, the response from students was overwhelmingly positive. Many were eager to ask questions, share ideas, and proudly demonstrate their designs. The workshops created an environment where students felt confident experimenting, collaborating, and thinking like engineers, often for the first time. Seeing students engage so enthusiastically reinforced our belief in the importance of early exposure to engineering concepts.

We are incredibly grateful to the schools involved for welcoming us into their classrooms and for the thoughtful feedback and kind testimonials they were willing to share, some of which can be found below. Their support played a key role in making the summer workshop programme such a success and will help shape how we develop future sessions.

Angel Oak Academy: 'Our year 6 pupils enjoyed the talk and workshop immensely, and they continued to talk about engineering after the workshop. Thank you inspiring their young minds, sparking an early interest in engineering.'

Westbridge Academy: 'The pupils had a fantastic time. Working collaboratively on such engaging projects created lasting memories. It was wonderful to see all the children fully involved, problem-solving, and enjoying themselves. Several even asked when the next lesson would be– which speaks volumes. We’re truly grateful for the opportunity to take part in the workshop.'

The success of this programme has strengthened our commitment to continuing this work and expanding our outreach, ensuring that more students have the opportunity to explore engineering in a practical, enjoyable, and meaningful way.