RENSSELAER, N.Y. â The Rensselaer Center for Economic Opportunity (CEO) held a ribbon-cutting at its Family Resource Center (FRC) recently to celebrate the opening of the FRC s new STEM-inspired playground.
STEM stands for education in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and math. It is a current hot topic in the education industry as more and more educational leaders call for increased emphasis on teaching STEM curricula.
The new playground at the Rensselaer FRC has many structures that are designed to inspire opportunities of STEM thinking and learning for the children that attend the daycare there. On the preschool side of the playground is a climbing structure that looks like a rocket ship, a pretend car that looks like the Mars Rover, a music station, and a structure with gears and other manipulatives that demonstrates cause and effect. On the toddler side of the playground is another cause-and-effect structure and a kitchen play center.