Inside the Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit near Milton, a lot of thinking and hands-on design work is taking place. Students from different elementary and middle schools from around the area are participating in the annual K’Nex Design Challenge. Dr. Colleen Epler-Ruths, an educational consultant at CSIU, says this has been going on for many years, and it started out because engineering is such an important part of the modern world.

“This gives opportunity for teachers to help students create and engineer a project, and it encompasses all of the things that we want in 21st-century skills, including collaboration, design process, learning from failure,” said Dr. Epler-Ruths, CSIU educational consultant.

The students work in teams to design and build their creations.  Epler-Ruths says the challenge focuses on the critical themes of industry, innovation, and infrastructure. Students are tasked with designing and building a prototype using K’Nex that addresses real-world problems related to infrastructure, transportation, or urban development. Students say there is a lot of preparation before getting to design.

“When we were building, we were very stressed because our motor would not turn, but we managed to correct it just in time,” said Gabriel Dunkelberger, Middleburg Elementary School 5th Grader.

Students had two hours to complete the challenge. Epler-Ruths says it’s important to get kids interested in STEM at a young age. “The other piece is the Sustainable Development Goals from the United Nations, and it gives them a view of what the leaders of the world right now want to do to make this planet a sustainable place for us to live for generations.”

After the timer goes off, the designs are judged, and a winner is chosen.

“It’s kind of really cool to be here, and it’s really fun through the whole process to see how much this has changed,” said Hanna Keister. Middleburg Elementary School 5th Grader.

“I was nervous, but it was also really cool. We hit a few bumps in the road, but we were able to pull it together,” said Stella Shawver, Middleburg Elementary School 5th Grader.

The winning teams from Midd-West and Central Columbia School District will take on the other regional winners at the state K’Nex Competition in Harrisburg.