Fun with Fan Cars

Fun with Fan Cars
A corporate-sponsored STEM lesson with a need for speed.
By Hayley Walker, Marketing & Development Coordinator

What do you get when you combine STEM education, a bunch of curious kids, and a group of start-up founders? A motorized fan car workshop, of course!

In January, R.O.C.K. partnered with Resolute Ventures to dream up a one-of-a-kind activity for the students at El Dorado Elementary School. Caroline Talley, Director of Founder and Network Development at Resolute Ventures, worked with the R.O.C.K. team to create a unique, engaging volunteer experience for the founders of numerous companies backed by Resolute.

With input, creativity, and resources provided by the Resolute team, R.O.C.K. was able to create “fan car kits” for over 120 students. Each kit included a hobby motor, fan, wheels, axels, and the rest of the fixings to make sure these cars were ready to hit the road.

Our volunteers were exceptional when it came to working with students. Who better to lead this STEM activity than a bunch of bright, innovative company founders? Students had fun picking out their fan colors and car bodies, and the Resolute team did a great job of helping them perfect their models.

Volunteers then helped students as they carefully attached wires to prongs and switches. Every child’s face lit up as they observed the circuit carrying electricity from the battery to the motor, powering the fans and making the cars go.

Once completed, students and their volunteer partners had the opportunity to test their new creations. Kids raced their friends on the table-top track tracks, perfected their course as they maintained a straight path between mini cones, and plowed into towers of foam blocks to prove their strength.

After a long day of building fan cars and testing their capabilities on the obstacle courses, our R.O.C.K.ers were hungry! Thanks to the support of Resolute, our students enjoyed a post-activity pizza party. With full bellies and happy faces, our students were excited to head home with their new fan cars and see what other race courses they might discover outside of the cafeteria.

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Organizing your next team volunteering event? We can help! Reach out to hayley@rocksf.org to start planning your very own custom volunteer activity.