It’s not every day that our local youth get to blow things up, dissect a heart, or engineer robots to battle in a ring.
The 11th annual Inspire Festival, run by charitable trust Ministry of Inspiration, was held last week in venues in Brightwater and Nelson. Almost 650 children attended the two-day event from around the Top of the South.
The 40-odd workshops were all based on the principles of STEAMS education – that is, teaching the theory and practical skills involved with science, technology, engineering, arts, maths, and society.
Organiser Cat Cornelisen says that the event “exposes kids to a variety of ideas and workshops that they have never been exposed to before”.
The Inspire Festival is always popular, with “a bazillion registrations” coming through in the first 10 minutes of opening.
The Ministry of Inspiration also offers holiday programmes, as well as weekly STEAMS school classes, held in Nelson, Brightwater and Blenheim, with about 110 regular students and space for more.
