Not every child living in poverty has the ability or imagination
to envision a better future. All they need is an opportunity.
BRIEF’s Hands-on Technology Learning Programs
are the opportunity for these kids to thrive
in our technology-driven world.
The Opportunity.
Kids living in poverty are raised in an environment where learning and growth or social mobility is beyond their grasp. We realize these kids face unique challenges to succeed in school and often do not have the opportunity to navigate a path to a successful career. BRIEF helps these kids learn to think about what is possible. When they learn they have a choice about their future, their thinking changes from “how can I survive” to “what can I achieve in the future”.
BRIEF changes their thinking by expanding their education through hands-on technology learning. Kids learn to turn obstacles into opportunities and to think about what is possible. Through our classes, kids begin to have hope and begin to navigate a path to a successful career. The benefits of learning technology skills show long before they enter the workplace. They become more ready to learn academically, having their imagination sparked and building their confidence. We teach kids how and why it is worthwhile to keep their mind set on a goal and reinforce that giving up when faced with a challenge is not ideal. Kids’ mindsets are transformed – to one where they can thrive in our community and beyond.
Our Classes
We provide hands-on technology learning opportunities to kids in K-12th grade. Each class is designed to identify, develop, and enhance each participant’s talents and skills, based on the age group. We have four classes each with its own goal and technology curriculum:
First Lego Robotics Class:
Students PreK thru 4th Grade
BRIEF’s robotics program is based on FIRST Robotics (https://www.firstinspires.org/). BRIEF utilizes the FIRST Robotics equipment and curriculum. Robotics provides an opportunity to give students insight to mechanical engineering, computer science, electrical engineering, architecture/design, process automation and project planning.
The goal of this program is to identify the skill(s) God has given each kid to start them on their journey toward a rewarding career. Students learn the basics of STEM and apply their skills while building new learning habits, confidence, and teamwork. In 2022, FIRST SC nominated BRIEF for the STEM Equity Community Innovation Award for our impact to the underserved community.
Hands-On Science Lab:
Students 5th thru 8th grade
BRIEF’s Hands-on Science Lab provides an opportunity to unlock a child’s innovative spirit. Our curriculum is based on STEM experiments that are fun and challenging for the students. These experiments include aspects of Chemistry, Physics, Biology, and Mathematics.
The goal of this program is to help kids learn about science via hands-on experiments. Using creative problem-solving activities, they learn collaboration, teamwork, critical thinking and communication skills.
Basics of Computer Science and AI:
Students 9th thru 12th grade
BRIEF’s Basics of Computer Science and AI program utilizes the Raspberry PI 4 Desktop environment. This hardware environment was chosen to provide teens with the opportunity to develop their basic computer usage skills while also developing their programming skills on the Raspberry PI which is a fundamental element of most smart devices and core to many computer science and AI careers.
The goal of this program is to introduce students to the concepts of computer programming through lectures and hands-on exercises. Lectures explore how Computer Science and AI are used in such fields as robotics, self-driving cars, video games, healthcare, fashion, sports and entertainment. Hands-on exercises will focus on the basics of coding in Python and Java Script and gaining an understanding of computer algorithms.
