Young Minds Bring Health, Wellness Innovation to NJIT's eSTEM Challenge

The excitement was palpable at NJIT's fourth annual Elementary STEM Challenge (eSTEM) - an event that recently brought scores of 3rd-5th grade students to campus to show off tech innovations they've been designing for weeks to enhance health and wellness in their communities.

There was plenty of friendly competition at this year's event, organized by NJIT's Center for Pre-College Programs (CPCP) and Newark College of Engineering. More than 150 students from 28 teams presented at the university Campus Center, nearly doubling participation from last year.

"We were so excited to have doubled the number of participating teams for our fourth year of running the eSTEM Challenge," said Chayanne A. Tilton, CPCP's Coordinator for Student Programs, Engagement and Outreach, who has watched the event grow as one of its lead organizers over the past several years. "I think the increased interest speaks for itself … schools hear about our challenge through word of mouth and promotion, and they want their students to participate because they know we'll provide a challenge that pushes the envelope every time."

While competition rules mandated every teams' prototypes feature 3D printed parts and a pocket-sized Micro:bit with light, temperature and motion sensors, there was no shortage of variety and imagination on show.

Designs lining the campus center's ballroom area included water bottle accessories that alert users about daily water intake and measure for pH balance, to wearables and other devices that track users' mood, sleep, sunlight exposure, fitness activity, posture and more.

Above:Teams fine-tuned their inventions over six weeks leading up to their trip to NJIT, collecting data throughout their prototype testing which they used to further demonstrate their designs' effectiveness to judges.

Emerging victorious was Garfield Board of Education School #7, also known as "Team In-Sink", which landed first prize for their portable handwashing machine with water-saving features that include a 3D-printed funnel designed with Tinkercad.

"This awesome experience was a first for our school. … It was a big deal for us," said Ernet, a fifth grader from Garfield Board of Education School #7.

"Winning first prize made us feel proud and accomplished!" added Victoria, a fellow fifth grader and Team In-Sink member. "This experience taught us that when we work together and put our minds to something, we can achieve great things."

"As a computer science teacher participating for the first time in the eSTEM Challenge, it was an incredible experience for me," said Victoria Guido, who co-advised the team along with Alexandra Talsma. "Seeing my students dive into real-world engineering problems and collaborate to find innovative solutions was truly remarkable. Witnessing their creativity and determination through the challenge also reinforced my passion for teaching and mentoring future generations of STEM leaders."

Second prize went to "DGTA Smarties" of Deanna G. Taylor Academy, with "Team Redhawks" of Pace Charter School of Hamilton taking third prize in the competition's best overall design category.

"I felt positive that our group worked so hard, and we were capable of winning a category at the competition," said David, a Pace Charter School of Hamilton team member. "What excited me most was seeing all the projects and the different ideas that solved the challenge."

While the competition took central focus on the day, the event also gave visiting students an opportunity to take tours of NJIT's Makerspace, where they were encouraged to continue innovating using the engineering design process by members of university clubs such as the Robotics Club, Prosthetics Club and Flylanders, among others.

"This is our school's third eStem Challenge. The makerspace was a big hit with the students this year," said Meredith Harrison, adviser for Pace Charter School of Hamilton. "All the Makerspace gadgets, the woodshop area with the laser printers and the models of the airplanes that the NJIT Flylanders showed us really impressed us as a group."

For the grand prize winners, the experience has sparked enthusiasm for a return to NJIT to put their creativity to the test, no matter what next year's competition has in store.

"We were super inspired by all the amazing things we saw in the Makerspace as well as all the great projects," said Kaylee, a fifth grader from Garfield. "As a team, we feel like we could create anything we put our mind to now. Our school definitely would like to participate again next year because it was so much fun, and we learned a ton."

For the 2024 eSTEM Challenge's full list of winners, visit here.

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