The Mobile Learning Lab kept the pedal to the metal in the community this summer providing WiFi and enrichment programming across a number sites new and old! The team traveled to four sites in South and West Dallas. We continue to love to serve and learn how to remain agile to evolve our programming to provide the highest impact to students as we celebrated our one-year anniversary in June! The Mobile Learning Lab team provided two main services, a curated STEAM curriculum delivered by community partners and access to wifi and technology like laptops and tablets. Thanks to our community partners, Parker Autism Center, Visionary Vibes and instruction by DIA staff members, we were able to provide enrichment activities, digital access, wifi, homework assistance and STEAM programming to a total of 264 students between the ages of 5 and 14 over a five week period. The Mobile Learning Lab served four sites for five weeks, providing 300 feet of internet access and extra supplemental educational materials on the bus.
On Mondays, we partnered with the Frazier Revitalization Center summer camp, and served 94 students by providing an interactive drone curriculum where students used DIA laptops and wifi to practice flying drones on a simulator and then got to practice their skills in real life with mini drones. The children learned about different careers in aviation, drone technology and engineering. They children saw the drones as much more than toys and worked hard to practice steering the drones through obstacle courses - even how to land on ‘helipads’ on the roof of buildings of a model city they built together.
On Tuesdays the Mobile Learning Lab traveled to TR Hoover’s summer program where the kids got to get in touch with their creative sides with different forms of self expression like painting, tie dye, planting and mindfulness! In total, we served 124 children between June 29th and August 2nd at this site alone. Visionary Vibes partnered with us to provide the creative arts and mindfulness curriculum to the students. They walked away with new skills, new self-regulating tools and hopefully, a lifelong love of art.
This summer, through the support of the Santander Consumer USA Foundation, we were able to cultivate a new relationship with the Joppa neighborhood in South Dallas. Every Wednesday, we traveled to South Central Park, the heart of their community, and partnered with Parker Autism Center to provide interactive social and emotional skills for 46 children from July 7th- August 4th. We ended the summer with a Back to School Bash for the Joppa Neighborhood where nearly 100 community members and families got to enjoy a delicious lunch from In-N-Out, popsicles from Frios, snow cones from Kona Ice, a waterslide, bounce house, fresh food from UNT-Dallas’ Mobile Market, and receive free school supplies! We are so grateful to the South Central Civic League and all of our partners, without whom, none of this would be possible. Many of the parents remarked that this was the first time their children had been able to enjoy something like this. We are so honored to have been able to provide that experience.
We learned a lot at another new ‘bus stop’ with the West Dallas Multipurpose Center. This is a great City of Dallas community resource, and due to the ever changing COVID guidelines and city facilities continuing to be closed off in the months leading into summer programming, families did not realize that the center was hosting programs during the summer. Our team enjoyed serving the local children that joined us, and we are looking forward to continuing a relationship with the folks at West Dallas Multipurpose Center with new learnings in our tool belt!
Thank you to our Summer Partners who make our work possible!