Sedalia Park Elementary students recently applied their STEM education to support a former teacher who lost her home in a fire. The effort was initiated after Lindsey Daniel, a teacher at the school, experienced significant loss due to the incident.
“I was amazed at how such a large county became such a close-knit community for my family following the fire,” said Daniel. “These students truly embody what Mr. D [Sedalia Park Principal William Dryden] always reminds us: ‘Do the next right thing, even when no one is looking.'”
The students used skills learned in their STEM classes to design and construct a mobile lemonade stand as part of their fundraising activities. They managed all aspects of the project, from planning and engineering to marketing.
“They showed both compassion and dedication to a subject they truly care about. They identified a real-world problem and worked to design a solution. They practiced critical thinking and problem-solving as they worked through their ideas, using the resources available to them in innovative ways. I’m not sure how many different designs they created, but they demonstrated perseverance and spent the last few days of their summer working hard to raise money for our family,” Ms. Daniel said proudly.
Aris Sneed, Lina Sneed, and Joel Hymes—students at Sedalia Park—led the initiative. Two of them were previously in Ms. Daniel’s second-grade class. Despite Daniel’s transfer to Tritt Elementary School this year, these students decided to assist her by applying lessons from their STEM curriculum to address an immediate need within their community.
They independently designed and built the lemonade stand without parental assistance and operated it throughout their neighborhood, including challenging locations like hills near local pools. Their efforts resulted in nearly $500 raised through lemonade sales.
According to school staff, this project reflects values promoted at Sedalia Park such as community involvement, kindness, and leadership among students.
“Their actions were not motivated by a desire for recognition, but rather by their love for learning and their compassion for a teacher. The Sedalia Park community is beautifully diverse, and it is this diversity that creates a strong, supportive family and fosters unique and meaningful learning opportunities,” Ms. Lindsey concluded.
