Fifth graders get a taste of higher education
By Terry Murry on Wednesday, April 26th, 2023 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
PENDLETON – All fifth grade students from the Pendleton School District got to see what’s behind the doors at Blue Mountain Community College last week. The students participated in a variety of activities going from one station to another during the 40-minute visit.
In addition to a tour of the athletic spaces in the basement of the McRae Activity Center, groups also learned about math and science and enjoyed activities at the BMCC Library.
At the math station, students used Scratch, which is a programming environment involving dragging and dropping blocks on a grid. Scratch is used in BMCC’s introduction to programming course.
“This program is good for kids to get an idea of what programming is,” Instructor Gary Parker said.
The field trips are a collaboration between the district and the college, to introduce young people to BMCC and allow them to explore it.
“We want our students to go and see the community college right here in their own community and get it on their radar as an option for higher education,” Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment Matt Yoshioka said.
Pendleton’s eighth grade students will visit BMCC in May.
