An 11-year-old student watched anxiously as a small four-wheeled robot, grasping a wooden block, rolled toward a milk crate. The robot had been programmed to place the block inside the crate, but stopped just short and dropped it on the floor.

“No,” groaned Michael Lebo. “It didn’t work.”

Lebo was participating in a robotics class at Janitell Junior High School in Fountain. The brief, intensive course taught students to build a robot from scratch and program it to obey coded commands, all in the space of four days.

The course is just one of dozens of classes taught at Widefield School District 3’s new Summer Engagement Academy, an enrichment-based program designed to help combat the learning loss many students suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic and get kids excited about returning to the classroom.

“It’s an opportunity for kids to reengage in a fun way,” said district spokeswoman Samantha Briggs.

The summer initiative offered more than 30 courses, most of which were less than a week long. Students were able to engage in a wide variety of disciplines including singing, painting, cooking, construction, squid dissection and, of course, robotics.

Janitell teachers Vannessa Moses and Curtis Esch helmed the robotics course, with Esch covering the mechanics of robot building while Moses taught youngsters how to code.

“Kids love the idea of building, and being able to program,” Moses said. “They think it’s exciting.”

Esch said the benefits of the course should extend beyond the classroom as kids build confidence in their newfound mechanical and technological skills.

“It gives you a real sense of accomplishment when you can build something with your hands, and make it work,” Esch said.

Moses said the students were learning critical thinking and problem-solving skills that should serve them well when they advance to high school, college and the world. She added that the students’ mistakes and setbacks can be just as instructive as their successes.

“That’s a good thing for them to see, because that’s what happens in real life,” Moses said. “If something doesn’t work properly, you figure out what went wrong, and fix it.”

Esch said he was heartened by the level of engagement he saw in the class, and by students like Lebo, who refused to give up on his project before he got it right.

“I love that these kids are showing up every day, and working hard, because this is not an easy class,” he said. “It shows me that kids are ready to get back in the classroom and learn face to face. That really pleases me.”

After performing a couple of minor calculations and adjusting his code, Lebo repositioned his robot, pressed the “on” button and stood back to watch. The robot grasped the wood block, backed up about 6 feet, turned, approached the milk crate and softly dropped the block inside.

“Yes!” Lebo said, and pumped his fist.