As part of its continued effort towards helping the Sultanate build a knowledge economy, Khimji Ramdas (KR) Eshraqa Stemazone recently organised a Qaranqasho-themed edutainment event for children at the Al Araimi Boulevard.
Held over a three-day period, Stemazone representatives welcomed children, as well as their parents and teachers, to the event, which was abuzz with various STEAM activities and workshops. The event was organised with the aim to reach more children and introduce them to the spectacular world of Stemazone, especially its online learning management system (LMS) platform “e-stemazone”.
Stemazone’s representatives conducted several interactive workshops for groups of 15 children, every 15 minutes at three learning stations during the course of the event. This included various STEAM-related experiments: Lava Lamp (Science and Technology), Electronics - Buzzer sensors (Coding), Green screen (Technology and Art), and Ice-cream (Science and Engineering). Giveaways and information leaflets were also distributed to the participating children, as well as parents and teachers.
Nailesh Khimji, Director, Khimji Ramdas Group said: “In line with Oman’s Vision 2040, Stemazone aspires to build a generation of scientific thinkers and problem solvers that excel in their future careers. Through events like Qaranqasho, we aim to provide convenient access to activities and information surrounding Steamazone to Omanis residing in different parts of the Sultanate and encourage them to enroll their kids in the program. As a community-focused educational initiative, our aim is to equip students with the required skills to be future-ready for the job market.”
Discussing the significance of the event in inspiring the youth to explore and learn future skills, Mahmood Khalifa Al Saqri, Social Responsibility Manager – Eshraqa, Khimji Ramdas Group mentioned: “Qaranqasho is observed on the fourteenth night of the holy month of Ramadan, and was an opportunity for us at Eshraqa Stemazone to engage with the local community and introduce them to our workshops which offer an ideal platform for children to understand the analytics of problem-solving, collaborating, testing ideas, and creating inspirational work.”
Established by Eshraqa, the Corporate Social Responsibility arm of Khimji Ramdas, Stemazone is a sustainable educational program that has been conceptualised in partnership with the Ministry of Education (MoE) and the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Youth (MOCSY) to introduce Omani children to the remarkable world of science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM).
Stemazone offers a hybrid learning experience through a center located at the Children’s Museum and a state-of-the-art online learning system available at www.stemazoneoman.om. Both experiences offer engaging and interactive sessions of creativity for kids. The programs are designed in a manner such that they focus on developing children’s skills and knowledge in coding, electronics, 3D design, IoT, smart cities, and design thinking. The sessions also aim at building confidence, teaching public speaking, and imbibing leadership, teamwork, and collaboration skills.
Eshraqa works towards nation-building at the grassroots and aspires to contribute to the education sector by building infrastructure that will lead to the enhancement of knowledge, skills, and capabilities.