On February 28, 42 Lick-Wilmerding students took to the West Portal Elementary School (WPES) campus to host the annual Maker Playground, marking a special milestone: the 15th year of this beloved community STEAM enrichment event.

Demonstrating their dedication to community service and academic passion, our students spent months researching and planning engaging activities for over 250 local K-5 families. Their hard work added an extra spark of excitement to the WPES campus, as attendees explored a wide array of hands-on discovery activities. West Portal students enjoyed things like:

• Biology: Extracting DNA from strawberries.
• Engineering: Building structures designed to withstand earthquake simulations.
• Chemistry: Observing the wonder of endo and exothermic reactions.
• Upcycling: Crafting custom bags from recycled denim.
• Aerodynamics: Competing in high-flying paper airplane contests.

For some Tigers, the event was a homecoming. Hayden A. '26, an LWHS senior and proud graduate of West Portal Elementary, noted that the magic of the day lies in its student-led discovery:

"What I love most about Maker Playground is that you don't need to convince the kids to learn science. The way it's structured makes it so that they can explore the campus for themselves and look for what they are most interested in, which makes the learning much more engaging for them. The amount of options they have gives them the opportunity to find their interests and passions, which they may want to explore further later on in life."

Beyond the science and technical skills, the event highlighted the heart of the LWHS community. Reflecting on the impact of the program, math teacher Yetta Allen shared:

"I value the partnership we've built with WPES over the last 2 decades. Time and time again, our students show up exemplifying what is so special about an LWHS education. Our students serve by sharing their passions with the world and treating others with compassion and respect."

The success of the day was a true team effort. We are especially grateful to Ms. Allen and science teacher Richard Gibson, for leading and chaperoning the day. A big shout-out also goes to the facilities team—Jorge Garcia, Antonio Chin, and Gerald Washington—for their invaluable help in gathering supplies; to Tech Arts teachers Lizzy Brooks and Laurel Nathanson for gearing us up for the sewing activity; to Christine Sebastian for coordinating the refreshments; and to Ravi Lau and the Center for their continued support of our longstanding partnership with West Portal Elementary.

Congratulations to our Tigers for another successful year of bringing STEAM to life for the next generation!