Invent It! Academy - Biomimicry

Invent It! Academy is an after-school STEM club based in Charlton Kings. Sessions combine science, engineering, coding and hands-on invention, giving children the chance to experiment, solve problems and discover how things work.

Invent It! Academy, Charlton Kings

• Day: Mondays and Tuesdays during term time

• Time: 3.45pm to 5pm

• Location: Art-K, 10 Church Street, Charlton Kings, Cheltenham

• Suitable for: Children ages 8 to 12 years old.

• Book: Invent It! Academy website

• Email: brains@invent-it.co.uk

Got a child who loves taking things apart to see how they work? Invent It! Academy gives curious young minds the chance to put that enthusiasm to good use.

Each 75-minute session starts with a problem-solving warm-up before introducing a scientific idea and getting stuck into the practical side. Children might be designing, building, coding, testing or fixing their inventions, learning the science behind what they're making along the way.

Topics featured on the Academy programme include sound, light, magnets and robotics, with activities designed to encourage creativity, critical thinking and problem-solving.

Sessions are led by engineer and Invent It! founder Rich Gray, supported by the Invent It! team, with a maximum adult-to-child ratio of 1:8. All materials are provided, so there's no need to bring a box of mysterious wires and half-dismantled gadgets from home.

Autumn Term: Build a Robot Woodlouse!

Ever wondered how a humble woodlouse moves, senses its surroundings and survives in its environment?

In this hands-on STEM challenge, we’ll take a closer look at the amazing world of the woodlouse and discover how nature has solved some clever engineering problems.

Then it’s time to become inventors! Using biomimicry, we’ll take inspiration from the woodlouse to design and build our very own fully functioning robot woodlouse.

🔍 Explore nature
⚙️ Discover engineering
💡 Learn about biomimicry
🤖 Build, test and improve your robot

Can you turn one of nature’s simplest creatures into an ingenious robot?