New Taipei City’s Education Bureau introduces free weekend parent-child STEAM workshops this autumn, aiming to deepen family involvement in hands-on interdisciplinary learning and boost confidence among young girls in science and technology.
New Taipei City’s Education Bureau is rolling out a series of weekend parent-child STEAM classes this autumn, aiming to turn family time into hands-on learning. Working with the Lin Bo-shou Cultural and Educational Foundation and four schools, the bureau has lined up five free interdisciplinary sessions between October and November, with each class limited to 15 parent-child pairs. Online registration opens on Thursday, and details are being shared through the New Taipei STEAM Alliance Facebook page. According to the bureau, the programme is designed to encourage parents to join children as “learning teammates”, rather than simply watching from the sidelines.
The first session is set for 18 October at Guangrong Junior High School and will be a women-focused event, inviting girls and their parents to use woodworking tools and make a Japanese-style atmosphere lamp. The bureau says the aim is to give girls a direct, confidence-building introduction to science, technology and engineering through making something tangible. It is part of a wider effort to show that STEAM, which combines science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics, begins with observation and curiosity before moving into discussion, experimentation and problem-solving.
Other workshops will be hosted by schools across the city and mix practical making with local culture. Ziqiang Elementary School will run two sessions: one called “Wing Together to Find Balance”, which introduces the idea of a centre of gravity through the making of a balancing bird, and another that combines traditional temple architecture with a floating lantern project. Chang’an Elementary School will offer “Magical Alchemy”, using plant materials in a science-based activity, while Fengming Elementary School’s woodworking toy session will link design, craftsmanship and everyday life. The city says the varied themes are meant to show children that science is not confined to a textbook, but can be found in buildings, objects and cultural traditions around them.
The new academy builds on New Taipei’s longer-running push into STEAM education. The bureau says that since it established what it describes as the nation’s first STEAM Alliance headquarters and support team in 2019, the city has trained more than 230 seed teachers, supported 82 cross-disciplinary communities and developed hundreds of innovative lesson plans. It also says the parent-child weekend academy has already served more than 250 families. That expansion follows earlier city events such as the 2023 AI in STEAM parent-child co-creation carnival, which drew more than 500 parents and children to Sihsien Elementary School and underscored the local government’s focus on practical, family-based learning.
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