Orange County students, including those in Irvine, are invited to attend STEAM Race to Space Day on September 19 at the OCDE Conference Center. This free event will feature educator-astronaut Aymette Medina Jorge and hands-on STEAM activities, marking the beginning of the annual STEAM Race to Space Reading Challenge.
Medina Jorge, an award-winning educator who traveled to space with Blue Origin, will deliver an interactive presentation. She will discuss STEM, her journey to space, and her experience as the first K-12 educator of Hispanic descent to travel to space aboard a commercial vehicle. Medina Jorge will give one presentation in Spanish, followed by a second in English. The event will also feature a performance by “Las Estrellas de Anaheim,” a student mariachi group from the Anaheim Elementary School District, prior to the Spanish-language presentation.
The STEAM Race to Space Day is hosted by Anaheim Elementary School District Superintendent Jesus Chavarria and OCDE Chief of Staff Dennis Cole. The event aims to prepare and encourage young learners for the reading challenge and highlight career pathways in STEM fields.
The reading challenge itself, presented by Timeless Learning Inc. in partnership with the Orange County Department of Education, is set to run from September 25 through October 16. Students from transitional kindergarten through 12th grade can participate by creating an account on the Beanstack app and tracking their reading progress. Once a base goal, ranging from 150 to 210 minutes of reading, is met, students can continue to earn virtual tickets.
These virtual tickets can be redeemed for bonus prizes, including digital badges, model rocket launch sets, and various educational opportunities. Such experiences include a visit to Garner Holt Productions in Redlands, where students can observe the creation of animatronics for venues like Disneyland, and educational tours at the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which provides a behind-the-scenes look at water treatment and supply to nearly 19 million people across six counties.
This year’s challenge will feature authors such as New York Times-bestselling author Abigail Hing Wen, known for “The Vale,” and Orange County resident Lori Polydoros, an English teacher at Santa Ana’s Godinez Fundamental High School, author of “Quake Chasers: 15 Women Rocking Earthquake Science.” These recommended books aim to help students learn new concepts while engaging their imaginations.
The initiative also seeks to expose students to fields that extend beyond the classroom. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that STEM occupations will grow more than twice as fast as non-STEM occupations through 2035. Last year, approximately 1,900 students participated in the Reading Challenge. Organizers hope to engage 2,026 young learners this year.
Pat Burns, the reading challenge founder and CEO, stated that the program aims for students to discover that “reading can take them far beyond the pages of a book.” Burns added that it can spark curiosity, introduce new ideas and careers, and help students envision their future possibilities. Space for the September 19 STEAM Race to Space Day is limited, and families interested in attending are encouraged to register promptly. Families and educators seeking updates on the STEAM Reading Challenge can sign up for notifications through the challenge website, where registration for the challenge is currently open.