Ideas to Impact: Student Project Showcase Highlights Student Innovation and Confidence

On May 9, 2026, students from Nanan STEM Academy Inc. gathered at the Saskatchewan Science Centre for the Ideas to Impact: Student Project Showcase. The event brought together families, educators, industry partners, and members of the public to celebrate student achievement through hands-on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education.

The showcase serves two important purposes at Nanan Academy. First, it provides students with an opportunity to demonstrate their progress to parents and the public as part of a cumulative assessment held twice per year. Second, it supports the development of communication and presentation skills. As part of the academy’s curriculum, students build confidence in public speaking by presenting their projects.

“Learning For Every Stage of Life” reflects Nanan Academy’s commitment to providing hands-on STEM and entrepreneurship education that supports learners from youth to adulthood. Through long-term learning pathways, the academy helps students develop confidence, creativity, and real-world problem-solving abilities that prepare them for post-secondary education, meaningful careers, and lifelong success.

Students from Moose Jaw, Regina, Cowessess First Nation, Piapot First Nation, and Mother Teresa Middle School showcased a wide range of projects. Featured demonstrations included PC games developed using Scratch and the Godot Game Engine, as well as robotics involving autonomous and remote-controlled technologies.

Visitors also participated in an interactive activity where they learned to program the Edison educational robot to navigate through a maze.

Gratitude goes to the academy’s partners for helping make the event possible, including Holy Trinity Catholic School Division, Saskatchewan Science Centre, Mother Teresa Middle School, Enbridge, and K+S Potash Canada.

Game Development and Creative Storytelling

Students in the beginner coding course used Scratch, the graphical programming platform to create interactive games. Using drag-and-drop programming blocks, elementary school students learned foundational coding concepts while developing computational thinking.

Middle school to high school students showcased projects created with the Godot game engine, a popular platform used by indie developers and frequently seen in Global Game Jam events. Students created 2D platformer games inspired by classic side-scrolling action games. Following completion of the 2D curriculum, students will continue advancing into 3D game development.

Nanan Academy instructor Thayne Winder, who teaches the Game Development course using Godot, shared: “One of the most rewarding parts of teaching Game Development is watching students turn their ideas into something real. They are not just learning how to code games; they are learning problem solving and persistence.”

Storytelling also plays an important role within the curriculum. Nanan Academy instructor Daphne Yates teaches creative writing for games, helping students build narratives and characters that become integrated into their game projects.

Circuits and Robotics Projects

One of the courses in the pathway at Nanan Academy is an advanced robotics course for high school students. Among the projects presented was an autonomous robotic vehicle capable of avoiding obstacles using an ultrasonic sensor. Students used KiCAD, a professional computer aided design software, to develop the schematic diagrams. They learned how to read datasheets, wire a circuit, program a microcontroller, and troubleshoot any issues in their project.

The students’ capstone project, Johnny 6, was inspired by the classic robot called Johnny 5 from the 1980s movie Short Circuit. The students who worked on this project were Colten Cushing, Ranie Garnes, Nixon Newhouse, and Josh Overby. Johnny 6 is a fully 3D-printed robotic chassis standing 1.2 meters tall. The original Johnny 5 model was sourced from Thingiverse.com by a creator with the handle Ceive, and it was remixed by Computer Engineering Technologist, Eugene Kilochek, to 3D print Johnny 6. The team then collaboratively designed the electronics and programming systems. The robot can be remotely controlled through a mobile device over Wi-Fi and includes audio features capable of producing voices and music. Future versions of the project are planned to include autonomous movement and AI integration.

Student Nixon Newhouse reflected on the experience of presenting at the showcase: “During the showcase, I learned how to troubleshoot my display to work for presentation. It taught me how to overcome last minute obstacles while remaining calm, focusing on the objective at hand and how to solve it. I also learned how to interact with an audience, explaining my work to people of multiple backgrounds in technology. Learning how to explain, answer, and share my experiences in an event like this is something new I learned today, and will value going forward.”

Fellow student Colten Cushing also spoke about the impact the academy has had on him: “Personally, Nanan Academy has helped me in a lot of different ways. It’s given me something to genuinely look forward to every week, and it’s helped me build a much higher level of confidence in myself and my abilities.”

Another major highlight of the event was a live demonstration of the Unitree Go2 Air robotic dog, which captivated audiences throughout the showcase.

The next Ideas to Impact: Student Project Showcase will take place on November 7, 2026 at the Saskatchewan Science Centre.