GEMS and GISE - Stem Academy ALC (Justice Page)

Robotics team and STEM Academy 

This class is offered Monday and Wednesday. Students can register and attend one or both days. 

-Fall 2026- Robotics

In this dynamic robotics class, students will explore mechanical design, construction, programming, and teamwork skills. Working in pairs with LEGO building elements, motors, and sensors, they will build various robot prototypes. Students will program these robots to move, react, and make sounds, applying their skills to solve design challenges using LEGO SPIKE Essential & Prime robotic systems. The class will culminate in participation in a FIRST LEGO League Challenge BIOGLOW . Get ready to Explore the Wild! In the BIOGLOW Challenge, students and their LEGO team will harness creativity, critical thinking, and technology to explore this season’s challenge. Teams are challenged to combine the thrill of biodiversity, ecosystems, and the protection of natural habitats, using nature as inspiration for STEM innovations.   This class will have a tournament in mid January.

-Spring 2027- Blast Off! Aerospace & Rocketry Adventure!

Is the sky the limit? Not in this class! Students train like astronauts, rocket scientists, flight engineers, and drone pilots. From hot air balloons to real solid-fuel rocket launches, gear up to design, test, and fly real machines! Through high-energy building and launch challenges, young engineers master the four forces of flight by crafting everything from hot air balloons and gliders to pressurized water rockets. By collecting launch data and tweaking their prototypes to maximum altitude, students think like real scientists while bringing the physics of flight and Newton’s laws to life. Get ready to level up! Older students transition into higher-level aerospace engineering by designing and building precision model planes, navigating multi-rotor drones, and launching solid-fuel rockets. Through iterative design and prototyping, students analyze pitch, roll, yaw, and thrust-to-weight ratios to engineer perfectly stable aircraft. By tracking peak altitudes with altimeters and deploying recovery systems, students master real-world flight physics while experiencing the excitement of a successful mission.

This is an ALC class only only available to Justice Page students.

Activity Bus Information:

Register by Tuesday, September 22 in order to have a bus the first week.

Register between 9/23-10/16 and you will be routed on the bus by week 2 or 3 of the program. Once the program has started it takes a minimum of 10 business days to be routed. Please plan an alternative pick up while you wait for your bus route.

Only choose “bus” if you intend to use it for the majority of the days registered in the program. If your student does not ride the bus for 2 weeks they will be removed from the route. If your student is not eligible for busing during the school day, they are not eligible for the afterschool activity bus.

Minneapolis Community Education is committed to making our classes accessible to all families. If you need a full or partial scholarship or would like to set up a payment plan, please contact the Justice Page coordinator Emily Sowell, emily.sowell@mpls.k12.mn.us., to discuss available options. We’re happy to work with you to find an option that meets your needs. If you would like to contribute to the afterschool scholarship fund choose a higher class fee at check out.