Students At Winthrop School Get Inventive

From how to stop coffee spills to blocking out the sound of annoying siblings, students in the Invention Club have been coming up with ways to address everyday problems.

The club, open to third and fourth grade students at the , recently shared their ideas with judges. The students with the highest scores attended the state’s Invention Convention on Saturday at the University of Connecticut, where two of them received awards.

“It’s a really great age for innovation,” said Pam Strollo, a third-grade teacher at Winthrop School and leader of the club.

Students in the club were asked to keep journals on their progress in creating an invention. They were asked to identify an issue and find a solution for it, spending less than $25 on materials and ideally using recycled products.

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Judges based their ratings on the students’ demonstration of the invention, their research into the problem, and how they recorded their progress. Based on these ratings, the top prize went to Mercedes Langley for “Mya’s Toy Box.”

Langley said her cat, Mya, has been pilfering toys from her and her brother. She decided to create a box fitted with cat toys to give to Mya.

“My invention works by my cat loving boxes,” she explained to a judge. “She goes in her toy box and plays with her own toys, and she won’t take our toys.”

Shentel Leon placed fourth with her “Sibling Sound Squasher.” It was easy for her to identify a problem.

“My brother was talking a lot,” she said. “I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, will you shut up!’”

The Sibling Sound Squasher consists of a pair of earmuffs surrounded by a pillow and other layers of headgear to block out sound. Leon said she’s already used it at home.

Strollo said about 650 students presented at the state convention. Langley and Leon were among about 200 students honored as “recognized inventors.”

Bryanna Poulard said her invention aimed to help her pregnant mother with back issues. She got her invention idea after discovering a scarf with pockets allowing people to warm their hands.

“I switched them around, and I made these for your back,” she said, demonstrating how she had modified a scarf to attach ice packs to the ends for her mother to use. Poulard came in second place among the Winthrop School students for her invention.

Strollo said she was impressed that the students had sought to make things that would help family members and others.

“I’m just so proud of you, just watching you grow from first grade when I taught some of you to read,” she told the club.

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