Students in Lynch Literacy Academy’s Transportation Energy & Power elective course recently concluded a year of hands-on learning with a boat design and performance competition that challenged them to apply engineering, research, and problem-solving skills.
Throughout the school year, students explored transportation systems used to move people and goods across land, air, space, and water. The course included a variety of project-based learning experiences, including CO2 cars, bridges, rockets, and boats.
During the fourth quarter, students focused on marine transportation, studying hull designs and drivetrain systems used in watercraft. Using their research, students designed, built, tested, and refined their own boats. Initial testing took place in the pond at Lynch Literacy Academy before students competed in a final performance challenge in the school pool.
The course also included collaborations with Amsterdam High School alumni serving as guest speakers, as well as support from mathematics and physical education teachers.
“This course gives students the opportunity to learn by doing,” said Transportation Energy & Power teacher James Christopher. “From researching real-world transportation systems to designing and testing their own solutions, students develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills while exploring careers and technologies that impact everyday life.”
Matt Vega, a student representative for the class, said the hands-on nature of the projects made the learning experience memorable.
“Building and testing our own boats was one of the most exciting projects we worked on this year,” Vega said. “It was rewarding to see our ideas come to life and make improvements based on what we learned during testing.”
The district also recognized several staff members who helped support the event. Special thanks were extended to Krystal Hammond for sponsoring an additional Amazon gift card prize, Colleen McHeard and Mirlinda Schreiner for helping organize the competition, and Leslie Rogers for contributing ideas that encouraged deeper student thinking during the challenge.
The top finishers in this year’s boat competition were:
First Place: Jayden Gonzalez
Second Place: Esmerida Victoriana Maldonado Velasquez Brown
Christopher also thanked Superintendent Richard Ruberti for supporting the program and helping bring the vision for the course to life.
“It is my hope that we can continue to create and sustain innovative learning experiences that capture the interest and energy of the students we serve,” Christopher said.
The Transportation Energy & Power course is one of several advanced elective opportunities available to Lynch Literacy Academy students, providing real-world applications of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics concepts through project-based learning.