BMS 6th Grader Wins Invention Convention Award!

Posted Date: 06/02/2022

Brady Middle School sixth grader Roan Westerbeke is the recipient of the Industry Award in Wearables/Fashion for his Invention Convention 2020 entry last spring! Roan invented "Pele" a special suit to protect people from extreme cold. Named after the Hawaiian goddess of fire, "Pele" is a thin suit worn against the skin that can be heated up by rubbing one's hands together. The gloves that are attached to the suit have a special material that captures the heat from the friction which is then transferred through tiny copper wiring woven throughout the suit.

MHS teachers Maggie Gobetz and Kate Allard worked with a group of students last spring in the 5th grade resource room asking them to think about a problem in society that piqued their curiosity and then create a viable solution by using SCAMPER (a creative thinking technique that allows students to explore various options on how they can improve their solution (aka prototype). These inventions, presented virtually, were submitted to the State Invention Convention competition.  

For his winning invention, Roan received a $375 CollegeAdvantage Ohio's 529 Plan College Savings Award and an invitation to represent Ohio at the 2021 Invention Convention US Nationals at The Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation in Dearborn, Michigan. The mission of  the Invention Convention is to activate STEMIE learning (STEM + Invention + Entrepreneurship), to instill problem identification, problem solving, entrepreneurship and creativity skills for life. Invention Education empowers young people to develop the skills and self-confidence they need to identify and solve real-world problems and to make informed choices about their future careers. The Invention League's motto is "Where problem solving is our superpower!"  Congratulations Roan!

Roan Westerbeke displays his winning
"PELE" invention.

Published on 10/1/2020