Tech-Know Kids!

At the Digital Discovery Center at Avon Lake’s Pembroke Kids, your child can learn technologies like photography, filmmaking, music creation, robotics, and more— before or after school!

By: Beth Newcomb
Date: 02/04/2010
As the mother to a five-year-old, one of the things that never ceases to amaze me is my son’s ability to use a computer and navigate the Internet. He can even use my cell phone—better than me.

There’s no question about it, children today are immersed in the digital age. In fact, studies indicate that education will continue to expand beyond the classroom as more interactive “edutainment” becomes available.
If harnessed properly, says Steve Caris, who along with his wife, Andrea, owns and operates Avon Lake’s Pembroke Kids, technology can enhance the learning experience—enabling children to enjoy unprecedented opportunities as they grow.

The key, Steve says, is to incorporate things like digital media into learning in a safe, supportive, positive, and creative way. It’s the reason he’s integrated the Digital Discovery Center (DDC) into the educational curriculum at Pembroke Kids, widely considered to be a leader in early childhood education.
Steve, the former technology director at Lake Ridge Academy, harbors a not-so-secret passion for teaching children to explore the creative possibilities that different electronic mediums represent.

The Digital Discovery Center, he explains, includes the exploration of technologies like photography, filmmaking, music creation, robotics, and more. It’s available for students before school, starting at 6:30 a.m., and after school, until 6:00 p.m. Scheduling is flexible, and costs are reasonable. Some children attend every day. Others come just once a week. Before school care costs just $10 a day. Full time before and after school care costs $100 per week. The website has details. And it’s the only before- and/or after-school enrichment program of its kind in the area.

The program is designed for children aged kindergarten through sixth grade (K-6).

The focus of the DDC is on helping kids increase their computer and literacy skills. They learn how to create a story and then tell it via computer animation.

“The stories have a plot and characters. At first, the efforts are rudimentary. But it’s very exciting to see how the kids progress. What they end up with are genuine works of art. They’re creating movies and movie sets, which involve a lot of creativity. It’s very cool.”

Pembroke Kids even has its own You Tube channel (you can find a link on the center’s website: www.PembrokeKids.com) where about 100 finished projects have been posted for viewing. “We have grandparents and families from out of state logging on to watch all of the time,” he beams. Pembroke students even produced a 30-minute “variety” show that was featured on the local cable access channel.

In addition to creating short films, children enrolled in Pembroke’s DDC enjoy arts and crafts, homework help, an ongoing Lego building site, K’nex, and an outdoor play and exploration area on three acres of former farm land.
“Last spring we spent every afternoon collecting tadpoles and learning about nature,” Steve inserts.

As word spreads about all of the advantages a Pembroke education provides to preschoolers and kindergarteners, Steve and Andrea are busy creating additional programming to meet demand. They’ll be introducing a first grade class for the 2010-2011 school year. “Our parents are really embracing our teaching model and wanted the opportunity to keep their children here,” he says.

Summer camp has also become a popular attraction at Pembroke. You can find out more about it when you visit the upcoming Open House (details are available in the sidebar accompanying this story), which is where you can also learn more about the Digital Discovery Center and how it can benefit your child.
“We’re teaching kids to use technology creatively and wisely,” Steve says. “It’s amazing to see what they can do.”

To learn more about all that Pembroke Kids has to offer any time, call the center at 440-933-3782. It’s located at 32900 Pin Oak Parkway, in Avon Lake. Visit the website at www.PembrokeKids.com. Pembroke offers bus pick-up and drop-off to Avon Lake students only. The DDC is available for the entire day anytime school is not in session.

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