Meet new PALCS 4th Grade student, Emery Alderson. Emery is a swimmer, dancer, and inventor. In school, Emery’s favorite subject is math and she is also very creative. When tasked with creating an invention, she went above and beyond.
The Slap Happy Invention
Last March when the schools closed and were forced to go virtual, Emery’s 3rd grade enrichment teacher was teaching a unit on inventions. She was encouraged to submit to the CHITAG’s Young Inventor Spring Challenge… and she won!
Emery invented The Slap Happy: a large hand designed to slap hands or high-five without spreading germs. Emery added a magnet to her invention, which can be customized and easily switched for different logos or team names.
When we asked Emery what gave her the idea for her invention, she responded, “with everything shut down due to Covid-19, I was trying to think of something that we could use to avoid spreading germs. I was also missing my sport.” Emery asked herself, “when we are allowed to get back to our teams, how can we show good sportsmanship without spreading germs?”
“I was a student in the Hatboro-Horsham School District. My class continued to meet on Zoom, and our assignment was to invent something and submit it to the contest.” Emery created her invention in March and submitted it in May. “I watched some commercials, and Shark Tank, to get an idea of how to present my invention in 3 minutes. I made an outline of my main points and had my mom take a video of me talking about each one. Then, my mom and I put all the clips together in iMovie and created the video.” Emery continues, “It was fun to learn how to make a video.”
After being announced the Magformer Junior Winner of the Chicago Young Inventor Challenge, and winning a magnetic building set, Emery received a lot of recognition. She was interviewed on Fox29, 6abc, and NBC10. The young inventor was also invited to speak in her old school’s 2nd grade class Zoom room to share how they too can be young inventors.
Transition & Challenges
Emery and her 7th grade brother, Cooper, are new to PALCS this year, along with many other families. “A few families in our community were also switching to PALCS so my parents enrolled us.”
This year at PALCS, Emery is in Mrs. Griffel’s 4th grade class. “She is awesome, and has made this [educational switch] an easy transition.” Emery says something she really enjoys about cyber school is the schedule and the independence.
Just as many of us have faced challenges that we had to overcome this year, Emery turns hers into a positive experience. “I miss my old school, my friends, and teachers – but things are different right now for everyone, so I’m glad I’m at PALCS,” Emery explains. “I wanted to be in virtual school for the whole year, which is the reason I switched. Now that I’m doing this, I am in a routine and it feels right,” she continues.
Hobbies & Schedule
Emery swims all year long, and also takes a hip-hop dance class. She also enjoys traveling with family. “We like to hike, bike, and even run! We also enjoy visiting the National Parks.”
A typical day for Emery consists of eating breakfast at 8:45 am, then logging-on to her computer around 9:15 am to begin her school work. “I try to finish school by 2 pm, and then I play with friends outside when it’s nice. I have swim practice every night at 5:30 pm and on Mondays I take my dance class at 7:30 pm.”
A huge thank you to Emery for speaking with us and sharing her accomplishments. We are thrilled that you and your family have joined the PALCS community this year! Keep up the amazing work!
