On April 20th, 14 6th and 7th grade girls (ages 11-13 years old) from public primary school number 2 – Szkoła Podstawowa nr 2, ul. Brzozowa 6, 55-080, Kąty Wrocławskie in Poland participated in an IGNITE event.
The girls met an expert in the field of game programming! Ms. Weronika Ślusarczyk is a young game programmer who has designed and created a few game applications that are known worldwide and subscribed to by approximately 5 million people. Ms. Ślusarczyk said that she was always interested in STEAM, and that’s why she chose to study informatics. As a regular game user, it was an easy decision for her to become a game programmer. After working in this field for awhile, she realized that she doesn’t have to be addicted to games.
The expert explained the differences between a programmer, a designer, and a tester, to give clues as to how this sector of work looks and what girls can choose in the future.
She explained how long it takes to produce a new game and what should be considered while creating a game.
Ms. Weronika said that every person can choose an interesting career path in the game sector. For those who like to draw and are interested in art, she recommended graphic design work. For someone who is very creative and likes to invent new things and solutions, the best choice would be to become a designer. The marketing sector in the game industry is also very important and is developing very fast, and it also requires STEAM skills.
Ms. Ślusarczyk asked the girls what kinds of games they usually play, and the answer was Minecraft! Then, the expert proposed that the girls create their own game about cats. Using jamboard, the girls added ideas about how the game could look and what its aim might be.
The girls were very creative and asked many questions about Ms. Weronika’s work duties. Participants wanted to prolong the event, so the coordinator proposed to arrange another meeting with Ms. Weronika!
We are grateful that Ms. Weronika Ślusarczyk gave such an inspiring presentation, which affected the girls’ interests. Moreover, I would like to thank Ms. Monika Małecka for her cooperation during the workshop. I would also like to thank Cathi Rodgveller and Becky Fuller for their inspiration.
After attending this event:
100%
of students are now more interested in STEM
100%
of students want to continue attending IGNITE Worldwide events
100%
of students want to study harder to attend college and further their education
Here’s what the students thought of the event:
“The expert was talking interestingly, and I have learned much from her!”
“I most liked the brainstorm, while creating the game!”
“I most liked creating my own game!”
“I liked everything!“
““I liked the atmosphere during the event. I was surprised and very inspired that you shouldn’t be an expert in each subject to create games!“