Reading, writing, 'rithmetic, and ... robotics?

It's a rare week that goes by without our receiving an announcement about some type of industry initiative to introduce high school or college students to the business of material handling, warehousing, and logistics. But it's not every day that we hear about someone in the industry reaching out to the very, very young.

In mid-May, Intelligrated, a supplier of automated material handling solutions, hosted second-grade students from 11 elementary schools at its new Alvey Robotics Lab in St. Louis, Mo. Through a relationship with Partners in Education, an organization that seeks to enrich K-12 academically gifted curricula by providing "real world" experiences, Intelligrated conducted demonstrations and presentations on the role robotics are playing in the world today and the potential for the future.

Robots are fascinating to young children, and robotics demonstrations may inspire students' enthusiasm for areas like science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, said Chris Nobbe, gifted education specialist for the Rockwood school district, in a statement.