Thanks to an Iowa State program, youth will have the chance to get ahead in the classroom — by playing with Legos.

This Saturday, ISU is hosting “Science Bound: The Younger Generation,” a science program targeting Des Moines-area minority students in fourth and fifth grade. The goal of the program is to peak the students’ interests with a hands-on approach to math and science.

Saturday’s theme is “Toying With Technology,” because the students will be given the opportunity to use motorized Legos to construct things such as cars.

“The kids can actually make the cars run,” said Larry Genalo, program coordinator. “We program a computer chip to simulate the car’s movement.”

The daylong event is new to ISU and is a result of combined efforts between many ISU faculty, staff and departments.

“It’s a joint venture between Minority Student Affairs and [Institute for Physical Research and Technology],” said Kathy Trahanovsky, coordinator of Science Bound.

The program also was developed with the help of Women in Science and Engineering.

Genalo, professor of materials science and engineering, and his co-worker Charles Wright, professor of electrical and chemical engineering, have shown the Lego demonstration many times before.

“We use it as a technology literacy class for future teachers,” Genalo said. “But it is a program that can work well for younger students also.”

This summer, Science Bound also sponsored an architecture and design workshop in Des Moines. All of the programs share a similar “build it” theme, with a focus on getting students involved with science and technology, Trahanovsky said.

“These programs have been very successful in the past,” said Amy Slump, communications assistant for MSA.

The program, funded by GTE, is not only targeted toward children, Slump said.

“The parents and Des Moines faculty attend, too,” she said.

Krishna Athreya, program coordinator for Women in Science and Engineering, will hold a seminar to help parents motivate their children and prepare their children for college.

To help the students become acquainted with college, both students and parents in the program will eat lunch in Friley Hall, Trahanovsky said.

“It all helps them to get a feel for college life, and it helps them to get excited,” she said.

Although this Saturday’s event only includes fourth and fifth graders, the Science Bound program continues through the 12th grade.

“The minority population is rising,” Slump said. “The statistics show that Science Bound helps students to be more successful.”