Ava N. Simmons — STEM entrepreneur and toy designer with dyslexia and dyspraxia
Ava N. Simmons, a young entrepreneur and PBS Kids show host with dyslexia and dysgraphia, describes how her educational toy brand Team Genius Squad gets kids excited about STEM and STEAM.
Ava N. Simmons, also known as Ava The S.T.E.M. Princess®, is a 12-year-old S.T.E.M. Ambassador, Entrepreneur, Toy Designer, Author, and the creator of educational toy brand Team Genius Squad. Diagnosed with dyslexia and dysgraphia in 2021, Ava used S.T.E.M. (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and S.T.E.A.M. (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics) and entrepreneurial activities to help overcome her academic challenges and build her confidence.
To share her learning journey and encourage others, Ava creates engaging S.T.E.M.-based educational videos, authors S.T.E.M. books, conducts peer-to-peer S.T.E.M. activities in the community, and develops S.T.E.M. toys for children ages 5-13, including children who are neurodivergent or in underserved areas. She has conducted thousands of peer-to-peer S.T.E.M. experiments with children in the community, over 700,000 households have viewed her educational videos, she has authored 3 books, and developed 15 branded S.T.E.M. Educational Toys.
Additionally, she is the Host of the PBS Kids Channel Show from PBS North Carolina called Mini Fab Science Lab, and her STEM-STEAM kits are featured in the Scholastic Catalog.
During this episode, you will hear Ava talk about:
● Her experience in school as a student with dyslexia and dysgraphia
● How she got interested in S.T.E.M. at a young age
● How Team Genius Squad helps make S.T.E.M./S.T.E.A.M. more accessible to kids everywhere
● Where she gets ideas for her experiment kits
● The origin of her PBS Kids Channel show, Mini Fab Science Lab
Learn more about Ava:
- Team Genius Squad store
- Mini Fab Science Lab (PBS Kids show)
- Team Genius Squad on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok and YouTube
- Team Genius Squad in the Scholastic Dollars 2025-2026 Catalog on page 33:
- (M) STEM Genius Lemon Light Experiment Kit with Interactive Experience
- Item No: 794043 Kits and Virtual Session with Ava
- Item No: 793745 4-Pack of Kits Only
Watch the video of this interview on YouTube.
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