Developing Maker Mindsets in Vietnam


Background: 168,000 children in Vietnam are orphans or have been abandoned. Many spend most of their childhood years in government facilities. Few of these children graduate with basic computing skills, greatly limiting their employment options, and even fewer go on to attend university.

Partner: Kidspire Vietnam is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to support children living in orphanages to take control of their own futures. Kidspire Vietnam’s innovative program features a student-centered learning environment and a curriculum focused on social-emotional learning, creativity, critical thinking, and innovative problem-solving. Their program has drastically increased children’s engagement in learning and career readiness.

Project: From Feb-Sep 2020, a team of 10 Cadence volunteers virtually supported Kidspire staff. The team:

  • prepared Kidspire to host a global cardboard challenge in October,
  • provided maker projects that will help shift the Kidspire students’ maker mindset toward innovative creativity, problem-solving, and designing community solutions,
  • built LeadVN seminars to assist older students to maintain momentum toward their ideal career,
  • advanced Kidspire’s capacity through utilizing the Agile framework for their workflow management,
  • maintained, upgraded, and managed Chromebook devices.