“Adopt-A-Future… “
A STEM Career Gift-Giving Challenge
Adopt-A-Future is meant to make STEM giving more engaging—not more complicated. It is an optional gamification to help support an interactive, playful team gift drive experience or to personalize the campaign for a relevant business or organization.
Choose a STEM career. Hunt for toys, games, and books that could inspire a young person interested in that future. Build a collection with your family, workplace, club, team, or organization—and help support future innovators through the Greater Orlando STEM Gift Drive.
No individual child is assigned or sponsored. “Adopt a Future” means choosing a STEM career as the inspiration for your STEM Gift Drive shopping.
How to Play
1. Choose a STEM Future
Pick a career that interests your family, team, workplace, or organization.
2. Go on a Gift Hunt
Find high-quality STEM toys, games, books, and kits that could inspire a young person interested in that field.
3. Build Your Collection
Collect individually, turn it into a team challenge, or use it as a theme for your office or group collection. Decorate your collection box around your chosen career if you’d like.
4. Bring Your Gifts to the STEM Gift Drive
Donate through the Greater Orlando Amazon Wish List or bring physical gifts to an Orlando drop-off location or Elfing Day.
Make It Personal to Your Group
Technology company? Adopt a Robotics Engineer or Game Developer.
Animal rescue? Adopt a Veterinarian or Zoologist.
Engineering firm? Adopt a Civil or Aerospace Engineer.
Environmental organization? Adopt a Climate Scientist or Marine Biologist.
Ideas for teams & groups
- Educational challenge (especially for youth groups):
- Each person picks a STEM Career,
- They research that career – educational requirements, what that role actually does, famous people in that role or major field discoveries
- They present to the group about their adopted career and show-and-tell the gifts they selected to donate
- Turn it into a Giving Tree
- Print several Adopt-A-Future career cards and place them on a Giving Tree at your workplace, community, club, or event. Participants can choose a STEM future and shop for a gift inspired by that career.
- Not featuring a tree? Put scrolls in a basket or display them on a table for people to pick from.
Flyers
Here are some flyers you can use for various professions – just click on the image to open the PDF to print or download.
Don’t see your STEM career? Tell us! We’re happy to create a new Adopt-A-Future flyer and add it to the collection.
Science & Discovery
Physicist • Chemist • Climate Scientist • Epidemiologist
Engineering & Technology
Robotics Engineer • Aerospace Engineer • Civil Engineer • Game Developer
Health & Life Sciences
Doctor • Veterinarian • Gerontologist
Exploring Earth and Beyond
Zoologist • Marine Biologist • Astronaut
People & Society
Anthropologist • Linguist • Forensic Scientist • Architect
WildCard
Future Innovator
Need To Know
Adopt-A-Future is meant to make STEM giving more engaging—not more complicated. It is an optional gamification to help support an interactive, playful team gift drive experience. Here are a few things to know as you plan your gift hunt or collection.
If you have questions, reach out to us at STEMGiftDrive@gmail.com or 407-608-9242
It’s a Theme—not a Child Sponsorship
No individual child is assigned or sponsored. You’re “adopting” a STEM career as inspiration for your gift-giving. Choose a future that interests you, your family, workplace, team, or organization, and have fun finding gifts that could spark that interest in a young person.
Choose Gifts That Inspire Exploration
You don’t need to find a toy with the profession written on the box. Look for high-quality STEM toys, games, books, and kits that encourage curiosity, creativity, problem-solving, and learning related to that field. Use our STEM Gift Guide for additional ideas and gift guidelines.
Our Focus Is Middle & High School
Our primary focus is middle- and high-school youth, who are often overlooked in traditional gift drives. Gifts should be age-appropriate, engaging, and challenging enough for older youth. Gifts for younger STEM explorers are also welcome and can be distributed appropriately through our charitable partner.
There Are Several Ways to Give
Participate with physical STEM gifts, shop through the Amazon Wish List, or organize a fundraiser. Physical gifts can be brought to designated drop-off locations or campaign events. Monetary gifts are made directly through our charitable beneficiary’s designated STEM Gift Drive giving portal.
You Don’t Have to Register—but We’d Love to Know You’re Participating
Individuals and informal teams can simply choose a career and participate. If you’re hosting a collection for your workplace, business, organization, or community, please register as a Collection Host so we can support your campaign and include it in our campaign planning.