GenNext: The Podcast for Curious Kids, Bold Teens, and the Adults Who Believe In Them

These three high school students realized younger kids aren't getting enough opportunities to learn about technology and cybersecurity, so they decided they would teach them. In this episode of GenNext, Ms. Cam sits down with Eric C., Eric K., and Alex, three students who designed and delivered hands-on cybersecurity workshops for Grade 7 and 8 students. Using Arduino boards, Chromebooks, and a lo...

What happens when three high school students realize that distractions and procrastination are getting in the way of learning? Instead of complaining about the problem, they decided to build a solution. In this episode of GenNext, Ms. Cam sits down with Grade 12 students Iman Alyousif, Nadia Radwan, and Afshal Fatima, the creators of ClockWise, an app designed to help students build healthier habi...

What happens when a 14-year-old notices that students around him are overwhelmed… and decides to build a solution instead of just talking about it? In this episode of GenNext, Ms. Cam sits down with Grade 8 student, chess player, cadet, hackathon participant, and young builder Tanish Dave, creator of Mindful Mirror, an AI-powered app designed to help students manage stress, organize their thoughts...

What if support for your ideas was closer than you think? In this episode of GenNext , Ms. Cam sits down with April Albano, Executive Director of the Business Education Partnership Waterloo Region and champion behind the Youth Creativity Fund, a program helping young people turn ideas into action. Together, they talk about: Why creativity often gets quieter as we get older How one supportive adult...

What if being interested in many things was actually your advantage? In this episode of GenNext , we talk to Damian—a Grade 12 student who has spent years playing competitive soccer, coaching younger athletes, exploring creativity through drawing and woodworking, and now building a video editing business. At first glance, these might seem like completely different paths. But as Damian shares his s...

What if school actually prepared you for real life? In this episode of GenNext , we sit down with two grade seven teachers who are doing things differently and getting incredible results. Jennifer Schaefer and Jes Nielson are grade seven teachers at Groh Public School in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada and long-time teaching partners. They share how they’ve moved away from traditional teaching methods...

Ideas are everywhere. Builders are rare. In this episode, entrepreneur, investor and dad, Jay Shah explains why young people should stop waiting and start building. While Jay co-founded a company that was later acquired by Google, this conversation isn’t about getting rich or being famous. It’s about having a builder mindset starting in your youth. Jay talks about growing up around entrepreneurshi...

What does it feel like to leave your country as a teenager and start over in a completely new place? In this episode of Gen Next, Ms. Cam talks with Cheyun and Eunseop, two international students from South Korea who came to Canada on their own to study in high school. They share what it’s really like to live far from home, learn a new language, adapt to a different school culture, and grow throug...

Were you the kid who asked “why?” a little too much? Good news: as annoying you might think that may have been, it was actually the beginning of something big. In this episode of Gen Next , Ms. Cam sits down with Grade 11 student Dasha Turetska, a curious kid who grew into a teenager who builds, creates and cares deeply about her fellow classmates. From participating in various hackathons to launc...

What if a school project didn’t end with a grade—but turned into something real? In this episode of Gen Next, Ms. Cam talks with Vishnu, a Grade 12 IB student who created JamBites, a beginner-friendly game design competition for middle and high school students. Vishnu shares: How he discovered coding Why he chose Scratch for beginners How he built and led a team The challenges of finding a venue W...

What does bravery look like when you’re a 9-year old? In this episode of Gen Next , Ms. Cam talks with three Grade 4 soccer players who went door to door selling poinsettias to raise money for their team. This is something that made their stomachs flip and their hearts race, but they did it anyway. One girl prepared a script. Others improvised. All of them felt nervous. And that’s the point. The g...

In this episode of Gen Nex t , Ms. Cam sits down with Olivia, Sophie, and Le Anne, the three teens behind LinkAge , an award-winning app designed to connect youth with lonely seniors through shared interests. What started with observations in their own families (with their grandparents), curiosity and care turned into interviews and testing in retirement homes to learning how to code and building...

Welcome to Gen Next: The Podcast for Curious Kids, Bold Teens, and the Adults Who Believe In Them Ms. Cam shares that Gen Next exists to help young people see themselves as capable builders and contributors to the world around them, and to encourage them to take action even when they feel a little scared. Every episode features young creators and a Try This Challenge, a simple prompt that invites...