Building the Mighty TechnoROBOT-II – An Empowering Approach to Adapt STEM Learning in Schools

Building the Mighty TechnoROBOT-II – An Empowering Approach to Adapt STEM Learning in Schools

Building the Mighty TechnoROBOT-II – An Empowering Approach to Adapt STEM Learning in Schools

Education Programs that are based taking into consideration the current demands and complexities of the 21st Century are more suitable for the young learners today. Worldwide there has been a revolution in the Education system, where the old methods of teaching & obsolete syllabus are replaced by the STEM approach. Wondering what STEM is? STEM is an approach to innovative education program which prepares students to enter the field of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics in the future.

ROBOTICS supports the students’ development by practicing creation, design, assembly, and operation of Robots. Robotics also develops problem-solving capacities in students, as children have to use their knowledge to arrive at calculations and computation to derive the correct programming language.

What is TechnoROBOT II?

TechnoROBOT-II by TechnoKids encourage children to bring creative ideas to life. It teaches children to be problem solving heroes of tomorrow by offering an immersive platform to demonstrate their skills. Schools across the Middle East, UAE, GCC, and Dubai incorporate Robotics lessons into their curriculum, thanks to TechnoKids age-appropriate custom curriculum for educational institutions. Many schools also run the ‘robotics clubs’ as an after-school program focusing on teaching children the basics of electronics & coding.

Integrating fun robotics sessions into STEM program requires well-designed affordable Kits with tools that support in constructing the robot and resources that come handy to the educator. Therefore, TechnoKids delivers kits that have built-in lesson plans and pre-scheduled calendars to follow a sequential approach to teaching Robotics and a mechanism to assess the learners understanding on the subject.

TechnoRobo3

Here’s what you can expect from the TechnoROBOT-II Curriculum:

  • Design and build a sporty Robot that is capable of playing a game or two of football.
  • An in-depth study of STEM principals that is not limited to theoretical learning.
  • Hands-on practice & project work with peers expands the child’s horizons.
  • Participate in as many as six different multi-faceted engineering projects.
  • Develop a knack for testing robots, identifying pain-points and applying trouble-shooting strategies to advance to the next stage of constructing.
  • Putting life into the Robot by giving it mobility requires the understanding of motors, sensors, and programming.
  • Applying the principals of gear ratio, speed, torque, to achieve the desired speed of movable machines.

The TechnoROBOT-II Kit opens a plethora of opportunities packed in one box consisting of 653 parts including 1 motherboard, LEDs, motors, and various sensors (touch sensor, infrared sensor, and CDs sensor). When the program commences, students start with building simple Robots with single function. As the understanding grows, they proceed to complex coding and build prototypes that are capable of processing multiple instructions at once. Some Models built by students using the TechnoROBOT-II Kits are; Snake, Off Loader, Battle Robot 2, Clean Bot, and many more.

Some of the impressive features that come loaded in the TechnoRobot-II Kit are:

  • Construct multiple Robots using one kit
  • All-encompassing GUI software to enable the language of programming
  • Six-sided blocks for easy construction & connectivity
  • Durable metallic components
  • All the different sizes of screws & bolts come with the box
  • Autonomous remote control for giving commands to Robot
  • Globally acclaimed curriculum based on STEM

Here’s how students benefit from enrolling for the TechnoROBOT-II ‘robot club ’ program:

  • The Kit allows construction at different stages of difficulty levels that makes TechnoROBOT-II truly versatile. It offers flexibility to learners who are trying their hands on building their very first Robots, as well as those who consider themselves to be experienced coding geniuses.
  • Students of different age groups can use the same kit to build Robots with different levels of complexities.
  • The curriculum is designed to culminate a strong foundation of basic concepts of coding & computing before the student is ready to venture by himself.
  • As the learner becomes more confident with the tools & techniques of Robotics, he is given the freedom to apply the lessons and showcase creativity through project work.
  • Project-based modules teach children important lessons on engineering & design in a hands-on manner.
  • Regular challenges are held to induce the spirit of competition amongst classmates.
  • Helps children become expert problem-solves & face any difficulty heads-on.

We have seen how useful the TechnoROBOT-II kit is. However, the idea is not as much to teach children about machines & programming, as it is to inculcate the right skills in them. By working on engineering projects in school, one learns how to cope with day-to-day life, be creative, and work in a team.

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Performing Arts Can Promote Holistic Development Amongst Children

Performing Arts Can Promote Holistic Development Amongst Children

Performing Arts Can Promote Holistic Development Amongst Children

A school is undoubtedly the temple of learning. Ever wondered what impact that learning would have, if the knowledge was just restricted to textbook education? Certainly, that’s crucial but do we just need academic geniuses or children with well-rounded personalities? Do we just want them to be submerged in the world of Math, Science, History and Geography or have them step beyond and expand their horizons?

Well the answers are simple. Just as we need spice to life, so do the children require Performing Arts in their formative years of school. Having introduced this extra-curricular element in the classroom from a tiny age, there is no limit to the possibilities they can achieve as they grow older. That’s precisely why schools across the Middle East, including Dubai, GCC, and UAE provide ample opportunities and emphasis on extra-curricular activities to develop the child’s personality; physically, emotionally, and mentally.

The institution of knowledge and learning is hence complete when it is instrumental in imparting Speech and Drama and nurturing excellence along with their ongoing regular curriculum. It usually starts from ages 4 going up to 15 years. Imagine the plethora of ideas and opportunities unearthed as children progress from basic to advanced levels of training and exposure with Speech and Drama.

The inclusion of such activities is not just mere poetry, action songs, reading, storytelling, singing, dancing, acting, or miming. There is so much more to it, that’s shaping your child’s identity and making them multi-faceted outgoing individuals. It teaches them life lessons out of the textbook. They develop impressive traits that empower them in actual scenarios. Let’s look at some of the benefits below that maximize their potential in the truest form.

Exude Confidence

This is paramount in any sphere of life. A child who is generally under confident is never going to be able to perform whether it’s a task at school or a day to day chore. Speech and Drama gives them the extra edge to face their doubts and fears and tackle pressure from any angle be it peers or seniors and go conquer the society and the world at large. They shed their inhibitions and express themselves with utter delight and optimism. At an early age, they learn to take center stage and do away with the fear of having to face an audience.

Lose Stage Fright

There are some children who are very confident in their solo confined comfort spaces but the minute they step out to meet people, confront crowds or have a short speech to recite in school, they get afraid, start to tremble and lose faith in themselves. So, the Performing Arts rebuilds their confidence and reassures them that they can do equally well, whether alone or on a grand stage. They eventually begin to love public speaking.

Speak and Write with Clarity

Speech and Drama effectively polishes their language, the oral and written skills. What you speak is what you write. They become proficient to talk with the exact pronunciation, which is the correct accent and diction. Along with that they are taught articulation that puts emphasis on distinct sounds in speech. Once that is mastered, they aptly produce their spoken language on paper with the right spellings and grammar. Hence children establish crystal clear communication skills. The Reading Eggs App keeps children engaged in games and read-aloud activities that support their learning by improving vocabulary, increases phonetic awareness, and teaches correct pronunciation, ultimately preparing the child to perform on stage.

Display a Pleasing Personality

Once children have the self-confidence and the power to communicate well, they automatically develop a smart and an amazing personality that is naturally pleasing and appealing to people. Their body language shows it. This is something that they can never fake because it is ingrained in them so beautifully. Children carry themselves with great pride as sparkling gems ready to positively take on any challenge that comes their way.

Strengthen Interpersonal Relations

Speech and Drama activities inculcate good values amongst children which strongly help them to nurture their bond and rapport with everyone be it at home with parents and family members, at school with fellow students and teachers, outside with common people and in the future as well with their colleagues at their workplaces. They not only speak with dignity and respect but develop kindness and empathy. This definitely nourishes love, care and camaraderie in their relationships.

Ignite Creativity and Decisiveness

The exciting methods that Speech and Drama uses such as improvisations and theatre games to spark up a lot of imagination and creative ideas in children. They enjoy engaging in such impromptu exercises which makes them sprightly and spontaneous and at the same time they understand how to think logically and take key decisions in any given situation. Being creative helps the child cope with feelings in a productive manner, helping them to channelize their emotions appropriately.

Problem Solving Capabilities

Often one may tend to underestimate and judge their own self, leave alone judgement from the society that comes every now and then. These activities open up children’s minds like never before and instil an everlasting belief that if they want to, they can literally accomplish anything even if there are hurdles on the way. Either they will emerge undefeated or at least have the gratifying feeling that they put in their best efforts and did not give up.

With the above aspects, we’ve seen how the Performing Arts and the addition of Speech and Drama from a primary level is utmost important since it plays a significant role in carving the bright future of children and they grow up to be happy, successful and self-made human beings.

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Little Spell Champs Underway. Dedicate Games for Children to Improve their Spellings by Introducing them to Enjoyable Activities.

Little Spell Champs Underway. Dedicate Games for Children to Improve their Spellings by Introducing them to Enjoyable Activities.

Little Spell Champs Underway. Dedicate Games for Children to Improve their Spellings by Introducing them to Enjoyable Activities.

Communication is the way children interact with the world around them. Both written and verbal communication is extremely essential for success in life. Efficient readers are those who can fluently read the sentences by pronouncing the word correctly. Similarly, good writers know how to pen their thoughts on paper and use the correct spelling for words.

Foundation for sound literacy is dependent on the child’s ability to grasp spellings. Correctly identifying and arranging the letters in a word, is an important component for mastering proper spellings.

Learning to spell can be quite a task for children sometimes. As we know some words are tricky and the phonetic rules do not apply to them. So, how does the child figure out the correct spellings of these words? Also, sometimes words have letters that are silent, for example ‘h’ in ‘honor’ and the ‘b’ in ‘doubt’ are secret sounds that are not pronounced while saying the word aloud.

We would say the key of learning to spell lies in practice and repetition. However, the rote learning technique is quite dated and children don’t enjoy learning spells by simple rote method. Spelling appropriately gives the child confidence and he becomes attuned to communicate freely, so here are some interesting spelling ‘games’ or ‘exercises’ which you can introduce the preschoolers and elementary school graders to. These activities are really easy and require minimum resources to create the game from scratch by parents themselves at home.

Let’s Go Fishing

Children love adventure. So why not encourage them to go fishing for words along with you? Just take a rod or a stick that is readily available at home and attach a string or woolen thread to the edge of it. At the end of the string or thread attach a magnet by fastening the knot tightly. Collect old magnets and stick ‘fish shaped’ letters on each magnet. You are now ready to go fishing. Dictate a word out aloud to your child and ask him to form the spelling by picking up the correct letters from the ‘fish pond’. Now isn’t that exciting! KutuBee is one such app that exposes the child to new words by offering him over 1,500 age-appropriate books in line with the PYP curriculum.

Walk The Stairs Channelize your child’s activeness by introducing this game. All you have to do is, write letters on blank paper and ask children to arrange them in a step by step manner, by adding each letter to the consequent step. For example, to spell the word ‘mango’ children do the following:

m

ma

man

mang

mango

Now let your tiny tons walk as if they are climbing stairs, placing one foot after the other in succession.

Word Treasure Hunt

Do your little ones get bored during summer vacations? Simply introduce them to this game and see the twinkle in their eyes. Adults need to hide the letters in different corners of the house and allow the child to find them by giving clues. On finding every letter, the child gets the hint for the next clue. Once children have managed to collect all the letters of the word, they need to arrange it in correct order to figure out the ‘word’. We are sure the child will love this activity and will want to play it over & over again.

Choose the Correct Flower

This is a bit of an advanced version for mastering spellings. The parent spells the word in three different ways and presents it to the child. The spellings are written on the flowers with any ‘one flower’ having the correct spelling. Children dress up like ‘buzzing bees’ and flap their wings buzzing around the flowers. Then they come and stand next to the flower that they think has the correct spelling. And bravo! Your tiny bees have found their share of ‘sweet nectar’. The word ‘castle’ is to be presented in two other ways on the flowers ‘castel’ or ‘catsle’. This confuses the child at first, but reinforce the correct spelling & ensures that the child gets it right even though all three spells seem pretty similar.

The Rapid-Fire Spell Quiz

To encourage group activities and set the grounds for healthy competition, the rapid-fire quiz is a great start. The ‘quiz master’ announces the word aloud and children need to clap their hands to indicate they know the spelling and would like to answer. The participant who claps first gets to spell the word. To spice things up, each child gets 10 points for spelling the word correctly. The child with the most points wins the game and is declared ‘Spell Genius’. Kutubee presents numerous exercises to enhance the child’s language skills.

Find the Missing Letter

Fun with the blank exercises are exciting, as the leaner almost figures out the word, but has to select the right letter to get full marks with spelling it. To increase the level of difficulty, leave the space blank where the kid is bound to faulter. For example: for the spelling of ‘sentence’ present it as ‘sent__nce’. Often children get confused to fill with blank with an ‘a’ or an ‘e’. You can also have multiple blanks in a word. Example: ‘Hipp__pot__mus’ to be able to test the child’s awareness of the spelling ‘Hippopotamus’.

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Make learning in classrooms interesting by using 3D printing Models

Make learning in classrooms interesting by using 3D printing Models

Make learning in classrooms interesting by using 3D printing Models

3D printing. A few decades ago, it would be science fiction if people said that objects could be printed just at the click of a button. And yet we have come further and beyond our own imaginations with the development of 3D and the growing accessibility of the technology. From being a tool only for science, 3D printing and the very modern 3D printers have now become more accessible and usable than ever. Mayku works on this very mission. By making the FormBox, Mayku has made 3D printing tech compact and simple enough for anybody to use. Mayku believes that everyone should have the freedom to create, and the FormBox is a splendid tool for it.

Teaching with 3D printing comes with its own advantages and some of them are:

Inspiring creation:

3D printing is a tool for creativity and inspires students to use the technology to critically think and provide a solution for real world problems and requirements. Building something from scratch can really be inspiring to students, while also building their understanding in concepts from their root. Using 3D printing enables students to take interest in designing objects too, which then in turn is a great learning curve for all concepts. 3D printers being a versatile tool help the creative students transition into inventors and innovators. Given the right tools and guidance, all students have the capacity to build and create new things, that they not only enjoy, but also learn a great deal from.

Increases engagement:

Various media have been used so far to make the learning experience better and it only improves with time. And this much emphasis is placed on the engagement of the student because that determines the quality of information retained by the student. 3D printers with their literal added dimension in information, enable students to understand things, while keeping the process highly engaging. Since the process is also creative, the student builds a multi-level understanding of the concepts. And at the end of the day, isn’t it really fun to see something being created from nothing?!

Problem solving:

3D printing has been used by scientists and engineers for decades now. And they use this tech to solve real world problems, with elegant solutions. Putting the same technology in the hands of the young students, enables them to participate in this grand effort. It also is a highly required push towards scientific temperaments in young students, helping not just the student, but the society at large. A brain occupied with solving the problems of the planet, is a brain being used well right? And the problems really help students unfold their minds and explore their depths of information to critically think, work towards a solution and execute it.

Everything is hands-on (Literally):

Teaching your students about the human heart? They can now see an anatomically accurate structure of it. Want to show how an engine works, show it on a 3D working model. The possibilities for hands-on learning are endless with 3D printed models. All things are easier to explain when you can show them directly to your students. No concepts are then alien to their minds, as all can be seen through a real representation of the world, rather than a 2D function of it. Concepts and ideas are then tangible and learning is made simpler than it ever was.

3D printers are not a new technology by any means and they have been around for multiple decades but this time it is accessible and usable by even young students from schools. This in-turn brings the wide applications and understanding of the technology to teachers and students alike, further improving the quality of information shared in schools, and how the students adapt to it. Several urban schools in the Middle East from cities like Abu Dhabi, Dubai, GCC, UAE and so on have welcomed the technology in school, and the trend is only going to follow.

Using 3D models is simply the next step in teaching the students with media, but this time the medium is also tactile, and very usable by the students. And the added benefit that a 3D printer in your school would make it the coolest school in town!

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Raising a Generation of Logical Thinkers By Practicing Programming

Raising a Generation of Logical Thinkers By Practicing Programming

Raising a Generation of Logical Thinkers By Practicing Programming

Logical thinking is an important trait of programming. Individuals who possess logical thinking can analyze problems and derive the right solution for the problems. Logical thinking is not only important for programming but it is also useful in our lives where you need to get a solution for an occurring problem.

Individuals should have the following characteristics of logical thinking in programming.

  1. Observe the situation.
  2. Analyze the information provided for a task.
  3. Study the information to figure out if it is related to a task.
  4. Outline ideas and break them into plans.
  5. Focus on facts.
  6. Develop solutions to problems considering the facts.
  7. Pay keen attention to details.
  8. Test the effectiveness of the solution, take feedback and revise it.

Now that we all know how important logical thinking is for programming and life in general. It doesn’t mean that all of us are given this quality by birth, we have to learn and work on the skill to make the best use of it. Here is how you can build and improve your logical thinking.

Think To Solve

The purpose of programming is to provide solutions for the problems. To get the solutions you need to understand the problem and think of the solution as only you can come up with an accurate solution for the problems you want to solve. Once you know the solution you need to divide it into smaller parts and work on them to get the desired output on it.

Practice

As we all know practice can bring the best results. Practice is the only trait that can make us master any skill. So, try to practice already written algorithms to get an idea of how a solution for a problem is formulated as algorithms by including a step by step procedure to solve a problem. Once you start studying algorithms you will build logical thinking and will be able to write your algorithms too. To make your practice fun and meaningful check the TechnoKids subscription available all over GCC, Middle East, UAE and Dubai for easy and fast learning

Learn About Data Structures

Data structures and algorithms are the key elements of programming. Now that you know how to write algorithms, study the data structures as these are the fundamentals of programming. Once you learn all the data structures available you will have a better understanding of which data structure to be used and you will be one step ahead in programming

Play Games

What if I say playing games improve your logical thinking, sounds cool right? Yes, many games force us to think logically like chess, sudoku and puzzles. So, the easy way to enhance your logical thinking is to play such games daily. TechnoKids presents fun games like TechnoWiz and TechnoLogo to teach youngsters the basics of coding.

Learn Programming Paradigms

Learning the programming paradigms will boost your logical thinking. There are several paradigms available but the most common and useful is object-oriented programming. Once you have your hands-on experience in this you will be able to create solutions for any problem using your logical thinking. TechnoKids subscription includes basic to advanced programming lessons for kids to learn every step of programming available all over GCC, Middle East, UAE and Dubai.

Look and study other’s code

We all agree that there is only one solution for a problem but there are possibly hundreds of ways to write a program for that one solution. Every programmer will think in their own ways depending on their logical ability so try and study other programmer’s code to better your skills. The best way to do so is to subscribe to TechnoKids subscription which has several codes to study and brush up on your programming skills.

Code challenges

As challenges bring out the best in us. Do participate in different challenges and competitions to test yourself on creating solutions, apply your logical thinking and come up with an optimal way of programming for it. The Technohub features of TechnoKids subscription will provide you with a platform to participate in code challenges more often to polish your skills with every challenge available all over GCC, MIddle East, UAE and Duba.

Read Books And Solve Examples

Reading programming books can make your basics strong and serve you with a variety of solutions, code and algorithms for a particular solution. Understanding the solutions and optimally solving them will increase your confidence and refine your logical thinking. You can check the accurate examples in Technokids subscription to make this easy for your children and any beginner.

Clean Code

Clean code embodies a better understanding of algorithms and logic behind the code. How clean the code is that simple, accurate the programming will be required for the solution. It will not only be easy for you to write programs but for other users to be able to understand and learn. However, to write a clean code you need to brush up your skills daily, this may sound a bit difficult for you but here is a tip for you. Try the TechnoKids subscription sessions and step by step procedure explained and keep practising with them.

Design Patterns

Design patterns suggest all the possible solutions for a problem and give you a clear understanding of the solution. Having prior knowledge of programming paradigms and design patterns will help you to solve logical thinking while programming for a solution.

I hope you know how to level up your logical thinking in programming now. To make this journey for your kids or you as a beginner I suggest “Techno kids subscription (5-15 years old) available all over GCC, Middle East, UAE and Dubai. The subscription will make you understand basics and advance your programming by providing step by step coaching at your speed of understanding and encourage you to be better by providing challenges and tasks on a daily basis.

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