1st LTT - Athens, Greece
In Greek meeting, we participants were introduced to the BBC Micro:bit, a programmable microcontroller that can be used in a variety of STEM projects, for the creation of simple games, to robots and musical instruments. The features of the BBC Micro:Bit, its programmable parts and sensors along with its coding environment (http://makecode.microbit.org) were presented to the participants. Suggestions for classroom integration and three exemplar activities were also presented. Then the participants worked in groups, they created and tested out 2 programs for the micro:bit. We were introduced to STEAMaking: Lego WeDo 2.0.
They were presented the ways that the kit is incorporated in the lessons of our school and suggestions of incorporating it in the kindergarten and primary school classroom. Two exemplar activities using the kit and its coding software were presented. The participants worked in teams to build a model with the pieces of the kits and then coded their model according to instructions given to them. We had the activity Coding with young learners. This activity aimed at highlighting the benefits of developing computational thinking from an early age as part of the framework of the 21st Century Learning. Participants were presented the components of computational thinking and exemplar activities that are taking place in our school in order to develop further these four components in early and early primary years.
They were presented both plugged- in and unplugged activities that can be easily transferred to their classrooms. We had another practical activity, making our Heron’s Fountain. In this activity, participants were presented with a model of Heron’s Fountain, an exhibit that we saw earlier at the Museum. The model was created by using simple materials (bottles and straws) and mimicked the real one that we saw in the Museum. This model was used as a trigger for the teachers to use simple materials even from scrap to examine scientific concepts and engineering challenges with their students. Participants were then presented with a series of books and activities that can be easily done in the classroom for the investigation of scientific concepts and the use of the engineering design process. With the spacetime simulator, we entered an ambitious attempt to help students understand the workings of the universe, we bring spacetime into the classroom. We visualise gravity on an elastic surface (lycra) and we explore various astronomical phenomena and predictions according to Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity. By adding more mass on the elastic surface, we measure the stretching of space in the vicinity of a heavy object. We build a simple spectroscope from a cereal box and a CD, we observe and compare the spectra from ordinary light sources. We projected the image of the Sun on a piece of paper through a cheap refracting telescope. We observe features on the solar disk (photosphere), such as sunspots and the limb darkening.
The participants in the Micro:bit activity had the chance to get to know and use a technological tool that was not familiar to them, to see ways of incorporating it in their lessons and schools and to try it out themselves. They worked in teams in order to get to know each other better, to actively experiment with the tool and to code.
With Lego, all participants in this activity had the chance to get to know and use a kit for STEM lessons that was not familiar to all of them, to see ways of incorporating it in their lessons and schools and to try it out themselves. They worked in teams in order to get to know each other better, to actively experiment with the kit and to code.
Due to coding with young learners, all participants that were unfamiliar with coding and the reasons of incorporating in their lessons, this activity was instructional and showed ways of easy integration in their day-to-day practice in their schools. For those participants that have been working on coding in early years, this activity was beneficial because of the presentation of a variety of activities that they can easily transfer to their classrooms and extend their practice.
With creating the hero's fountain and other activities, we aimed at extending the views of the participants on the different materials and how they can be used in many ways for the development of classroom activities on science and engineering.
All partners and teachers learned how to make simple science tools with cheap materials, like the cereal box spectroscope, spandex spacetime and others, not only to teach engineering, even advanced science concepts relatively easily and more effectively, but also help students observe and visualise phenomenae, creating a stimulating classroom environment with highly differentiable activities for a wide range of age groups.