What is Steamtrax? Well, for starters, it’s a great way to get your students interested in the engineering process using both hands-on materials and curriculum designed around them. But it’s so much more than that. With consistent lessons all the way from Elementary to High school, Steamtrax is a stepping path to success.
Ready to see our Steamtrax products? Head on over to our website here.
Michaela Clinton, Camp Director in Denver, worked at camps for 15 years before joining Steve & Kate’s. She was “drawn to the educational philosophy of letting kids express themselves in ways they may have never been able to before.”
At Steve & Kate’s, students design their own summer camp experience. They are given the choice of several different kinds of activities, including sports, cooking, music studio, and robotics. Campers are allowed to pursue whatever interests them at any given moment during the day. As Cubelets encourage discovery through play, they are a natural fit for the open exploration style of learning that is a hallmark of the Steve & Kate’s camp experience.
“We use Cubelets in our Coding and Robotics studio as the robotics component,” Ms. Clinton says. “We have open play time for most of the day, so campers utilize plastic mats on the floor to run their robots in all kinds of shapes and sizes.”
The camp also runs special weeks where the students are challenged to build robots according to a theme. One of the themes, “Spin This,” challenges students to build a robot construction that spins an object or spins itself. The most popular theme, however, is Battle Bots. Campers love adding lots of Drive, Speaker, and Flashlight blocks to their robot creations prior to setting their constructions against one another in battle!
What have leaders at Steve and Kate’s discovered? Teamwork is one of the most important concepts that campers learn while exploring with Cubelets. Campers also learn about mechanics (or mechanisms), connections, logical thinking, problem solving, and creativity. Collaboration is key with Cubelets, and campers become comfortable with sharing their robot blocks along with their ideas in an innovative setting.
What is Ms. Clinton’s favorite part about watching her campers work with Cubelets?
“When they discover that a change can make things work the way they wanted or in a way they never expected,” she answers. “When they make a new discovery they simply have to show the entire room what they have done. When they’re trying to problem solve and they concentrate really hard, the occasional tongue sticks out.”
Cubelets have had a profound effect on Ms. Clinton’s campers. She says that Cubelets have “opened up the wide world of mechanical potential. It lets them take their creativity into reality and see it unfold before their eyes.”
After a summer spent working with Cubelets and observing how children interact with them, Ms. Clinton has this advice for educators working in camps and similar settings:
“Play with them for several hours first. Set a few goals for what you want to create, then try to see it through. This will help you go through the experience that campers go through. Be ready with some coping skills for kids! Don’t feel like you have to fix their issue right away. Help them understand the limitations and capabilities of each cube and let them find out on their own what will happen. This opens up more possibilities.”
Don’t forget to Check out Cubelets on our website!
James Symons, CEO of LockNCharge, is on a mission to create the most functional and accommodating cart a school could buy for device storage. In a blog post on their website, Symons explains how LockNCharge builds their carts with ease of device deployment flow in mind, which can cause massive frustration if lacking in other storage devices. Symons covers other questions, including but not limited to: Will classrooms share a Cart? Will each classroom have their own Cart? Will devices be distributed one-by-one with students carrying an armful of devices or will teachers distribute them? Will devices be assigned to work groups or whole classrooms? Check out the full article here if you want to make an informed decision about purchasing a LockNCharge cart.
Speaking of purchasing, we’ve got their full range of products here. Feel free to give us a chat if you need help figuring out which one is right for you.
If you’re a school in need of Microsoft Office, there isn’t a better way to acquire those license than through Microsoft’s EES program, which allows you to set a price based on the number of faculty and staff at the school. The end result? Let us know if you can find Microsoft Office licenses for $29 anywhere else. Don’t worry, we’ll wait.
Ready to make the jump? Head over here to see what we can offer you.
Researchers at Symantec, an anti virus software publisher, are helping the company stay ahead of the security curve by keeping up to pace with hacking and malware trends. The latest trend? “Living off the land tactics”. These tactics allow threat actors to create fewer new files on the hard disk, meaning they have less chance of being detected by traditional security tools and minimize their likelihood of being blocked. Check out the full article here to learn more.
You can avoid being victim of these new tactics by arming yourself with the right anti-virus software. Symantec has a range of products that you can purchase at a non-profit discounted rate by going to our page here.
“What in the heck is a Swivl?” Well, what better way to tell you than to show you – here’s a quick demo of just what the Swivl is capable of. Ever dreamed of having your own cameraman? Need someone else to help videotape your lectures? Not with Swivl, you don’t.
Ready to see what Swivl robots we have available? Head on over to our site.
Check out the list of movies and tv shows produced with the help of Avid Media Composer that took home Emmy awards this year. On the list of easily recognizable hits, you’ll find titles like Netflix’ beloved series Stranger Things. You can see the full list on Avids blog here.
If you’re interested in purchasing Avid Media Composer for your school, we have an academically discounted version for you to check out here.
If you haven’t already heard of the new version of Movie Edit Pro Plus, check out this article to read up on some of the new features. You’ll read about features like an expandable collection of up to 1,500 effects and faster video editing. The article also mentions that MAGIX developers kept customer feedback in mind in order to create a product that caters perfectly to its users needs.
If you’re in need of video editing software for your school, we carry a school license that’s discounted to fit your budget. Click here to see our product page and rates.
Problem: Mismanaged student Chromebooks.
Solution: GoGuardian for Educators.
Why should you worry about the security of your network and its connections when you can let the security team at GoGuardian worry for you? Just take a look at this quick tutorial to see how easy it is to get set up and running.
Ready to for a price quote? Head on over to our website here.
Nonprofit Technology Network, an organization that aims to educate non-profits on how to use technology to their benefit, has a few good things to say about Adobe Captivate. The network has integrated Captivate into many of their educational seminars, stating that Captivate boasts a clean and polished interface, along with excellent funcionality and flexibility. If you want to read more about why NTEN recommends Adobe Captivate, check out the full article here.
We carry Adobe Captivate, and you can receive a discount by verifying your non-profit status with us. Just click here for the product page, and don’t forget to chat us if you have any questions or need assistance making a purchase.
Technology Solutions for K-12 Schools, Community Colleges, and Universities 