Classroom Project, Education, Home Makerspace, Maker Eduation, Maker Project, Making a Makerspace, This Week In the Classroom, Tool ReviewLeave a comment

This Week in the Classroom: The FunKey Super #MakerED #STEM Review

November 12, 2017 woodshopcowboy

This fall I have introduced a new tech platform into my practice. The FunKey unlocks tons of potential in a classroom.

Do you want a board that reads keystrokes and plays like a MakeyMakey but with at a size and price point for a real classroom?

FunKey does that.

Do you now need a board which takes different sensory inputs and outputs as light, sound or motion?

FunKey does that.

Do you need a board which can help you teach programming?

FunKey does that.

Want a kit that comes with a variety of sensors, so quick and easy to hook up, students can create medical devices in a class period?

FunKey does that.

What doesn’t it do?

Teach. But that’s what teachers are for.

Let’s set up a few projects with a basic kit and see how we can put it to work in the Maker classroom!

In full disclosure, I received a pair of FunKey Super boards in return for a blog review, but all opinions are my own. Innovations, on the other hand, those belong to my students.

Continue reading “This Week in the Classroom: The FunKey Super #MakerED #STEM Review”

CAD Lab, Classroom Project, Computer Programmning, Maker Project, This Week In the ClassroomLeave a comment

This Week in the Classroom: Top Maker Tools in the Middle School Classroom

September 3, 2017 woodshopcowboy

My semi-regular column This Week in the Classroom is back! I have accepted a position in a small, mostly rural school district just outside of Northern Virginia. It’s great to be in the classroom again, bringing project-based learning to new audiences.

I am teaching middle schoolers, all levels. Middle school is a great age to teach, despite some of the unique challenges the students pose. Students can really make connections, find passions and dive deep into a project. They are about as creative as they ever will be and watching a kid’s creative power light up is just something cool. Middle school is also a fraught time for many young people, making the classroom a place of great promise and great worry.