Last Wednesday, October 30, the Erickson Library in Rome held two labs to launch the Tinkering Coding Making volumes (published by Erickson) as part of Project ICS Lab (Imagine Grow Develop) [see news: Library Labs].
Guided by Fondazione Mondo Digitale coaches and authors and with the happy "Tetra-bot" mascot (a robot developed with recycled material), four year two and four classes at the Istituto Comprensivo Piazza Capri Primary School in Rome participated in tinkering activities (from "Circuiti morbidi") and robotics and coding activities (from "Fuga delle Api"). Both of the volumes are available in bookshops since September.
Working with electric and isolating paint, LEDs, batteries, robots and labyrinths, 80 children designed luminous sculptures and programmed a Bee-bot to negotiate an obstacle course. The children explored complex concepts such as electricity and algorithms, learning to think with their hands and work together with curiosity, enthusiasm and creativity.
Alessandra Cavallin, the bookshop manager, enthusiastically welcomed the classes to the bookshop. The teachers who accompanied their classes participated in the activities, sharing their experience, and took great interest in the two new volumes dedicated to tinkering for age groups 4-6 and 6-8.
Each volume includes eight plugged and unplugged activities (with and without devices) to promote a deep understanding of the concepts and active experimentation with the competences developed by Tinkering, Coding and Making. Indeed, this is a concrete application of the values that have inspired FMD projects for years: inclusion, sustainability, multi-culturalism.
The activities have been developed in collaboration with teachers, researchers and educators who are enthusiastic about their profession and are deeply interested in promoting the transmission of knowledge, the development of a know-how culture and experimentation with didactic activities. The volumes, which can be used at home, school or for extra-curricular activities, is a valid tool for teachers, parents and educators who wish to work with fun and efficient activities and new trends.
The next volumes, which will be dedicated to age groups 8-10 and 10-13, will be available in Spring 2020. Shortly, an e-book on theory and practical volumes will be avaiable on the Edizioni Erickson website.
Two short clips of lab activities.
