STEM is the acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, and encompasses a vast array of subjects that fall into each of those terms.  Recently, there has been an interest in moving towards STEAM education, and incorporating the “A” for arts.

A STEM/STEAM education involves the idea of educating students in these four/five specific disciplines in an interdisciplinary and applied approach. It attempts to transform the typical teacher-centered classroom by encouraging a curriculum that is driven by problem-solving, discovery, exploratory learning, and require students to actively engage in a situation in order to find its solution.  There is a recognition that to be successful in these technical fields an individual must also be creative and use critical thinking skills that are best developed through exposure to the arts.

The Lego Mindstorms series of kits contain software and hardware to create customizable, programmable robots. They include an intelligent brick computer that controls the system, a set of modular sensors and motors, and Lego parts from the Technic line to create the mechanical systems. The Lego Mindstorms EV3 is the most recent, a third generation Lego Mindstorms product. It is a further development of the NXT generation, which is still used today in classes and competitions.   However the EV3 is now the only Mindstorm kit that you can purchase at a retail store, such as Mastermind, the Lego Shop etc. Older NXT systems can be found on ebay, kijiji etc. Lego Mindstorms’ programming is command box programming, rather than code programming. It is a graphical based user interface in the Lego-supplied language of NXT-G Code.  There are other 3rd party languages such as ROBOTC, which is a C-Based programming language with an easy-to-use development environment which is code programming.

If you’re interested in learning more about what robotics can do for your child take a look at these websites.