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"Stanford Graduate School of Business Marketing Professor Jennifer Aaker shows the value of harnessing empathy to design products, and improve the performance of employees."

"Invention literacy is the ability to read and write human made stuff, from toasters to apps. People think inventors perform magic, but invention is no more magical than reading and writing a sentence. There is a grammar to inventing from mechanical tools, to design thinking, coding, and beyond. There is a literature of inventions, from bicycles to televisions, all around us to draw inspiration from. "

"iPad can immensely enhance the learning of science through the use of a wide range of educational apps designed specifically for this purpose. Over the past few years, we have reviewed a number of these apps each of which is related to a given scientific topic from human anatomy and periodic tables to  apps to help you explore the body in 3D. You can access all of these resources from this page.  Today, we are adding two more interesting apps for science teachers and students. The apps provide you access to a huge library of instructional science videos to use in class with your students."

"Learning math can be a great source of fun for kids. There is a wide variety of entertaining and interactive online games  to use with your kids to introduce them to basic as well as intermediate mathematical concepts. As learning aids, games are proven to engage kids' attention and boost their interest in learning. To this purpose, and besides the multiple math resources we have shared here over the last couple of years, here is a very good collection of websites that provide games designed specifically to address kids mathematical needs."

"There's only one thing more satisfying than being part of a 3D printing project, and that's teaching others how to get involved with the additive manufacturing game. A few weeks ago, Netherlands-based 3D printer manufacturer Ultimaker launched its ambitious 3D printing Pioneer Program through which school teachers and university staff can share useful tips and resources for bringing 3D printing into the classroom, but Thingiverse, MakerBot's huge 3D printable file hub, has a fair amount of educational content of its own. MakerBot Learning, the educational division of the 3D printing company, has sifted through the database to identify the best STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) 3D printing lesson plans submitted by Thingiverse users. The various lessons, from which we have selected 15, include step-by-step instructions, photos, 3D design files, activity sheets, and more. Some of the lessons are targeted at high school students, while others are more suitable for younger learners."

"In case you hadn't noticed, I'm quite a fan of the iPad (the Lollipop Nexus 9's not too bad either). Not because of its design or because its by Apple or any of that, but because of its keen heritage in the learning arena. Any one who knows me will tell you that I am not one for using tech for tech's sake, despite my evangelist moniker. Use of technology in a cross curricular sense should be measured and done with consideration for the best potential learning outcomes. With all that said, I've been doing this for quite some time now and I thought it time that I shared some of the Apps that have stuck by me or have struck me for their ease of use and impact upon learning in the classroom. Rather than blog about each one however or write in depth about each one either, I've done this in the form of a small poster, with the apps icons on."

"The CSER Digital Technologies MOOCs (Massively Open Online Courses) are free online courses, designed to support Australian teachers with implementing the Australian Curriculum: Digital Technologies. These are free online courses that provide teachers with background knowledge about concepts and topics in the curriculum, as well as practical examples that can be tried in the classroom. We bring together existing resources, our own developed resources as well as existing teacher ideas."

"Fact, I have anxiety about math facts. I have a degree in math. I graduated college with honors. I got the highest score at my university on the Putnam exam, which is supposedly a big deal to get a non-zero score. I taught high school math for 14 years. I am the Queen of Spreadsheets. I code for fun and share my coding projects. I repeated the 4th grade due to math facts. After 2 years of 4th grade, I never passed the timed math tests. If you ask me to do basic arithmetic in my head, even 7×8, I freeze. My heart races. I try to dodge the question. I'm perfectly capable. I'm more inclined to use strategies when doing math problems than memorization. When I'm alone and tallying student scores on a paper, I do great. If I need to design a spreadsheet and apply math, I excel at that. I am not alone. Reading Mathematical Mindsets by Jo Boaler, for the first time in my life I realize I am not dumb."

The maker movement and with it maker-centered learning brings new possibilities and challenges into the classroom. It has spawned makerspaces and students are busy designing and making products. The danger with all this frenzied making is that it is very easy to miss the point, to focus on the product and not the journey.  

"Coding brings young children rich opportunities for language development and the "notion of learning from mistakes," says Chip Donohue, the dean of distance learning and continuing education at the Erikson Institute in Chicago, a graduate school in child development. "We actually don't do enough of that with young kids." The sequencing and patterns involved in programming reinforce skills that have always been taught in the early years, but now also create "habits of mind that are essential for the 21st century," adds Donohue, also senior fellow at the Fred Rogers Center, which provides resources and information on media use with young children. When children code together, they are also learning from each other. "In the process of learning to code, people learn many other things. They are not just learning to code, they are coding to learn," Mitchel Resnick, professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab, wrote in an EdSurge article. "In addition to learning mathematical and computational ideas (such as variables and conditionals), they are also learning strategies for solving problems, designing projects, and communicating ideas." Resnick adds that these skills are useful to everyone "regardless of age, background, interests, or occupation.""

"A few days ago, I met Manuel Herrera at MORENet. He has an amazing maker space where students engage in creative thinking on a daily basis. It's a bastion of creativity and wonder and his passion for it is contagious. However, as we talked about prototyping and design thinking, he mentioned something surprising. "We have a 3D printer, but only a few students know how to use it for creative purposes. Most students download templates and print things out. There's not much actual creative thought that goes into it." "So, what's the answer?" I asked. "I think they need to start by making things by hand," he said."

"Five years ago, Ricardo Veiga broke his tibia in a motorcycle accident. While he was experiencing the drawbacks of the ubiquitous plaster cast, he decided there just had to be a way of improving and personalizing the methods used to keep broken limbs immobile while they healed. During research conducted with Jordi Tura, Veiga came across a paper from a New Zealand student who had designed a mesh structure that overcame many of the drawbacks of conventional orthopedic casts. Here's Barcelona's cunning plan to be new heart for digital health, biotech Given its tech skills, concentration of universities and hospitals, and surge in funding, Barcelona has factors in common with Boston's biotech cluster. Read More Using that concept, they decided to create a prototype and a company to market the eventual product, which they christened Xkelet, a 3D-printed splint for helping heal broken bones."

"3D printing and other additive manufacturing techniques are revolutionizing global health systems. Great interest is being seen in the 3D printed prosthetic movement due to the potential for a wide range of people, including novice designers, builders, and students to produce devices that have the potential to effect positive change in a recipient's life. Close Additionally, there is incredible value in having students print and build devices and for those devices to make their way to other young people. Through this work, students are provided with a window into an incredibly authentic application of many of the STEM concepts and 21st century skills they are being taught and recipients have their interest sparked and have a tangible object that offers a glimpse into what is possible when they receive one of these devices."

"Think about dreaming, like building stilts. Think about designing, like collaborating in a flexible space from funky-colored chairs on wheels. Think about testing, like crafting conductivity testers needed for your classmates. Think about making, like programming and assembling a security card system for the space. Above all, think. Schools now are thinking a lot about maker spaces, and the term can mean many things, as shown in the examples above, from Brandywine High, St. Elizabeth, Newark High and Tatnall schools, respectively."

"The idea for this bot came from the book Robotics: Discover the Science and Technology of the Future. The specific project that motivated this activity was the Art-Making Vibrobot on pages 24 to 26, though I modified the supplies considerably and the technique slightly. Basically this little "robot" is just a cup with marker legs that vibrates and spins due to the motor being off balance. As it jiggles around on a piece of paper it makes interesting designs. While I hope to make more exciting and complicated projects with my kids as they get older, this was a nice unthreatening activity to start with which showed my child how to hook up a simple DC motor to a battery. He's already familiar with some of these electrical concepts through our Snap Circuits set (link to my review), but this was a fun, hands-on supplement to the more structured activities in that set."

"If you've ever wished your childhood Lego creations could come to life, your dreams are now closer to reality. Lego has just unveiled a new subbrand called Boost which promises to do just that. The base set contains a combination of sensors, motors and a unique companion app that teaches kids how to code so that they can program their new robot friends. Lego's Mindstorms could let you do this too, but that's a decidedly more advanced system aimed at young adults. Boost, on the other hand, is designed for kids ages seven and up. The Lego Boost base starter set is priced at $160 and will be available later this year."

"Two years ago I attended an edtech conference focused on the then up-and-coming trend of makerspaces. The opening keynote speaker ended his presentation with a charge for all in attendance: "I hope that makerspaces don't become an edtech fad that goes away as quickly as it has risen to popularity; I hope you all can figure out how to do it right." So what is the "right way" when it comes to using makerspaces? And now that they have been established in schools all across the globe, how can we measure the impact that makerspaces have on student learning and achievement? Most facilitators would agree that standardized test scores may never accurately reflect the impact that makerspaces have on student achievement. Rather, it is a combination of the design thinking processes, service learning experiences, and 21st century skills being developed in makerspaces that are positively impacting student learning."

"Get into the holiday spirit the Destination Imagination way-with a little creativity! For this year's Great Graham Cracker Challenge, we want you to design and create a graham cracker structure inspired by your favorite book. Your structure must incorporate at least two special features. Special features must be physical things that are attached to or associated with your graham cracker structure (e.g., extra floors, a magical cape, etc.)."