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" If student engagement equals deeper learning, then making school fun might just be the key to improved learning.  Imagine the looks on students' faces when you tell them that today, right there at school, their job is to become toymakers. Once they get over the shock, they'll be thrilled to create their own toys and channel their creative energy with an added bonus of fun. It may be the best head-fake technique ever for embedding the problem-solving and creative thinking skills that students will need for digital age jobs. Thanks to 3D printing and other maker tools, students can gain valuable STEM and technology skills while engaging their brains instantly and in new ways. And this will help them as they get older, according to Glen Bull, co-director of the Center for Technology & Teacher Education at the University of Virginia."

"Confession: I've been following the BreakoutEdu craze on social media.  Full Disclosure: I didn't get it. I was skeptical. Locks?  Huh? So I stuck with it.  I looked at challenges, I watched videos, and I joined the BreakoutEdu group on Facebook.  I saw someone write about using disappearing ink to reveal a clue.  That was it.  Something clicked and I became a huge fan. Teamwork? Critical thinking? Problem solving? Creativity?  Win, all the way around.  Give kids a chance to be a spy, or Inspector Gadget, or the problem solver you know they can be! And then I read about Michael Medvinsky using the game with first graders to unlock an extra recess.  And I may have hugged my BreakoutEdu kit, right there at my desk.   Once again, I had underestimated the power of a tool to be integrated at the youngest levels of learners… of course! Imagination, play, and collaboration?  That screams elementary!"

"According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), employment in occupations related to STEM is projected to grow to more than 9 million between 2012 and 2022. And the Global Stem Alliance estimates that 75% of all jobs will require STEM expertise by 2018. SEE ALSO: 6 awesome ways to bring your kids' ideas to life with 3D printing Certainly that's a clear indication that STEM should be an integral part of school curriculums. Introducing these topics in an approachable way that both engages and educates kids, is possible without having to implement complex coding classes and HTML 101 in elementary school. Thanks to a slew of wildly innovative and imaginative toys out there - like the 11 below - kids can start developing the skills necessary for an increasingly digital world"

"So many adults, including teachers, joke about not being able to do simple math or not being a "science person" that many students enter STEM classrooms with negative views. This creates a fixed mindset as students believe they need certain natural abilities to be successful in math and science. As educators, we need to create opportunities for students to overcome these deeply planted negative views. Using images or ideas from popular culture gives students an entry point to explore science-they're already experts, and they can use the confidence they have in that area to become more open to learning and experiencing how math and science are rooted in creativity and imagination."

"Like many kids of my generation growing up in India, I was an avid reader of Enid Blyton's novels. Many of her books were written as a series ("The Famous Five," "The Secret Seven" and "Five Find-Outers") and I recall wondering if the lives of characters overlapped in any way. Did a character from one series ever run into one from another, for example? I recall wondering the same thing in later years about P.G. Wodehouse's Blandings Castle and Jeeves series. Today, in a world where communities real and imagined are digitally connected via platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Tumblr, we can reframe that question in terms of those common nodes (or friends) in those characters' social networks. As it turns out, network theory as an analytic technique, or what I'd call computational literary analysis, is not just a bona fide research endeavor. It's also a great example of how computational thinking (CT) is truly a cross-disciplinary skill that can be weaved to enrich learning in any subject (not just math and science, as is sometimes the assumption). In an earlier article on computational thinking, I offered teasers of how CT could be integrated into language arts and social studies, in addition to math and science. Here's a detailed treatment of one of those examples, drawn from the work of Franco Moretti's group on "Computational Criticism," which is part of the broader Digital Humanities initiative at Stanford. (See this New York Times profile for more on the work of this group)."

"Questions can fire the imagination and feed your creativity. In my research for The Book of Beautiful Questions, I found dozens of questions that can help in identifying fresh ideas, overcoming creative block, soliciting useful feedback, and getting an idea "out the door" and into the world. However, the questions we ask ourselves about creativity also can have the opposite effect. They can undermine creative confidence or cause us to misdirect our efforts. Below are five questions that can be thought of as "creativity killers." Take note of them now-so that in the future, you can stop asking them."

"It's time we create learning environments that make mathematics accessible for all students "But I'm just not a math person." We've all heard this refrain-and possibly even echoed it ourselves. As a young student, I felt this way for many years. For some reason, math just never clicked for me. My 11th-grade math class with Mr. Peterson changed all that. Why was his class different? He worked hard to bring us examples of math in the real world, connecting concepts back to our lives and making them feel relevant and accessible to us. He gave us voice and choice in our learning, and it made all the difference for me. I can only imagine how much my confidence and enthusiasm for math could have been changed had I experienced a similar instructional approach in all the grades prior. I've come to understand that there is no such thing as a "math person," and that high-quality math instruction is key to helping learners shed that perception. We know from decades of research that success in mathematics is more linked to opportunities to learn in a meaningful way than to innate intelligence, and we know that effective educators can nurture mathematical abilities in all students."

"What happens to a bowling ball after you bowl with it? How do vending machines really work? What happens to your luggage when you check it in at the airport? What's inside a street organ? In 2017, Centre Pompidou museum approached me to create five short films for their kids web show Mon Œil in line with Preposterous. Les machines impossible series (Impossible Machines), a tribute to Rube Goldberg, explores and reinvents what's inside complex mechanisms. Watch four amusing imaginings from French motion designer Florent Porta: Les machines impossibles - Bowling, above, Soda, Bagage, and Musique:"

"I have become somewhat obsessed with the concept of automata over the past month or so.  I have seen multiple iterations of cardboard automata.  The Tinkering Studio has a FANTASTIC pdf which explains the basics as well as facilitation tips for educators. I had this on my agenda to work into my makerspace this year, but it was when I saw this video that my imagination was set on fire: "

Rather than expecting to be immersed in learning that shines a light on the path forward the notion of searching for driftwood that suits the learner's needs is very empowering. It requires an imagining of learning as a very active process where the learner is aware of their context, their current understanding and what they might need to move forward. It demands a conscious practice of reflection and a disposition towards taking charge of one's learning. It is a very agentic view where learning is something that you do, not something that happens to you. 

"Once in a blue moon, a technology comes along that meets the needs of learners, classrooms, and is sufficiently powerful to create opportunities beyond the limits of our imagination. The BBC micro:bit may just be that rarest of edtech unicorn."

what if our expertise is imagined or false. What if what we think is so, just ain't so. This might be more common than we care to admit, and it is worth considering the source of this difficulty and its implications. 

"The First Page is a brand new creative writing challenge for students in Grades 7 to 12, created by CBC Books. The challenge? We want students to give us a glimpse of the great Canadian novel of the year 2167. Write the first page of a book set 150 years in the future, with the protagonist facing an issue that's topical today and setting the scene for how it's all playing out in a century and a half."

"As an elementary school science teacher, I find this not easy to admit, but some of my students' most rewarding and meaningful classes over the years have happened when I have taken a back seat and let my students "tinker." Whether they want to dam up a stream during a water study, build nests with mud and sticks while investigating local bird populations, or, after completing a set of Lego models, independently design and build spinning Lego tops from which energetic battles ensue, students love having time to explore and investigate independently. This fall, for example, I let a third-grade class have a "free choice period." I gave them a list of things that they could do, such as making crystals, handling pet rocks or having a dance party. Instead, they came up with their own idea: they wanted to make boats. So, I gathered materials and allowed them to use handsaws and hot glue guns (which they'd already been taught how to use safely). Of course, many teachers allow and encourage students to engage in creative play: we know that young children need the chance to explore, daydream, imagine, play and build without an outcome or even a product in mind-a place free from failure, because failure is not even part of the equation. But this often takes place outside the classroom."

"Every year since 2001 we've picked what we call the 10 Breakthrough Technologies. People often ask, what exactly do you mean by "breakthrough"? It's a reasonable question-some of our picks haven't yet reached widespread use, while others may be on the cusp of becoming commercially available. What we're really looking for is a technology, or perhaps even a collection of technologies, that will have a profound effect on our lives. For this year, a new technique in artificial intelligence called GANs is giving machines imagination; artificial embryos, despite some thorny ethical constraints, are redefining how life can be created and are opening a research window into the early moments of a human life; and a pilot plant in the heart of Texas's petrochemical industry is attempting to create completely clean power from natural gas-probably a major energy source for the foreseeable future. These and the rest of our list will be worth keeping an eye on. -The Editors"

"With March being National Reading Month, I thought it would be the perfect time to immerse ourselves in STEM-infused literature! Books are so important to growing a STEM mindset, especially with the earliest of learners. Books open doors and windows to worlds and experiences which many students may never have the opportunity to enjoy in person; they give students examples of critical thinking, innovation, persistence, and creativity - all skills needed throughout a student's education and into their future careers. This month, instead of sharing my favorite STEM resources, I reached out to our STEMtastic Discovery Education STEM Community for help, and the response was overwhelming! Asking educators about their favorite books is like asking a chef about their favorite foods; you receive incredibly extensive lists that stretch your thinking to places you never imagined. What started as a list with three categories grew organically to encompass the breadth of literature supporting a STEM mindset in students, educators, and the everyday population."

There is a great deal that I like about this description of humanity at its best from Ryan & Deci. It is both a goal to be achieved and an indicator of conditions which are required for us to fulfil our potential. While the focus of this statement is on the actions of the individual we can see how society might act to deny individuals the opportunities to lead such an inspired and agentic life. I like to imagine what a school might be like if every individual who plays a part in its functioning strove to extend themselves, master new skills and apply their talents responsibly.  Maybe schools would be like the 'learning organisations' described by Peter Senge. 

"In January 2004, NASA announced it was canceling a mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope. In light of dangers associated with the Columbia tragedy the previous year, it was considered too risky. As a result, the Hubble, lauded as one of the most influential scientific instruments of all time, would have only a few remaining years to survive. Over the following months, the plan was intensely debated. Petitions garnered thousands of signatures from members of the public. Congressional committee meetings and hearings were held. Citizens and scientists alike, inspired by the discoveries and images the telescope had produced, clearly weren't ready for the telescope's premature retirement. By that point, the Hubble had nearly fulfilled all its mission objectives since its launch in 1990. With 100,000 observations, it had measured the universe's expansion, studied planetary origins, and produced a vast trove of pictures like the iconic Deep Field (seen at the top of this piece) and Pillars of Creation, which changed the way we see our place in the universe. These images, taken for science and re-mastered by astronomers, captured the public's imagination in a way no telescope had before. "

Machines are already superintelligent on many axes, including memory and processing speed. Unfortunately, those are the attributes our education system currently rewards, with an emphasis on learning by rote. It doesn't make sense to me. Part of my job as an investor is to attempt to predict the future - I need to make bets on the way we'll be behaving in the next two, five, ten and 20 years. Computers already store facts faster and better than we do, but struggle to perfect things we learn as toddlers, such as dexterity and walking. We need to rethink the way we teach our children and the things we teach them. Creativity will be increasingly be the defining human talent. Our education system should emphasise the use of human imagination to spark original ideas and create new meaning. It's the one thing machines won't be able to do.

"You may be familiar with maker spaces. In one form or another, hands-on teaching has always involved kids in "making." Today's new focus on maker spaces is taking making to a whole new level. Visualize a space filled with an assortment of materials and tools where people explore ideas together, create, and invent. Now think of such a space existing in a school - a space where students can go to imagine, investigate, figure things out, and design prototypes. Sylvia Martinez and Gary Stager explain this growing school phenomenon in their MiddleWeb article, Maker Schools: Classroom Tinkers & Inventors."