Maker Space In Education Series… Making It With Raspberry Pi

Welcome back and I sure hope you enjoyed the last post including   20 Reasons for Maker Space in Education,  10 Sites To Help You Start Making In The Classroom, 10 More Sites….Making With Technology  and   In this post I highlight an important  tool that can promote computing and Making in the classroom. I encourage you to send me information and resources you think help with this idea, as I am also Making time to learn.  First, to ensure you do not miss one of these valuable posts or other resources covering PBL, Digital Curriculum, Web 2.0, STEM, 21st century learning, and technology integration please sign up for 21centuryedtech by email or RSS. As always,  I invite you to follow me on twitter (@mjgormans). Please give this post a retweet and pass it on. Have a great week – Michael Gorman (21centuryedtech)

Booking Info – Time to think about your new school year needs. Are you looking for a practical and affordable professional development workshop for your school or conference?  I have traveled the country delivering PD relating to technology integration, PBL, STEM, Digital Literacy, and the 4 C’s. I have done 100′s of workshops and presentations.  Check out my Booking Page… Please contact me soon if you have an interest. My summer is fully booked but it is not to early to think about planning PD for the next school year …. dates are  already beginning to fill! Remember that I have limited dates since I also still provide PD for my own district. Please contact me soon. – Mike

Makers Space Series

Part 1: Maker Space In Education Series… 20 Reasons Your Students Should Be Making

Part 2: Maker Space In Education Series… 10 Sites To Start Making In The Classroom

Part 3: Maker Space In Education Series… 10 More Sites….Making With Technology

Part 4: Maker Space In Education Series… Making It With Raspberry Pi

Maker Space In Education Series…  Making It With Raspberry Pi and Adriono – Michael Gorman (https://21centuryedtech.wordpress.com/)

In the last three posts I have included information that allows for you to get Making in education. I have also emphasized that with Making in the classroom there needs to be an integration with curriculum standards along with those important 21st century skills. That integration really is possible, it just requires some creativity and thinking outside the box. In this post I wish to examine a tool that can get your students Making computational devices. This is a perfect addition to the STEM classroom and could also fit in other areas.

I first remember computer kits when the personal computer age first took off. In fact, a few of you just might remember the Timex Sinclair Computer Kit. In 1982 it sold for $99 and had 2K of memory, used Sinclar Basic, and had a speed of 3.25 MHz. It was in direct competition with the Commodore Vic-20 which would later produce the Commodore 64. It is now 32 years later and there are some amazing opportunities for your students to Tinker with computers. Let me introduce you to Raspberry Pi, it is an awesome tool that can be much more then dessert!

The Raspberry Pi is a credit-card sized computer that can plug into your TV and an existing keyboard. It is a amazing computer which can be used in electronics projects. It can also perform many of the things that a  desktop PC does, like spreadsheets, word-processing and games. In fact, it can also play high-definition video. It is an amazing tool for students and allows them to learn how computers work, how to manipulate the electronic world around them, and how to program. The Raspberry Pi Foundation is a registered educational charity (registration number 1129409) based in the UK. The Foundation’s goal is to advance the education of adults and children, particularly in the field of computers, computer science and related subjects. Kits start at under $40 and provide a great opportunity for learning. Check out the links below to learn more about how you can start Making with Raspberry Pi.

• Places to purchase the Raspberry Pi – Raspberry Pi, Adafruit and  Amazon or do an internet search for possibilities.
• Raspberry Pi Resources – Some great free opportunities to use the Raspberry Pi to Teach, Learn, and Make.
• Raspberry Pi Organization – Visit this outstanding site with all of its resources. Be sure to watch that front page video. Check out the Downloads, learn from the Community, and interact in the Forums. There is so much to learn. You can also check the Help area and read the current and archived Blogs.
• Raspberry Pi Quick Start – This is part of the organization site… but deserves its own listing. Take a moment to read quick start ideas and also watch the video.
• Raspberry Pi Educational Guide – Check out this direct link to the PDF Guide.
• Instructables Raspberry Pi – Check out some of these awesome Instructables to inspire any Raspberry Pi Project.
• Maker Magazine Raspberry Pi – Great place to find all the information in Makers magazine.
• Learn Raspberry Pi – Learn the “how to” from Adafruit using these lessons.

As you can see, computers have come a long way since 1982. The power and capabilities of the credit card sized Raspberry Pi are remarkable when compared to the room size computers of the past. Best of all, we can put this power and possibilities in the classroom. This invites opportunity that goes beyond what any classroom of even ten years ago may have had. It might be a perfect solution to get your students learning and Making.

I hope you found this information is something you can use in your school and share with other educators.  As always , I invite you to follow me on twitter (@mjgormans). Please give this post a retweet and pass it on to someone who will benefit.   To ensure you do not miss a future valuable post or other resource covering PBL, Digital Curriculum, STEM, 21st century learning, and technology integration please sign up for21centuryedtech by email or RSS. Have a great week… enjoy Making! – Mike (https://21centuryedtech.wordpress.com/

Get ready for more links and resources that promote 21st century education in future posts. Get ready for a new series  that will help you make connections between PBL, STEM and Technology Integration… first make some time to sign up and follow me on twitter (@mjgormans). –  Michael Gorman (https://21centuryedtech.wordpress.com/) 

Booking Info – Are you looking for a practical and affordable professional development workshop for your school or conference?  I have traveled the country delivering PD relating to technology integration, PBL, STEM, Digital Literacy, and the 4 C’s. I have done 100′s of workshops and presentations.  Check out my Booking Page… Please contact me soon if you have an interest. My summer is fully booked but it is not to early to think about planning PD for the next school year …. dates are  already beginning to fill! Remember that I have limited dates since I also still provide PD for my own district. Please contact me soon. – Mike