New Tech Kids | All posts

5 Jun 2016

Bring NewTechKids to Your School

NewTechKids is gearing up for our Fall activities and we want to hear from schools which are interested in our computer science and 21st century skills programs. We teach primary school children (4-6, 7-9 and 10-12 years) fundamental computer science and programming concepts which underlie all devices, programming languages, apps and technology. Here's how schools can partner with NewTechKids to bring computer science education to their students: hire NewTechKids teachers to teach computer science and programming

5 Jun 2016

NewTechKids Summer 2016 Bootcamps

By NewTechKids

While children should rest and have fun during the summer, it's also important to keep them engaged in learning while they are out of school. NewTechKids has developed a series of bootcamps for children ages 7-9 and 10-12 years which will expose them to computer science education in a fun, interactive way while helping them strengthen their thinking, problem-solving and collaboration skills. The bootcamps will take place at Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam (OBA)/Amsterdam Municipal Library, Oosterdokskade 143, Amsterdam

22 Apr 2016

Teaching Coding Concepts to My Students

By NewTechKids

When Deborah Carter from NewTechKids volunteered to teach a coding workshop in my class last week, I was immediately enthusiastic. In celebration of the annual Counting Day (day when all classes are focused on counting), I had taught a few exercises on programming and coding. My group found it very fun to do. They were challenged in different ways, promoting intrinsic motivation and that's nice to see. During the workshop, the children designed robot heads

12 Apr 2016

NewTechKids at Bed Talks Event

By NewTechKids

Deborah Carter, one of NewTechKids' co-founders, will be getting into bed with some interesting people on Friday, April 15th. She'll be joining 50 other global change makers during Bed Talk, an event organised by The Student Hotel in Amsterdam, and inspired by the lie-in staged by John Lennon and Yoko Ono at the Amsterdam Hilton Hotel in 1969. Bed Talks is a free event focused on making the world a better place. She'll be speaking during three sessions with

8 Apr 2016

Teacher Training Program: May 2016

By NewTechKids

NewTechKids is organizing a special five-week teacher training pilot program which will prepare primary school teachers to introduce computer science and coding concepts to students in groups 1-8 (ages 4-12). The program will be taught in the context of 21st century skills related to critical thinking, problem-solving, collaboration, creativity and collaboration. The program takes place from May 11 - June 8, 2016 in Amsterdam. NewTechKids is partnering with the Amsterdam Municipal Library (Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam) to host the

6 Apr 2016

Arts Education + Computer Science

By NewTechKids

NewTechKids believes that it's important to find new ways to teach computer science which bring out the creativity in children. That's why we love to integrate arts education into our computer science programs. We were super thrilled to teach two teacher training workshops today as part of the cultural education event organised by MOCCA, an education advisory organization based in Amsterdam. During the workshops held at Theater Meervaart, we taught our 'Intro to Coding and Computational Thinking'

4 Mar 2016

NewTechKids teaching about smart energy technology

By NewTechKids

Computers and digital technology systems are embedded in all kinds of devices around us. Last week, Quby, an Amsterdam-based company, helped NewTechKids demonstrate this to students in our 'Systems Thinking and Hardware' bootcamp. Quby has developed Toon, a smart thermostat that enables consumers to manage their energy consumption more efficiently. Toon was developed for Eneco, a Dutch energy company. Working with NewTechKids, Dimitris Stafylarakis and Vassilis Aretakis (Quby developers) co-developed a lesson focused on the concept of feedback and its importance for technology systems which process data. Students learned

24 Feb 2016

NewTechKids Teacher Training for MOCCA

By NewTechKids

NewTechKids has been invited by MOCCA to host two teacher training sessions during its Cultural Education Conference on April 6th at the Meervaart Theatre in Amsterdam. The conference is part of MOCCA's 2016 Month of Cultural Education. MOCCA is an Amsterdam organization which advises schools and cultural institutions in the design and implementation of cultural education. During the sessions, NewTechKids will train primary school teachers to give one of its lessons which combines technology and computer science education with

13 Feb 2016

Brainstorm at Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum

By NewTechKids

On Monday, February 8th, NewTechKids co-hosted a brainstorm session with Amsterdam's new Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum. Still under construction, the museum provided the ideal blank slate for re-imagining how primary school students engage with museum content. Participants developed ideas on how to develop school programs for museums which leverage technology to create engaging experiences. The goal was to develop ideas for experiences which encourage students (8-12 years) to discover new information, think critically, and

30 Jan 2016

Announcing US ‘Computer Science for All’ Initiative

By NewTechKids

Today was a historic day for computer science education and a huge validation for NewTechKids. President Obama announced the 'Computer Science for All' initiative which will bring computer science education to all students in America, beginning in primary school. President Obama is calling for US$4 billion to be allocated in the 2017 budget to Congress to significantly increase the teaching of computer science, namely by developing teaching materials, providing teacher training and building effective regional