New Tech Kids | primary school

2 Sep 2020

Zerus and Ona Book Series: Teaching Tech Literacy to Kids

Another great resource for teaching technology literacy to children is the 'Zerus and Ona: Adventures in the Binary World' book series developed by Miriam Tocino. Miriam is a software developer, coding teacher, illustrator and author based in Amsterdam. The inspiration for her book series came three years ago when she had her son and started thinking about how to introduce him to the world of computers. She uses characters called Zerus and Ona which are based on binary 0s and

9 Jun 2020

New ‘Ethics and Technology’ Lesson Module

By NewTechKids

Being able to think deeply and critically about technology and its implications is becoming as important as understanding computer science and knowing how to code. This is because the technology we currently have is directly related to the perspectives, values and even biases of the technologists who create it. To help kids develop critical thinking skills, NewTechKids is developing new lessons and teaching resources which help primary school-aged kids explore the ethics of technology. Our

24 Apr 2020

PreparationTech: Miral Kotb on dance + tech

By NewTechKids

For kids and teens who love the performing arts, computer science, programming and design combined with digital skills can take them in many interesting directions. Case in point: Miral Kotb, Founder of iLuminate, a light dance and technology company. iLuminate came in third on 'America's Got Talent', has worked with artists including Chris Brown, the Black Eyed Peas and Christina Aguilera, and is launching a Vegas show. Miral is also a study in perseverance and resilience as

16 Apr 2020

PreparationTech: JP van Seventer on gaming

By NewTechKids

https://vimeo.com/408410161 JP van Seventer is passionate about all things related to online gaming. JP is Co-founder and Managing Director of Dutch Game Garden, a game incubator and business centre for small gaming companies and independent game designers located in Utrecht, the Netherlands. In this interview, JP talks about his own experience in game development. He also shares his thoughts on: the kind of people who thrive in the gaming industry and their knowledge, skills, characteristics and

7 Mar 2020

NewTechKids Founder featured in Dutch Newspaper

By NewTechKids

Deborah Carter, NewTechKids' Founder, Director and occasional teacher, was recently featured in a special supplement about technology and child welfare on February 26, 2020 in het Parool, one of the Netherlands' major newspapers. In it, she shared her experience and opinions on topics ranging ranging screen usage, gaming and how to teach kids about computer science, programming and robotics to engage a more inclusive group of students, including girls. Read article in Dutch. Here's a

25 Jan 2020

NewTechKids teaching in Amstelveen

By NewTechKids

Starting this week, NewTechKids is teaching new programs at schools in Amstelveen, a city just outside Amsterdam. We're teaching students at Amity International School Amsterdam and Kindercampus King. Amity is an English-language private school which opened in February 2018 and offers education for students ages 3-18. Students are multicultural, with students and teachers coming from all over the world. We were approached by one of its science teachers who was interesting in augmenting their current curriculum

4 Jan 2020

Possible 4-day teaching week in Amsterdam

By NewTechKids

How are school systems in the Netherlands dealing with teacher shortages, teacher burnout and the shrinking number of people choosing to become teachers? Some Dutch primary schools in Amsterdam are considering an emergency measure: shifting to a four-day teaching week. Why? Amsterdam has been hit particularly hard by teacher shortages. At the beginning of this school year which began in August 2019, the city was short 280 teachers. This shortage has now grown to almost

24 Oct 2019

NewTechKids Seminar: Gaming Experts Share Advice on Kids and Gaming

By NewTechKids

Register here When it comes to guiding and managing children's online gaming activities, there's no definitive guidelines or rules. Often, parents, caretakers and teachers end up winging it. NewTechKids' team believes that the time has come for adults to proactively develop a game plan, especially because of the growing popularity of gaming and the rise in unhealthy gaming and gaming addiction. To this end, we've organized a seminar for parents, caregivers and teachers on 'Kids

7 Jun 2019

Introducing Nigerian Students to Programming

By NewTechKids

On June 4 and 5, 2019, NewTechKids organized an 'Intro to Programming' bootcamp in Amsterdam for 50 students from Lagos, Nigeria. We partnered with Metis Montessori Lyceum, a high school in Amsterdam which is one of the only high schools in the Netherlands to offer a specialized programming track. Theme: Programming in the Context of Automation Since most of the Nigerian students (ages 10-12) had no previous programming experience, we focused on the theme of

31 May 2019

Kemi Soetan: why she chose NewTechKids for Nigerian students

By NewTechKids

Next week, NewTechKids will be hosting a delegation of primary school students from Lagos, Nigeria in Amsterdam. We're hosting the bootcamp at Metis Montessori Lyceum Amsterdam, a high school with specialized coding and design/technology academic tracks. We'll be teaching a 1.5 day bootcamp during which we'll introduce them to programming in the context of automation and give them hands-on programming experience with a variety of physical computing and robotics tools. We interviewed Kemi Soetan, Skyways