COMPUTER EXPLORERS Technology Club - Weekly classes for children 2 3/4-5 years old. Students will Prepare for Academic Success - Reading, Math, Science, Cultural Awareness and Art & Music. Students Will Learn to Use Technology - Digital Movie Makers, iPads, Robots, Digital Cameras, Graphic Art Tablets and Digital Microscopes. Membership Benefits for Your Family - Weekly email reports of class activities/skills, monthly newsletters about using technology with your child and members only direct access via COMPUTER EXPLORERS web site to the best online learning activities for your child. Students will learn from teachers who are specifically trained to use technology as a learning tool. Click here to open the registration form.
Kindergarten Advantage - Small group instruction for children 5-6 years old. Children will use student friendly Microsoft Office based programs. Classes integrate core curriculum into technology instruction while children acquire skills in basic computer usage, keyboarding, word processing, graphics, multimedia and spreadsheets. This program combines an application-based technology curriculum with lessons that teach specific computer skills, followed by projects that reinforce the learning.
Around the World - Small group instruction for children ages 4-7 years old. This program offers a passport to learning and fun. The educational activities integrate two lifetime learning needs: technology skills and appreciation for languages and cultures. The program appeals to diverse learning styles by reinforcing the language and culture exploration through songs, art projects and interactive computer activities.
Integrated Technology Resource Program (ITRP) - Computer Lab instruction for children in grades K-8. The program offers a distinction between learning the tools and knowing how to use and integrate them to be creative, solve problems, and communicate effectively. ITRP integrates technology skills into core curriculum areas of language arts, social studies, science and math. The project-based learning exceeds the National Education Technology Standards (Click here to view by combining technology applications and reinforcement of the core curriculum content covered in the classrooms. Students will learn: basic computer usage, keyboarding, word processing, graphic design, multimedia, databases, spreadsheets, and Internet exploration, research and website design.
TechStars - For children ages 3-14 years old, this program simplifies the complex world of educational technology by connecting science, technology, engineering, math, and the arts. All of our unique TechStars courses are project-based. TechStars courses involve students in: Lego Engineering, Robotics, Video Game Design, Blogs, Wikis, Programming, Digital Moviemaking, Video Game Animation and exploration of technology as a communication device.
TechStars Programs:
3D Video Programming (ages 9+) Using Alice, an innovative 3D software program, children will design their own animation for an interactive game, movie or story. This object-oriented program will be fun and challenging as children explore the worlds of computer science and programming while using 3D graphics in a virtual world.
Sketch It In 3D (ages 9-11) Children will learn how to draw 3D shapes, develop them into models and import ready-made components to enhance their imaginative projects!
Dinosaur Discovery (ages 5-7 & 8-9) Budding paleontologists learn about dinosaurs and the techniques used in extracting fossils. Children will go on a fossil dig, analyze and assemble skeleton pieces, produce a fossil reconstruction, create a mural and make a digital documentary of the entire adventure. All children will receive a CD of their documentary.
Junior Engineering (ages 6-8) Children will build with levers, gears, wheels, axels and pulleys as they learn about the building blocks of engineering – simple machines!
Elementary Engineering (ages 8-10) This exciting hands-on class combines LEGO® Education & LEGO Technic materials to explore motorized simple machines by building realistic models. Children will creatively solve challenges - a favorite being the trebuchet/catapult challenge. Some examples of projects include a folding lawn chair, drawbridge, conveyor belt, turnstile, and more!
Video Game Animation (ages 7-9 & 10+) Children will dive into the world of animation as they create characters, add sound effects and music clips to create a dynamic video animation game using Scratch, the innovative programming language created just for kids at MIT!
Video Game Design (ages 10+) Children will build, design the action, create the characters and edit the outcomes of their own 2-dimensional arcade-style games. Each child will take home a CD of their creation!
Moviemaking 101 (ages 6-8) Using creativity, digital movie cameras, software, props and Lego sets, children will create their own Underwater Adventure movie. They’ll be part of a team of writers, cinematographers, directors, producers, and set builders. All children will receive a CD of their movie.
Lights, Camera, Action (ages 9-11) Children will create their own movie using digital movie cameras, software, graphic editing techniques, stop motion animation, music and sound effects. All children will receive writing, directing and producers credits along with a CD of their movie!
CSI (ages 6-8 & 9-11) Children will use logic, their senses and forensic science to solve crimes. They will learn how to work the field scene and the laboratory end of CSI using a digital microscope. They’ll use finger printing, tire tread patterns and much more. Each lesson will focus on a new forensic skill, which will lead to solving a final investigation. No blood, no gore…but excitement galore!
