Elementary Learning

Spike Prime Challenge: Avoiding an Obstacle

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If you've been following along with my Spike Prime tutorial series, you will know that a couple weeks ago I presented a "first challenge" for kids just getting started using a Spike Prime robot. That challenge was simply to learn how to use the Spike Prime coding word blocks to learn how to drive ...

Spike Prime Challenge: Moving to a Square

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Over the past few weeks, I have been learning how to use a Spike Prime robot in preparation for coaching a FIRST LEGO League Challenge team for upper elementary and middle school students in my area. I have degrees in engineering and extensive experience programming, but I have never done robotics ...

Spike Prime Tutorials: Building First Robot Car

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This post is the 5th in a series on learning how to use the LEGO Education Spike Prime set. At this point, we are ALMOST ready to start doing some challenges. We just need a basic car that can be made with the supplies included in the set as a jumping off point to tackling specific problems. Once ...

Spike Prime Tutorials: Writing and Managing Programs

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This post is the fourth in a series of posts about getting started using the LEGO Sprike Prime robotics kit. The first was our unboxing, then we went over how to test the motors and sensors. Third we covered how to install the app and make sure you can connect the hub to Bluetooth. This post will ...

Spike Prime Tutorials: Installing App & Connecting Hub

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Since deciding to coach a First Lego League Challenge team this fall, I have posted about unboxing our Spike Prime and testing the motors and sensors. This post will walk step-by-step through the process of installing the app and connecting the hub to Bluetooth for the first time. Eventually I am ...

Spike Prime Tutorials: Testing the Motors and Sensors

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Earlier this week we unboxed our very first Spike Prime. Now we are starting to become familiar with the major components included in our kit. Namely, the Spike Prime hub, motors, and sensors. Next time, I will share how to download the Spike Prime app on desktop and transfer your very first program ...

Getting Started With Spike Prime: The Unboxing

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About 6 years ago, I bought a LEGO Mindstorms EV3 (LEGO's robot kit before the Spike Prime). My kids and I worked together to build a robot using the instructions in the box. We learned how to drive it around like a remote control car. Then it sat in a closet on a shelf where it still sits to this ...

Treasure Hunt Math

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Last week I shared one of my kids' hands-down favorite ways to review math concepts, Game Show Math. This post on our Treasure Hunt Math game is our other favorite way to practice. We have been doing treasure hunts in our home since my kids were teeny tiny. Here are two posts from 2014! My oldest ...

Game Show Math

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I have been wanting to share this fun way of practicing math for years! As many of you know, we have been using my Minimalist Math curriculum (available free here) all through elementary school. This curriculum removes all the repetition of a traditional curriculum while still covering all the same ...

Lowercase Printing Sheets

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A couple of my kiddos have a tendency to write their letters bottom to top. One of them, who is dyslexic, also sometimes writes his letters right to left. In the long run, do I think it's really going to matter if they never outgrow these habits? Not really. I think they'll be fine. However, I think ...