#BRESA Tech Talk

In partnership with Cornerstone Alliance, and through the generous support of the Bosch Corporation, the season of giving has started a little early here at the Berrien RESA technology department.  What this means for Berrien County teachers is more items available to checkout in their classrooms ... a lot more! Meet Dash! In speaking with our area technology coaches and other instructional technologists around the state, coding would inevitably enter the conversation.  We knew we needed to add something to specifically support coding in the younger grades.  Meet Dash!   Dash is controlled with your choice of several free apps.  Programming a robot like Dash allows students immediate feedback to their code.  The apps are available for both iOS and Android .  (If you are planning to connect with iPads, you will need something newer than iPad 2's)  There are prebuilt challenges, a curriculum, and accessories that enable to Dash to do...

In 2005, Dale Dougherty, through Maker Media, launched Make Magazine.  This has proven to be a catalyst for what is now known as the Maker Movement.  In 2006, to celebrate what was being created from the magazine and in the world at large, Maker Faire was born.  The first faire was held in the San Francisco Bay Area and attracted over 20,000 attendees.   In 2015, more than 1.2 million people will have attended over 150 events all over the globe.  Locally, we are proud that our own event - the Southwest Michigan Mini Maker Faire contributed over 1,200 attendees!  But what I am most happy to say is that the art of making and creating is alive in classrooms all over our area and spreading. The folks at Maker Media have been busy again lately, providing several excellent opportunities to help your classroom, school, and community.  One of the first places to start is Maker Ed .  This site provides a powerful resource library and a ‘playbook’...