Robotics Boot Camps: WeDo
With LEGO WeDo® 2.0
Robotics provides a highly engaging medium for creativity, critical thinking, collaboration and communication – four essential skills for learning and ICT within a curriculum context.
Teachers from any NSW school can book these full day excursions to MacICT. Our boot camps give students the opportunity to have the time, space and purpose to tinker. They provide a context for inquiry and discovery, leading students to become active problem solvers and engage in their own learning. These are critical practices for learning and discovery that have application across all curriculum areas.
Our Boot Camps are introductory and are designed for beginners. However they are flexible in nature so please let us know if you would like to work with us to design a day that meets your students’ needs. We also offer a special NEXT STEP NXT/EV3 Boot Camp that was developed in association with special experts for those looking to push the workshop further.
LEGO WeDo® 2.0
Suitable for K-3
The LEGO WeDo® 2.0 is a robotics system designed to serve as an intermediate step between the more fully featured robotics platform and regular, non-robotic LEGO. It’s an easy-to-use set that introduces young students to robotics and teaches them to build LEGO models featuring working motors and sensors; program their models; and explore a series of cross-curricular, theme-based activities while developing their skills in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, as well as language and literacy.
During the day students will:
- learn the basic features of the robot through participating in open ended challenges
- design their own open ended challenges or integrated stories
- document their solutions
Keywords: Creative & Critical Thinking, STEM, STEAM, Coding, Engineering Design, Science & Maths K-10, Programming
About WeDo Robotics
Read our review on the WeDo 2.0 for the classroom!
Book now
Contact us now to enquire about booking in your class.
Term 4 2016 is now fully booked. Unfortunately, we are unable to take bookings for 2017. Apologies for any inconvenience.
Tuesdays, Wednesday & Thursdays during NSW school terms, subject to facilitator and room availability.
Our workshops are delivered at our Centre in Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW.
We can take a maximum of two classes per day.
Kindergarten: max 25 per class
Year 1, 2, 3: max 30 per class.
A ratio of 1 parent helper per 5 students is required for all Kindy workshops, and encouraged for Year 1 & 2 workshops.
Boot Camp excursions usually run from 9am-2:30pm. If you need to adjust this because of travel time please let us know.
Flat rate of $528 inclGST per class of up to 23 students. An extra $22 will be charged per additional student up to the max number per class.
DoE schools will be direct debited by the NSW DoE. Non-DoE schools will be invoiced after the event based on final student numbers.
Note: cancellations made within 2 days of the event will incur a $200 cancellation fee.
Facilitators
John Burfoot
Developer & Facilitator
John is our lead LEGO® robotics facilitator and has worked as part-time school teacher with the Catholic Education Office in Sydney, specialising in science and robotics. He holds a Bachelor of Education (Primary) degree, a Certificate IV in Training & Assessment, and is a qualified electronics technician. John has facilitated hundreds of LEGO® robotics workshops to teachers and students across Sydney, including State, Catholic and Independent schools. He has consulted for LEGO® Australia, Moore Educational Pty Ltd, and the Southern Region CEO, Sydney. John has presented and spoken at numerous educational conferences, including the Association of Independent Schools of NSW, ICT Educators of NSW, St George & Sutherland Community College and the NSW Priority Schools Program’s Equity Conference at Darling Harbour.
Sarah Boyd
Developer & Facilitator
Dr Sarah Boyd is a LEGO® Robotics facilitator and part-time high school teacher of Computing and Mathematics. She has recently retrained as a teacher having had a long career as a software programmer and Electrical Engineer. She began facilitating at MacICT in 2014 where she combines her engineering and programming background with her love of teaching. She completed her PhD in Computer Science at Macquarie University in 1999.
Kylie Stanley
Facilitator
Kylie began working for MacICT 2013, in a hands-on teaching role running day-long Boot Camps in Robotics. Kylie has a passion for technology and innovation, and enjoys working with students to explore and problem-solve using new and engaging technologies. Kylie holds a Bachelor of Arts (majoring in Education) and a Bachelor of Education (Primary). She is also Early Childhood trained and holds a Diploma in Children’s Services. In addition to MacICT, Kylie has 10 years experience working in areas of curriculum and teaching and learning in the higher education sector.
Evan Bonser
Developer & Facilitator
Evan is one of our game design facilitators and is working as an ICT Integrator in Sydney. He began his university training in robotics before changing to complete a Bachelor of Education (Primary) from the University of Western Sydney. Evan has taught in a variety of educational environments ranging from mainstream settings in both the public and private sectors to Special Needs and Hospital Schools where he taught K-12 across the curriculum. He has found that where ever he teaches he sees the same enthusiasm for learning through making and uses that to inspire his students. He has a passion for developing a ‘growth mindset’ in his students to help them see failure as an integral part of the learning process; and sees it as the beginning of deep personal development that will last a lifetime.
