{"id":1009,"date":"2021-05-18T11:20:25","date_gmt":"2021-05-18T10:20:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/?p=1009"},"modified":"2021-05-19T12:48:41","modified_gmt":"2021-05-19T11:48:41","slug":"digital-xtra-fund-case-study-port-ellen-primary-school-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/2021\/05\/18\/digital-xtra-fund-case-study-port-ellen-primary-school-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"DIGITAL XTRA FUND – CASE STUDY: PORT ELLEN PRIMARY SCHOOL (2019)"},"content":{"rendered":"

RESILIENT ROBOTICS TEACHING – THE NEXT GENERATION: <\/span><\/b><\/h2>\n

HOW TO CODE AT PORT ELLEN PRIMARY SCHOOL<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

A robotics club from Port Ellen Primary\u00a0School<\/a> (@portellenps) <\/a>on Islay has been hailed by Digital Xtra\u00a0Fund<\/a> as a great example of what schools can do to equip the next generation with the vital tech and interpersonal skills they will need in the future.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Resilient Robotics was launched at Port Ellen Primary School in January by Class Teacher Jo Clark.\u00a0A\u00a0robotics club for children aged between 8\u00a0\u2013\u00a012, it\u00a0teaches\u00a0children\u00a0how to code, create apps and build robots. Among other resources, the club uses Marty the Robot built by Scottish firm Robotical<\/a>; an educational robot designed for kids.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Jo Clark, who submitted the school\u2019s Digital Xtra Fund grant application, explains the idea behind Resilient Robotics was to create a robotics club where the children not only learn new technical skills, but also develop resilience, improve self-confidence and, most importantly, have fun.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She explains: \u201cDeveloping children\u2019s resilience and self-confidence is a key aim. Learning programming and building robots requires skills like\u00a0investigating, debugging and perseverance. There is a lot of trial and error when it comes to programming; children need to know failure is part of the design process. Overcoming difficulties while creating robots develops resilience and,\u00a0once they are successful, is also very rewarding.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI think lots of children don\u2019t understand the outcomes of being able to code, but once they see what they can achieve, they are hooked. They follow instructions, generate algorithms, and use their skills creatively, developing progressively more complex ways of working as they go on. From simple exploring\u00a0with\u00a0Spheros<\/a> using apps, to building a responsive robot in Marty\u00a0using\u00a0Scratch<\/a>, to more\u00a0diverse and creative\u00a0programming\u00a0using\u00a0the\u00a0micro:bit<\/a>\u00a0Inventor\u2019s Kit\u00a0–\u00a0the children are inspired and motivated.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are very pleased with the success of the programme and are especially delighted it is being adopted in neighbouring Primary schools and now\u00a0at\u00a0Islay High School. You can see how much the children are getting from it, and how much they are going to benefit from developing these skills at an early age.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Kraig Brown, Partnerships and Development Manager at Digital Xtra Fund, added: \u201cIt is essential we equip children with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in a technology-driven world, no matter what career or industry they may become interested in. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is especially fantastic about Resilient Robotics is the success it has achieved in terms of sustainability. The original grant from Digital Xtra Fund supported the pilot programme at Port Ellen Primary School, however, it was quickly realised there was an excellent opportunity to expand this initiative across the island, including at the High School, as well as on Mull and Jura. The fact that some of the resources are also being translated into Gaelic will only add to the project\u2019s legacy. It\u2019s a fantastic programme which will make a real difference in the lives of young people from the islands.\u00a0 <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Brown adds: \u201cResilient Robotics is a shining example of the kind of\u00a0initiative\u00a0Digital Xtra Fund\u00a0is looking\u00a0to support.\u00a0As a grant awarding charity, it is always the goal\u00a0to see\u00a0supported\u00a0initiatives\u00a0take root and grow\u00a0and we hope other organisations and\u00a0schools\u00a0can take inspiration from its success.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Digital Xtra Fund is currently accepting applications for the next round of grant awards. Grants of up to \u00a35,000 will be awarded to organisations delivering extracurricular activities that teach young people skills such as coding, data analysis, cybersecurity, and computational thinking helping inspire Scotland\u2019s next generation of technologists, developers and digital leaders. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

For further information please visit\u00a0<\/span>http:\/\/www.digitalxtrafund.scot\/<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

RESILIENT ROBOTICS TEACHING – THE NEXT GENERATION: HOW TO CODE AT PORT ELLEN PRIMARY SCHOOL\u00a0   A robotics club from Port Ellen Primary\u00a0School (@portellenps) on Islay has been hailed by Digital Xtra\u00a0Fund as a great example of what schools can do to equip the next generation with the vital tech and interpersonal skills they will …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61927,"featured_media":1017,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[18,66,96,102],"class_list":["post-1009","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-community","tag-communityprimary","tag-digitalxtra","tag-scratch"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/public\/computingscience\/uploads\/sites\/9355\/2021\/05\/18112009\/21.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1009","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/61927"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1009"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1009\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1052,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1009\/revisions\/1052"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1017"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1009"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1009"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.glowscotland.org.uk\/glowblogs\/computingscience\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1009"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}