Last month, we had the pleasure of working with Our Lady Hartley Primary School on an exciting project. They were looking for bespoke workshops to combine aspects of their Computing and Design Technology curriculums. Combining two subjects in this way allowed them to keep costs down for each department by combining subject budgets, whilst achieving curriculum aims for both subjects.

The main context for the workshops came from their D&T work, for which they follow the Kapow curriculum. We designed and ran the following three bespoke workshops:

• Year 2 - micro:bit-controlled Ferris wheels
• Year 4 - micro:bit-controlled Tower Bridge replicas
• Year 6 - micro:bit-controlled light-activated, literacy-linked automatons

Year 2

From a D&T perspective, year 2 were required to build their own Ferris wheels, and from the computing curriculum, they needed to be able to create simple programs. To achieve these objectives, pupils built their Ferris wheels from cardboard boxes, lolly sticks, and sauce pots.  They considered how to make strong structures, using triangles and the need for pods to remain continuously upright while the wheel travels around. They then attached the main wheel to a servo motor, connected to a micro:bit. Pupils programmed their micro:bits to spin when the A button is pressed and stop when the B button is pressed. The children needed to consider and control the speed of their Ferris wheels during the production too, as you can see, not only did the children really enjoy the day, they were really focussed on their work too: 

Year 4

The year 4 children had been learning about bridges in D&T and for this particular session, the school had asked for a workshop to recreate Tower Bridge with a mechanism to raise and lower the bridge just like the real thing! On the day, children worked as pairs in larger groups of four, each pair making half a bridge, each half was then joined with the other pair’s half-bridge to create a complete model of Tower Bridge. Like the year 2 workshop, the children programmed their micro:bits to control two servos to raise and lower their side of the bridge. With year 4, the programming for this was a little more complicated as they were using positional servos which meant they needed to consider how many degrees the bridge should move to get it to the correct positions and delays to allow boats to pass under the bridge. Some even extended their programs slowing their servos motion by using variables and maths.

Year 6

In year 6, the children had been reading the book, The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charley Mackesy, so we combined this theme into their automatons. The internal workings of the automaton was fairly standard, utilising a cam and follower mechanism. We provided a method to connect the mechanism to a servo enabling the automatons to run automatically. As this workshop was with year 6 children, we needed to ensure the computing aspect covered more complex programming, including selection (if…then statements). In this workshop, pupils used the light sensor on the micro:bit as the input with pupils triggering the automatons by waving their hand in front of the device.  Pupils also learnt how to find the ambient light level to establish a suitable threshold for triggering the motion.

The computing aspect for each of these workshops was in the use of physical computing, programming a micro:bit to control servo motors within each build. The programming skills used for each year group were aligned with the Computing National Curriculum applying the following aspects:

• Year 2 children were able to create and debug simple programs to make their Ferris wheels turn and stop using the inputs and outputs on the micro:bit. 
• Year 4 children focused on sequence in their code as well as utilising their maths knowledge of time and angles to include pauses to ensure the bridge moved to the correct position and remained there for a set amount of time.
• Year 6 children focused on using a sensor as an input and selection within their code to control the movement of their automatons.

We very much enjoyed generating a new set of bespoke workshops, particularly with the challenge of combining aims from two subjects in one day’s outcome. 

Please get in touch if you would like to run something similar in your school or explore bespoke workshops for your setting. We already offer workshops that combine computing with a range of other subjects or to fit in with a particular topic; popular options include science and art. Combining subject budgets really helps to spread the cost of workshops in school; you can find out more about this here.

Are you keen to book one of our exciting and engaging workshops but worried that your school budget won’t stretch far enough to cover the costs? Well, we have some good news for you, firstly our prices are very competitive and we’re always happy to discuss a range of options to help you bring down the cost if needed, like holding a half-day mini workshop instead of a full day. Always get in touch to discuss your needs first!

If your budget still just isn’t stretching far enough read on for some top tips from the schools we’ve visited! 

1. Combine Department Budgets

An approach we often see when visiting schools is the combining of department budgets. Due to the nature of our workshops, they cover various subjects within the National Curriculum; in particular, Design and Technology and Art. Often schools combine their department budgets together to fund a workshop that covers multiple subjects. For example, if your school also runs the Kapow D&T curriculum, we can make your year 2 ferris wheels come to life using Computing and electronics, or how about sensor-activated automatons with year 6? We’re open to ideas and can adapt our workshops to suit your specific subject needs!

Of course, if you want to link to art our Activated Art workshop is very popular and can be adapted to any theme:

We don’t just cover D&T and Art. Our Healthy Mind, Healthy Body workshop also links to Science and PSHE and we offer Move and Code which is linked to Dance and Performing Arts.

2. Trip Alternative

Some schools opt for a full-day workshop with the children contributing towards the cost as an alternative to a trip. This often works out cheaper per head for parents with no travel costs on top and provides a rich learning experience for children! As we are able to easily theme our workshops to suit your needs this can easily be linked to the current topic or book.

3. Pupil Premium Funding

As stated in the Government Guidance on the use of Pupil Premium, schools are able to use Pupil Premium funding to  support wider strategies such as extra-curricular activities. It can also be used to fund CPD activities to support high quality teaching and learning.

4. PTA

Many schools have a very active PTA who are often happy to partially fund workshops in school if, like ours, they are closely linked to the National Curriculum.

Well, that's our round-up of top tips! Are we missing anything? Leave us a comment below if you’ve found an alternative method of funding that we haven’t covered here.

In addition to our work with school students in the UK, for the last eight years, we have been contracted by Salesforce to support understanding of global environmental issues through Climate Action Labs. This programme began with one school in Davos, Switzerland and has since been rolled out to schools in Japan, San Francisco and India.

What is a Climate Action Lab?

The Climate Action Labs began as Davos Codes, founded by Salesforce in 2016, an event that took place at the World Economic Forum. Initially, Davos Codes began with a simple focus on programming.  However, in the second year, it began to focus on using technology for purposeful outcomes related to the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.  In the run-up to the 2017 WEF, Salesforce invited U Can Too to support the curriculum development of Davos Codes projects.  Each annual WEF brought a new project focus for Davos Codes, and quickly, there became enough content to develop the Climate Action Lab programme and share more broadly. 

A Climate Action Lab is an ongoing project focusing on the use of technology, in which groups of learners plan, investigate and tackle a real-world issue linked to the Sustainable Development Goals founded by the UN. Within the programme, young people learn about environmental issues facing the world, develop their own Climate Action Lab identity for their group, explore climate issues and Global Goals specific to their location, then use technology to investigate, collect data and share findings in relation to their identified issue. We are currently actively working with schools in Davos, Switzerland and Palanpur, India also providing opportunities for the students in both schools to connect via a ‘Lab Linkup’; a video call where students share experiences and discuss their findings.

Projects students have undertaken within Climate Action Labs include:

• Using digital technologies to build and deploy air quality monitoring systems
• Using wildlife cameras and audio recording equipment to monitor and track local wildlife
• Building seismometers to measure ground movement and learning about their use in relation to both earthquakes and avalanches
• Collecting used plastic and recycling it with specialist machines
• Using technology to monitor and sample water quality

The Impact of Our Work

It is hugely impactful for the young people working on these projects to see that they are working on something important, that is recognised globally. Each year learners from Davos are invited to share their work at the World Economic Forum; they have even had the opportunity to present via video messages at COP26. U Can Too has been part of the World Economic Forum for the past seven years with team members attending the event alongside the young people we have been working with.

In addition to their work being recognised globally at the World Economic Forum, the young people have actively campaigned for change in their local area as a result of their findings as part of their Climate Action Lab. In 2018 students were so shocked by their discovery of microplastics in the pristine waters of their mountainous region, that they campaigned for action which led to them winning a local campaign for their town to adopt plastic recycling. You can read more about this on the SalesForce blog here.

Their campaigning was extended in 2019 focussing on the Circular Economy and saw learners collecting plastic waste and using an injection mould machine to reuse this waste and produce campaign bracelets, helping to raise awareness of the importance of plastic recycling.

In 2020 learners in Davos discovered from their air quality data how fireworks had a huge impact on environmental air quality when collecting and reviewing data across New Year's Eve. From this information, they were able to inform a campaign that led to a ban on fireworks within their hometown.

World Economic Forum

The World Economic Forum meets annually in Davos, Switzerland and convenes over 100 governments, all major international organisations, the 1000 most important global companies, relevant civil society and academic institutions, as well as the global media. It is a huge, global event that provides a fantastic showcase opportunity for the students we work with. We’re very proud to have attended again in 2024 to support our hard-working young people at the Davos Codes showcase event. This year, students from both Davos and Palanpur participated in the event and shared their Climate Action Lab projects. We worked with students from both locations across several months leading up to the showcase event in January, using a wide range of equipment and developing a creative set of showcase demos. 

Students used an AMOS (Aquatic Mini Observation System) with many sensors mounted onto a surfboard.  They augmented their AMOS by adding a turbidity sensor (the type usually found in a washing machine or dishwasher) to detect particles suspended in water, and they also began to explore the challenges around automated water sample collection.  They continued to use air quality devices, seismometers, wildlife cameras and Audiomoth devices to collect image and audio data relating to wildlife.

At the Davos Codes 24 showcase event, students heard from the impressive and inspiring Dr Jane Goodall, the fantastic YouTuber, Jacob Beautemps, and local AI expert, Hansueli Judd.  Students built moving dioramas to share their experiences of using the array of technology and learned about the differences between AI and machine learning using the HuskeyLens and micro:bit.  It was another high-reaching year for the students of the Realschule class, and they achieved amazing results. Three class members even got to attend Marc's Lunch, which they opened by sharing a little about the projects they had undertaken, then met celebrities such as Will.i.am, Sting and Dr Jane Goodall! We're already looking forward to next year, with great plans in mind!

A few weeks ago we ran our third Code and Make workshop at Downswood Community Centre in Maidstone.

What are Code and Make Workshops?

Code and Make Workshops provide a great way for 7 to 11 year olds to get stuck into some creative fun with computing during the school holidays. The children had lots of fun while enhancing their coding knowledge and creativity! You can find more about upcoming workshops on the Code and Make page. 

Computer Game Creator

Our summer holiday workshop was focussed on creating computer games; children learnt how to design and program their own computer games using free software called Kodu Game Lab. At the end of the session we held a showcase where they were able to show their creations to their grown-ups and they were able to take their games home to play or continue working on. Here’s an overview of the workshop:

What is Kodu Game Lab?

Kodu Game Lab is a 3D game development environment aimed at children. It has a simple interface to enable children to get started easily by building their world and populating it with characters and objects. Children can then program the game rules within a visual programming environment.

Kodu Game Lab is available as a free download from the Windows Store.

What did the children learn?

In this session we began by teaching children how to create a world by selecting different types of terrain and changing the heights. The children then investigated the available objects they could add and once they were happy with the world they had created they programmed a character to be controlled by the player to collect objects and add to the score. The player could win the game by collecting all of the objects. The children then added a non-player character to the game and added dialogue between the characters.

Once they had gained the basic skills they needed to make their own game they had a go at designing and building their own games.

We definitely achieved a lot in one workshop and it was amazing to see how much the children enjoyed unleashing their creativity and story-telling skills within their games!

Our next Code and Make Workshop is a spooky Robot Monster Zoo and will be taking place on 30th October, just in time for Halloween! You can find out more and take advantage of our early bird discount here.

Last week we had a very enjoyable day at Maidstone Grammar School for Girls running a Crazy Golf Workshop, this workshop is proving very popular this term and I’m sure you can see why! It encompasses so many different aspects of STEAM learning by combining coding knowledge with design and technology to build an interactive crazy golf obstacle.

What is a Crazy Golf Workshop?

In our Crazy Golf workshop learners work together to problem-solve and build a mini golf course, which involves the use of physical computing to program and build fun interactions to trigger throughout the course. First they need to program the micro:bit’s light sensor to detect when the ball passes through a tunnel at the start of the course, this restricts the light reading briefly which triggers other events to happen, such as a spinning ferris wheel or a monster’s mouth opening (to name but a few). 

To build their creations learners use a micro:bit and connect additional electronics using a ring:bit as a breakout board. This allows servos and NeoPixel LED strips to be connected easily and also provides power through the connected battery pack. Throughout the workshop learners must, not only, overcome coding challenges but they also have to consider their designs to create something that is both appealing and robust. The girls produced some amazing results and had a great time as well. Here’s a video showing an overview of the day:

If you’re interested in booking one of our workshops in your school, check out our workshop list here.

Did you know today is International Women in Engineering Day? This is a yearly event celebrating the amazing work that women engineers around the world are doing to support lives and livelihoods every day. You can read more about it here. 

Here at U Can Too we’re big supporters of women in technology and engineering so we thought today would be a great time to shine a spotlight on one of our recent all-girl workshops at Highworth Grammar School for Girls. Here the girls became both programmers and engineers when they had the job of creating interactive obstacles for a micro:bit powered crazy golf course in our Crazy Golf Workshop!

What is a Crazy Golf Workshop?

In our Crazy Golf workshop learners work together to problem-solve and build a mini golf course, which involves the use of physical computing to program and build fun interactions to trigger throughout the course. First they need to program the micro:bit’s light sensor to detect when the ball passes through a tunnel at the start of the course, this then triggers other events to happen, such as a spinning windmill or a crocodile’s mouth opening (to name but a few). This workshop really brings out the imagination in young people, not only challenging their programming skills but also their engineering prowess as if their obstacles aren’t strong enough they will break before the ball passes through!

The girls produced some amazing results and had a great time as well!

As you can see, our workshops are not solely focussed on computing, there is a lot of art, creativity and engineering going on at the same time encoompassing all aspects of STEAM in education! If you’re interested in booking one of our workshops in your school, check out our workshop list here.

Happy International Women in Engineering Day from the team at U Can Too!

Last week we ran our first two Code and Make workshops at Downswood Community Centre in Maidstone.

What are Code and Make Workshops?

Code and Make Workshops provide a great way for 7 to 11 year olds to get stuck into some creative fun with computing during the school holidays. The children had lots of fun while enhancing their coding knowledge and STEM skills! You can find more about upcoming workshops on the Code and Make page. Here’s an overview of last week's workshops:

Robot Coronation Parade

Our first Code and Make workshop of the day was a robot coronation parade in which the children programmed micro:bits to control a CuteBot robot to pull along a parade float; designed and decorated in honour of our new King! They began by using MakeCode to program the LED headlights and used loops to make them change colour during the parade before adding movement.

Digital Carnival Games

Our second workshop involved making digital carnival games from cardboard and detecting when players win by flashing the attached neopixel LED strips. The children had great fun learning about electronic circuits before we began coding, they then used their foil-covered balls to complete a circuit inside the game by throwing it through the hole. They combined this with the use of selection so their program could ‘decide’ when to make the lights flash. Everyone had lots of fun and some of the children even made some extra pocket money when they took home their creations and charged grown-ups to play! To enable us to easily connect electronic components we connected our micro:bits to a ring:bit breakout board first, which also holds the batteries neatly too.

Our next Code and Make workshops are taking place on 25th August. You can find out more here.

If you’re a parent looking to learn more about using  a micro:bit with your child check out the micro:bit website to get started! 

We recently had the pleasure of being invited back to Holmewood House School for two more days of workshops; a Sphero obstacle course and our Robot Petting Zoo. We’ve delivered workshops here in the past and were delighted to be invited back for more, today I’m going to tell you about our Robot Petting Zoo workshop with year 4 children.

What is a Robot Petting Zoo?

As the name suggests, the Robot Petting Zoo workshop involves children building their own robotic creatures! With this their imaginations really ran wild with a rather eclectic collection, ranging from fire-breathing dragons to piranhas, a ghost and even a flying pig!

In this particular workshop we allowed the children to be flexible in their ideas by choosing their own designs, however, we can easily adapt our workshops to fit a theme or particular learning topic, for example bringing characters from a story to life or portraying a moment in history.

Starting with Coding

Before the children began building their creatures we gave them a brief introduction to robotics and they investigated how we can use a micro:bit and MakeCode to make things happen! The children enjoyed making an image appear on the micro:bit’s LED display before learning how to program a motor to make things move.

Designing and Building a Robotic Creature

Once they had got to grips with the coding they designed their creatures on paper first before they began building, they used their coding knowledge to incorporate a motor into their builds to add movement such as wagging tails, shaking heads and even a protruding tongue. 

At the end we put all the creatures on display, after the children had modified their code so the robots reacted to “on loud sound” here’s the result:

The Robot Petting Zoo workshop can be adapted around any theme. We also run similar workshops in the form of bringing the Iron Man to life and our popular Box Bot. Click here to take a look at our range of popular STEM workshops. If you would like to book this workshop in your own school or business, please use our contact page to get in touch! 

Last week we had a fabulous time running our Activated Art workshop with 90 year 2 children at Madginford Primary School. 

What is an Activated Art Workshop?

Our Activated Art workshops are usually themed around the artist, Kandinsky, but can be easily adapted to any artist or theme. In this workshop, the children begin by investigating what his art would look like if he had been motivated by movement, then build and code their own moving piece of art.

Kandinsky Introduction

Our recent Activated Art workshop began with an assembly-style introduction in which we talked about who Kandinsky was and what inspired him. The children had been studying Kandinsky recently so already had some amazing knowledge that they were able to share with us! We were so impressed by how much they had remembered, and we even learnt some new facts too!

We showed them our ‘moving art’ example within the assembly, and there was clear excitement about what they could produce.

Building the Artwork

After the assembly children were given break-out time in their classrooms to create the base for their pieces of art ready to add the moving section later on, we provided all of the materials needed so it was nice and easy for them to get started with their teachers. We were so impressed with their artistic skills; here’s a snapshot of some of their work, as you can see they really stuck to the theme nicely: 

Coding and Moving

Later in the day, each class took part in a coding workshop to learn more about the micro:bit and how they could use their coding skills to make a servo motor spin. They were able to confidently connect everything together, working in pairs, and build their code. It was such an amazing moment when lots of the children hit the ‘download’ button at the same time, and we heard the eruptions of “WOW!” echoing around the room when they could see their artwork moving.

It was a “wow” moment for me too as the newest member of the team as it was the first time I had seen this workshop in action. It was so rewarding to see their faces light up when everything came together for the showcase at the end! 

Activated Art Showcase

At the end of the day, we put all the artwork for each class on display so the children could see it all working and look at each other’s masterpieces! 

Here’s a video that gives an overview of the day:

If you would like to book this workshop in your own school or business, please use our contact page to get in touch!

A few months ago, we were asked to develop a custom rotating light workshop for Manassa of Innovation who are based in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. They provide children and their families with access to STEM workshops, and we have worked with them on projects previously with our founder, Su, even flying out to Saudi Arabia last year to deliver workshops in person. We'll share more about that later!

This time we were designing a new workshop to be delivered by the educators in Saudi Arabia so we had to ensure we built a prototype first here in the UK and designed the workshop content and resources carefully so they could be delivered without our input on the day.

A micro:bit Rotating Light

The requirement was to build and program a rotating light that would project coloured patterns as part of their local Noor Riyadh light festival. In this workshop, the children would learn how to control electronic components using code as well as putting their engineering skills to the test by building a structure to support the components while still allowing for movement. In our planning, we needed to ensure that we used resources that would be easy to get hold of so opted for upcycling coffee cups and yoghurt pots to form the main structural components. Two neopixel strips, a servo and a micro:bit later plus the addition of various cardboard templates for the top, we had our rotating light! Once we had our prototype ready we were able to refine the instructions into a clear and easy to follow video, devise a lesson plan and develop the teacher presentation!

The Results

The educator in Saudi Arabia was really pleased with our resources and has since used them to run the workshop twice with different groups of children. The team in Saudi Arabia very kindly shared some pictures and videos of the final results, with each rotating light being displayed in its own box:

Blog Post by Nicki - Computing Curriculum Specialist at U Can Too

We recently had the pleasure of delivering our Drone Assault Course workshop using the micro:bit at Maidstone Girls Grammar School. The participants were an enthusiastic group of 33 GCSE Computing students who took over the sports hall for a day bursting with creativity, inspiration, coding and excitement!

What is a Drone Assault Course workshop?

You're probably pondering the question: What is a Drone Assault Course workshop? This is an engaging full day workshop aimed at secondary school children (years 7 to 11) where the learners participate in Drone Flying School and learn how to apply physical computing by using a micro:bit to build a range of interactive obstacles. Learners work in teams to build their obstacles and then earn points by successfully flying the drone through each one. This workshop brings together a huge range of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Maths) skills as learners not only use a pocket-sized computer called a micro:bit to control motors, sensors and LEDs but they also need to overcome engineering challenges to ensure their structures are strong and functional. An artistic flare from our recent learners really brought the obstacles to life, with many choosing a dark, twisted theme!

Getting Started with the micro:bits

Before building their obstacles, learners are given a crash-course in using the micro:bit to control motors, respond to inputs and light an array of LEDs; they are then introduced to their challenge, addressing ways in which the motors can be combined with various mechanisms like a winch and touch sensor.

The learners work in teams, collaboratively choosing their own theme for their drone assault course and assigning roles, the teams were broken down further with learners working in pairs on each individual obstacle. From here they planned their mechanism on paper before using the available resources to construct their final product. Once each obstacle was complete the learners had their next engineering challenge of ensuring they were securely attached to the stands in order for the drone to fly through. This proved quite a challenge for some of the obstacles as the teams had to consider various support methods due to the weight of the items, and additional thought was required, particularly for some, which began to spin around when mounted. After securing the obstacles groups were able to tweak the programming for each mechanism to ensure it worked as intended.

The teams worked exceptionally hard throughout the day to ensure they were successful, with nearly all students actively choosing to cut their lunch-breaks short to continue working on the aesthetics of their obstacle courses in readiness for the big event!

As a new employee, this was the first U Can Too workshop I have attended, as I am the company's newest recruit, and what I found so interesting is how artwork and creativity merged so beautifully with both computing and engineering. The day had a whole cross-curricular feel to it, with so much incidental learning happening in addition to the main objectives. As the main focus on this occasion was Computing, the girls were allowed to choose their own themes, but this workshop could also be easily adapted if a school wished to bring other subjects in too, such as a story-telling aspect for English, a point in time for History or a place for Geography.

The end result was fantastic; the energy and anticipation from the year 11 students was clear to see, they had invested so much effort into their creations and were keen to see how they held up to the drones and curious to see how many points their team would accrue as they carefully navigated each obstacle. The event even attracted attention from other members of staff and sixth formers as they were passing by who chose to join in as spectators to cheer the groups on.

Flying the Drones

The girls had each spent a short session in Drone Flight School earlier in the day, where they learned how to safely fly the drones using an iPad app, so they were able to take turns to navigate their assault course in a relay-style race to complete as many as possible. Points were also awarded for creativity and innovation, and additional points were allocated to the more challenging obstacles; I was amazed to see the drone carefully flying through a ghost's mouth, not once but twice, as I had been convinced they had made the mouth too small!

Here's a video showing our highlights from the day:

If you would like to book this workshop in your own school or business, please use our contact page.