It’s 2020! New year, new goals, new opportunities. That might seem like the same ol’ song and dance, but not a chance. I’m really excited to be working more closely with our new Pitsco Teacher Advisory Group (TAG). We have begun engaging with this year’s TAG members, and I can already tell it’s going to be a great year with this group!

Topics: IN THE CLASSROOM, ADMINISTRATION & THOUGHT LEADERSHIP, Teacher Resources, Teacher Development, Hands-on Learning

Heritage High School (Maryville, TN) students Caden Branch and Landon Davis took gold in the 2019 Robotics: Urban Search & Rescue (USAR) competition at the SkillsUSA^® national championships held this past summer in Louisville, Kentucky. The duo’s first-place finish continues a six-year streak of medaling for Heritage High School USAR teams since they began competing in 2014. So far, students have brought home two bronze, two silver, and two gold medals from the national competition.

Topics: BEYOND THE CLASSROOM, Competitions, ROBOTICS, STEM, Social and emotional learning, USAR, Future Ready, TETRIX Robotics, innovate, Contest

We celebrate a lot of days and things, some more known than others. But November 8 is definitely a day we think deserves NATIONAL RECOGNITION. It's National #STEMSTEAMDay, a day to celebrate what we here at Pitsco love best (besides students and teachers, of course) – science, technology, engineering, art, and math!

Topics: IN THE CLASSROOM, IDEAS & INSPIRATION, Science, Technology, STEM, Resources, Engineering, STEM Units, Activities, Hands-on Learning, STEAM, Math, Art

As we’ve seen in a previous blog post, KUBO is great for teaching coding in Grades K-5. The hands-on, screen-free solution uses TagTiles^® to make coding as simple as solving a puzzle. And the quick setup and progressive system of Coding, Coding+, and Coding++ tiles allows for an easy transition from simple to complex concepts.

But KUBO is so much more than just coding! The free lessons and activities available at KUBO.education make this a truly cross-curricular adventure.

Topics: IN THE CLASSROOM, Elementary School, IDEAS & INSPIRATION, ROBOTICS, Technology, Coding, Hands-on Learning, innovate

Ever since KUBO, the screen-free, plug-and-learn robot, debuted in US classrooms in 2018, elementary students across the nation have been introduced to the concepts of coding in an easy, hands-on way by simply piecing together the TagTiles^® that contain the code necessary to make KUBO move. And now, more and more educators are discovering the breadth of learning possibilities through KUBO’s various resources.

Topics: IN THE CLASSROOM, Elementary School, BEYOND THE CLASSROOM, ROBOTICS, Camps, Coding, 21st Century Skills