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EdTech Show Daily Tuesday, June 26, 2018 1 0 Kensington is Interested in Your Opinion By David Peterson, Director, K12 Education Engagement The leading manufacturer of educational mobility accessories depends upon school districts all over the U.S. to help us build better products. Most of our products have come directly from input from school districts all over the U.S. What started off as the world's best security product, the Kensington security lock, has grown to include a full suite of classroom presentation, protection, secu- rity and charging solutions for mobile devices. Please stop by booth #1380, and allow us to introduce you to our free "trading samples for advice" program. We provide complete model classrooms for your district and your input is our bread and butter. We could use your help. This is a no strings attached, free program and you never have to send anything back. Examples of the free products we would like to provide are sit/stand desks, small form factor charg- ing cabinets, USB-C and Thunderbolt 3 docking stations, headphones, wireless presentation, charging and screen cast transmitters. We would set you up with a lab full of iPad or laptop rugged cases, and head- phones. All we need is for you to stop by booth #1380 and talk to the Kensington product development team. You can contact David Peterson at david.peterson@kensington.com if you would like to talk further, or just stop by the booth. For more information, go to www .kensington.com or stop by booth #1380. Move Past Coding into Computational Thinking By Robert Sun, Chief Executive Officer of Suntex International Inc., and inventor of the 24 ® Game and First In Math ® Online As a well-respected colleague reminded me recently, teaching computational thinking is a necessity for all, not a luxu- ry for affluent school districts and private academies. She pointed to the solemn fact that in many cities, water treatment systems and distribution infrastructure need updating. The nation's power grids are overtaxed and need replacing, while our air traffic control software is hopelessly outdated. In every case, the solutions require technology and computers, but more importantly, they require a work- force capable of computational thinking. There is an enormous amount of interest in coding in recent years, but any computer language – often generically referred to as 'code' – simply tells a com- puter what to do. These days anyone can build a web page using drag-and-drop techniques without the need to know any coding language whatsoever, so why the push to teach it in elementary school? The critical part is not necessarily the coding, but the thinking required to solve ever more complex problems. I was trained as an electrical engi- neer, and when I travel to schools I am witness to the fact that many children have never been taught to sort through a prob- lem one step at a time without outside direc- tion. Computational thinking teaches kids to do just that: to decompose a com- plex problem into smaller more manage- able parts, so it can be tackled systemati- cally using algorithmic, logical thinking. When children of any age get comfort- able dealing with open-ended problems that start with lots of ambiguity, they learn to persist in solving difficult prob- lems. This year, Suntex International Inc.'s First In Math Online math-practice web- site added a computational thinking mod- ule titled CT World. CT World games enable kids to develop and strengthen thinking skills by exposing them to a nat- ural form of learn- ing that combines creative and logi- cal thought. As part of a complete K to 8 math-curricu- lum supplement, schools can deploy it at a vastly lower cost than existing alterna- tives (like hands-on robotics labs), and on a tremendously larger scale. We don't only need the children interested in STEM careers to have capa- ble thinking skills. We need the artists, the theatre majors, the band members, and yes, even the trouble makers. We need them all to engage, learn, feel moti- vated and secure in their ability to reason, make decisions and take action. For more information, stop by booth #681 or go to www.firstinmath.com. Boxlight Makes Bringing Touch Technology to Classrooms Easy and Affordable Boxlight has launched several new whole-class and collaborative solutions this year, and all of these are being show- cased at ISTE in booth #1910. One of the most exciting is the MimioFrame™ touch board kit, a front-of-the-classroom inter- active solution that turns conventional whiteboards into touch boards in less than 15 minutes. The MimioFrame touch board kit is a retrofit product that uses a teacher's existing classroom whiteboard, projector and computer to quickly and easily turn any whiteboard into a 10-touch interac- tive whiteboard. The kit's major compo- nent is four gloss white aluminum frame pieces that install directly onto dry-erase boards in just a matter of minutes, pre- serving valuable whiteboard space for other work. Teachers and students gain an 87-inch (diagonal) area that works with a non-interactive projector to become an interactive touch space. "An additional benefit of MimioFrame is that the kit allows educa- tors to resurrect aging interactive white- boards as well as turn non-interactive whiteboard/projector combinations into modern interactive digital classrooms," said Mark Elliott, Boxlight's Chief Executive Officer. MimioFrame's 10-point Touch 360° interactivity enables up to 10 single-point touch users or five dual-touch and gesture users to work together, using their finger or a stylus to write, draw or erase. Whether those users are writing and manipulating objects above, below or parallel to one another, MimioFrame responds smoothly and consistently. Boxlight has done some initial pilot instal- lations and the technolo- gists are pleased. Andy Numa from Automated System Consulting says, "I was impressed with the ease of installation of the MimioFrame. It is compact, light- weight and once properly calibrated, it turns a regular whiteboard into a fully functional interactive solution. School districts looking to upgrade their existing classrooms already equipped with a pro- jector should definitely consider using it." The MimioFrame touch board kit also includes the award-winning MimioStudio™ classroom software, which connects all Boxlight products, so using them in conjunction with the MimioFrame touch board kit is quick and easy. MimioStudio software allows edu- cators to create interactive lessons and collaborative activities, as well as the ability to import existing lesson plans from other interactive software plat- forms. What's more, it enables teachers to per- form real-time formative assessments. The kit also includes three free connec- tions with the MimioMobile™ collabora- tion and assessment app, so Apple or Android mobile devices can be used to control the touch board from anywhere in the classroom. You can experience the MimioFrame touch board kit, as well as all the other Boxlight whole-class, collaborative, STEM and assessment solutions, at this year's ISTE conference at booth #1910. For more information, go to www .boxlight.com/mimioframe or stop by booth #1910. Your Weather Anytime, Anywhere Introducing La Crosse Technology ® 's new Remote Monitoring Professional Weather Station system that offers a combination of quality engineering, design and functionality. The innovative system's display receives and transmits data wirelessly for optimal accuracy with built in Wi-Fi by connecting to multiple sensors and has enhanced features when connected to the La Crosse View ® App. Sensors in this system include a wind speed sensor, a rain sensor and a temperature and humid- ity sensor, bringing you your backyard weather anytime, anywhere. The display acts as a command cen- ter for all elements of the system, featur- ing a large LCD panel with brightly col- ored numbers and graphics and an adjustable kickstand, making the display easy to read from any angle in the room. The intuitive button design, located at the top of the station, allows you to effort- lessly navigate through the display for adjustable screen brightness, easy setup, sensor data and setting alerts. The built in Wi-Fi module is programmed to send all sensor and display information directly to its servers, which is maintained by a team of skilled technicians, quickly processed and sent to you and your net- work of friends via the La Crosse View App. While gathering, processing and sending your systems data, the Wi-Fi module also communicates directly with the NWS servers for weather information and NIST servers for precise time and date information, based on your zip code. Through extensive research and dedi- cation by La Crosse Technology's knowl- edgeable and experienced product design team, this system provides an advanced feature set not found in conventional weather stations. Each sensor was created with a specific function in mind and to sustain a long battery life, while with- standing the elements of Mother Nature. Considering that the sensors all have sleek, modern designs, their function was not sacrificed. The wind speed sensor was made so that debris and snow can easily slide off, and features easily replaceable wind cups. The self-emptying rain bucket has a large opening and level indicator to ensure the optimal set up and accuracy, and the temperature and humidity sensor has a design new to La Crosse Technology that allows it to be hung or freestanding with the battery compartment on the front for easy accessibility. Aside from the sleek designs and user friendly features, La Crosse Technology incorporated a high quality antenna, transmitting at 915 MHz, allowing for outstanding performance in signal reception so each sensor can trans- mit up to 400 feet. The new connected Remote Monitoring Professional Weather Station is a must-have for any home or office, bringing your weather to the palm of your hand anytime, anywhere. For more information, go to www.lacrosse technology.com.