There are, of course, a few different main elements that compose modern-day STEM education. And, well, they can be summarized by the words that each letter in STEM represents. To be a bit clearer, each letter in STEM represents something that’s important and not to be forgotten. Recently, we’ve been able to learn more about and sample the Kid Spark STEM kits, which, collectively, do a great job of painting a more robust picture of STEM education. With engineering, technology, and even programming at the heart of these kits, they’re a great way to bring STEM into your learning environment! Keep reading to learn more about Kid Spark and their various STEM kits.
There are four Kid Spark kits, all of which are now available on our store. They are the Engineering Pathways Mobile STEM Lab, the SnapStack Mobile STEM Lab, the Young Engineers Mobile STEM Lab, and the ROK Blocks Mobile STEM Lab. The most affordable of this group is the SnapStack Mobile STEM Lab, which is $199.99 and the most expensive is the Engineering Pathways Mobile STEM Lab, which is $699.99. In between those two are the ROK Blocks Mobile STEM Lab ($299.99) and the Young Engineers Mobile STEM Lab ($499.99).
The ROK Blocks kit is geared towards students as young as Pre-K and as old as fifth grade. It’s designed to ease students without much STEM experience into inventing and engineering and intended to help them master engineering basics through lessons that cover some of the fundamentals. The included lessons are: It’s All About The Blocks, I Am An Engineer, Is It Strong?, and Does It Move? Through the different activities, students are challenged to complete projects with math mixed in, learn a bit about prototyping, and grasp the basics of the engineering and design processes while they learn.
The Engineering Pathways Lab is designed for students in grades 3-8 and brings with it a wide range of ways to incorporate technology and curriculum. Among the lessons in the kit, students will learn about mechanisms and movement, applied mathematics, programmable robotics, computational thinking, simple and compound machines, rapid prototyping, and 3D printing. Most notably, it comes with a remote-controlled robot known as the ROKduino, which introduces students to coding, sensors, and autonomous robotic design.
The Young Engineers Mobile STEM Lab is built for students in grades 3-6 and works well when paired with the ROK Blocks lab. By using both kits together (or just the one), students can explore mechanical and structural engineering to help build a foundation for more complex experiences later. Students can learn more about remote-controlled robotics and compound machines, take part in the ROK Reactor Challenge (racing against the clock to create custom machines), and learn about technology systems, such as rapid prototyping and 3D printing.
Finally, the SnapStack Mobile STEM Lab is intended for students in grades 6-8 and introduces them to some of the more challenging STEM concepts they’ll need to know. It helps them focus on some of the non-intuitive STEM concepts, like mechanical advantage and compound machines, for example. Each lesson that comes with this kit includes a challenge in which students must apply what they’ve learned so far and do so in a creative way. Resources that come with this kit include access to a curriculum library and teacher training, STEM lesson plans, and student worksheets. Plus, up to eight of these kits can be stacked and stored or transported on a single rolling base!
I looked at the ROK Blocks Mobile STEM Lab specifically, which comes in the carrying tub you see above. It stacks on the other Kid Spark cases and has a handle for easy carrying. Inside, all the components come neatly organized and there is a folder that contains helpful content for getting started and taking students all the way through the learning challenges. Perhaps most importantly, there is a sheet with all of the pieces in the kit, their name, a picture of them, and how many are included in the kit.
I decided to try my luck at one of the first projects I came across: The Long Haul. Using the ROK blocks and the wheels in the kit, it was fairly easy to build this truck. Of course, this gives students practice with engineering and problem solving, but, as I discovered, the learning doesn’t stop there. Once built, there are a ton of different STEM activities students can do with this one project alone. They can see how much weight it can support or see how quickly it accelerates. Or, they could also try driving it up an incline and observe its behavior.
Since there is such a wide range of activities that can be done with each model, the ROK Blocks Mobile STEM Lab and all of the Kid Spark kits are very valuable for providing progressive and continuous learning opportunities for students in just about every grade. Their affordability and durability are also noteworthy and the organization afforded by the carrying cases helps make them ideal for educators. To order one of the Kid Spark kits from our store, click below to view the entire selection. Be sure to follow us on Twitter and Instagram as well for more tips, information, and insight into EdTech!