We’re excited to introduce our education community to another "Eduporium Featured Educator.” Each month, we’re highlighting the work of an innovative educator who is effectively using EdTech to empower his or her students with greater learning experiences. We love being able to share their stories and their work with you and hope this series continues to give all educators encouragement to try new things in the classroom! This month, we’re featuring Elissa Schaeffer, a librarian from New York, who has been using EdTech she received through one of our event raffles to run coding programs for elementary school students!
Elissa Schaeffer
Children's Services Manager, Brighton Memorial Library, Rochester, NY
Q&A:
What have you done with the EdTech you've received from Eduporium?
Using high school volunteers, I have run hour-long coding programs for students in grades 3-5 using the Edison Robot. The Edison is a great way to engage students in this age group and it offers different forms of coding, so students can choose from different programming options. They can code in a screenless way with simple barcodes, using a Python language, a Blockly language, a Scratch language, or Edison’s own language known as EdWare.
What are 2-3 of your favorite EdTech tools?
Honestly, I really love the ease of use of the Edison Robot—it’s always so simple to use thanks to its sturdy and simplistic design! I’ve also used Ozobots and the Sphero SPRK+ in programs with students, which each allow them to build on some of the skills they’ve learned when coding with the Edison. The Ozobot and Sphero are a bit more advanced and flashy, which is great for getting students excited about computer science and keeping them wanting more!
What interests you most about Eduporium?
All of the things in one accessible spot. I can go to each item’s individual site, or I can browse through all of them on Eduporium’s site. Having so many EdTech tools available in one place is something that any technology teacher can benefit from. It really is a time saver and a boost for convenience to know that many of the best tools can be found and purchased from one source.
We thank Elissa for speaking with us! If you know of an educator who is doing exciting things with EdTech, feel free to recommend them (or yourself!) for us to feature next by emailing us (hello@eduporium.com) with a short blurb about how you’ve used tech tools to empower your students! Find out more about how Eduporium can help revamp your classroom, library, or makerspace by exploring our site. Sign up as an educator and start saving with your discount!