Interested in teaching digital technologies but don't know where to start? Then this is the place to be! LAUNCH PAD. Two days of workshops specifically designed to get teachers ahead of the curve with the new Digital Technologies Curriculum. 

DAY 1: LAUNCH PAD WORKSHOPS FOR PRIMARY 

PUTTING THE E IN STEM by ROBYNE BOWERING (see bio)

Engineering is in essence the application of science and mathematics to solve real world problems. It forms a great reason for practically minded students to really engage with STEM and most importantly it teaches students about iterative thinking, design and problem solving. This workshop is an opportunity for primary teachers to engage with a series of hands on engineering based activities that they can take back to their classroom

HANDS ON COMPUTATIONAL THINKING by KYLIE McCOLL (see bio)

The all important first step on your students journey to mastering digital technologies is thinking algorithmically. In other words learning to organise and abstract information in order to solve problems. This skill can be learned without a computer or a programming platform. Get ready for some game based group activities and all the resources you need to repeat these with your class. 

DAY 2: LAUNCH PAD WORKSHOPS FOR PRIMARY 

CREATIVITY FOR THE NON-CREATIVE by NARELLE WOOD (see bio)

"I’m not creative” can be a familiar catch cry from many students when it comes to approaching the less straightforward abstract or interpretive tasks. This workshop is all about actionable strategies which leverage technology to help your students generate ideas and then strike the right balance between quality information and quality presentation.

FROM BEE-BOTS TO MINI-DRONES by ALLEN DICKSON (see bio) & SANJIN DEDIC (see bio)

This workshop is all about sorting through a sea of available STEM and robotics products to find what is most appropriate and affordable for each age group across primary schools. Teachers will have a hands on experience with at least 8 different platforms as well as take home resources and advice from a robotics engineer and a veteran technology educator.

DAY 1: LAUNCH PAD WORKSHOPS FOR SECONDARY

PATHWAYS TOWARD VCE ALGORITHMICS 
by KYLIE McCOLL (see bio)

VCE Algorithmics represents a well thought out curriculum to give students ideal foundations to study this topic at a university level. In this session, one of the creators of this new VCE subject will clearly outline the realistic goals for your students both in terms of mindset (design thinking, computational thinking and systems thinking) as well as the ideal content knowledge (programming languages) . This strategic session is a must see for school leaders looking to put their school on a pathway towards excellence in Digital Technologies.

CREATING STUDENT LED RESEARCH AND DATA ANALYSIS (PART 1) by COLIN CHAPMAN (see bio)

Science improves technology which in turn improves science. In this session you will learn how to create learning opportunities for your students at the intersection of technology and science. The focus will be on learning the amazing capabilities of microcontrollers as tools to measure and record a great deal of information about our immediate environment.  

DAY 2: LAUNCH PAD WORKSHOPS FOR SECONDARY

CREATING STUDENT LED RESEARCH AND DATA ANALYSIS (PART 2) by COLIN CHAPMAN (see bio)

Once your students know how to use a microcontroller and have a sense of what data can easily be measured and analysed a whole new world of opportunities opens up! Here are just a couple of an endless list of possibilities:  investigate limits of the speed of human of human senses, studying correlations between weather data and sports performance and even measuring pulse, skin conductivity and brainwaves to find out what makes us tick.

CREATIVE THINKING APPLIED THROUGH DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES  by NARELLE WOOD (see bio)

This program aims to provide teachers with an overview of coding and networking principles using mathematical oddities including hexaflexagons and dragon curves. These are all great opportunities for students to display higher order thinking which can fruitfully be simulated using computer programs.