Blog posts about Education, CyberSecurity, Digital Citizenship, Privacy, InternetSafety, curation, PKM, PLN, blogging, Global Collaboration, Coaching, Collaboration, eSkills, eLeadership, Coding, MakerED, MakerSpace, Social Media, How to learn, learning to learn
WHAT gifts to buy for the kids for Xmas and Holidays?
Every year the same question, isn’t it!? WHY not thinking about to buy gifts from where and with that the kids will learn? It might be good to have a look on WHAT are the skills required for the future from youth, students, learners and upon that making your choice! Actually (2020) the trends are in the maker scene and coding scene! Engineers, coding people and ICT specialists are needed, the workforce, industry is searching!!
WHAT is the Coding Scene?
Coding is THE 21st Century skill. Coding enhances creativity, teaches young people to cooperate, to work together across physical and geographical boundaries and to communicate in a universal language. Technology is part of our life, and coding brings it closer to you!
Well, I started myself years ago as a NEWBIE in Coding and so I tried out different stuff, whereby I became a fan of ARDUINO. Here below my gift selection for Christmas (Xmas) which I recommend:
While reading my above tutorials, you will find ALSO more examples in my blog about “Coding with Arduino, etc.); stay tuned for next tutorials with LEARNingByDoing with FUN and PracTICE 😉
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure)..
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
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Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: Arduino UNO R3, Arduino NANO, Grove, Grove Beginner Kit for ARDUINO, Coding, Maker, MakerED, Maker Spaces, OLED, DHT11, Temperature and Humidity Monitor, I2C, SEEDSTUDIO, Robots, Robot car,
The Kit is delivered in a well organized plastic box with a poster inside of all the parts with description and a CD with the PDF Manual, Code and Libraries.
The manual in PDF format is actually very well documented an nobody should have problems to follow the instructions.
There are even the necessary tools for assembling provided, such as different screwdrivers.
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Assembling and cabling
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First steps, assembling… Actually it isn’t that difficult, only problem encountered are 2mm screws and nuts, I will continue tomorrow with a magnifying glass and more light to handle it (OH my eyes…). There was some fight with screws and nuts ranging from 1.6mm (Ultrasonic Sensor) to 2mm (Servo fixing) where I needed to use special tools, was a bit stressing to work with such tiny things.
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For solving the problems encountered with the tiny screws and nuts, I used a “magnetic telescope” for the 1.6 mm nuts and a “spring-loaded tongs” for the 3 mm nuts.
The cabling was very easy and the rest of the assembling as well as it is VERY well described in the Assembling document (in PDF). Next step is to control (End-Control) again the cabling to make sure that everything is correctly connected and THEN the Coding…
The documentation is available in different languages…
I made the End Control, checking if the connections were made right, it was.
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Assembling the two black plates and the wheels was easy peasy as well…
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The Coding
Click the image, please, to enlarge.
Opening the Manual NOW to proceed for the first lesson “Make the car move on [Auto-GO]”. Very easy to follow, it worked in less than 5 minutes. Unplugging the USB cable from the laptop, will it work!?
Taking the car away from the desk and putting it on the floor, switching the Power-supply on and it runs around by avoiding any obstacles while they are detected by the “Ultrasonic Sensor”, it’s FUN watching <===> Success Trying out NEXT lesson now…
The courses are made very easy: plug the USB cable to the computer, open the course in the ArduinoIDE, upload it into the IDE, save it in your folder, unplug the USB cable, take the car away from the desk and put it on the floor, switch it on and enjoying…
Well, that’s a Kit which everybody can try and have success, give it a try and enjoy “Coding”, “Maker” activities…
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”.
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Stay tuned for next blog post(s) 😉.. .
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Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: Arduino UNO R3, coding, learning to learn, learning by doing, trouble shooting, sensors, assembling, Robot Car Kit,
Welcome to the official game of the 2017 FIRST Global Challenge, H2O FLOW! In H2O FLOW, teams learn about real-world water scarcity and contamination issues. In the game, two villages exist on either side of a contaminated river. The villagers compete to create and store purified water in their respective reserves. In a laboratory up stream, the villagers come together to research the contaminants and ultimately create a purification system so contaminants are removed before they reach the villages, thus providing clean water for all. In the end, each village prepares for the coming flood by searching for higher ground.
Match is 2:30 minutes long and six (6) teams are competing where one team (3 countries) is called “Aqua Team” and the other one (3 countries) is called “Hydro Team“.
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Best is to watch the video below, who explains in detail:
Team Luxembourg finished 61 out of 163 teams (157 nations)!
[Ronny OSWEILER]After plenty hours of hard work, Team Luxembourg has been awarded the “Certificate of Excellence” that recognizes professional achievement, advanced education, commitment to STEM, time management and superior performance during the competition.
Congratulations to all students!
Team Luxembourg could have been 48th, if in game 5, we would have done the climbing, but due to technical reasons the robot was stuck. Those 20 points would have been important.
[Gust MEES] We will discuss this in the section “Incident in round five for Team Luxembourg“, below!
Please find below some photos of “Team Luxembourg’s Robot“: Click on the photos to enlarge them.
Team Luxembourg’s Robot
Electronic and Mechanic
Electronic and Mechanic
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Interview from RTL in Luxembourgish
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Please click the image to access the article AND the video
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How did OUR neighbors and OTHER countries in Europe rank, just for curiosity?
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Germany made place 5, Finland made place 9, Italy made place 11, Estonia made place 31, Ireland made place 42, Romania made place 46, Austria made place 54, Portugal made place 63, Denmark made place 91, Latvia made place 98, Greece made place 108, Sweden made place 110, Bulgaria made place 111, Spain made place 112, UK made place 137, France made place 149, Belgium made place 156.
United States made place 141.
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The NEXT “First Global Challenge” will be in Mexico-City in 2018 . The “Team Luxembourg” will participate probably…
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Incident in round five for Team Luxembourg
[Ronny OSWEILER] In round five, the robot of Team Canada touched our robot and disconnected our battery cable. We were unable to move for the rest of the match and lost a lot of potential points in that way. As one can see in the video, we had collected a lot of blue balls which could have been scored. Also it was impossible to climb the bar at the end of the match. .
[Gust MEES] How did Team Canada react after WHAT happend!??
[Ronny OSWEILER] They apologized for what happened. It was not their intention, as they were allied to us during that match.
Video from LAM-Code Club where one can see exactly WHAT happend, check below please (at approximately 1 min 11):
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The preparation before the tournament
[Gust MEES]1) How did it start; did YOU get an invitation to participate?
[Ronny OSWEILER]The teachers at the LAM got offered the project of forming a team to represent Luxembourg by SCRIPT. We only got to know about the project very late, so time was of the essence. We had to gather a group of students within two days. As Annabel is currently studying science of education and is also interested in technology, I asked her to join me in mentoring the team.
[Gust MEES]2) WHEN did YOU start the preparations?
[Annabel SCHOELLEN] The preparations started at the end of march, when we had to gather all necessary information about the students, as well as ensure everyone has got a passport to travel to the United States. Then we had to wait for the robot, which arrived after the Easter holidays. From that moment onward, we started brainstorming on the robot to build, and prototype our ideas.
[Gust MEES]3) WHO were the responsible persons for the “Team Luxembourg”?
[Ronny OSWEILER] The main people that mentored the students while building the robot were Ronny Osweiler (teacher at LAM) , Micael Leal (teacher at LAM) and Annabel Schoellen (student in Science of Education). But the project could only be realized with the organizational help of Christian Boudot and Fabrice Roth, both teachers at LAM, as well as the direction of the LAM.
[Gust MEES]4) From WHICH schools did the students come from?
[Ronny OSWEILER]As the time for the prepartions was very limited, it was not possible to organize a national qualification contest. We took some of our most talented students, as well as some students from other schools. The students were: Laura Märker (LAM), Yannick Martins Dos Santos (LAM), Pit Baum (LAM), Kimon Leners (LAM), Lina Chen (LAM), Atreyam Sharma (École Européenne), Shawn Teusch (LGL). Pit Baum was the captain of the team.
[Gust MEES]5) Did the students travel and participate for FREE, OR did THEY have to pay a participation!?
[Annabel SCHOELLEN] The students had to pay no money for the participation at the project, otherwise I think that this could have been a barrier for potentially brilliant minds. Education and the development of technological and social skills should always be accessible for everyone. This was only possible because of our generous sponsors.
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[Gust MEES] 6) What was the motto of the team?
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[Ronny OSWEILER] For us, the team was a representation of the diversity of Luxembourg. We had 7 students with 5 different nationalities (Luxembourgish, French, German, Portuguese and Indian) . This was the reason that we took the slogan “A team as diverse as its country“. We wanted to show the other nations in Washington the acceptance and diversity that Luxembourg has to offer.
[Gust MEES] To understand the above, one must know that in Luxembourg the part of the population without Luxembourg nationality is close to 48%.
[Gust MEES] Update (25-07-2017): MarcTEUSCHand Madhumaltiwere supporting during their Washington stay! Marc was present because his son is in “TeamLuxembourg” and I made already an interview with him here:
The team got contacted by the Luxembourgish Embassy in Washington, and even got a visit from the Consul Stan Myck at their booth in the DAR Constitution Hall and by Franz Schilling during the opening ceremony. The team was also invited to visit the Embassy and was welcomed by the H.E. Ambassador Sylvie Lucas, who showed them the whole embassy and gave them historical background information about the presence of Luxembourg in Washington..
Strange things were happening, “Team BURUNDI” disappeared!
After taking part in an international robotics competition in Washington DC, six Burundi teenagers have been reported missing. Two of the students were seen leaving the US for Canada.
A police spokesperson said authorities “do not have any indication of foul play” as the investigation continues into what happened after the group attended the FIRST Global Challenge robotics competition with students from 157 nations.
Four of the teenagers seem to be in a safe place, but police are not reporting any details as yet, according to the Washington Post.
WHAT Luxembourg EDUcation is doing for creativity by using Maker-Spaces in MakerED
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Luxembourg is investing in the future by using ModernEDU with and about ICT, as well based on CREATIVITY, since the launch of <===> Digital Lëtzebuerg<===> Check links below, please (my interviews included):
From the above mentioned NON-PROFIT organizations emerged people WHO NOW are the main leaders in the field of MakerED in Luxembourg 😉
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”).
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The author Annabel SCHOELLEN (22) is currently student in Science of Education at the University of Luxembourg. She is passionately interested in education, art and science. She aims to make the world a better place by sensitizing already young people for problems and to motivate them to find solutions by using STEM.
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The author Ronny OSWEILER (29) is informatics teacher at the Lycée des Arts et Métiers, one of the few Future Hubs in Luxembourg. He made his Master in Computer Science in 2013 and then carried on to become a computer science teacher, as both interest in technology and education have always been his main interests. He is also one of the teachers working at the Code Club of the Lycée des Arts et Métiers.
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Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post:Creativity, Life-Long Learning, Learning To Learn, Learning By doing, BASE ONE, BEECREATIVE, Maker Spaces, Coding, MakerED, robots, robotics, Engagement, Coaching, Mentoring, costs, sponsoring, fairness, competition, travel, United States, US, privacy, border controls,
I am getting very often asked from persons WHO follow my curation (ideas for makerspaces) and my blog posts WHERE they can buy the necessary proposed stuff. Please find below a non-exhaustive list:
List of online Electronics shops (mostly for Europe, but some are delivering ALSO global):
L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”).
Through ICT the Real-World and especially the Virtual-World (both are influencing each other…) are changing quicker then WE can learn about, BUT WE must adapt to it and so must EDUcation! Therefore Universities must do research about the How-To to adapt and teaching about it… Luxembourg, a small country in Europe is doing so in September 2016, read more:
Luxembourg has already a “strategy to promote media literacy” as I got told in an interview, see image below please and click on the image to access the article.
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Click the image please to access the article.
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There is ALSO Finland WHO made a radical change to its EDUcation-Sytem, check below please: Finland uses <===> Phenomenon based learning
Meanwhile, before research finishes its studies, WE can already have a look on WHAT is NEW in Technology and WHAT probably would be of interest for EDUcation, as well as NEW Pedagogy Theories and NEW Trends:
Because of the internet and Social Media there is NOW ALSO a new way of learning through collaboration, Global Collaboration, Peer-To-Peer Learning, mentoring, coaching:
WHEN WE talk about “Entrepreneurship“, then WE MUST ALSO talking about “Blockchain and Bitcoin” as THEY are a Game-Changer in the future, check below please:
AND as WE are using ICT: internet with iPad, tablet, smartphones, laptops, PCs, Macs, small computers such as Arduino,Raspberry PI and Co, the “Internet of Things” WE MUST ALSO have basics knowledge of “CyberSecurity“, check below please:
MY experience described in ONLY some phrases: Give the LEARNers, students (whatever age) the freedom of LEARNing without squeezing THEM into a FRAME and concentrate on guiding them as a coach by analyzing THEIR behavior and show them the How-To to become self-directed learners, autodidacts. SHOW THEM ALSO up from the beginning WHAT THE <===> LEARNing Path <===> will be with design of it and explain THEM that they could design themselves it with a short introduction on the How-To. THEY will learn the ICT-PracTICE which will help them once out of the <===> #SchoolCocoon <===> to be ready for Life-Long LEARNing and to be able to adapt very quickly in the workforce! WHEN YOU show the LEARNers, students <===> WHAT the profit is for THEIR private life <===> YOU will engage them very quickly 😉 AND DON’T teach THEM more as necessary, propose them some links to go further ONLY for those who want!!
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WHAT’S my message and WHY did I create this blog post!?
Well, I will encourage all youth and also adults, seniors, oldies to become <===>Life-Long LEARNers <===> and staying Up-To-Date with their knowledge, especially concerning their skills in ICT, called NOW <===> #eSkills <===>! In the modern world YOU will change YOUR job probably +/- 12 times in YOUR working career, it is very rare to stay life-long in the same job and/or same company!!! SO… The workforce is looking for people with ICT skills which YOU mostly didn’t learn at school, right!?
YOU won’t have (mostly) the time to learn by visiting courses, right!? START to become Life-Long LEARNers by LEARNing on YOUR OWN pace, by becoming <===> Autodidacts <===> Self-Directed LEARNers. YOU are able to, I did it, so can YOU!? 😉
I found a job because of my ICT eSkills and I am STILL LEARNing on a daily base routine for being Up-To Date with my <===> Professional Development <===>, even being retired NOW! THE pleasure of LEARNing!
I did THE <===> ICT PracTICE <===> and THAT’S WHAT the workforce needs!!!
Due to my eSkills I could share my knowledge AND expertise ALSO with the below mentioned as well as to a broad range of visitors from around the globe!
AND check my profile below as well, at the bottom of this blog post please! 😉
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Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: Augmented Reality. #AR, Virtual Reality, #VR, Gaming, Coding, #MakerED, Personalized Learning, Coaching, Instructional Coaching, Teacherpreneur, Enterpreneurship, Problem based Learning, #PBL, Social Media, Twitter, Blogs, blogging, Curation, Google Hangouts, Apps as facilitators, NEW Pedagogy, Critical Thinking, Proactive Thinking, Cyber-Security, ICT related, Quality, Team Teaching, Team Learning, Collaboration, Global Collaboration, sharing, Learning To Learn, preparation for Life-Long Learning, Professional Learning Networks, Professional Knowledge Management, Parents involved in EDUcation of kids, MORE communication, SchoolCocoon will be MORE open, nearly everything will get taught through the use of ICT, #eSkills, Competency based learning, Blended learning, Pedagogy & #EdTech, Mindmaps, ThingLink, Infographics, Apps as facilitators,
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure).
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
Check my #curation to find best articles, blogs and courses about #education #itsecurity #CyberSecurity #EdCollCoach #GlobalEDU #cyberbullying, #AR #RA #augmentedreality #health #science #QR #qrcodes in EN, FR, DE…
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Coding is THE 21st Century skill. Coding enhances creativity, teaches young people to cooperate, to work together across physical and geographical boundaries and to communicate in a universal language. Technology is part of our life, and coding brings it closer to you!
L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure)..
Through ICT the Real-World and especially the Virtual-World (both are influencing each other…) are changing quicker then WE can learn about, BUT WE must adapt to it and so must EDUcation! Therefore Universities must do research about the How-To to adapt and teaching about it… 
With ALL the above mentioned possibilities, how can WE already NOW make a 
EDU: Digital CitiZENship, CyberSecurity, eSkills, Modern EDU by Gust MEES 