Wattle Grove Public School
Wattle Grove Public School is a modern and vibrant school that is preparing its students for the future with a focus on embedding ICT and Digital Technologies across the curriculum. From Robotics to Google Classroom, technology is integrated to support and bolster effective teaching and learning.
The T4L Innovations team were privileged to be able to spend the day with the students and teachers of Wattle Grove Public to see technology in action across all stages of their school.
Types of technology
Students from Wattle Grove Public School are confident using a range of technologies. From Windows 10 PCs to iPads and a range of robotics, they are equipped for a multi-device connected world. Wattle Grove is an example of how a range of devices enables a variety of different needs and learning scenarios to be met effectively.
Apple iPads
From videoing to record their learning experiences, or to convey their understanding, to coding robots such as Sphero balls, iPads provide students across all stages with a mobile creativity and digital technology station. Connecting easily to the DETNSW wireless network means students can easily share their work with their peers and their teacher.
Students at Wattle Grove were learning 'digitally untethered' as they moved between working at desks, sitting on the floor and even outside the classroom - wherever their learning demanded.
BlueBot Robotics
You will probably have seen BlueBots or their yellow cousin, the BeeBot in many primary classrooms. At Wattle Grove it was inspiring to see the way these simple robots were driving learning across the curriculum in Stage 1.
From a focus on literacy, as the week's focus words were spelt out on the alphabet grid, to a shift to the social sciences as a journey across Australia was plotted, all using key computational thinking and coding skills that will form the basis of our students' digital futures.
Sphero
Sphero is a common site in many schools and the teachers and students at Wattle Grove are deploying them in a creative and curriculum-engaging way.
Not satisfied with mere remote piloting, the students utilise the graphical programming language contained in the Sphero EDU app, to develop their students' coding and computational thinking skills. They then connected this learning to the study of geometry in Mathematics as they explored angles, degrees and direction. Then moving onto acceleration, speed and distance. Learning in Mathematics has sure jumped out of the text book at Wattle Grove Public School.
I am sure their next step is to look at how they can tinker with this graphical code using the text based editor and code their Spheros in Python!
Student Response System
Teachers are always keen to find opportunities to utilise formative assessment to ensure they are continually addressing the learning needs of their students.
The teachers at Wattle Grove are leveraging advanced Student Response Technology to provide a fast and effective way to both assess student learning and provide effective feedback.
