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Mr. McGowan's Classroom

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show projects from all time

Past projects 2

  • Robot Rodeo!

    Funded Oct 22, 2016

    The materials we received through our recently successful donors choose grant have enabled us to interact with our community in new ways and have enabled my students to take on learning about and programming new robotics at higher levels. Through the grant we purchased a Dash Bot, Sphero, and Cozmo robot. These items have been embraced by my high school students for various reasons.

    In November, we held an awesome community event in which high school students taught younger kids how to work with and use various types of robotics technology. This introductory activity is a great way for students to really explore and learn about the various options of the technology, and to teach as well.

    Two of my students have really taken on programming the Cozmo bot. This small robot has a big personality and that has been displayed in many ways. By programming in python, the students can take full control of the robot's actions and have even made it act a scene from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Thank you for all of your support in bringing these amazing new tools into our school and classroom.”

    With gratitude,

    Mr. McGowan

  • Rolling Robots

    Funded Oct 15, 2015

    Thank you for your generous contributions to the Rolling Robots funding on Donors Choose. With your contributions we purchased two Sphero SPRK kits. With these robots we have been able to engage a larger audience into the realm of controlling and programming robots.

    Upon entering my classroom, these two devices immediately piqued the interest of both robotics and non-robotics students. While they are simply fun as they are, having students develop programs that the robots run, makes the devices more engaging and brings the quality of engagement I am looking for into the classroom. We have yet to hit the full potential of these robots, as we have not yet reached our primary robotics unit with the intended class, but many students have already taken the time to get familiar with the devices and began learning the basics.

    Additionally, we were able to showcase these robots at our recent, highly successful, Robot Rodeo held at Ashland High School. Children of all ages were able to get hands on experience with a variety of Robots and the Spheros were two at the center of this attention. We are looking forward to expanding our robot kits in coming months and getting more students (and adults) engaged in robotics education in Ashland.

    Thank you for being a part of this journey and providing new opportunities for our students. We look forward to our bright future full of engineering, computer science and robotics”

    With gratitude,

    Mr. McGowan

My classroom is a place of adventure, exploration and creativity. Students and teachers are invited to learn with constant hands-on experiences, research, trial and error, and a sense of 'Just do it'. Failure is an option and a requirement before we can reach greater success. Students must take risks, fall down, and get back up in order to gain understandings and grow. In my class, they can do that safely, knowing that I am there with them. Thank you for being here to support our goals.

About my class

My classroom is a place of adventure, exploration and creativity. Students and teachers are invited to learn with constant hands-on experiences, research, trial and error, and a sense of 'Just do it'. Failure is an option and a requirement before we can reach greater success. Students must take risks, fall down, and get back up in order to gain understandings and grow. In my class, they can do that safely, knowing that I am there with them. Thank you for being here to support our goals.

About my class

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