Visitors to my classroom always wanted to know more about the tools and toys that the kids were learning with. Now, in the STEAM Lab at our school, visitors still beg the question, “What IS that? Where did you get it?” The list is always changing, but here are some of my favorite tangible tech toys for 2018.
Original Hexbugs are hours – seriously HOURS – of fun! They are teeny tiny battery operated toys that move and bounce off of surfaces. Give your students a challenge of building a path for them to get from point A to point B or fashion a chariot for them to see how much they could pull. There are also a ton of new versions that I haven’t gotten my hands on but look great! Check them out in the complete Hexbug store.
Osmo MindRacers are all the rage right now. Who doesn’t want to race cars down a ramp? Think those card racing arcade games now on your device with some Matchbox cars. Osmo has done a really nice job of adding products from their original Words, Numbers, and Tangrams. There are now coding games and an iPhone base in the Osmo store.
Osmo Coding Jam and Coding Awbie are tangible coding blocks that link to the free corresponding Osmo apps and help students explore computational thinking. It’s a fun challenge to get the right sequence of code to make the game functional.
BeeBot An oldie, but goodie, BeeBot now has a BlueBot that is Bluetooth enabled. Early coders program the BeeBot arrows to get the robot to move. Create a map of your classroom or city and code the BeeBot to take a tour!
Puzzlets takes a puzzle board and pieces with simple code and brings an app to life. Students can sit together around one tablet or iPad and discuss how to get the characters around the app. I love this one for centers. Guide students to slow down and listen to each others ideas and ways to problem solve.
Cubetto A Montessori approved, tangible coding toy, Cubetto offers young learners the opportunity to explore coding and computational thinking. It is rather pricey, but worth the investment if you have a strong need in EC.
Robot Engineer combines reading and building a robot. Some students want to dive right in an build, others like to gain the background knowledge through the story before they do so. There is no wrong way!
Jumbo Gears brings a Lego-esque experience to working with gears. Students can build varying levels of gear systems on an interlocking board. A great center activity and powerful inquiry learning experience.
Circuit Maze is a logic puzzle and another I haven’t been able to play with yet but I am pretty excited about it. A little more primary friendly than Snap Circuits (another good product) and teaches circuitry that can be expanded on in sequential lessons.
Sphero keeps adding on to its fleet of robots with increasingly easier to use models. With the new mini Sphero, you can test out its robotics with your class without making a huge investment. At our tech night this was one of the most popular stations!
Adult supervision required! Well, not really, but should be a consideration for all of these games. Why? Because the conversation about tech tools helps students gain purpose and deeper understanding of the tools they use. As with any tech tool, have a conversation with your students as they play and learn helps to deepen everyone’s understanding!
Some of these tools have been used in the NOW Classrooms K-2 book – check it out!
Kirstin McGinnis
NOW Classrooms K-2 Author
Literacy Coach