At SchoolSphero Team
Three educators participate in online professional development for teachers offered by Sphero.

As an educator, when you invest in professional development, you stimulate your thinking, grow and enhance your content knowledge and practice, explore the latest educational theories and trends, and boost your curricular confidence. You can then transfer this learning to the classroom to provide your students with versatile, rich, and relevant learning experiences that they’ll remember for a lifetime.

Additionally, modern technology continues to heavily influence rapid changes in our society. As such, it’s vital to invest continually in your professional learning, not only to embrace a growth mindset as an educator, but also to positively impact and enhance your students’ learning. A decade ago, STEM was just emerging as a hands-on way to examine science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

Today, STEM remains an essential teaching and learning mindset. The notion that learning and growing are constant and emerge from curiosity and using a scientific approach to ask and answer real-life, relevant questions, whether they be science-specific or across other subjects, such as literature, history, or geography, for example.

At Sphero, we recognize that educators often have too-full plates and finding the time to pursue professional development hours can seem daunting. That’s why we’ve designed three options for those who are interested in STEM-related professional development. With a variety that provides a natural fit for every teacher’s schedule, budget, and preferred learning style, you can continue to strive to bring the best education experience to your students at your own pace.  

Why is STEM an Essential Component of Professional Learning?

Both a curriculum and pedagogy, STEM professional development stimulates a real-world learning experience where students make meaningful connections between content and authentic ways to apply their content learning. STEM professional development can help you build your students’ interest, enthusiasm, and practical experience, not just for science learning but for learning across all disciplines.

How Can STEM Benefit Your Students?

Engaging in STEM professional development can help you skillfully implement interdisciplinary, student-based inquiry so that you can facilitate equitable opportunities for your students as they collaborate in creative and critical ways, frame questions, and seek innovative solutions to complex problems.

What Are Some STEM Opportunities for All Teachers, Regardless of Grade Level and Subject Area?

Sphero offers quality in-person and online STEM professional development for teachers so you can explore flexible, versatile learning experiences tailored to your specific needs, interests, grade levels, and subject areas.

Are You Just Starting Out With Programming?

In just 30 minutes, Guided Programming - Draw will teach you how to use a Draw canvas and how you can apply your learning to an elementary classroom. Check out these other virtual training sessions ranging from 30 minutes to two hours.

Want to Delve Into More Depth at Your Own Pace?

Sphero Fundamentals Self-Guided Course will help you learn and navigate Draw, Block-Based programming, and Javascript text programming. You can apply these to all grade levels, experience, and content areas, and you’ll also receive a professional development certificate upon completion.

Seeking Ways to Collaborate as You Learn Virtually?

Consider Sphero’s virtual All Access Training to integrate Sphero robots and/or littleBits into your curriculum via all-access, online training with a professional learning specialist and up to 20 colleagues. Topics range from the Sphero basics to classroom management, to guided programming for Draw, to Blocks, and JavaScript text so that you can personalize your learning to your interests, experience level, and school site, and easily track student data and progress.

Prefer to Learn in Person Alongside Your Colleagues?

You can schedule an on-site workshop customized to topics, activities, and skills most relevant for you and your school to explore, build, and promote.

What Products and Tools Will Help Me Incorporate My STEM Professional Learning into My Classroom?

Sphero offers a range of products to provide you with lessons and activities, tools, and curriculum for helping transform your students’ creativity and inventiveness, including littleBits kits, where you’ll find standards-aligned lesson plans and thousands of invention possibilities, and programmable robots for all ages and coding skill levels.

References

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