Contrary to what you might think and hear, apps and screens aren’t the best tools for kids to learn STEM concepts, even coding. Why? Innovation, pattern recognition, exploration, experimentation and creation underlie STEM principles. Kids need to manipulate tangible things. It’s how they learn. While there are some great apps that supplement STEM learning, the best STEM activities for kids are blended ones — the ones that require hands-on exploration, screens optional. Those that do require screens, like ones with coding apps, should augment the experience, not be the sole focus. Many of these toys and kits are designed for classroom use but are perfectly adaptable and suitable for home use, too, as my two kids, ages five and seven, will shout from the rooftops (supervised, don’t worry).

Check out these awesome blended learning STEM kits and toys. They’ll have your little inventors ready to apply for their first patent in no time.

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I’m going to let you in on a little secret. Part of the reason I write about technology for a living is that I couldn’t cut it as a coder. It’s not that I regret my career choice (I definitely don’t), but I do regret having never really learned the art of programming. And it’s not because I want to build apps or games or anything. It’s because you pick up a lot of peripheral skills.

This is the primary reason I want my kid to learn to code. I don’t necessarily want him to become an engineer (though I certainly wouldn’t be upset if he did). Instead, I see coding as a great teaching tool. It’s a way to teach cause and effect and problem-solving skills. And mastering the logic behind simple routines can even make your kid a better and more convincing communicator.

So obviously there’s plenty of reason to get your kid into coding. The next question is how. Well, we’ve scoured the internet (and a few brick-and-mortar stores) for some of the best toys and kits to take your children from curious toddler to preteen inventor.

Cubetto

Cubetto is a great place to start. It’s suitable for children as young as three since it relies on simple color-coded blocks to perform basic tasks. Your child puts them in the control board in the order they want, presses a button and Cubetto starts moving about. To make the most of Cubetto, though, you’re going to want the various adventure packs that give you worlds to explore and stories to tell. And best of all, Cubetto is completely screen free. It’s a hands-on, tactile introduction to loops, functions and algorithms.

Buy on Amazon – $180

Kids First Coding & Robotics

The Kids First Coding & Robotics kit from Thames and Kosmos isn’t terribly different from Cubetto. It comes with its own cute little robot, this one in the shape of an anthropomorphic peanut butter and jelly sandwich named Sammy. Sammy and his kit are a little more complex than Cubetto, which is why it’s suggested for children at least four years of age. But that complexity makes it much more flexible. Sammy isn’t confined to a play mat or a pre-scripted storybook. In fact, you can even swap out that adorable sandwich body for other pieces to build a mouse that steals cheese or a fire truck that puts out fires.

Buy on Amazon – $100

Harry Potter Kano Coding Kit

Eventually, though, your kid will grow out of all this screen-free business. And, of course, it’s unavoidable that they will eventually become obsessed with Harry Potter. But don’t worry: You can use that to your advantage. This kit from Kano teaches your kids that coding is magic. No, seriously, they build a wand and then using an app, create spells that they perform simply by waving it around. (And presumably using the right incantation.)

Once they’ve mastered the basic concepts behind programming, it’s time to graduate to something more serious. Sphero and littleBits have carved out a name for themselves in the world of STEM toys by combining simplicity and playfulness with a surprising amount of flexibility. While something like the Droid Inventor Kit or the Bolt are appropriate for children as young as eight, they’re equally fun for an adult. (Or an adult-aged child.) And that’s a great thing. Because if you’re excited about something, it’s more likely that your child will be too. And keeping you, the parent, engaged will make you more likely to put effort into the whole teaching-your-kid-to-code thing.

Buy on Amazon – $78

littleBits Droid Inventor Kit

The littleBits kit lets your child build their very own R2D2 and customize it to their heart’s content with pieces that magnetically snap together. I personally own some littleBits stuff (though not the Droid Inventor Kit specifically) and can tell you that it’s insanely fun, flexible and basically foolproof.

Buy on Amazon – $81

Sphero Bolt

Bolt doesn’t have a bunch of parts you can swap in and out, but the Sphero EDU app is a great way to teach kids the basics of computer science using little more than a robot ball with some blinking lights in it. Plus, the app is compatible with basically any device and even works in a browser.

Buy on Amazon – $150

Ozobot Evo

Evo from Ozobot isn’t much more advanced than Sphero, but it takes a lot of the skills it teaches, as well as those taught by Sammy, and combines them into one surprisingly capable robot. (You may have noticed there are /a lot/ of robots in here.) Evo is super tiny and loaded with a ton of sensors. And its unique coding environment, OzoBlockly, is clean, intuitive and deceptively powerful. Plus it has several different modes, which allows it to grow with your child as they master key concepts.

Buy on Amazon – $79

Lego Mindstorms

The granddaddy of kid coding kits, though, is Mindstorms. And in many ways, it’s still the standard by which most other STEM toys are measured. We definitely recommend it for a slightly older child. Lego says the kit is appropriate for ages 10 and up. While Mindstorms is endlessly versatile and can be used to build everything from replicas of the Curiosity rover to robots that can solve Rubik’s Cubes to a chicken-nugget vending machine, it’s not quite as beginner friendly as Lego’s Boost. But once your child masters manipulating something like littleBits, they may crave even greater creative freedom.

Buy on Amazon – $330

Tech Will Save Us micro:maker Pack

The kid who demands complete freedom will definitely appreciate the micro:bit. This tiny, BBC-backed computer fits in the palm of a child’s hand. Think of it like a kid-friendly Arduino. It has buttons and lights, plus Bluetooth, a compass and an accelerometer. It even has light and temperature sensors. And its unique edge connector allows it to be hooked up to all sorts of accessories. With a little patience and creativity, a child can basically bring anything they dream up to life. This particular kit from Tech Will Save Us comes with a bunch of extras for adding strings of lights, battery power, wheels and more.

If your child has kept up the coding habit long enough to grow out of the micro:bit, there’s a good chance you have a little engineer or inventor in the making. And even if not, they’ll still have learned a ton of valuable skills.

Buy on Tech Will Save Us – $68

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Unless you’re a bonafide musical wizard, you probably get stuck in a creative rut every now and then.

Good habits are important for writing songs, but they can also limit creativity and curb ideas.

It might sound odd, but complete creative freedom is what most of us are after. Sticking to the same musical playbook over and over again threatens that freedom in a big way.

Reassessing the way you create music from top to bottom is one of the best ways to figure out what’s working and what needs to change to find that creative freedom.

Here’s some tips for reassessing your workflow and making positive changes.

Take an unflinching look at your writing process

Habits can’t be broken without being recognized.

No two songwriters or producers work in the same way, so take some time figuring out exactly how you make music.

Habits can’t be broken without being recognized.

You don’t need to write things down, but you should if you think it would help. It’s the best way to get a full picture of how you make music, from the first thing you do to the completed song.

Here’s an example of someone’s unique songwriting process written down from start to finish:

• Create a chord progression with synths
• Add in two or three other chord progression sections, and start forming structure
• Create a melody by singing over chords
• Write lyrics to fit with melody and phrasing
• Add supporting instrumentation––percussion, bass, etc
• Add production and mixing elements
• Master, promote, and release

When you’ve got a good look at your unique process, try figuring out what’s not working about it.

For example, if you always start writing by creating a drum beat, experiment beginning with something else.

The first two or three steps in the songwriting process are the most crucial, so reassessing and changing those up will help in a big way.

Define your strengths and weaknesses as a songwriter

What in your songwriting process brings out your strengths and weaknesses?

Leaning in to those thoughts and defining what’s not working about your writing will help you make positive changes.

If an element isn’t critical or doesn’t help your process, try changing that up as well. Don’t be afraid to experiment with your process once you’ve reassessed.

Take time to define the areas of your process that show your skills in the best light.

Can you deliver that same creativity and enthusiasm to the parts of your process that are lacking?

Think about the things you find inspiring and memorable in another artist’s music.

If you’re feeling especially stuck, do some research into the unique songwriting process of some artists you admire.

If you’re feeling especially stuck, do some research into the unique songwriting process of some artists you admire.

For example, a fascinating 2016 interview with Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood talks about the band’s unique writing process.

Greenwood thinks of Radiohead as arrangers of the ideas Thom York brings into the studio. Don’t be afraid to draw inspiration and concrete writing ideas from your favourite artists.

Identify what’s holding you back

From an old guitar amp that cuts in and out to a collaborative relationship that’s run its course, reassessing your process means cutting out everything holding you back.

The instruments we write and record with have a big impact on the music we make, as do the musicians in the room with us when we’re writing.

The instruments we write and record with have a big impact on the music we make, as do the musicians in the room with us when we’re writing.

Gear is obviously an easier topic to scrutinize than your collaborators.

If an instrument or piece of music gear isn’t functioning properly or inspiring you, then it should be replaced.

Before you sever ties with a musician you work with try writing a few songs without them and see what feels and sounds different.

If you find that your process is consistently more creative and inspired without them, it might be time to gracefully make a change.

Develop a new idea in a way you’ve never tried before

Now that you’re armed with a clearer perspective about your process, it’s time to try doing something new.

What that new thing is changes for everyone, but it should be different than how you’re used to kicking your usual process off.

Add in new instruments, collaborate with new songwriters, write lyrics about something you’ve never explored before in your music.

Since you now know your usual songwriting process habits, it’s time to break them and take some creative risks. If this makes you feel uncomfortable, then you’re doing it right.

No matter who you are and how you make music, you’re bound to gain a lot by trying to be thoughtful about your process.

By paying close attention not only to how you write but also the world around you, musical ideas and inspiration will be easier to find.

The post How to Reassess Your Workflow to Spark Creativity appeared first on LANDR Blog.

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• Former Uber CEO and cofounder Travis Kalanick appeared at the New York Stock Exchange on Friday, May 10 for the ride hailing company’s IPO.
• Kalanick’s arrival was met with "enormous applause," according to the New York Time’s Mike Isaac.
• Beside Kalanick was his father, Donald Kalanick, who survived a life-threatening boating accident in 2017 that killed his wife Bonnie.
• Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

Uber cofounder and former CEO Travis Kalanick was in attendance at the New York Stock Exchange on Friday morning, and he brought his father.

The pair arrived to "enormous applause," according to New York Times reporter Mike Isaac.

That’s not just because of Kalanick’s role in Uber’s rise, but because of his father Donald Kalanick’s near-fatal boating accident in 2017.

Kalanick cofounded Uber and was the CEO until 2017, when he stepped down amid a string of scandals at the company. The move coincided with a personal tragedy in Kalanick’s family.

In May 2017, Donald and his wife Bonnie Kalanick were on their boat in Pine Flat Lake in Fresno County, California, when the boat reportedly hit a rock and sank in mid-afternoon. 

Donald suffered moderate injuries and was flown to a local medical center, and Bonnie suffered fatal injuries. 

Following the tragic accident, Travis Kalanick wrote a tribute to his late mother. 

"I miss her terribly and feel the hole that she left in my heart, I realize much more fully the gift she gave me, and commit to live it and express it in her honor," Kalanick wrote in June 2017. 

Though some of the applause at their arrival on Friday was aimed at Kalanick’s work at Uber, the appearance of Donald Kalanick alongside his son was assuredly an emotional moment. 

SEE ALSO: The mother of Uber CEO Travis Kalanick has died in a boating accident, and his father is in ‘serious’ condition

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