DroneBlocks curriculum: hands-on coding with Crazyflie Nano

With the rising deal with STEAM schooling, the demand for partaking, hands-on studying instruments is extra crucial than ever. DroneBlocks has change into a well-liked selection for educators seeking to convey drones into the classroom, providing a complete curriculum that caters to numerous ability ranges. So is DroneBlocks curriculum any good, and what’s it like?

I’m a former trainer, with 6 years of expertise instructing early elementary. After that, I used to be an elementary college principal for five years. I’ve seen my fair proportion of curriculum, so I used to be desperate to see what DroneBlocks would train. Whereas I’ve by no means beforehand reviewed a drone curriculum earlier than, I put this one to the check, going by way of it myself with a crucial, principal’s eye.

Right here’s my evaluation of the DroneBlocks curriculum, and my advice of what forms of school rooms it’s good for.

DroneBlocks goes past conventional digital coding instruments and classroom robots by introducing college students to programming by way of drones. The system offers skilled improvement sources for academics, coding platforms for college kids, and a user-friendly app that makes it straightforward to entry coding classes proper within the classroom.

Utilizing the Crazyflie Nano drone, college students can program flight patterns, actions, and instructions with block-based or text-based coding.

DroneBlocks curriculum value (and else you want what you’ll want)

DroneBlocks presents a curriculum package deal priced at $495 per 12 months, granting entry to over 40 programs that cowl a variety of subjects. From drag-and-drop block coding to superior programming in Python and JavaScript, the curriculum is designed to accommodate totally different studying levels and pupil skills.

A standout function of the curriculum is the inclusion of a drone simulator. With it, college students can apply coding and flight abilities in a digital surroundings earlier than flying actual drones.

Initially designed for the DJI Tello, DroneBlocks shifted to utilizing the Crazyflie Nano after DJI stopped producing the Tello. The Crazyflie Nano is on the market for buy on their web site individually or in bulk packages of 10 drones. (This system nonetheless helps the DJI Tello EDU.)

Whereas there are nonetheless some references to the DJI Tello all through the curriculum, they’re minimal and unlikely to confuse college students or academics. (DroneBlocks is engaged on updating these references to align with the Crazyflie.)

The Crazyflie drone

Weighing simply 27 grams and becoming comfortably within the palm of your hand, the Crazyflie Nano is ideal for indoor use, making it supreme for classroom settings. Its small dimension reduces the chance of injury to the drone and the environment, making it a secure and manageable choice for college kids studying to code and fly.

The Crazyflie Nano has a comparatively brief flight time of simply 8 minutes, with execs and cons. Whereas it is likely to be a brief interval for college kids desperate to fly the drones, it additionally means educators want to seek out time to cost them between courses. Fortuitously, the Crazyflie Nano prices rapidly.

Nevertheless, the brief flight time encourages college students to deal with coding and problem-solving. When working by way of simulations, they’ll want to think twice about probably the most environment friendly coding course of to get from level A to level B.

Along with the drones, college students will want entry to computer systems. Many faculties use Chromebooks, however any laptop computer is suitable. You’ll want at the very least as many laptops as drones.

DroneBlocks: skilled improvement

Each yearly DroneBlocks curriculum buy features a free 2-hour skilled improvement session. The session may be attended by any variety of academics, and I’d advocate sending all educators who can be utilizing the curriculum.

Faculties can select a time slot that matches their schedule, although it’s a good suggestion to plan as slots refill rapidly. This 2-hour coaching isn’t only a generic overview. It’s a tailor-made expertise that may be personalized to suit academics’ wants, pursuits, and questions.

The session covers all the things from getting began with the drones to troubleshooting connection points, with a deal with sensible classroom purposes. The coaching doesn’t cease on the fundamentals—DroneBlocks offers further instruments like Miro boards for lesson planning and a customized jobs wheel program for classroom administration. These considerate touches present that DroneBlocks understands the distinctive challenges educators face and is dedicated to supporting them each step of the way in which.

Whereas academics might discover it robust to suit one other two hours of coaching into their schedule, this specific coaching feels helpful, informative, and like a normal good use of time.

Given this system’s value (particularly with the added expense of drones), investing in trainer studying is important.

A glance contained in the DroneBlocks curriculum

The DroneBlocks curriculum principally hones in on instructing college students how one can code. It’s damaged into numerous classes that every entail 2-10 video classes. Most movies are about 5 minutes lengthy.

Nevertheless, academics shouldn’t anticipate to easily play the movies each day as an educational software. Like several curriculum, academics might want to spend time reviewing the supplies and making a plan that works greatest for his or her classroom.

{Hardware} classes

Nevertheless, it does train sensible constructing, too. For instance, the primary course covers how one can construct the Crazyflie Nano drone. The meeting course of took me about quarter-hour, guided by a principally useful video tutorial that was a bit tough to comply with at instances. In a classroom setting, this might take at the very least half-hour, so it’s a good suggestion for academics to construct a drone earlier than this class and have a transparent system in place for labeling and storing the drones.

Whereas difficult, the meeting course of presents a superb alternative for hands-on studying, instructing college students not simply how one can fly drones but in addition how they work.

Printed directions with clearer photographs would have made the method smoother, and sadly, DroneBlocks doesn’t provide printed supplies for many programs. Nevertheless, the trial and error concerned in constructing the Crazyflie Nano provides to the educational expertise. College students would seemingly profit from the chance to problem-solve and troubleshoot throughout meeting, getting ready them for the challenges they might face in coding and flying.

Software program classes

A standout course is “Welcome to Mars,” which challenges college students to program their drones to navigate a simulated Martian panorama, mixing coding with creativity and problem-solving. The curriculum creates backstories for why college students want to finish missions, which helps construct engagement.

One other standout course is Block Coding – Math Version, which integrates coding workouts with math issues. This course is ideal for academics seeking to incorporate extra STEM content material into their classes, because it encourages college students to use their coding abilities in a mathematical context. The mixture of coding and math creates a dynamic studying expertise that retains college students engaged and challenged. This course additionally comes with printable worksheets that align with the teachings, a function I want all programs included.

Who’s the DroneBlocks curriculum for?

The DroneBlocks curriculum, paired with the Crazyflie Nano drone, presents a wealthy and interesting instructional expertise. The curriculum is comparatively inexpensive in comparison with others, however the startup prices may be vital, particularly when investing in Crazyflie drones.

College directors contemplating this curriculum ought to guarantee there’s a devoted trainer who’s enthusiastic about STEM, extremely organized, and planning to remain on the college for a couple of years.

Subsequent, guarantee you’ve gotten time within the schedule to include this program, together with the required supplies and correct classroom storage for the drones. When you’ve got all these parts in place, the DroneBlocks curriculum is usually a improbable addition to any STEM program, combining the joy of drone expertise with the tutorial advantages of coding.

For those who’re enthusiastic about this system however don’t have all the things in place but, contemplate beginning small. You would buy one Crazyflie drone and have academics do a couple of whole-group actions, train coding in small teams, or run an after-school program. From there, you possibly can increase this system by buying extra drones. Take a look at DroneBlocks right here.

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