All sorts of people walk into my classroom. One of the benefits of teaching is that you get to meet individuals that you might not otherwise encounter. This brings a richness to my own life for which I am incredibly grateful. Each person carries with them their own life Read more…
As part of the Makers movement, a Maker Faire is a community gathering that celebrates creative expression in digital fabrication, arts, fine crafts, robotics, programming, and engineering. Across the nation, these events are inspiring kids and adults to be creative, curious and take on the spirit of an inventor. Frequent Read more…
Check out http://www.inventtolearn.com In the STEAM movement, we seek to engage students in a love of learning about science, technology, art, and math. In previous posts, we have discussed the risks to our local and national development if we continue to graduate students who don’t value science, math, engineering, and Read more…
I honestly want to be the best teacher that I can be. It truly pains me when students fail or withdraw from my courses. This week two students dropped one of my courses, and there are others that haven’t showed up for several classes in a row. When this happens, Read more…
Over the weekend I went to a potluck supper with several other families. One of the other moms there was talking to me about maybe helping her with some of her homeschool science curriculum. Of course I got really excited. I love sharing my passion for science with others. I Read more…
As a fan of Minecraft, I have enjoyed seeing it used for fun and playful learning. In this post, I would like to introduce a technology for programming Minecraft and making small games. ScriptCraft by Walter Higgins enables you to automate various tasks in Minecraft using the popular computer programming Read more…
I love the beginning of the school year. I always get excited when I walk into a store at the end of the summer and the smell of new school supplies fills the air. I have to be restrained when the clearance sales start to hit Target. I am known Read more…
When I graduated from college and started work as a professional software developer, I still thirsted to grow my mind in knowledge of my faith. University of South Florida (USF) had a pretty cool campus ministry culture. So, I kept going back to my old weekly bible study on Read more…
The introductory biology course that I teach focuses on cellular biology. I start with an overview of the basic types of biological molecules (carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids) and the different structures found inside of cells. I then spend several weeks covering energy acquisition (photosynthesis through glycolysis and respiration). Read more…
A number of people in our community have started asking the “how do I get started as a games programmer?” I believe we live in an exciting time to learn the craft of computer programming. All the tools you need to start a simple game, exist in your web browser Read more…