InkSmith Heads to micro:bit LIVE in Manchester, UK

The InkSmith team is excited to head to Manchester, UK for the first-ever micro:bit LIVE event. Members of the global micro:bit community of educators and partners will gather at the event to discover and learn about all things micro:bit.  

InkSmith Founder, Jeremy Hedges (@JeremyHedges77) and InkSmith Chief Technology Officer, Doug Braden (@DugBraden) will make the journey "across the pond" next week to attend the event. 

The BBC micro:bit has been making a huge impact in the UK after the BBC gave every grade 7 students in the country a free micro:bit computer in 2015. Soon after, the micro:bit quickly gained popularity overseas in North America. In 2018, as a result of the Canadian Government's CanCode program, 100,000 micro:bits were given out to elementary schools across the country to encourage students to learn to code. 

Organizations like KidsCode Jeunesse have been leading the micro:bit movement in Canada by hosting in-class workshops and sessions to educate students and teachers on coding with micro:bit.  

With the increasing popularity of the micro:bit there was a demand for products that would allow teachers and students to expand the possibility of their micro:bit. With this in mind, InkSmith set out to develop a micro:bit powered robot that was both fun and engaging, but also educational and capable of advanced robotic functions. 

Enter the k8 Modular Robotics kit, a micro:bit powered robot designed to teach kids coding and design thinking. Since it's release in April 2018, thousands of k8 robots have been deployed into classrooms all over Canada. Capable of line following, sonar sensing, and remote control, the k8 robot exceeded all expectations when compared to similar micro:bit robots. 

Building again on the popularity the micro:bit and the success of the k8 robot, InkSmith set out once more to develop a micro:bit-based product for students but this time centered around Climate Change. 

With the increasing demand for Climate Action being echoed by youth today, InkSmith felt a need to give these students a practical way they can learn about climate change while also developing valuable 21st-century skills. 

The InkSmith Climate Action Kits empower students to tackle Climate Change issues through the lens of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development goals. With the kit, students will work through a variety of experiential learning challenges to design and prototype a solution using the BBC micro:bit. Through this process, students will develop important coding and design thinking skills which are increasingly in high demand in today’s digital economy.

InkSmith is excited to have the opportunity to display both of these micro:bit products at the upcoming micro:bit LIVE event. It is our hope that through these products, educators will have the opportunity and resources to introduce their students to STEAM competencies and design thinking principles. The 21st-century is here, let's set our youth up to become the innovators and change-makers of tomorrow!

For more information about the micro:bit LIVE event please visit the micro:bit website.