What are 21st century learning skills?
Using technology across the curriculum opens up the possibilities for not only developing valuable computing skills such as coding and programming, but also a range of essential learning skills, often referred to as the 4 C’s for 21st Century Learning.
Technology helps to motivate and inspire children and offers them lots of opportunities to practice and develop their skills in communication, collaboration, creativity and critical thinking.
Although these aren’t specifically noted as curriculum outcomes within the National Curriculum, developing these skills will help to give children the tools they need to access learning across the curriculum.
By supporting children to develop these 4 C’s, we can help to prepare them with the skills they need to be the innovators of the future!
The future belongs to the curious. The ones who are not afraid to try it, explore it, poke at it, question it and turn it inside out.
Here are some examples of the ways that our best-selling resources can be used to help children develop these essential 21st Century Learning Skills:
Rugged Robot
COMMUNICATION
Children can discuss and explain their Rugged Robot journeys with each other and also discover and explore specific vocabulary across the curriculum, such as positional language in maths.
COLLABORATION
Set children the challenge to work together to share ideas and problem solve. They could plan a route together, set each other challenges, or work together to navigate Rugged Robot out of a maze!
CREATIVTY
Give children the freedom to plan and be creative. They can explore, discover and learn through being creative with their choices.
CRITICAL THINKING
Encourage children to discuss, problem solve, evaluate and make changes to their plans when they do not go as expected.
Click here to see more on the Rugged Robot.
Easi-Speak Range
COMMUNICATION
Children could record their thoughts, share their ideas, plan activities or explain new concepts, and then share and listen back to these recordings. This can be really useful in supporting oral and written communication, as children can practice and rehearse as many times as needed.
COLLABORATION
Encourage children to work together or why not ask them to interview each other about events, stories or something new that they have learnt.
CREATIVTY
Easi-Speak can offer children a creative way to record their learning, such as a new story, a music composition or a voice over for a film. By having Easi-Speak as a resource always available in your classroom, children can make their own creative choices.
CRITICAL THINKING
Through recording their thoughts, ideas and explanations, children have the chance to reflect and evaluate.
STEAM Class Kits
COMMUNICATION
As children create and make their STEM creation, encourage them to talk and discuss their ideas.
COLLABORATION
Many of the STEM kits will require children to work together to build a model. They will need to develop key skills such as listening and turn taking in order to collaborate effectively.
CREATIVTY
Whether adding decorations to their own brush monster or creating their own ride using the crumble kit, the STEM class kits allow children to add their own personal touch to their creations.
CRITICAL THINKING
There are so many opportunities for children to plan, problem solve and evaluate as they build their STEM models. Then continue the critical thinking with children planning their own experiments using the models. They might explore how to change their vehicle to make it go faster, or how to make their lighthouse shine brighter.
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Register for our exclusive STEAM-focussed webinar panel discussion to hear more from Marsha Ivins, alongside panellists:
- Tim Peake – British ESA Astronaut
- Anne-Marie Imafidon – Stemettes CEO
- Craig Kemp – Global EdTech Consultant
- Alistair Bryce-Clegg – Early Years Consultant
- Simon Hunt – Primary Teacher and Consultant
