1. ALFRED SIEW
Create a computer keyboard using
fruits and vegetables, or build a robot
car from scratch and program it to
mimic real-life actions? This is no
longer a figment of your imagination.
And the best part is: it’s fun and easy
to do!
Singapore’s youths are learning
through fun and direct hands-on
experience with technology. By putting
what they have learnt into practice
and building innovative creations,
they are developing coding and
computational thinking skills.
Computational thinking is a
fundamental 21st century skill for
everyone, not just for computer
scientists. It involves solving problems,
designing systems and understanding
human behaviours by drawing on the
concepts fundamental to computer
science.This helps to enhance a child’s
analytical ability.
Computational thinking, through
the Code@SG movement, is being
taught from an early age to students
such that it becomes Singapore’s
national capability, and helps to fulfil
the country’s vision to be the world’s
first Smart Nation.
A Smart Nation of the future, with
a rich array of tech products and
services, will require different skills.
We will need people familiar with
tech skills and are sensitive to how
tech can be applied to improve the
standard of living.
Here are some of the fun and
interesting technologies that you
should experiment with, to develop
computational thinking and be part of
the Smart Nation journey:
Build and program a
robot? That’s so easy!
Artec Robotic and LEGO WeDo kits
are easy-to-use educational solutions
that introduce young students to
robotics. Students can design and
construct robotic machines featuring
motors and sensors that use simple
click-and-drag programming software
to make them move intelligently.
You can build a line-tracing robot, a
transporter or even your own robotic
dog that can play fetch with you.
A computer that’s as small
as a credit card
The Raspberry Pi is a fully
functional credit card-sized computer
that can be easily programmed
to do almost everything that your
PC does. For example, by simply
connecting it to your portable hard
disk, the Raspberry Pi can be used
to play your favourite music as
well as to run a slideshow of your
Inspiring more than 60,000 young minds
Youths are developing computational
thinking skills with fun and hands-on
tech experiences
A D V E R T O R I A L
The whole idea
is that you
explore something, try
something. We want
to encourage young
IT professionals, and
even those who are
younger than that,
to be thinking about
what they can create
and build with
technology.
Mr Steve Leonard
Executive Deputy Chairman, IDA
Artec Robotic kits introduce young students to robotics.PHOTO: FUHUA PRIMARY SCHOOL
Turn everyday items like fruits into touchpads using the Makey Makey kits.
PHOTO: HOPPIPOLA, IMAGIN8ORS, HACKIDEMA
The Arduino platform can be used to build almost
anything.PHOTO: TINKERTANKER
photos simultaneously. Other notable
projects that use Raspberry Pi
include a mobile phone, a portable
FM transmitter and a gaming
machine.
Creating interactive
objects using electronics
Arduino is an open-source electronic
prototyping platform containing a
set of input and output that can be
connected directly to sensors and
other electronic
components.
Intended for
anyone interested
in getting their
hands dirty, the
Arduino platform
can be used to build
almost anything,
from simple
projects such as
an automatic
candy dispenser to
complex projects
such as a home-
made weather
station that can
measure wind speed
and direction,
temperature,
humidity, rain,
and atmospheric
pressure.
A computer keyboard
made of fruits and
vegetables
Tired of playing Guitar Heroes the
traditional way? Make your own guitar
and hook it up to your console for a
brand new experience. Using the MaKey
MaKey kits, you can turn everyday
items such as fruits, play-dough or
even pencil drawings into touch-pads
for various uses. Play the piano with
bananas as your piano keys. Create
your own Christmas decorations that
light up when you press on a tomato.
Learn coding and be
empowered
In this day and age, it is virtually
impossible to survive without
technology as we go about our daily
lives. Hence, it is important for youth to
learn coding and develop computational
thinking skills, so that they can apply
such skillsets to solve real-life issues.
To increase students’ exposure to
coding and computational thinking,
the Code for Fun enrichment
programme is offered to all MOE
primary and secondary schools to
provide programming training that
is heavily subsidised by Infocomm
Development Authority of Singapore.
This enrichment programme is part of
the Code@SG movement, which has
benefited more than 60,000 students.
Design and construct robotic machines with LEGOWedo kits.PHOTO: DUCK LEARNING
Get involved!
Here’s something that you
shouldn’t miss out during this
December school holidays:
learn how to code and solve
problems with computational
thinking! Log on to
www.infocommtalent.sg/
holiday-activities to sign up
for maker workshops.