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New Collection Arrives at McCone County Library
Earlier this year our library was awarded a $1000 grant to promote women in STEM through the If/Then collection in partnership with the National Girls STEM Collaborative and Lyda Hill Philanthropies. We are excited to share with you what items were purchased, a little bit about how they work, and some of our plans for the use and expansion of our STEM Collection. STEM teaches kids about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. While this grant encourages girls participation in science and math, everyone is welcome to use these new additions to our library.
Bloxels is a fun and unique way to create your own playable video game.
Bloxels starts with this empty plastic grate. To this you add colored squares creating a pixelated image of your video game character.
Using an app on your smartphone or tablet, you take pictures of your character running, jumping, and standing still and any background you want. Upload those pictures into the app and it creates a video game customized for you! This is a great way to teach creativity, planning, and spatial skills.
Dash is a kid friendly robot that you can program with an app on your smartphone or tablet. It teaches even very young children organization, planning, and spatial skills.
LittleBits teach engineering, construction, planning, and spatial skills. This kit comes equipped with the different parts needed to create a basic machine.
There are dimmer switches, lights, motors, buttons, wiring, fans, and power cells that can be powered by a battery or with a USB cable. Kids learn fine motor skills, construction skills, engineering skills as well as encouraging creativity.
Magnetic Building Tiles are a great way to teach kids spatial skills, creativity, construction and fine motor skills as well as math and physics.
These tiles connect via powerful magnets and support construction of towers, castles, cars and more. They are great for most ages, as long as the child doesn’t try to eat them!
The Ozobot Evo is a nifty little robot that is programmed using colored markers. Different color combinations and lengths direct the robot to move forward or backward, spin around, make a u-turn, or stop and start. This teaches children elementary computer coding, organization and planning, and physics.
The Sphero mini is a gyroscopic robot that can be programmed from an app on a smartphone or tablet. This particular Sphero comes with a host of fun activities that allow you to build and navigate mazes, negotiate obstacles, and bowl!
No these aren’t strangely colored cockleburs, they are Tom You Sticky Balls. They teach children physics, math, construction, and creativity.
National Geographic created this great kit that allows kids to learn physics, math, construction, and engineering skills creatively. Imagine an way cooler version of the game Mousetrap with glow in the dark marbles and an ultraviolet flashlight included and you have some idea of the fun in store.
Snap Circuits contain the building blocks for hundreds of fun electrical projects.
Kids learn math, science, engineering, and construction skills
Silly Suckers have the worst description ever, but they are super fun! These suction cup pieces can be used to construct towers, pyramids, and more. They teach even toddlers about creativity, math, physics, and engineering.
Finally, the Spark+ by Sphero is a gyroscopic robot that can be programmed with an app on a smartphone or tablet. Kids learn computer coding, fine motor skills, strategic planning and organization while teaching Spark to go forward, backward, jump up and down, and drive in a figure eight.
All of these items will be available for teachers in our schools to use with their students, We will be demonstrating them in the library as part of our Library Saturdays and people are always welcome to visit the library and arrange for a demonstration. Some of the items need a full charge, so if you message the library ahead of time, we can ensure that your device is fully charged and ready for fun.
Join us on Santa Day , December 4th from 10am until 4 pm. Eat cookies, play with robots, build an epic marble run and find a new great read, a fun movie, or an exciting game to play with your family!
