Photon Education

Coding is able to enhance and elevate your child’s social and communication skills. When children learn to code, they practice a new language and communicate their ideas with the computer they are interacting with. When they learn how to communicate with computers, they too are learning and improving their communication skills with people at the same time. How we interact with computers is quite similar to the way we interact and speak with people.
When we code, we brainstorm and think of ways to effectively express and communicate our ideas to the computer. As children continually practice this as they code, these expression and communication skills will translate into their daily social skills as well.

Understanding computers and learning the basics of coding helps children to develop an appreciation of how things work. It also teaches them how software engineers use math in order to solve problems in a logical and creative way. This is an important reason that coding should be taught in schools, so children learn these skills while they are young.

The ability to solve problems is a trait that is useful in life in general. We all want our children to become excellent problem solvers so that they can overcome any adversity they face. Learning to code gives children the chance to learn this type of skill while they are young and it can help them along the way in life. This is one of the big reasons coding is important to learn.

Gamification in education allows learners to learn at their best as they have fun playing. Children also learn best when they have goals, targets and achievements to complete. Because of the addictive features of video games that intrigue children (and adults) and get them hooked, it’s only natural that we see similar engagement results when these game-based elements are applied to learning and education.

Gamification in learning involves using game-based elements such as point scoring, peer competition, teamwork, score tables to drive engagement, help students assimilate new information and test their knowledge.

The Photon application follows this exact gamification method to entice and keep the attention of children as they program and progress with Photon. They are able to create their own in-app avatars, unlock achievements, challenge themselves with puzzles and complete goals through fun play as they learn the fundamentals of programming and computational thinking.

Thanksgiving reflects a sense of interconnectedness among people and cultures. In these trying times, I think we need this day more than ever. It’s a holiday that’s perfect for gathering with loved ones and expressing gratitude for our blessings. Thanksgiving is a reminder to appreciate all that’s joyful in life, which includes family, friends, and colleagues; as well as lifestyle, wellbeing and good health. We at Photon Education wishes everyone a great Happy Thanksgiving!

Why Environmental Education is Important for Kids.

When we look back to our childhood, it is easy to see how it shaped us to be who we are today. This is why it’s crucial to teach our children about the environment, especially at an early age. Our teachings will become their normal, the good ones and the not so good ones. It is with no doubt our responsibility to educate all generations before us, from the environmental habits they learn, the environmentally-conscious consumer choices they see, and the time they spend learning to love and appreciate the outdoors.

This is not a task to be taken by parents only, but by all of us, the so-called adults. We must educate our young relatives, neighbours and even the kid you see throwing trash on the floor. It is our responsibility to call them out and kindly show them how our environment must be treated. When we do this, we will shape them and their future.

You can read the full article at: https://www.rubicon.com/blog/environmental-education-for-kids/ #:~:text=Environmental%20education%20promotes%20critical%20and,eco%2Dfriendly%20and%20sustainable%20lives.

Today we at Photon would like to share some knowledge about climate change. We hope people will see and understand that any little differences they make today will affect the future.

Climate change is occurring at an accelerating rate, presenting human society with a challenge that is most likely orders of magnitude greater than the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis and demands societal attention and social transformation.

However, the fact that climate change will play out over much longer timescales blurs its visibility and dampens immediate societal concerns and the political will to drive action.

This lack of immediate risk creates obstacles for the climate research community in communicating the complex and enormous challenges facing society, as well as the options we have to address them.

You can read the full article at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590332220304784

Improve your communication with children through active listening. By actively listening to children, it lets them know that you are interested in what they have to say.

Below are some things you can do to improve active listening.

1. Give your full attention to them.
2. Get down to the child’s level.
3. Make eye contact and stop any other activity that is not related to the topic.
4. Reflect and repeat back what the child is saying and feeling to make sure you understand what they are trying to communicate.

You can download our free resources from our website.
https://photonrobot.sg/printables

We all have one. Artists, authors, teachers, musicians, preschoolers and parents – everyone has a favourite colour. What does your favourite colour say about a person? Why does someone pick a certain colour as their favourite colour? What does your favourite colour tell us about you?

There’s a lot of science and psychology articles that speak of the symbolism behind colours and what they could represent. But for young children, choosing their first favourite colour is one of the first ways they express a sense of identity and individuality. Whether it’s the colour pencil they always choose first when drawing, or picking the shirt colour they want to wear, or the colour they choose to paint on their colouring book, having a favourite colour is part of a child’s unique personality.

Can you guess Photon’s favourite colour?
Hint: look at the picture

Colour Mixing Activities
No matter your age there is something truly fascinating and magical about colour mixing. There are many colour activities for preschoolers to explore primary and secondary colours. You can mix colours by using water and simple food colouring, paint, markers, crayons and more!

The rapid growth of technology has placed an emphasis on programming as a key college- and career-ready skill that will increase future success for the younger generation. Teaching students how to write programs, understand and manipulate digital devices has become a common learning curriculum in schools all over the world.

But before students can effectively program out these tasks, they must understand the concepts behind programming.

Computational Thinking is the prerequisite skill for understanding the technologies of the future. It is a thought process, rather than a specific body of knowledge about a device or language. Computational thinking is often associated with computers and coding, and Photon is a great way to begin one’s journey to explore and experiment with this futuristic world.

Open up children’s minds to the world around them by teaching them about the awareness of their thinking and thought processes. By doing this, children will learn to think more strategically, recognise patterns, identify errors, and be more aware of different perspectives. Here are some good ways to foster these habits.

1. Encourage kids’ curiosity by asking them questions about why they think what they think. Do not dismiss children’s speculative questions, but encourage them to think about those questions thoroughly.
2. Encourage active reading by discussing and reflecting on books and having the children analyse the story characters’ thoughts.
3. Expose them as much as possible to children from different backgrounds — cultural, geographical, or socio-economic.
4.Bring children into adult conversations, within appropriate limits of course, and don’t just dismiss their contributions.

There are many advantages of introducing STEAM education at an early age. It builds the foundation of fundamental life skills that will help children succeed better in their lives. It teaches them to think critically, be resilient to failures and moulds them to be solution-oriented.

Refer to our infographic about some of the benefits of how STEAM education will assist young children to succeed better in the future.