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Announced as part of the LEGO® Learning System, LEGO® Education introduces SPIKE Essential to engage students in STEAM through playful learning experiences, putting them on the path to become resilient, independent thinkers
Billund, August 17, 2021: Today, LEGO® Education announced LEGO® Education SPIKE™ Essential for primary school students (Grades 1-5) to ignite enthusiasm for STEAM learning through playful problem-solving and storytelling. Part of the LEGO® Learning System, SPIKE Essential engages students in hands-on investigation of STEAM concepts while supporting literacy, math and social-emotional development.
SPIKE Essential joins LEGO® Education SPIKE™ Prime, LEGO® Education BricQ Motion Essential and LEGO® Education BricQ Motion Prime in the suite of solutions offered as part of the LEGO Learning System to deliver STEAM knowledge, academic practices and 21st century skills through a progression of playful experiences from primary to secondary school. Year-over-year students build increasing sophistication, independence and fluency in approaching problems hands-on, and cultivate essential skills like creativity, critical-thinking, collaboration and communication.
The LEGO Learning System meets every student where they are on their learning journey and delivers learning outcomes that future-proof their skills. Its scalable design, along with personalized professional development resources, makes it easy to implement at the classroom, school or district level – all at once or by introducing individual solutions over time. Combining the technology-enhanced LEGO® Education SPIKE™ Portfolio and non-tech LEGO® Education BricQ Motion solutions, the Learning System makes abstract concepts more tangible as students move from simple explorations to tackling increasingly complex real-world challenges. With unlimited possibilities for playful hands-on STEAM learning, students become life-long confident learners.
Esben Stærk, president of LEGO Education, said: “With the launch of SPIKE Essential we are delighted to introduce a complete learning system that enriches the teaching and learning experience. At a time when everyone is rethinking learning, we believe the LEGO Learning System will spark joy and a love of learning in students that never stops.”
SPIKE Essential offers playful learning experiences in which students solve problems through storytelling. The cross-curricular STEAM solution includes familiar LEGO building elements, four new Minifigures with different characteristics and personalities that are relatable to students, and standards-aligned learning units using everyday themes. The characters and stories not only engage students in STEAM learning, but also foster social-emotional skills. With 50 combined hours of educational content, SPIKE Essential combines age-appropriate icon- and word-based block coding with simple hardware — including an intelligent Hub, motors, a Light Matrix, and a Color Sensor — to bring STEAM concepts to life with the LEGO® Education SPIKE™ App.
Each learning unit includes:
- A unit-wide theme: Great Adventures, Amazing Amusement Park, Happy Traveler, Crazy Carnival Games and Quirky Creations
- A learning sequence with one introductory lesson, several guided practice lessons and one open-ended project
- 7-8 lessons
- Additional 30+ minute language arts and math extensions for each lesson
- 6-10 hours of content
“When students can progress step-by-step, it builds a strong foundation and knowledge base that can be expanded and deepened year after year. LEGO Education developed the LEGO Learning System to do exactly that and so much more. It is truly exciting to see a systematic approach to STEAM learning that is playful, scalable and engaging. Any teacher and student can benefit from the wide variety of solutions – from kindergarten to graduation,” said Natalie Frady, Computer Science Teacher, Gwinnett County Public Schools in Georgia.
SPIKE Essential will be available for purchase in all markets starting this fall and is available today for pre-order in the U.S. at LEGOeducation.com/MeetSPIKEessential.
To learn more about the LEGO Learning System, visit: LEGOeducation.com/LearningSystem.
About LEGO® Education SPIKE™ Essential
- Designed for ages 6+
- Costs $274.95 per set, which can be shared by up to two students at a time
- Includes 449 LEGO® bricks (including replacement elements)
- Sturdy storage box with color-coded sorting trays
- 5 hardware components
- 5 curriculum units with 7-8 lessons of 45 minutes each
- Each unit contains 6-10 hours of educational content and 30+ minutes of language arts and math extensions for each lesson
- A system of exciting STEAM solutions for an integrated continuum of learning including curriculum, bricks, hardware, programming and professional development
- The suite of products included in the LEGO® Learning System are LEGO® Education SPIKE™ Essential and LEGO® Education SPIKE™ Prime with hardware and programming elements for premium, technology-enhanced STEAM learning experiences, and LEGO® Education BricQ Motion Essential and LEGO® Education BricQ Motion Prime for non-tech solutions with a focus on physical science
- Built-in scaffolding for easy implementation at the classroom, school or district level
- Flexibility to implement the full system at once or introduce individual solutions over time to secure deeper learning across grade levels, with or without technology
- More than 130 hours of playful learning backed by 40 years of experience and based on Learning through Play principles
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