Creating a SPARK: Tempe school employs VR, robots and other innovative techniques | Next Gen - Cronkite News

Students at the SPARK School at Kyrene de las Manitas Elementary are reimagining classroom modules and using such technology as robots, green screens, 3-D printers and virtual reality to learn math, science and other traditional subjects by Mariah Gallegos.

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SPARK is a special program housed on the school’s campus.

“We are very much a blending, learning atmosphere,” said Mary Brown, the school’s Teacher Executive Designer. “In addition to 3-D printers, we have Sphero so students are practicing coding, and one of the coolest pieces of technology we have is virtual reality. So when we want to visit a place that we would never really be able to visit, such as the Amazon rainforest, students put the virtual reality on and they’re actually inside of it, they can make observations as scientists in that space.”

Brown said redesigning classroom lesson plans helps improve teacher retention and builds excitement and engagement among students...

Old school subjects, new techniques | Cronkite News 


SPARK School teaches the core curriculum of math, science, language arts and social studies, but with a more personalized technique. Its teachers believe replacing books and written tests with more interactive material motivates the students to stay engaged in and out of the classroom.
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