Do you remember what NASA used to call the women that were hired to process aeronautic data?

Hidden figures provides a great visual about computers and their advancement through time, with human beings practicing the original functions of processing, performing computations and storing memories.

Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson and Dorothy Vaughan were known as “human computers” because of their complex and careful calculations that allowed space travel possible!

At First Teacher we know that every baby is born with a 100,000,000,000 (one hundred billion) brain cells ready to be developed. With the support of parents and caregivers babies have the potential to grow and develop the ability to make useful connection (called synapses) that continue to strengthen based on the experiences we provide for them.

During our TECH workshop we asked parents the question:

What kinds of things do your kids build with the things you have at home?

Parents shared that their kids created things like:

• maracas and drums using coffee cans

• binoculars using toilet paper roles

• cup races: using a straw to blow on the cups and move them down the length of a table!

These are some of the great ideas that come from our children and their ability to be creative. All of these ideas demonstrate our children’s ability to practice STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math).

We wanted parent’s to tap into their creativity and we challenged them to use their imagination by asking:

Who can build the tallest tower using marshmellows and raw spaghetti?

We gave parents 15 minutes to create their towers. This is one creation:

Afterwards parents shared their thoughts on this activity. Many shared that this was delicious and fun to do, and easy to replicate with their kids. Others shared that their kids had done this activity with their school, so they used the examples of past structures made by their children. Needless to say, our kids also teach us to be creative and the way our kids use their imagination can encourage adults to use their imagination too!

Last but not least, we discussed TECH safety.

Technology has allowed many people to stay connected with friends, families and complete work responsibilities. During the past 2 years we’ve had to maintain social distance in order to keep our families and those we love safe, so TECHNOLOGY has played an important role in our lives.

Technology is now being introduced to our children earlier on in their lives and in different settings. All children that enter public schools in Boston have an email account that is generated for them (as early as Kindergarten). During second grade they will be taught how to use their account and certain functions that are necessary for completing school work. Our children will also be given computers that they will use to complete homework assignments, tests and communications between school and home.

For parents and caregivers, tech provides an opportunity for kids to be entertained while dinner is being prepared, home duties are happening, work is taking place or when quiet time is desperately needed. While technology allows us to take a mental break it can also create some challenges.

We asked parents what boundaries they currently have in place for limiting the amount of time their children are using technology and what rules they’ve implemented to keep their children safe online. These are some of their responses:

• limiting use to 30 minutes for younger children

• no screens past a certain time so it does not interfere with bedtime

• setting up parental controls on the sites/apps children use

• not using technology when they are out as a family

• continuously checking in on what children are doing/watching on a device

Creating boundaries for our children and even ourselves as adults allows us to build a healthy relationship with technology.

What kinds of TECH rules does your family have at home?