Data Literacy At All Ages
In a data driven world, organizations need employees proficient in the in-demand skill of data literacy. Robin Hunt and Daniel Bishop built a company to educate people on data, as well as support organizations to create data tools and reports. They have learned that companies can’t wait for employees to learn these skills on the job, but rather, they to need to possess them from day one. We, at ThinkData, believe it’s important that students develop critical thinking as well as data skills.
How did we get here? We know that tech is often underrepresented at SkillsUSA events that happen in Alabama. We have supported the Alabama educational system through the years, and this year we decided to support the North AlabamaWorks Worlds of Work event. What happened next was unexpected and fun.
How do you show data analytics or data as a career option? It requires software, knowledge, and access to data, but you are at a booth? That was our problem to solve. We decided – LEGO® bricks might be the way to go. We were inspired by a popular post from years ago about data using the bricks. You can see our inspiration here. This was originally about infographic design. We tweaked it to represent data a little more like we are used to – unorganized and then visualized.
We thought we could provide prompts to students that could encourage them to learn about data and visualization. It might interest them enough to consider it as a career option, plus what kid (or adult) doesn’t enjoy building with LEGO® bricks?
Then we realized, why not share this with teachers? These cards can be downloaded and printed. We hope you find these resources useful in helping students think about data. Stay tuned for new data challenges and resources. To receive all our current challenges just click the “Get the Print PDF”. You can register your email and receive the cards in a printable PDF – that way you don’t have to wait on us to email you – it is automated. Use the form below and you will recieve an automated email with the prompts that you can use in your classroom.
We thought let’s provide prompts to students that could encourage them to learn about data and visualization. It might interest them enough to consider it as a career option, plus what kid (or adult) doesn’t enjoy building with LEGO® bricks?
Then we realized- why not share this with teachers? These cards can be downloaded and printed. We hope you find these resources useful in helping students think about data. Stay tuned for new data challenges and resources. To receive all our current challenges just click the “Get the Print PDF”. You can register your email and receive the cards in a printable PDF – that way you don’t have to wait on us to email you – it is automated. Use the form below and you will recieve an automated email with the prompts that you can use in your classroom.
