📢 2023 New Updates Thread: Stay in the Loop!

[Nicole_Champagne]

Hey there, VEX PD+ PLC members!

I’m here to kick off this new thread dedicated to sharing the latest updates and news in the world of PD+.

I’ll update this thread with the newest additions our team brings to VEX PD+ every 2 weeks.

If you have suggestions for new content, let us know!

This is our last update for 2023! Hope you enjoy all the new features and content we have been bringing to you. There is even more to look forward to in 2024!

December 4, 2023

• Coming soon!
  VEX CTE Workcell STEM Labs Teacher Resources in the Teacher Portal

  • Watch the Video
  • Cumulative Pacing Guide
  • Standards Alignment
  • Master Materials List
    And the Facilitation Guide and Answer Keys!

• VEX VS Code Extension Articles have been added in the VEX Library:
  VEX V5 Articles
  VEX IQ Articles
  VEX EXP

• New Insights Posts
  Constructivism in Debugging: Why It Matters
  Practical Techniques for Debugging with VEX 123 in the Elementary Classroom
  Highlights from the PD+ Community November 2023

• Continuing to build out STEM Labs to be available as google doc, xlsx and pdf to support your school’s access settings. Very nice feature that makes our Curriculum even more accessible regardless of LMS and school access controls.

• Watch this space as we make VEXcode accessible for all learners.
  Here is a sneak peek of what is first to roll out.

• Celebrate Hour of Code with VEX Robotics.
  To celebrate, all of our VEXcode VR Playgrounds, including those in the Enhanced and Premium Tier, are FREE for the month of December!

November 20, 2023

• New Insights Posts
  Using Blocks to Teach Coding to Novices Of Any Age
  Debugging by Design: Cultivating a Classroom Culture for Debugging

• VEX IQ and EXP STEM Labs are now available as google doc, xlsx and pdf to support your school’s access settings. (this is a direct result of feedback we received)

November 6, 2023

• New V5 STEM Lab Team Freeze Tag

• New 123 STEM Lab Little Red Robot

• New Insights Posts
  Cross-Curricular Connections with VEXcode VR: Language Arts and Computer Science
  Highlights from the PD+ Community October 2023

• New VEX GO 3D Build instructions added. Crawler, Ed, The Magnet Car, Pendulum, Bunny Traits, The Topographic Map and The Pantograph

• Australian VEX GO Standards are available!

• Tracking your VEX Masterclasses or Intro Courses is now easier to navigate your progress. You will see a pop up in your PD+ Dashboard and you can push “Continue Learning” or “Begin Exam” to pick up where you left off.

October 23, 2023

• VEX Masterclass is ready! Making the Most of Teaching with VEXcode VR. Designed to make teaching with VEXcode VR both engaging and straightforward. Perfect for making Computer Science teaching easier and transitioning students from block-based to text-based coding. Earn a certificate upon completion.

• New Insights Posts
  Science Class Takeover with VEX GO!
  Incorporating Conversations into Debugging

• VEX IQ articles
  VS Code Installation Guide for IQ (2nd generation) on a macOS Device
  Creating VS Code Projects for IQ (2nd generation)

• VEX V5 articles
  VS Code Installation Guide for V5 on a macOS Device
  Creating VS Code Projects for V5

• VEX EXP articles
  VS Code Installation Guide for EXP on a macOS Device
  Creating VS Code Projects for EXP

• Additional articles in the VEX Library:
  Pairing an IQ (2nd gen) or EXP Controller to a GO Brain
  Using the Getting Started Tour in VEXcode VR

• TEKS Standards now available for VEX GO

• New VEX GO 3D Build instructions added. Slingshot Car, Spring Car and Frog Life Cycle

• New video available → Start Teaching with VEX

• Datalogging with VEX V5 Live Session. November 15th at 7.30pm eastern time. Sign up now or watch the recording in the video library after.

• Lin, Y., Weintrop, D., Selkowitz, A. & McKenna, J. (2023). Act Happy! Act Crazy! Using Emotion-based Commands to Engage Young Learners in Robotics Programming. Poster presented at Constructionism/FabLearn 2023. New York, New York, USA. Read it here!

• Lin, Y., Weintrop, D., Selkowitz, A. & McKenna, J. (2023). It’s as Easy as 123: Multiple Programming Approaches on a Single Device to Support Novices. Demo presented at 2023 IEEE Symposium on Visual Languages and Human-Centric Computing. Read it here!

• Interested to present at the VEX Robotics Educators Conference? You can submit your presentation until December 14th at conference.vex.com

October 9, 2023

• VEX PD+ now has 2 distinct course types, both from which provide a Certificate upon completion:

  • VEX Masterclasses (exclusive to PD+ Subscribers)
  • VEX Intro Courses (available to anyone with a PD+ account)

• New VEX Masterclass: Making the Most of Teaching with VEXcode VR The goal of this course is to highlight and give visibility to the features and benefits to teaching CS with VEXcode VR! Designed for teachers who have taken the CS Level 1 course and know how to use VEXcode VR.

• New Insights Posts: Cross-Curricular Connections with VEXcode VR: Art and Computer Science and Highlights from the PD+ Community September 2023

• Lin, Y., Weintrop, D., & McKenna, J. (2023). Coder and Coder Cards: A Novel Tangible Programming Approach to Support Young Programmers. Paper presented at 2023 IEEE Symposium on Visual Languages and Human-Centric Computing. (Awarded Best Short Paper) You can read it here!

• VEX Robotics Educators Conference 2024 page is ready, SAVE THE DATE and for the first time ever, taking a Call For Presenters! You can present on the Main Stage, Exhibition Hall, or both! PD+ Dashboard → Conference / Conference.vex.com

• VEXcode IQ now have added support for IQ Pneumatics. +Add Device → Pneumatics

• VEXCode IQ, new Operator block available → atan2 → What this does is takes 2 cartesian points and converts into polar coordinates. Hit the help button for more details how this can help to simplify your coding.

September 25, 2023

• Standards Alignments for IQ and V5 can be found in STEM Labs under Teacher Resources and also from Standards.VEX.com

• New Insights Posts: Valuing Students’ Voices through Choice Boards and Deepening the Understanding of Circumference and Pi with VEX IQ

• Have added to Bucky Basketball STEM Lab, a walk through for students to build the hoop and how to use an alternative base, if their kit did not have a tile or bundle, they can still play!

• Build Videos are available for all EXP Builds in the Teacher Portals of STEM Labs and in the VEX PD+ Video Library

• There is now a feedback button in the bottom right hand corner of the VEX Library and inside every article to provide feedback as required.
  

  

• All VEX Robotics Educators Conference videos are now live! We share the slides next to the speaker in the screen to make you feel like you were there and do not miss any details.

• Live Session from September 14, 2023; Get Started Coding with VEXcode IQ is now posted in your Video Library

• VEXcode VR now has a walk-through tour to get you familiar with the offerings. It will auto pop up the first time and you can find again by going to File (top left) → “Start A Tour”

• VEXcode VR - Python Text projects now has the ability to decrease and increase font size and it will maintain that size across new projects.**

September 12, 2023

• Standards Alignment - all VEX IQ and EXP Activities, all the camps, and all the STEM Labs are available as a one stop shop.
• New STEM Lab for EXP - Bucky Basketball
  • Based around EXP Catapult Bot. Allowing students to understand both Intake mechanism and Catapult mechanism and how they work together.
• New Insights Post. Scientific Modeling with VEX GO
• VEXcode update for: 123, GO and VR
• With the Update we now have the ability to submit a score in Virtual Skills
  • Submitting a Score for VRC Over Under Virtual Skills in VEXcode VR
  • Submitting a Score for VIQRC Full Volume Virtual Skills in VEXcode VR
• With the Update we now have the ability to take a “Sensing” categories and drag that over to the Monitor Console, as a result, we have updated many resources, here are a few:
  • VEXcode 123 Variable and Sensing Values Monitoring in VEXcode 123
  • VEX GO Mars Rover - Exploring Mars Geology Lab 2
  • VEXcode VR Blocks - Unit 5, Lesson 3
• PD+ Homepage has been refreshed
• VEXCode VR Premium now has a 3-day trial offering
• VEXcode VR integrated Switch Blocks into the main interface. You can now directly access Switch Blocks and use them in your project!
• You can now manage your VR Class License or purchase VR directly from the “File” menu inside VEXcode VR

August 28, 2023

• IQ STEM Labs, Activities and Camps are now mapped to ACARA standards for Australia

• New Insights Posts. Be sure to check them out at your Dashboard under Insights!
  Where do I get Started? Let the Teach Pages be Your Guide
  From Virtual to IRL: Using VEXcode VR to get your VEX GO Students Started Coding!

• Video Library. The newest additions are the videos from our Educators Conference. Curious to know what type of content is discussed at our Educators Conference, now you can check it out.

• New VEX IQ Activity - Space Adventure. Explore basic engineering techniques to design and build a moonbase, buggy, ramp, pulley system, and a motorized rover to help astronauts in their missions on the Moon.

• 3 new 3D VEX GO Build instructions available
  Code Super Car, Code Base and Code Base with LED Bumper Top

• 2 new Live Sessions available. September 14th and October 19th. Available for all PD+ Subscribers and VIQRC Coaches.

August 14, 2023

• 2 New VEX Go Competition Books! 4 available in total now.
  City Technology Rebuild (STEM Lab) (City Technology Rebuild PDF Storybook) (Competition Build Instructions)
  Village Engineering Construction (STEM Lab) (Village Engineering Construction PDF Storybook) (Competition Build Instructions)

• VEX IQ Activity - Wheel Turns. Use your VEX IQ wheels and a ruler to measure how far a wheel travels each time it turns. Wheel Turns can be found in IQ STEM Labs.

• VEX 123 Activity - Gnome in the Forest. Literacy and coding focused activity series.

• VEXcode VR Activity - VRC Virtual Skills - Over Under

• New Training Courses in PD+. Training Courses can be found right at your Dashboard.
  All Training Courses issue certificates!
  Engineering 101 for V5
  Planning and Running a VEX Camp
  Teaching VEX IQ STEM Labs

• VEX GO Day and Night STEM Lab.

• New Articles:
  Understanding IQ Smart Motor Performance
  Understanding and Mounting the VEX IQ Smart Motor
  Mastering the VEX IQ (2nd gen) Competition Kit

• More VEX Go 3D Build Instructions available.

July 31, 2023

• We added a new Run Your Own Camp, VEX IQ, On the Move Camp.
  1, 3 or 5 day options!

• New Articles:
  Engaging Students Who Complete a VEX GO Build Quickly.
  Custom Controller Code in VEXcode EXP
  Custom Controller Code in VEXcode V5

• 1-on-1 Sessions are ready for you to book a time to meet with VEX Educators. You can book these right from your dashboard.

July 17, 2023

• VEX Camps are live! Available for you year round! Read the Parent Camp Guides to see what your student will need and do each day.
  VEX IQ Camp - Build, Drive, Code, Games!
  VEXcode VR Camp - This is the perfect camp to get started with if you do not have any equipment. It’s free, fun and so engaging.
  VEX GO Camp - All about building to get the students hooked right away with the Super Car in Session 1. Session 5 is my fav by bringing back a nostalgic art concept I just love - the Spirograph! And then even expanding on the art created with the Spirograph to create a lion
  Have you tried our VEX Camps? Be sure to use the Complete Our Survey link inside of each camp to let us know what you loved!
  And don’t forget to Celebrate your campers success by Printing a Certificate link also inside of each camp.

• New Insights are here! Be sure to check them out at your Dashboard under Insights! The Insights are a great way to connect and have a minute to read something that you can relate to.

• Python now available with all our V5 STEM Labs

• New PD+ Dashboard is live (and beautiful) → We encourage you to “Take a Tour!” to learn about each section. “Take a Tour” will pop up your first time but if you ever need a refresh, just head down to Quick Links and the left hand side you will see the option.

• Educator Certification Courses are now live on PD+ under Training Courses. You can earn a Certificate per platform by taking any of our “Educator Certification Courses”.

• VEXcode VR - Newly updated Art Canvas Playground. Be sure to check it out. It’s amazing!

July 3, 2023 updates:

• IQ Pneumatics articles are now live!
  Understanding the IQ Pneumatics Kit Components
  Example IQ Pneumatics Kit Configurations
  Coding the IQ Pneumatics Kit

• V5 Pneumatics articles are now live!
  Understanding the V5 Pneumatics Kit Components
  Example V5 Pneumatics Kit Configurations
  Coding the V5 Pneumatics Kit
  Controlling Pneumatics Using Buttons on Your Controller

• After the positive feedback to our VEX GO 3D build instructions, we will be adding this to all our builds, be sure to check back regularly.

• Be sure to check out this article: Switch Mode: Building a middle ground between Block-based and Text-based programming.

June 19, 2023 updates:

• V5 Over Under STEM Lab → In this Unit, you will build Striker, the HeroBot for the 2023-2024 VRC Over Under game and learn how to score. Throughout the Unit you will learn about driving Striker and how to begin to code Striker for autonomous movement so that you can participate in the Robot Skills Challenge during the competition season.

• Excited to confirm we now have added Python support to all V5 STEM Labs.

• VEX Camps are here! Attend an Online Camp or Run Your Own Camp. Available year-round. Amazing resources to support, be sure to check out the “Parent Camp Guides” within each Camp’s Resources to see what your students will need and do each day.

• 4 new VEX GO 3D Builds available as used in the VEX Camps. Flopper, Adaptation Claw, Spirograph and Super Car.

June 5, 2023 updates:

• VEX IQ Full Volume STEM Lab → Designed to help emerging teams, new coaches & mentors get started with VIQC Full Volume and prepare them to compete in Robot Skills

• All Live Sessions are housed on the PD+ platform to watch at your convenience along with a PLC thread to continue discussions. VEX Live Sessions schedule can be found here

• VEX GO Activity, Swift Switch: Motorized Drawbridge, which highlights motors and switches to make a motorized drawbridge

• Getting Started with VIQC 23-24 Robot Design: Full Volume

• Getting Started with VRC 23-24 Robot Design: Over Under

May 22, 2023 updates:

• Virtual Skills is now housed in VEXcode VR. We have a video here and plenty of example projects to inspire.

• New Search and Rescue Camp for VEX IQ Gen 2 and an update to Robot Olympics to support VEX IQ Gen 2

• New Introduction Lessons available when Getting Started in the Training Courses

• Live Sessions are here! If you missed one, you can watch it here. - Click on “Additional Dates” → date listed in blue is available to watch as a pre-record

• Did you know our Video Library has 400 videos, searchable by topic or platform

• You asked, we answered! Repairing and Reassembling a V5 Clawbot Claw (V5 Claw Kit v2)

• Get started Driving Byte, the 2023-24 VIQRC Hero Bot

[Pepper_Dellinger]

Hey @Nicole_Champagne Is there a Bucky’s Basketball for VEX IQ?

[Lauren_Harter]

Hi @Pepper_Dellinger, currently we don’t have a Bucky Basketball for IQ, but I wonder if @Matthew_Goodwin has any ideas if a CatapultBot (like we have for EXP) could be built from IQ parts. I’ll ask him as the STEM Lab itself, the contents taught inside, could also be taught with IQ.

[Matthew_Goodwin]

It’s IQ, so anything is possible if you put your heart to it
Although we do not have anything currently you can begin building with an Education Kit @Pepper_Dellinger, we do have an example possible with a Competition Kit (more unique pieces than the Education Kit). Check out Fling! Use it as an example to see what’s possible as well as extrapolate the catapult mechanism into your own version of this Frankenstein Robot! If you need any help, let me know as I’m currently invested into this now lol. Keep me updated!