Edu & Fun brings science come to live!

As the synergy of the knowledge is getting more and more invaluable in today’s word, learning, being creative and mastering the usage of the new digital technologies are becoming basic skills. Due to this, the education of the newest generations needs to start as soon as possible, so they can adopt to the technologies by instinct.

Edu & Fun is a place where children can create a small planet to learn the science of tomorrow by playing and entertaining. The aim is to show and share with children, parents and teachers that using the new technologies can be fun and will be a must of tomorrow.

The overall goal was to create an organization that helps children and teachers to discover the world using the tools of modern technology. They accomplish this through experience, efficiency training, and by improving skills in both programming and STEAM fields.

The center which is located in Budapest, Hungary emphasizes the importance of the digital education and make the „more expensive” programs available for everyone for free! The employees of the institute believe that programming can be taught for everyone in a fun and playful manner. Moreover, they are convinced that this mindset attracts, stimulates and engages the interest of children to the IT field.

Click here and have a virtual tour in the Digital Education Center of Edu & Fun.

"Education has to keep pace with the world. Our goal was to create an organization that helps children and teachers to discover the beauty of science and programming through their own experiences and explore the endless possibilities inherent in them." - said Zoltán Benedeczki the Head of Edu & Fun.

A good school and a great teacher prepares children for life – digital literacy is now however essential for prosperity. The operator of Edu & Fun offers complex educational solutions for developing students’ digital competences. In addition to the necessary innovative tools, they also offer methodological trainings and quick lectures for teachers, camps, workshops, alternative classroom, curriculum development, robotic & programming courses and weekend classes for the children.

Not only do they distribute the latest digital tools, but they help improving the educational institutions and its teachers with guidance and training to learn using the modern machines and equipment.

The children who get familiar with programming in a playful and fun way, cannot only have an easier time in everyday life, but are more likely to develop a lot of interest in information technology and choose it their own vocation.

As mentioned earlier, Edu & Fun tries to educate as many people as possible, therefore their target groups are widespread too:

• Teachers – who are open for the alternative possibilities in education, innovator teachers
• Children – from 6 years old
• Parents, grandparents
• Families – weekend programs
• Adults – who are interested in the new technologies
• Artists

The Educational Center not only has a broad base of customers but also offers a comprehensive educational curriculum. The modern tools they provide can be categorized into 4 main technological groups:

• Robot technology: A robot is the product of the robotics field, where programmable machines are built that can assist humans or mimic human actions. Robots all consist of some sort of mechanical construction. The mechanical aspect of a robot helps it complete tasks in the environment for which it's designed.
  • Fanuc robotic arm
  • Dobot robotic arm
  • Various educational floor robots
    • (Edison, Ozobot, Sphero, LEGO EV3, BeeBot, etc.)
  • Humanoid robots: Nao and Pepper
  • Robotic dog with artificial intelligence
    • (SONY AIBO)
  • Lego education
• 3D printing: 3D printing uses computer-aided design (CAD) to create three-dimensional objects through a layering method. Sometimes referred to as additive manufacturing, 3D printing involves layering materials, like plastics to create objects that range in shape, size, rigidity and color. Edu & Fun teaches the usage of Craftbot 3D printers.
• Smart technology: The word “SMART” refers to “self-monitoring, analysis, and reporting technology”. It is a technology that uses artificial intelligence, machine learning, and big data analysis to provide cognitive awareness to objects that were in the past considered inanimate. It is most commonly known as smart cities and smart homes, where we can come across with complex solutions (eg. smart tv, smart vacuum cleaner, philips hue smart led).
• Visual technology: Visual technology is any technology that captures, organizes, filters, learns from, or distributes visual content either for consumers or businesses. For example, VR and AR solutions, and other interesting tools like LEAP MOTION (when our hands are used as controllers), STOP MOTION making, as well as some filmmaking technologies such as animation making with GREEN BOX.

For a 3D printer manufacturer, education is one of the most important territory. Craftbot always focuses on helping teachers to implement 3D printing into their educational system. Other than that, the company also cooperates to provide the schools with curriculum, teaching guides and manuals for 3D printing.

Edu & Fun started the collaboration with Craftbot to take part and support 3D printing courses, clubs, camps for children, adults where they can learn the basics not only of the printings, but 3D planning, using slicer programs and a little bit of coding as well.

Craftbot provided its full range of 3D printers for this noble purpose. The company all together gave 9 3D printers to the Educational Center: Crabot XL (1), Craftbot Plus (4), Craftbot Flow (1), Craftbot Flow XL (1), Craftbot Flow IDEX (1), Craftbot Flow IDEX XL (1).

Learning by doing is the base of the courses of 3D printing. Just like using a traditional printer, they also print from files – however instead of texts and images, the 3D blueprint of the objects should be sent to the device.

There are several 3D printing methods and procedures available – Craftbot is a desktop printer that uses an FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) technology that operates using a plastic thread (or filament) instead of printer ink. The print head melts the filament and then builds up the object from layer to layer on a special tray. This is a whole new technology that students can get familiar with.

Zoltán Benedeczki the head of Edu & Fun shared his opinion of the Craftbot 3D printers:

"We use CraftBot 3D printers at the workshops because they are extremely durable and thanks to its massive, welded steel frame it is also totally children safe – the side walls protect the device and in addition to that a carbon filter dome and lockable doors are also available for the printers. The Craftbots are easy to assemble, install and disassemble – Craftbot has even won the best Plug ’N’ Play 3D printer award at 3D Hub’s Printer Hub 2017. Not to mention that they are incredibly reliable and accurate machines as they print a lot during workshops and we rarely have any problems with them."

Having the opportunity to go to Edu & Fun is a real „digital wizard training” – the creative game helps to develop critical thinking and digital competence; experimental, problem-solving and logical-algorithmic skills; and improves the willingness to teamwork.