LEGO® Education Evolves STEM Learning with the Next Generation LEGO MINDSTORMS® Education EV3 Platform

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS:

• The LEGO^® MINDSTORMS^® Education EV3 platform is the third generation of LEGO Education robotics technology designed for classroom use. It is a full teaching solution developed with educators to actively engage students in a number of key curriculum areas such as computer science, science, technology, engineering, and math correlated to national standards.
• The EV3 platform includes customizable curriculum and digital workbooks; a hardware platform based on real-world robotics technology for engaging, hands-on activities; an intuitive software platform consisting of both programming and data-logging interface including 48 step-by-step tutorials; and extensive professional development courses.
• The LEGO MINDSTORMS Education EV3 platform is backwards compatible with the previous MINDSTORMS Education NXT platform, ensuring that existing sensors, motors, and building elements can be reused. It is also possible to program NXT using the new EV3 software.

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, LEGO^® Education announced the LEGO MINDSTORMS^® Education EV3 platform, the next generation of robotics for the classroom, continuing 15 years of MINDSTORMS robotics technology for education. The EV3 platform was created based on feedback from more than 800 educators worldwide and provides relevant robotics curriculum and technology for teaching computer science, science, technology, engineering, and math through a hands-on experience with sensors, motors, programming, and the programmable EV3 Brick. Students can now build and program a fully functioning robot in a single 45-minute class period.

The platform includes customizable curriculum that is digitally delivered and installs directly into the LEGO Education MINDSTORMS programming software lobby. The built-in digital workbook can be used by students to capture their work as they progress through the lessons, making it easy for the teacher to follow students’ progress and assess their work.

The EV3 platform includes Design Engineering Projects, a curriculum package with 30 hours of classroom instruction. The structure of the activities in the Design Engineering Projects curriculum follows the engineering design process used by scientists and engineers in many industries. Using videos of real-world robots as inspiration, the students are given a design brief that challenges them to develop, design, and share their solution. Throughout the process, students learn through combining and applying science, technology, and math disciplinary skills as they engineer their design solution. This structure is designed to help students develop the creative-thinking, problem-solving, teamwork, and communication skills required for success in school and beyond.

The LEGO MINDSTORMS Education EV3 Core Set comes with the EV3 Brick, rechargeable battery, sensors, motors, large brick selection, a new ball wheel, and building instructions. The intuitive software platform for EV3 is based on National Instruments LabVIEW™ graphical programming software, the same technology that powers some of the greatest innovations on the planet, and includes new data-logging capabilities that allow students to collect, graph, and calculate their data. Also available is the LEGO MINDSTORMS Education EV3 Expansion Set, which enables students to build larger-scale, more complex robots. For easy classroom management, both the base education set and the expansion set have storage bins and sorting trays.

LEGO MINDSTORMS Education EV3 is now available for preorder and will ship in the fall semester of 2013.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

• For information on how to implement LEGO MINDSTORMS Education EV3 in your school, or how to transition to EV3 from NXT, visit www.LEGOeducation.com/MINDSTORMS
• For parents, children and enthusiasts who want the flexibility, power, and fun of LEGO MINDSTORMS at home, a new version of MINDSTORMS optimized for home play will also be released this year. It includes expanded on-brick programming, tighter integration with smart devices and Linux-based firmware, offering nearly unlimited programming and expansion capabilities. Additionally, LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 will also include full Apple iOS and Android compatibility out of the box. For more information about the retail version of LEGO MINDSTORMS please visit www.MINDSTORMS.com.

About LEGO Education

Since 1980, LEGO Education (LEGOeducation.us) has delivered hands-on, curriculum-based resources for teachers and students worldwide. LEGO Education believes a hands-on, minds-on approach helps students actively take ownership of the learning process and develop 21st-century skills such as creative thinking and problem solving through real-life, engaging experiences.

LEGO, the LEGO logo, MINDSTORMS, and the MINDSTORMS logo are trademarks of the LEGO Group. ©2013 The LEGO Group.